Dr. and Janis Winchester's new puppy, Jabba the Rottweiler. www.fallhammerrotts.com

From the very beginning of our relationship with you and your pet, we provide an unsurpassed support system to ensure the well-being of your pet family member. From the initial exam and throughout your pet’s life, our goal is to lay the foundation for a lifetime of health. Our experienced and knowledgeable veterinarians and staff will advise and guide you on the best nutrition, proper immunizations, microchipping and tattooing, and routine medical procedures and care that are the most appropriate and current for your individual pet and his/her particular environment and lifestyle.

We offer on-site obedience training for both puppies and adult dogs through Julington Creek Animal Walk, northeast Florida’s premier luxury pet resort, spa and dog park.

We are fully equipped to ensure that your pet maintains a long and healthy quality of life with geriatric health care exams including blood testing, radiographs and physicals tailored for the older animal.

It is important that both you and your veterinarian work together to make sure that your pet is healthy and happy, and we are enthusiastic about our ability to provide the highest level of family pet care possible. The medical field is constantly changing, and we require our veterinarians, as well as our staff, to be continually educated and trained on the latest in state-of-the-art animal care.

Nutrition and Obesity
Heartworm Disease And Prevention
Flea Prevention
Spaying and Neutering
Importance of Dental Health
Training your dog

Nutrition and Obesity
Obesity is the condition of being seriously overweight. Obese pets have more physical ailments and a shorter lifespan than those of normal weight. Obesity increases the risk of complications during surgery, and breathing and walking are more difficult for the obese pet.

Obesity is usually the result of too much food and too little exercise. Other factors, such as breed, temperament, hormone imbalance, and disease, may also cause obesity, but most cases are the result of consuming too many calories.

Weight loss should be accomplished slowly with a nutritionally balanced diet, rather than with severe short-term food restriction. In most cases, pets must be re-trained to eat moderate amounts of food 1 to 2 times daily without any snacks.

All members of the family should be aware of the need for the pet to lose weight, and all should be in agreement before starting dietary control. One person can easily foul up the entire weight-loss program. During your next visit, ask one of our doctors to evaluate your pet’s weight.

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Heartworm Disease And Prevention
Did you know that every year, thousands of dogs here in Florida become permanently disabled or die needlessly due to heartworm disease? Were you aware that heartworm disease is preventable? Found wherever mosquitoes are present, heartworm disease can be fatal, and because of our Florida climate, we see many cases each year.

But you can ensure your pet’s safety simply by keeping him on heartworm preventive medicines all throughout the year. It’s easy. Just speak with one of our veterinarians to first determine the best course of treatment for your pet. For your convience, we sell heartworm prevention medications, such as Sentinal, Interceptor and Revolution. We will work closely with you to guard your pet against heartworm disease and give you a personal treatment plan that works best for you and your pet. We will then decide if it’s best for us to administer medication or whether it’s more convenient for you to purchase heartworm prevention medications from us, such as Sentinel, Interceptor and Revolution. We will work closely with you to guard your pet against heartworm disease and give you a personal treatment plan that works best for you and your pet.

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Flea Prevention
If you have a pet, you worry about fleas. Not only do fleas transmit disease from pet to pet, did you know that they can also transmit diseases to humans also? What can you do? You’ve seen it; one flea quickly becomes two and then four and then an infestation. We recommend that you treat your pet for fleas all year long. After talking with one of our veterinarians for a personal treatment plan, you may purchase flea prevention products directly from us. We offer Frontline, Capstar, Comfortis, and Sentinel.

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Spaying and Neutering
Many people have questions about spaying or neutering their pets. It’s a decision that comes with the responsibility of owning a dog or cat, and we know it’s not a decision you make lightly. We believe there are several reasons why you should have your pet spayed or neutered. We hope the following information will be helpful to you and your quest to have a healthy, happy pet.

There are countless reasons to have your female pet spayed. This involves the surgical removal of the ovaries and uterus. The actual name of the procedure is ovariohysterectomy. Why should you have your pet spayed? It helps to eliminate the risk of certain cancers, such as ovarian and uterine cancer. It also helps to prevent fatal uterine infections known as pyometra. If your pet is spayed before the first estrus or ‘heat cycle’, the procedure can reduce the chances of breast cancer to less than of 1%! And of course one of the most common reasons for spaying is to prevent unwanted pregnancies. Keep your pet healthy by having her spayed. Call us today for full details surrounding this important procedure.

Many people also choose to have their male pet neutered. The clinical term for this is orchidectomy, and involves the surgical removal of your pet’s testicles. Just like spaying, neutering helps to prevent certain cancers in your male pet, such as prostate and testicular cancer. It also helps prevent prostatitis, diminishes unwanted sexual behaviors, pregnancies, aggression and roaming.

Both of these surgeries are relatively safe procedures and the benefits to your pet and you far outweigh any complications that your pet may undergo. Although we observe few complications, the most common is that your pet may remove the sutures early and that could result in mild incision-site irritation and/or swelling. This is an easily treated condition if your pet is brought back to us when you first discover the problem.

When should you have your pet spayed or neutered? We recommend that you have your pet undergo these procedures between 4 and 6 months of age. After you contact one of our veterinarians, we will determine the best time for your pet to be spayed or neutered, and then give you further necessary information and details at the time of surgery.

How much does the procedure cost? The cost is determined by taking into account several factors: your pet’s physical condition, size, surgical materials and anesthesia used and the duration of the surgery itself. Because we know that this is such a vital procedure for your pet to have, we try to minimize the cost to encourage pet owners to make this decision for their pets. While doing so, we maximize your pet’s safety while putting our clinical and surgical expertise to work for you and your pet. Call us today for more information about this important decision in your pet’s life, and we will be happy to answer any questions that you may have and schedule an appointment that is convenient for you.

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Importance of Dental Health
Many owners of dogs and cats might tend to forget a very important element of their pet’s care: their teeth! Animals can get the same kinds of dental problems that their human owners get, and we know that you want to take the best care of your special friend as you possibly can. With that in mind, here is some information to help you ensure that your pet receives the best dental care.

Signs and Symptoms
Did you know that neglecting your dog or cat’s teeth could actually lead to some very serious health issues? Periodontal, or gum disease, can cause weight loss, and even infections of the kidney, bladder and heart valves. Periodontal disease is sometimes hard to detect because it occurs very slowly, but some of the early warning signs are as follows:

If you see any of these signs, it’s best to take care of the problem immediately. Periodontal disease can be very painful for your pet.

What You Can Do at Home
You are your pet’s best dentist! With proper home dental care, these issues will probably never occur. But it must be done properly. NEVER USE HUMAN TOOTHPASTE OR BAKING SODA IN PETS! It may seem like an acceptable way to treat your dog or cat’s teeth, but some of these ingredients are meant only for humans and could cause stomach problems and foaming at the mouth in animals. Baking soda has a very high sodium content, which can also cause problems in your special friend, especially with a heart condition.

So how should you care for your pet’s teeth at home? There are two common methods: brushing and antimicrobial rinses. When brushing, use a toothpaste made for pets, it will do the cleaning for you. You can use a soft finger brushette to apply the dentifrice. What if this is new for you and your pet? We recommend a gradual approach. First rub your dog or cat’s face with the brush for a few days to get him used to the smell and sight of the brush. After this, slowly and gently rub the gums for a few days and then finally, add the dentifrice and rub it on the outside surfaces of your pet’s teeth. To prevent dental problems from occurring, brush the teeth every 2 to 7 days.

Brushing not something you’d care to do? There’s a perfectly acceptable alternative method; the dental oral rinse. The rinse will help to reduce the buildup of plaque. For your convenience, we carry a supply of oral hygiene products that we feel are the best to adequately treat your pet’s dental needs.

When Home Treatment Is Not Enough
Sometimes we do find that routine brushing is not quite enough. Just as humans go to have thorough dental cleanings, sometimes that’s what we will recommend for your pet. Under general anesthesia, we will remove plaque and harmful bacteria with dental instruments. Please call one of our veterinarians today if you feel that a thorough dental cleaning would be in your pet’s best interests.

GOOD Things for Your Pet to Chew On

• DentaBones
• Kongs (any kind)
• Rawhides
• Rubber Toys
• Braided Nylon Rope Bones
• Gumma Bones
• CET Hextra Chews

Any chew toys that you can bend with your hands is safe for your pet's teeth.

BAD Things for Your Pet to Chew On

• Real Meat Bones
• Rocks
• Hooves
• Nylon Bones
• Pressed Rawhide
• Knuckle Bones
• Tennis Balls
  

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