We are pretty good these days at reading our dogs and cats. We know when they are happy and we can tell when they are sad. There are many familiar clues we look for – wagging tail, ear position, eye position. We often read these clues and tells without even realizing we are doing so and when this happens it an almost feel like a special heart to heart link with our pets. But what about some of the more unusual pets we might have? Rabbits, Guinea pigs and birds? These species can be much more challenging to read and their behavioral cues are often much more subtle. There is a very good reason f ..read more

You’ve joined the COVID fitness bandwagon as a good reason to leave the house whilst in a lockdown but have over extended yourself and now are hobbling around unable to do any exercise at all! How do you get back on track? If a few days rest and anti-inflammatories haven’t solved your pain, most people turn to a physiotherapist for advice and often are able to return to exercise stronger and pain free. Here at Brudine Veterinary Clinic, we also aim for similar goals for our pets who struggle with any form of mobility issue or pain. Although we can’t ask out pets to follow instructions on how t ..read more

At Brudine Vets we absolutely love all creatures – furred, feathered and scaled. But todays blog is all about our wonderful feline companions and their interesting attributes. Purring Cats purr by vibrating the muscles of their voice-box (larynx) at a frequency of 25 to 150 times per second! There are multiple reasons a cat may purr. It could be because they are content or possibly as a means of self-soothing when they are stressed. Some cats produce a high frequency purr when they want something from their owners (a “soliciting” purr). The frequency at which cats purr is similar to frequencie ..read more

Meet gorgeous little Winston, a 7 month old Rag Doll. This cheeky chap has recently been a bit of a frequent flyer here at Brudine! Last month he ingested the rubber nipple/teat off a dummy that required him to have surgery to remove it from his duodenum, the first part of his small bowel. He healed well and returned to his mischievous ways. Unfortunately, about a month later he re-presented for being lethargic, off his food and vomiting. He was admitted and X-rays were taken. Have a look at the image below and see if you can locate the problem……. Dr Gwen spied a suspiciously teat-shaped obj ..read more

Gindy is a beautiful 9yo Blue Heeler who presented in early June to us to have a nasal flush and chest x-ray performed. However, within that week we noticed she had lost 900g! Her owners also noticed that she was drinking a lot more than usual. We went ahead with a pre-anaesthetic blood panel and a urine test which showed Gindy had elevated blood glucose levels that there was both glucose and ketones present in her urine. This confirmed that she had diabetes. Treatment was commenced, and she was started on IV fluids and insulin injections. We rechecked her blood glucose levels throughout the ..read more

Hazel is a 7 year old Labrador Retriever who presented to us after her owners noticed she was having troubles toileting. Hazel was fed a marrow bone 3 days prior to her presenting to the clinic and since then had been straining to defecate and producing small amounts of liquid. Hazel was seen by Dr Shae who performed a physical exam on her. Everything checked out normal except that a firm palpable mass was able to be felt in her abdomen. It was recommended that x-rays be done so we could determine what this mass could be as we were suspicious of Hazel having an intestinal foreign body. Dr Gwe ..read more

With lockdown over and many pet owners changing their working arrangements and returning to an office, there is understandably some concern about how our pets, who have gotten so used to having us at home, will cope with another shift in the household routine. Although many pets will adjust to a new routine at home, some sadly will not be able to cope with their owners leaving them alone when they do return to work and may suffer from separation anxiety. Separation anxiety is one of the most common, yet most underdiagnosed behavioural problems in dogs. Some estimates suggest up to 1 in 5 dogs ..read more

Maxx and Gabi are greyhound siblings who presented to us in early February after eating some Nurofen tablets. Between the two of them, they possibly ingested up to 16 tablets. Nurofen, or ibuprofen as it is also known, as is an anti-inflammatory drug that is used to treat pain and inflammation in people. Ibuprofen affects the gastrointestinal tract, kidneys and liver and is toxic to dogs. Signs of toxicity can appear in as little as 12hrs after ingestion. The initial toxic effect is to cause bleeding stomach ulcers, with larger doses of ibuprofen potentially leading to kidney failure. Maxx an ..read more

Meet perfect little Popcorn. This beautiful 3 year old bunny was referred to us from another clinic as he was very sick from an acute gastrointestinal obstruction. He had not improved during that morning on intensive medical management and his stomach was very bloated. His owners made the difficult decision between further medical management and surgical intervention, deciding that surgical intervention was worth the potential risks. Dr Gwen took Popcorn to surgery for an exploratory laparotomy, where she opened up his abdomen and located the obstruction in the duodenum, the first part of the ..read more

Pets are a huge part of all our families so it is very important to be reminded of the “do’s” and “don’ts” when it comes to treats for our pets around the Christmas holidays. Around the Christmas period, their environment becomes filled with decorations, trees and flowers that in themselves can be hazardous as well as lots of tempting foods that can be dangerous if consumed. Toxic foods; 1. Christmas Ham/turkey/chicken - although very tasty and tempting to treat your pet with these Christmas meats, they are very high in fat. Dogs do not tolerate digesting fat in the way we humans do and can l ..read more