If you are looking to book a cat vaccination, please be aware that there is an ongoing shortage of some cat vaccines affecting all UK Veterinary practices. Find out more here.

Services

See what we can offer you and your pet at Abivale Vets

  • Night service
  • Vaccinations
  • Neutering
  • Microchipping
  • Pet Passport
  • Other services

Night service

Our night routine for patients in our Abingdon practice is as follows:

18.30 - 19.00

Kennels and cages cleaned out. Food and water refreshed (if required). Patients' vital signs (TPR) recorded. Day-Night staff handover.

19.00 - 21.00

Patients examined by night staff and treatment plans for their shift reviewed. Owners telephoned with progress report for their pet.

23.00

Case note completion for evening inpatients.

21.00 - 07.30

Hourly (or more) checks of inpatients (depending on patient stability). Further investigations (bloods, x-rays etc.) performed if required. Medication administration as and when required. Exercise and toileting of dogs.

07.30 - 08.00

Patients are handed over to the day staff. Case notes are completed for start of day. Food and water will be supplied as needed. Dogs are allowed to empty their bladder and bowels outside on a regular basis (where medically possible). Throughout their stay your pet will receive plenty of fuss, love and attention from our staff.

Vaccinations

Why vaccinate your pet?

Vaccinating your cat, dog, puppy or kitten is one of the most important things that you can do as a responsible and caring owner. It will help your pet to live a long and healthy life.

These vaccines provide antibodies against the most common and contagious, life-threatening diseases that your dog or cat will come across during their lifetime. Many of these diseases either have no cure, or would involve long, expensive and often unsuccessful treatments for you pet.

When should I vaccinate?

During the first few weeks of life, your puppy or kitten will be protected from disease by immunity passed on by the mother before birth, and through her milk. (These are known as maternally derived antibodies). Unfortunately, this immunity only lasts until your puppy or kitten is around 12 weeks of age. This is why it is so important to get the vaccinations completed as soon as possible.

We recommend having the first vaccination at 8 weeks old in puppies, and 9 weeks old in kittens.

The second vaccination is then given between 3-4 weeks later.

This means that the protection provided by these vaccines starts at the approximate time that the immunity passed on by your pet’s mother runs out.

After the primary course, an annual ‘booster’ vaccination is essential, providing your loved pet with continuous protection. Annual boosters are very important as, unlike in humans,  the effect of vaccination only lasts a limited time.

What Diseases Does The Vaccine Cover?

Cats

Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis – ‘CAT FLU’

  • Easily transmitted from one cat to another

  • Causes sneezing, fever, lack of appetite, discharges from the eyes and nose and coughing
  • Even if a cat recovers, symptoms may occur on and off for life

Feline Calicivirus

  • Another major cause of ‘cat flu’
  • Widespread and highly contagious
  • Causes ulcers in the tongue and mouth and pneumonia (lung inflammation), sneezing and runny eyes
  • Treatment is difficult
  • Infected animals will continue to spread the disease to other cats, and may have lifelong problems

Feline Panleucopenia – cat ‘Parvo’ or Enteritis

  • This disease can survive for up to a year outside of your cat’s body
  • Most cats will come into contact with it in their lifetime
  • Causes diarrhoea, vomiting, severe dehydration and fever
  • Once infected, a cat can spread the disease to other cats in the area
  • Vaccination is essential for this potentially fatal disease – treatment is very difficult, and not always successful 

Feline Leukaemia Virus (FeLV)

  • This disease can result in a number of health problems for your cat, ranging from bacterial infections to cancers
  • After being exposed to the Virus, an infected cat may show no symptoms for months, if not years, while continuing to affect other healthy cats
  • A potentially fatal disease

Dogs

Canine Parvovirus

  • Spread via infected faeces dog to dog

  • Highly contagious and often fatal
  • Causes fever, vomiting, and diarrhoea with blood
  • The disease can stay in the environment for months, continuing to infect other dogs

Canine Distemper

  • Often fatal and very difficult to treat
  • Spread dog to dog by eye and nose discharges
  • Causes fever, coughing, diarrhoea, vomiting, fitting and paralysis

Infectious Canine Hepatitis

  • Spread dog to dog by infected urine, faeces or saliva
  • Symptoms similar to Distemper
  • Causes Liver failure, eye damage and breathing problems
  • Can be fatal 

Leptospirosis

  • Infected dogs can suffer from Liver and Kidney damage
  • This disease will need a long period of treatment if they are to fully recover
  • Often fatal and CAN INFECT HUMANS

Infectious Tracheobronchitis – ‘Kennel cough’

  • Transmitted from dog to dog easily
  • Caused by various airborne bacteria and viruses just like the human cold
  • Causes a dry, hacking cough – often resulting in vomiting
  • Requires a separate vaccine given by squirting liquid up the nose

Neutering

For non breeders of animals we believe neutering is essential

Female Cat and Dog Neutering (Spaying)

We recommend that all female dogs and cats that are not intended to be bred from are neutered (spayed) at 6 months of age. Queen cats come into season at around this time and are highly successful at strolling the neighbourhood to find a mate and coming home pregnant!

Bitches often present later in life with reproductive problems (eg breast cancer or pyometra – pus in the womb) many of which are removed or drastically reduced by early neutering. It has been showed that spaying bitches before their first season (ie. At 6 months of age) reduces the risk of breast cancer later in life.

Did you know?

  • Neutered bitches live, on average, 2 years longer than those that are not!

  • It is a common misconception that female pets will be better after a litter of pups or kittens – this is not correct.

Male Dog Neutering

Male dogs can make good pets either castrated or entire. Castrating a dog will have no effect on his character. Dogs that show early signs of aggression should be considered for castration although this will not guarantee correction of the behavioural problem.

Did you know?

  • All guide dogs and other working dogs are castrated?

Male Cat Neutering

Tom cats that are not pedigree stud cats should all be castrated. The stray cat population in Britain is growing rapidly. Castrated male cats also:

  • Smell less

  • Fight less

  • Roam less

As a result they  pick up less infections, for example, feline aids and leukaemia and reduce the risk of road traffic accidents through roaming. Castrating a cat will have no effect on his character.

We also perform neutering in Rabbits, Ferrets (including vasectomies) and Guinea Pigs.

Microchipping

How would you feel if your pet strayed, became lost or worse still, was stolen?

It happens everyday, and of course if an animal can’t be identified it can’t be returned.

The solution is the “Tracer Animal Coder Microchip“,  a permanent form of identification.

Tracer is quick and simple. The tiny Tracer Microchip, encased in biocompatible glass, is injected under the loose skin of the neck in dogs and cats (in other animals the microchip may be inserted elsewhere).

Should the animal stray or be picked up by one of the local authorities, the tracer scanner will read the unique 15-digit code. The petlog secure database (accessible 24 hours a day, 365 days a year) can then identify the animal, as well as it’s owners, name, address and telephone number so that pet and owner can be reunited in the shortest possible time.

Almost any animal can be microchipped...

Pet Passport

Travel with your pet

Abivale Veterinary Group are able to provide the Pets Passport for your pets as well as Export Certificates and Private Health Certificates.

If you wish to have a passport please telephone your nearest branch for an appointment.

Please use the following link for the latest details of the scheme:

Defra: travelling with pets

https://www.gov.uk/take-pet-abroad

Other services

Along with the services in the main menu, Abivale Veterinary Group also offer:

  • Worming and Flea treatment
  • Preventative medical advice
  • Insurance Advice
  • Dietary Advice
  • Dental Care
  • Blood Testing
  • Endoscopy
  • Xrays
  • Ultrasound
  • ECG
  • Ophthalmology
  • Dermatology
  • Acupuncture
  • Laser Therapy
  • Physiotherapy
  • Allergy Treatments
  • Cancer Treatments
  • General Surgery
  • Export Certificates
  • 24 hour emergency service

 

And much more!