County Animal Hospital

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Services

CAH offers many services to our valued clients. Click on the links below for more information on that service:

Computerized medical records system

24-hour Emergency Service (Doctor on Call)

House Calls

Complete Sterile Surgery

Isoflurane Gas Anesthesia,
with Cardiac & Respiratory Monitoring

Electrocardiography/Echocardiography

Ultrasonography

Endoscopy

Telemedicine via Internet

Video Otoscopy

Oxygen & Nebulization Therapy

Doppler Blood Pressure Measurement

Penn Hip & OFA Evaluations

Laboratory Facilities

Complete X-Ray Services

Complete Pharmacy

Isolette Incubator

Nutritional Counseling & Prescription Diets

Dental Cleaning & Oral Surgery

Avian Medicine, Surgery, and Bird Diets

Medical Boarding

Bathing & Medical Grooming

Puppy Kindergarten Classes

Computerized medical records system and website

County Animal Hospital has taken the medical records system into the digital age. Your pet's medical record is entirely digital. This results in a printable (i.e. legible) concise, organized medical record that is readily understood. Medical records can be instantly produced (or e mailed) for specialist referrals with the touch of a button. Our doctors and staff have instant access to your pet's records from anywhere in the hospital or even when away from the office. The system is connected to the internet by a broadband connection. Laboratory results are imported directly from the reference laboratory's website. Photographs, radiographs and digital ultrasound and endoscopic images can be imported and electronically stored. Clients can access their pet's medical records and communicate with the doctors and staff members through their personal pet portals (see the link on the home page). The often doctors consult with specialists and clients by email. Clear organized medical records improve the efficiency and accuracy of medical diagnosis and treatments. The network also has a superb reminder system that helps us stay in touch with you and monitor your pet's progress at home. Clients can also use our website to schedule appointments (through the Pet portal) or order medications through the electronic Vetstore (see link on the home page).

Electrocardiography/Echocardiography

An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a tracing of the electrical activity of the heart. It is useful for detecting abnormal cardiac rhythms (arrhythmias) and cardiac enlargement. The electrocardiogram is non-invasive, painless and can be performed on most animals without sedation.

Echocardiography is an ultrasound study of the heart. This technique is non-invasive, painless and can be performed on most patients without sedation. It allows the beating heart to be directly observed. The cardiac chambers and walls can be measured and the valve leaflets can be directly examined. Doppler echocardiography is an advanced technique that allows the velocity of blood flowing through the heart to be measured. This is especially helpful in the study of congenital heart defects in puppies and kittens and in valvular disease in older animals. Still and video loops of echocardiographic studies are stored in digital form on a computer for telemedicine consultations with a cardiology specialist.

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Sonograms

Sonograms are ultrasound examinations of various parts of the body. Most commonly the abdomen is examined. The liver, gall bladder, kidneys, urinary bladder, uterus, prostate, stomach and intestines can be examined. In some patients the pancreas and adrenal glands can be seen as well as the major arteries and veins. Ultrasound can also be used to study other body parts such as eyes and testicles. An echocardiogram is a sonogram of the heart. Organs and tumors can be directly sampled for biopsy with the aid of ultrasonographic visualization and sedation. Still images and video loops are stored on a computer digitally.

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Telemedicine consultations

Electronic medical records, still images and video loops of ultrasound studies, radiographs and other data are transmitted over the internet to specialists all over the world through Dark Horse Medical Ventures. This allows your pet to have the benefit of a specialist without having to travel to a referral hospital. Cardiologists, radiologists, internists and avian and exotic specialists are frequently consulted. The turn around time for these consultations is usually less than 24 hours, but can be less than 2 hours in emergency situations. Telemedicine brings the expertise of a large referral hospital to County Animal Hospital. This saves time, money, inconvenience and sometimes a pet's life.

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Laboratory Facilities

Our in-house lab is used to examine fecal samples, urine samples and cytology slides (samples of cells/fluid from lumps or ears). In addition we can run complete blood counts and full serum chemistry profiles (including blood gases and electrolytes) within a few minutes. This is very helpful when emergency surgery needs to be preformed, or when a critically ill pet presents and quick answers are needed.
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House calls

In general, it is best to bring your pet to hospital for most medical services. House calls are sometimes requested when the owner is unable to come to the hospital or when the pet can not be moved. Owners who are considering euthanasia for their terminally ill pets occasionally will request that this be done as a house call so that the pet is spared the last trip to the hospital. We are pleased to offer house calls as a service to our clients. House calls need to be scheduled in advance. Emergency house calls are difficult to arrange during office hours because it is difficult to rearrange the doctor's appointment schedule on short notice. The cost of a house call depends on the mileage from the hospital to your home and the length of time the doctor spends in your home.

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Video Otoscopy

The Storz Video Otoscope allows the ear to be examined in exqusite clarity and with magnification. Images can be recorded digitally and printed for future referrence. This equipment enhances the doctor's ability to view conditions in the canine and feline ear with greater clarity and allows the pet owner to see as well. This facilitates successful treatment. Most commonly the scope is used right in the examination room for routine examinations, but it is very useful for doing meticulous ear cleanings and examinations under anesthesia when medically necessary.

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Oxygen Therapy

Animals with difficulty breathing may benefit from breathing higher levels of oxygen. We have an oxygen incubator for small animals and an oxygen hood for larger dogs for this purpose.

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Blood Pressure Monitoring

Many diseases will cause a rise in blood pressure. A high blood pressure may then cause other problems. CAH uses a doppler blood pressure unit to accurately determine an animal's pressures. This is non-invasive and performed on the animal awake.

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Penn Hip and OFA Evaluations

Hip dysplasia is a developmental disease of the hip joints of many breeds of dogs. Large breeds like German shepherd dogs and retrievers are commonly affected. This disease is often crippling and can result in a painfully shortened life span in severely affected dogs. Responsible and caring dog breeders should have their breeding dogs (males and females) screened radiographically for hip dysplasia prior to breeding. The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) was founded in the early 1960's to evaluate radiographs taken of dog's hips and to certify those animals with normal hips. The breeder's veterinarian X-rays the dog's hips in a standard position under anesthesia. The resulting radiograph is then sent to the OFA who, in turn, refers the films to a panel of board-certified veterinary radiologists (usually veterinary college professors) who evaluate them. Caring breeders would only breed those dogs whose hips were certified as normal by the OFA. Dogs must be 2 years of age or older before they can be certified.

OFA has lessened the severity and frequency of hip dysplasia to some degree, but the disease persists. In the 1980's a better method of evaluating the canine hip joint was developed at the University of Pennsylvania. This method, known as the Penn Hip evaluation, involves taking additional radiographic views. A Penn Hip study measures how tight the hip joints are. An actual measurement of tightness is made on the radiographs themselves resulting in a numerical value called the distractive index. Dogs with the tightest hips have the lowest distractive index and least likelihood of developing hip dysplasia. The Penn Hip study can be performed and evaluated at four months of age or older. Only veterinarians who have been specifically trained and certified by Penn Hip can submit radiographs for evaluation.

The Penn Hip method will advance the fight against canine hip dysplasia because it replaces the subjective review of a radiologist with an easily repeated measurement. Breeding studies have shown that the distractive index is highly inheritable. Penn Hip maintains and publishes a database for each breed. This database makes available to breeders and veterinarians the range of distractive indices for each breed. Breeders can improve the hips in their dogs by breeding dogs in the tighter half of the distractive index range for the breed. Dr. Robert Weiner is certified by Penn Hip and is happy to provide more information on Penn Hip for individual breeders or breed clubs.

PennHip web site: http://www.pennhip.org/

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Medical Boarding

CAH offers medical boarding to cats, dogs, birds and other small pets. Since we are a hospital, we can accommodate pets that have special medical or dietary requirements. Please make reservations for this service in advance. Please bring along your pet's medications and their regular food. If you do not bring any food, we will feed a premium brand of pet food. If you desire, your pet can be bathed, at an additional charge, before discharge.

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Puppy Kindergarten Class

Cornell Cooperative Extension teaches a class for 8-19 week old puppies at CAH. In this class, you and your pet will learn about socialization, household etiquette, general puppy care and obedience basics. The class is 8 weeks long and the whole family is encouraged to attend. For more information on the Puppy Kindergarten Class, go to the Puppy Kindergarten page.

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Dental Cleaning/Surgery

The doctors at CAH suggest that you brush your pet's teeth daily using a cat/dog toothpaste. However, even with home brushing, at some point the doctor may recommend a professional dental cleaning. A pet dentistry is exactly the same as one you would receive, except that the pet needs to be anesthetized. Your pet's teeth will be ultrasonically and hand-scaled, the teeth and gums will be probed and charted for lesions, extractions are performed as necessary, then the teeth are polished and fluoride treated.

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Avian Medicine and Surgery

Owners of pet birds should know that their feathered family members need regular medical care and good diets. Many bird owners don't even realize that there are veterinarians who accept birds as patients. Every pet bird should have an annual physical examination performed. New acquisitions should have a post purchase examination as soon as possible. Physical examinations ensure that your pet is healthy and provide an opportunity for our doctors and staff members to discuss proper bird care nutrition and behavioral problems with you. We offer a full range of diagnostic medical and surgical services for birds including blood testing, radiology and endoscopy. We also carry Harrison Bird Diets. An informative collection of bird care pamphlets is available for free at the office. Ask the receptionist for a "bird kit".

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Laboratory Facilities

Our in-house lab is used to examine fecal samples, urine samples, cytology slides (samples of cells/fluid from lumps or ears) and certain blood tests. Other blood work and biopsies are sent to a local veterinary laboratory.

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Complete X-ray Services

CAH has a dedicated room for x-ray services. X-rays, properly called radiographs, are still images of various body parts. They are used to help diagnosis problems of soft-tissues, i.e. stomach, intestines, liver, kidneys, bladder, heart and lungs. They are also used to examine bones for fractures, arthritis and other diseases. Sometimes, special dyes and contrast agents are used for further diagnostics. Most animals receive sedation to allow accurate x-rays to be taken. This room is also used for our ultrasound exams.

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Complete Pharmacy

Most drugs that are prescribed for your pet are conveniently available from our in-house pharmacy. This also includes heartworm and flea/tick medications. Sometimes, the doctor may write out a prescription, which can be filled at any human pharmacy.

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Nutritional Counseling and Prescription Diets

There are many diseases in which food plays a role in the treatment, including heart disease, kidney disease, obesity and allergies. CAH stocks a full line of veterinary prescription foods for the benefit of your pet.

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Endoscopy

Endoscopy allows minimally invasive examinations of the gastro-intestinal system, nose, ears and bladder. Sometimes, foreign bodies in the stomach can be removed using an endoscope. Endoscopy is also used to examine the internal organs of birds. Animals are anesthetized for this procedure.

49 Congers Road, New City, NY 10956 | Local Map | (845) 634-4607

Questions or Comments? Please send an email to help@countyanimal.com.