SimplyCats Vet Clinic Blog

We teamed up with our sister company, SimplyHorses for a Christmas night out. Everyone enjoyed their meal at Melanzana Durham and a few drinks afterwards.
Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Thanks to the generosity of local companies and some of our clients,we have amassed a great selection of prizes for the ongoing Autumn Raffle! All proceeds are going to help the local Durham branch of Cats Protection. If you can, please pop down to the surgery and help the cause by purchasing your tickets, priced at £1.00 per strip.
Many thanks.

At this point, there is no closing date for the raffle – we will keep it going until as many tickets as possible have been sold, in order to help as many needy cats as we can.

Why not treat yourself or a friend to the luxurious smell of one of our pet odour eliminator candles. Gorgeous scents include vanilla & rose, french lavender, vanilla, clothesline fresh, pineapple & coconut, green apple pomegranate, cherry blossom, cherry pomegranate & hot apple cobbler, to name but a few! 70 hours of burn time – great value at £9.38 each.

For your furry friend we stock a range of soft, sisal and vibrating toys. Get in early and avoid the Christmas rush!

Our kitten lineup is as cute as ever! These three all started their vaccination course within the month of July and one lucky kitten will win a £10.00 voucher to spend on any product or service here at SimplyCats. Book your cutie in for August and be in with a chance of winning!

Dubby has been naughty again….Caroline’s son had his 9th birthday tea. Luckily only family members were present to see him jump on the table via the chair and steal a ham sandwich and take it to his lair underneath the chair. He would not part with it and hid further under the table as Caroline tried to reach him. He is pictured above re-emerging from underneath the table as he licks his lips after finishing his tasty snack !!! We’ll hold off for a weigh in at the moment as he finished off with part of a slice of battenburg cake stolen about 20 minutes later

Spring is in the air…. well the sun is out and the grass is starting to grow and hopefully this constitutes the onset of Spring. I for one will not be sorry to see the end of the long cold dark nights and now that the clocks have gone forward it means being able to spend more time outdoors with my animals.
Also at this time of year many more cats are making a move to venture outdoors to enjoy the sun and participate in their feline adventures! As some of these outings can be very exciting and require a lot of concentration our feline friends may venture further than they intended and a lot of owners find peace of mind knowing their beloved cats have been microchipped in case they get lost.
This is a simple and relatively painless procedure which can be carried out here at SimplyCats.
Further information on the subject of microchipping can be obtained by visiting our home page, clicking the link for information sheets where the microchipping info can be found.

Carol

I began working at Simply Cats on the 21st February as a receptionist, and I would like to thank Sarah, Paul and all the staff for allowing me this great opportunity. Over the last five weeks I have learnt a great deal about our feline friends regarding their health, welfare and nutrition needs.
Up until this point I was unaware of the large number of different breeds which exist in the feline world. I have been introduced to so many beautiful breeds of cats and their very friendly owners. During our conversations I have gained a lot of useful information. I would like to thank you all for patiently biding with me during this massive learning curve in my working life.
Here at Simply Cats I have found there are a number of ways information can be cascaded. In and around the reception area there are numerous free leaflets which give useful help and advice regarding how to care for your cat. Also there are sample books on display which can be obtained through the practice. Simply Cats also hosts client evenings, which deal with the different aspects of feline care. I attended the most recent one on Wednesday 23rd March and my friend came along too. We both enjoyed the evening and the information we gained was very informative.
I must go now as I have two pairs of hungry eyes staring up at me (this sounds like a pun for a song). Those eyes are reminding me they have mouths and it is tea time, it’s been along time since breakfast. Those eyes belong to my two hungry dogs.
Carol

From 4th April 2011 we are introducing free geriatric nurse clinics here at SimplyCats for our feline clients aged 7 or over.
This will include a weight check and complete a ‘well cat’ questionnaire which will help to highlight any areas of concern.
We will also perform a free urinalysis and give advice on correct diet for the mature cat.
To book your appointment please call the surgery 0191 385 9696.

We named this little cat “O’Mally” when he was brought in as a stray by a member of the public from the Penshaw area. Approximately 3 years old and according to the member of the public who brought him to us, he had been living rough for quite some time

His tail had an open fracture on arrival at the surgery which was causing him a considerable amount of pain and distress. This wound had originally alerted the member of the public that something was wrong with him. After phoning the RSPCA, he was instructed by them to bring the cat to us here at SimplyCats Vet Clinic for initial treatment.

However, after examination by Sarah, our vet, the tail had to be partially amputated to limit the risk of infection, leaving a cute stump of about 4 inches. She also castrated him whilst under anaesthetic, and he is now looking for a new home.

Unfortunately the local branch of RSPCA’s rehoming centre was full, and unable to take him from us, leaving the majority of our vet’s work in this case to be a goodwill gesture….

On a brighter note we have now managed to secure him a place in a foster home until he finishes his recuperation, organised through Cats Protection Gateshead Branch

All the local rescues, including Cats Protection are full of cats like O’Mally needing a second chance. If you feel you would be able to offer a loving home to a cat in need, please contact the surgery on 0191 385 9696 and we will give you the relevant rescue contact details for your area

We had an unusual customer the other day in the back yard at SimplyCats – a very hypothermic snow cat. It remains in quite a critical, frozen state, but will hopefully make a full melted recovery if we ever get a thaw!!

Caroline’s youngest cat, Maisey enjoys ruining a game of ‘pop up pirate’ by patting the dice and playing pieces away from the board with her paw – but the question is – is it really Maisey or some strange alien cat in disguise???

Taliah enjoyed dressing up as a witch for Halloween. She looks so cute !
If anyone has any cute pictures of their cats, send them attached to an e-mail to: caroline.pallister@simplycats.net and we would be pleased to include them in our future publications and on our website blog.

One of Caroline’s cats, Maisey enjoys a quiet time by the fire.

She is not amused when Dubby tries to jostle nearer and promptly swipes him with her paw to discourage him !

The irony is, that after Dubby gave up on a pole position by the fire, Maisey got way too hot and decided to move away, and stretched out at the other side of the room !

The Young Ones winner this month is Pippa Magee – a lovely tortie and white queen. Pictured below Pippa are the other lovely kittens – Fifi, Tom & Jojo who also visited us in September. Book your kitten in now to commence its vaccination course and he or she could be in with a chance of winning October’s competition to win a voucher worth £10 to spend on any product or service here at SimplyCats!

This month at SimplyCats one of the main topics of conversation amongst the vets has been a shift in our approach to vaccination. In the ongoing battle to protect our pets against disease, our understanding of vaccination protection is constantly changing as new technologies emerge to combat new viral strains and their changing behaviour. To keep in line with the latest thinking we will now be using the PUREVAX feline vaccination range at SimplyCats.
 
We thought this would be a good opportunity to touch on the subject of what your vet is actually doing when you bring your pet in for a health check and vaccination.
 

Often referred to as a “booster”, we think it is important to impress that this annual visit to the vet is for more than just an injection. We should be thinking of it more as an Annual Medical Exam AND a vaccination.
 
Your vet does not get to see your cat very often (hopefully!) so this maybe the only opportunity to have face to face time with you and your pet and to perform a hands-on clinical examination.
 
This is important:

to detect the early signs of any health problems that your cat maybe hiding from you

to discuss any routine health issues commonly associate with ageing (such as weight gain and dental disease)

to monitor any ongoing health problems if your cat is under regular treatment

to allow your vet practice to dispense vet-only medicinal products (such as vet-only flea and worm treatments) throughout the year.
 
It is also a great opportunity for you to bring up any issues or oddities concerning your cat’s well being or behaviour, that are maybe nothing to worry about, or that may require further attention.