Enter our pet supermodel competition
It’s that time of year again! The time when we choose one stand-out charity to support, and invite all of you lovely pet owners to enter our calendar competition. It’s very easy: You probably have lots of gorgeous photos of your four-legged friends. Just get out your very best ones, and email them to us. […]
Lucky to be part of such a great team
I feel very blessed right now I have often been stopped when out and about by people who congratulate me on the quality of my team. We had this independently confirmed a few months ago when we received notification of our placing 18th in the Best Vets UK 2019 Awards. That’s out of around 5,000 […]
Sometimes Being a pet owner can drive you crazy
At this time of year, my lovely yellow Labrador, Jazzy starts to itch. She fidgets and fusses in the evening, when I want to relax. One minute she’s chewing her flanks making an annoying sucking chipping noise, the next she’s scratching repeatedly at her ribs. She just can’t settle, so neither can we. She has […]
Herbie – A miracle patient
I saw a miracle patient recently. Herbie should have been an ordinary cat. He seemed normal when I met him as a kitten seven years ago and gave him his first vaccines. He seemed ordinary when it fell to my colleague, Jean, to perform his little boy’s operation. This procedure is so minor, having been […]
Punting, whilst waiting for the results of finals day
At this time of year many schoolchildren and university students are facing public examinations that may affect their future careers. It is a time I remember clearly. My final exams at Cambridge vet school were the culmination of nine years of effort. To fail at this last obstacle would be catastrophic. I had made the […]
Vaccinate your rabbit to protect against deadly virus
We are urging all rabbit owners to get their pet bunnies vaccinated now to protect them against the outbreak of a deadly rabbit virus strain that has been reported across the UK. Rabbit viral haemorrhagic disease type 2 (RVHD2) is highly infectious and can kill rabbits within hours. Vaccination is the safest and most effective […]
Digital radiography: Best thing since sliced bread!
May is Pet Smile Month. This is a national campaign to raise awareness about the need to keep our pets’ teeth and mouths as clean and healthy as possible, something that I know is vital to their long term health. Years ago, I was supervising a final year student who was seeing practice. He was […]
Patrick the pug
Have you seen the new movie “Patrick”? I was lucky enough to catch it recently. It’s a delightful Disney tale about a spoilt lap dog being bequeathed to a hapless singleton. It even involves a socially inept but distinctly dishy vet. The problem is that Patrick is a pug, and this has set the UK […]
A Wonderful Cuckoo Fayre 2019
It was a big day out for Pebbles the Border Collie. As she shyly took up her place among 25 other pedigree dogs in the ring she could hardly have known that her afternoon would finish with a Best in Show rosette. Pebbles was the first and the last winner of the day at the […]
Cuckfield Cuckoo Fayre
It’s time for possibly the best fun dog show of the year, and I would love you to join us. The Cuckoo Fayre has the best atmosphere of all the local events I attend. There is something friendly about the people and their pets that always makes for a really great event. There are plenty […]
Not your average vomiting case
Freddie was not feeling well. He was only eight months old, and had joined his family just four weeks before. He should have been a handsome lively ginger bundle of mischief, but when we met him he had not eaten or opened his bowels for three days, and had been a little sick. Our lovely […]
National Pet Month
April is National Pet Month, when we can celebrate the special bond we have with our pets, and promote responsible pet ownership. I feel incredibly fortunate to live in a country of animal lovers. Not all cultures respect and care for pets in the same way that we do. But here in the UK it […]
BSAVA
One spring I volunteered to be a steward at the BSAVA conference. I was a fifth year vet student, and was interested to see what a professional conference might look like. But instead of mingling socially with my colleagues-to-be I was worked harder than I have ever worked before. We started by filling briefcases that […]
Welsh Lambing and Caryad
It was over thirty years ago, and was seeing practice in North Wales. It was a mixed practice, seeing both farm animals and pets, and we were in the midst of the lambing season. A kindly couple, Gwyneth and Owen, had agreed to have me to stay with them. There were four vets, and it […]
New – Nurse Led Mobility Clinics
Old dogs new tricks Does your best friend struggle to get out of bed these days? I spend considerable amounts of time in the consulting room discussing strategies for older pets who are slowing down. Having reached an age myself where my joints can get quite achy, I feel especially qualified to empathise. But it […]
My first lambing season
It was my first lambing season as a newly qualified Vet, and my patient needed a caesarian. At least I was indoors, in the warmth, but her wool was so filthy I dare not take her into the operating theatre, that shrine to hygiene. So I was on my knee, alone, shaving greasy wool from […]
Winning Team
We are so excited to be able to let you all know that we have been selected as one of the top 25 vets in the UK with Vet Help Direct. This award means so much to us as it is because of you, our wonderful clients leaving us great reviews that has enabled us […]
Crufts starts today
Crufts, probably the best dog show in the world, starts again today.I have several patients who are anxiously preparing for their turn to shine in the next three days. We wish them tremendous luck. I have never personally shown a pedigree dog, but I did have two competitors at Crufts several years in a row, […]
Dental care for less than £136
“How am I going to afford to have Mollie’s teeth out?” Mollie’s owner had not realised how bad Mollie’s teeth were getting, and had no spare funds for a much-needed dentistry procedure. We discussed why it was important and I gave her an estimate. She went away sadly worrying about her budget. Luckily, just a […]
Planning your pet’s Staycation
With the uncertainties of Brexit, how will you holiday this summer? PETS passports may become invalid and new requirements may need to be put in place as a result of Brexit before our pets can easily travel abroad again. Many of us will be planning to leave our pets in the UK this summer, rather […]
When first aid training really made a difference
Note: I suggest that you read this story when you are not eating. Wendy and Tom were walking their working sniffer dogs one evening. Wendy had been to one of my First Aid courses for Canine Professionals, but Tom had not yet. The dogs were super well trained, so were permitted to bound ahead and […]
It was really not a pretty look
Pringle was not looking pretty. Pringle is a cute guinea pig with a rough coat who loves his cuddles. But his lips and nostrils were developing some unattractive sores. His owners became worried that they looked inflamed, and there was a tendency for them to crack and bleed. The resulting scabs were starting to look […]
Pets and essential oils
If your cat is not allowed outside, their risk of needing a Vet is greatly reduced. But, what if you get a lovely Christmas present, not realising that it may be unsafe for your pet? I have put some reed diffusers that were a gift round my home, but it turns out that they might […]
Cat fights – a first aid tip
What should you do if your cat has been beaten up? I treat cat bite abscesses on a weekly basis. These are the consequence of a pet getting bitten or badly scratched by another cat, if the germs that get in under the skin get a chance to multiply. I do love treating a nice […]
