St Francis Veterinary Hospital works on a 15min appointment basis. Should you wish to see a specific veterinarian, please inform our reception team when making your appointment. Our consultations range from vaccinations and health check-ups to full medical workups and senior pet consultations. House calls are available under strict approval by our practice manager: admin@stfrancisvets.co.za
Pets today can live longer, healthier lives because of vaccines that help protect them from deadly infectious diseases. Unfortunately, many infectious diseases still pose a significant threat to dogs and cats that are unvaccinated.
Pets should begin their vaccination schedules when they are six weeks old. Cats and dogs alike need a series of vaccines to establish a baseline immunity against common pet diseases. Once this is completed, your pet will need annual booster vaccinations to protect them against a variety of diseases.
Should your adult pet have not received previous vaccines or if you are unsure of their vaccination status, booster vaccines are recommended after the initial vaccine to ensure immunity.
We at St Francis Veterinary Hospital provide you with a free reminder SMS system, this is to ensure that you do not miss your pets next vaccine appointment.
Puppies require vaccines at the following ages:
6 Weeks, 9 Weeks, 12 Weeks and 16 weeks
What will your puppy be vaccinated against?
(Kennel Cough: This is an optional vaccine, but highly recommended for dogs who will be in close proximity to other dogs, like those who visit kennels often, parlours, dog training, shows or parks. It is also recommended for breeds with compromised respiratory systems. Ask our vets if your puppy is at risk)
Kittens require vaccines at the following ages:
6 Weeks, 9 Weeks, 12 Weeks and 16 weeks
What will your kitten be vaccinated against?
(Feline Leukaemia: This is an optional vaccine, but highly recommended for cats who will be in close proximity to other cats, like those who live in multi-cat households, and those who roam away from home.)
Protecting your pet is our primary goal, so developing an appropriate vaccine schedule for your pet is important to us.
We highly recommend treating your pets against ticks and fleas, although they are more common in the warmer months, these critters often catch us off guard in the winter months too.
The soft, warm fur of dogs and cats provides the perfect environment for fleas and ticks. They feed off your pet’s blood and can cause health problems such as allergic reactions, transmitting tapeworm and other serious tick-borne illnesses such as biliary.
The best course of action to protect your pets from ticks and fleas is prevention. We recommend monthly treatment throughout the year unless using a 3-month prevention product.
There are many safe and effective flea and tick control products available at our hospital, ask our healthcare team what would be best suited for your pet.
Did you know that your pet should be dewormed at least four times a year?
Did you know that your pet’s worms can also be transmitted to people?
The most common types of worms found in our pets are roundworms, hookworms and tapeworms.
Common signs your pet has worms are: scooting, vomiting, weight loss and diarrhoea
How does your pet get worms?
REGULAR DEWORMING is important as dewormers do not have a long-lasting effect. Dewormers only kill the worms present in the animal at the time. They do not protect your pet from new worm infections. Keeping your pets worm-free is the best way to PROTECT YOUR PETS and your family against worms.
The St Francis healthcare team offer a reminder service to ensure that you do not miss your pets next deworming dose.
Ideally, it would be best if your pet is fed a premium brand lifelong, but we all have budgets. Therefore, it is important that we give our puppy or kitten the best start in life by feeding them a good quality premium diet until they are at least 1 year old. When our pets reach the age of 7 years, we consider them “senior” pets and again this is when their nutritional requirements become vital to their health.
Puppy Food: (From 0-1 year) Please note: If your puppy’s adult weight will be over 25kg it MUST be on a large breed puppy diet to aid the rapid growth these pups experience and to support bone and joint growth as well as mobility.
Large Breed Puppy Food: (From 0-18 months) Should be fed on large breed puppy food until 18 months of age. Interesting fact: Large breed puppies need less energy and calcium than their small breed friends.
Adult Food: (From 1-7 years)
Senior Food: (From 7 years and onwards) These diets tend to have lower levels of protein, salt and fat, thus preventing weight gain and potential over-loading of the kidneys.
Examples of premium diets: Hills, Eukanuba and Royal Canin
These diets are scientifically balanced, you feed less, and your pets produce fewer stools. The next best diets would be Vets Choice and UltraDog.
We advise feeding your pet dry food instead of tinned food. This not only works out more cost effective, but the dry food helps to keep your pet’s teeth clean and you end up wasting less if your pet doesn’t eat it.
Some pets have serious nutritional challenges or chronic conditions that benefit from a special prescription diet. Feeding a prescription diet can make a significant positive impact on your pet’s overall health and well-being. Prescription diets benefit medical conditions such as liver disease, bladder conditions, digestive problems, food allergies, diabetes, weight control and more. St Francis Veterinary Hospital carries Prescription Diets and our veterinarians will be able to recommend the best-suited diet for your pet’s needs.
What is sterilisation?
For female pets, it involves removal of the ovaries and uterus (ovariohysterectomy) and is called a ‘spay’. Male pets have both testicles removed and is called a ‘neuter’. Both procedures require a full general anaesthetic. The ideal time to sterilise your pet is between 4.5 months and 6months of age. You can always bring your pet in to see our vets to check if he/she is old enough for the procedure.
Why?
We all know by having your pet sterilised it prevents any unwanted puppies or kittens, but what other benefits are there?
1.Prevents cancer
In females, it has been proven that spaying her before her first ‘season’ or ‘heat’ means her chances of getting mammary cancer are about 0.5%. If she is spayed between her 1st and 2nd season the risk increases to 8%. After her 2nd season, she has a 26% chance of getting mammary cancer. That’s a massive and unnecessary increase! Unneutered males are at risk of testicular and prostate cancer.
Some males have undescended testicle/s (testicles that have not dropped). These are very prone to becoming cancerous and removing them is vital.
2.Prevent infections
Females can get very serious uterine infections that can sometimes be fatal.
Males are at risk for prostate infections.
3.Prevent unwanted behavioural changes
Aggression, wandering and territorial marking are just some of the traits that can be prevented. Remember, some of the above can result in very serious consequences for your pet.
Side Effects:
Weight gain as they get older, this can be controlled easily by reducing your pet’s food accordingly. Sterilising your pet will not change their personality.
Unless you are planning to breed from your pet, there is no medical or behavioural benefit to not having your pet sterilised.
Our philosophy is to provide the very best personal service to you and your pets.