Northwest Rankin Animal Clinic
620 Grants Ferry Road Flowood, Mississippi 39232
Where your pets become a part of our family too! 


Make an appointment - (601) 992-4667
 
WELLNESS

Prevention of illness is key to the pratice standards of the Northwest Rankin Animal Clinic staff who will be caring for your cat or dog. Comprehensive physical exams will be preformed, appropriate vaccines will be administered, pro-active prevention treatments will be advised, species-specific screening tests will be recommended and sound behavioral training stategies will be discussed with you.

As with you and your family members, it is often easier, less uncomfortable and less costly to prevent, rather than treat or sure, injury or illness. Dr. Diffey is your pet's advocate, and she will make every effort to maintain the best possible quality of life and health for your pet.

If you own a young pet between 16 weeks and 7 years of age, the time to achieve and maintain "wellness" (i.e. great health) is now.  Dogs and cats age up to seven times the rate that we do.  Even if you bring your pet to the vet once per year, that is analogous to you or I only going to see our physician every seven years.  It is during these years that proper diet, exercise and habits, will play the greatest role in preventing future illness.  We have several broad goals in seeing you and your pet once per year:

  1. To do a physical exam to detect signs of illness before they become severe. Never underestimate the power of a good physical exam! Some of the most common things your veterinarian looks for includes underlying ear (otitis) and eye disease, skin lumps and haircoat abnormalities, dental tartar and gingivitis, body conditioning (overweight or underweight), heart murmurs/arrhythmias, abnormal chest sounds, lymph node enlargements, abdominal organ enlargements, and skeletal diseases such as arthritis.
  2. To provide diagnostics and treatments that promote wellness.  Examples of diagnostics includeheartwprm/lyme/ehrlichia testing in dogs, leaukemia/AIDS testing in cats, stool sample and baseline blood/urine testing in both cats and dogs.  Examples of treatments include vaccinations, dewormings, heartworm and flea/tick prevention, dental, and diets/supplements.
  3. To educate and guide you in developing habits to promote wellness in your pet.  This may be our most important role: to pass along to you the most recent knowledge and medical advances that can help your pet lead a long and healthy life.  The amount of material we need to cover during a routine annual exam can seem overwhelming.  So please hold onto your seat because it is information you need to know in order to make educated decisions regarding your pet's well-being. 

Keep in mind that ultimately, your veterinarian can only give advice and make recommendations.  As your pet's guardian, it is up to you to decide how best to use that advice.