Joey’s Pet of the Week – Double Trouble

By Scott Lackenby | Dated April 1, 2015

Hey everyone! How are you all? Are you all ready for Easter? You all know how much I love bunnies, so I’m super excited that the Easter Bunny will be here soon. I know he can’t leave me chocolate, but I’m hoping that he leaves me something tasty that won’t make me sick. Did you see our opening hours for the Easter break? In case you didn’t, we are open on Good Friday from 9am – 3pm, Saturday from 7:30am – 5pm, Easter Sunday from 9am – 3pm and Easter Monday from 9am – 3pm. I will be super busy with all of the Easter cat boarders, but if you come in, I’ll try and pull myself away to say hello.

Speaking about bunnies, we often see a lot of people getting live bunnies as Easter presents. Now, bunnies make great pets. They are intelligent, affectionate and can even be trained to use a litter tray like me. But they, like all animals, need to be looked after properly. They require a specialised diet, a decent sized hutch and also regular vaccinations. If you are thinking about getting a Bunny friend, be sure you do your research first. Pets should never be purchased without a lot of consideration and research to be sure that you are making an informed decision.

Now, I’m sure you all know, but it’s super important that you don’t let your furry friend anywhere near your Easter chocolates. Chocolate contains theobromine which, if consumed in a high enough quantity, can be fatal. Dark chocolate is the most dangerous, but all chocolate contains theobromine, so make sure your Easter chocolate is out of reach of your four legged friends. If your pet does find your stash, you need to get them to a Vet ASAP. The sooner we induce vomiting and get the chocolate out, the better. It’s also really helpful if you can tell us the type and quantity of chocolate they have eaten.

The other concern with Easter chocolates is not just the chocolate itself, but the tasty things that are often in the chocolate. Sultanas and raisons can cause acute renal failure and macadamia nuts are also toxic. Again, if your pet eats these foods, you need to contact your Vet ASAP. Remember, GVH offers a 24hour emergency Vet service, so even if it’s 4am, call our main number, 9498 3000, have a pen and paper ready to take down the details for what you need to do.

In keeping with the Easter theme, my stars this week are two cheeky brothers who broke into the Easter stash early. Badger, an almost 2year old Labradoodle and his brother Rapha,a 7month old Labradoodle, were caught eating the last of a 160mg bloke of milk chocolate. The amount they had eaten was enough to cause them some problems, so Dr Genevieve Zhang had the fun job of making them vomit! Dr Gen gave Rapha the injection first, as given he is the younger and cheekier of the two, it was assumed he had most likely eaten the bulk of it. When Rapha vomited, he brought up his breakfast and a small bone but no chocolate! Badger, on the other hand vomited up a large amount of chocolate! Once they had both finished vomiting, Dr Gen gave them another injection to help settle their stomach, and sent them home to have plenty of water and not much food. We can only imagine what Rapha had to say to Badger on the car trip home after he was made to vomit when he hadn’t eaten any of the chocolate!

Well, I had better go. There are a to of cat boarders coming in today and I need to make sure everything is ready for them in the cattery. It’s a busy weekend for this black and white Pymble Vet clinic cat!! I hope you all have a great Easter weekend. Meows for now, love Joey xoxo

Badger and Rapha waiting for the vomiting injection

Badger’s chocolaty vomit

Radha looking a little upset that he was made to vomit when he didn’t eat any of the chocolate! Nurse Dani is trying to make him feel better.