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Dr. Gaffney is currently out of town and will not be available for any emergencies after hours until Tuesday, May 10th, 2022. Dr. Rachel Valantine will be filling in for Dr. Gaffney on Friday, May 6th and Monday, May 9th for normal business hours. We will not be open on Saturday, May 7th. If you have any emergencies after hours during this time, you will have to seek veterinary care in Taos, Las Vegas or Raton.
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After having the freedom of an empty kennel for so much of 2020 due to COVID, Dr. Gaffney and her husband have decided to permanently close the Vet Pet Resort, the kennel/boarding facility at their residence. The kennel will be permanently closing on May 1, 2022. They look forward to the freedom they will have to camp and travel over weekends.
There are other kennels that have opened since the Gaffney's started their kennel in 2000, so hopefully our clients won't be inconvenienced by this. Below is a list of some of the kennels in the area: 10,000 Wags Kennel - 575-751-9247 - www.10000wags.com Taos Canyon Kennel and Training Center - 575-758-4229 -www.taoscanyonkennel.com Pet Pals Dog Boarding Kennel - 575-224-4277 - eaglenestdogboarding.com We have had many clients in the past ask if we carried the Rattlesnake vaccine. Well, Good News! WE DO NOW!!! The dog needs to be over 4 months of age to start getting the vaccine. If this is the first time your dog will be getting the vaccine, they will need to have a second booster vaccine in 4 weeks from the initial date. If your dog has been vaccinated in the past, it is recommended to get it at the beginning of Rattlesnake season. The vaccine is most effective in the first 4-6 months of receiving it so plan on timing your vaccines with the season about 1 month prior to when they come out. If you want your dog protected year round, it is recommended to vaccinate them every 6 months. If you decide to get the vaccine this year but not next year, when you decide to vaccinate your dog again after lapsing the 1 year period, you will have repeat the initial and booster vaccines 4 weeks apart.
So, protection from boosters last about 6 months. Dogs should get at least one booster per year approximately one month before the beginning of rattlesnake exposure. Dogs exposed to rattlesnakes longer than about 6 months, or dogs at higher risk, should get a booster every 6 months. Dogs over 100 Lbs or under 25 Lbs should get an additional booster shot 30 days after the second booster shot in the initial vaccination sequence (three injections total) and then booster normally. The Rattlesnake Vaccine works by stimulating the dog's immune system to produce antibodies against the snake venom. This will help lessen the reaction a dog may have to the snake bite. The vaccine is $25 per injection. Call to schedule your appointment! At this time, our clinic remains open and is operating under regular business hours Monday, Tuesday Wednesday Friday from 8 to 5:30, Saturday 9:30 to 12:00.
Angel Fire Small Animal Hospital is fortunate to be able to continue full operations in order to care for your furry family members. We are, however, strongly encouraging certain measures to limit social contact so that we can continue to care for your pets: • Video conferencing (Telemedicine) is available in lieu of a physical trip to our hospital. Simply call the hospital and request a Telemedicine appointment. These appointments will be done at the same price as a regular office visit, $45.00 • For established clients (patients examined within the last 1 year) you may also do a phone consultation at a reduced rate of $32 per consultation. Patients that have not been examined within the last year will have to do a video conference or a physical exam to establish a valid patient/DVM relationship. • If you would like to bring your pet into the hospital to be examined for an illness or injury and treated by our veterinary staff, we encourage you to drop off your pet. The doctor will call you when they have been able to examine your pet and establish a treatment plan. • When dropping off your pet(s) for examinations and surgery, we are happy to meet you just outside the front door. The front door will be locked. We will open it for each person one at a time. You can knock on the door if we don’t see you right away. We can take payment over the phone and bring your pet out to you when they are ready to go home. • We would like as few people as possible to enter our reception area. So for short visits like wellness exams and vaccines, nail trims etc., we would prefer it if you would knock at the front door (if we haven’t already seen you and started to help you), and a staff member will go outside, briefly get a history of how your pet has been doing and then take your pet inside for treatment. If you insist on coming inside, that’s okay; we will work with you, but we are trying to only have two clients at most in the exam rooms and/or reception area at a time. We ask anyone who enters the hospital to practice proper social distancing including no physical touching, appropriate hand washing and keeping 6 to 10 feet distance from others in the clinic. • Please be sure to call ahead for appointments and please don’t be early or late for your appointment as we don’t want a lot of people arriving at the same time. For food sales and prescription refills please call ahead so we can prepare your order and meet you just outside the door to give you your products. We can tell you the cost over the phone and take a credit card for payment or you can write a check or give us cash when you come to get your food or medicine. We have implemented increased cleaning and sanitizing measures. While the CDC and other health authorities have indicated that dogs, cats, and other domestic animals are not considered at risk for contracting COVID-19, we are taking extra precautions to ensure the health and safety of humans within our facilities— notably our clients and staff. Keeping our practice "hospital-clean" has always been a priority for us, and we continue to do so. Additionally, for the safety of our team and your family, we are monitoring CDC recommendations and will continue to increase our attention to cleaning frequency and methods accordingly. We are happy to provide options for hand cleaning for both clients and team members, and we work closely with our staff to ensure that anyone who is not feeling well understands that we support them staying home. To our customers: • If you are feeling ill or experiencing flu-like symptoms and have an upcoming wellness (not critical) appointment, we kindly ask that you call us to reschedule. • If you are healthy with no signs of illness and want to accompany your animal in our hospital please practice social distancing including no physical touching, appropriate hand washing and keeping 6-10 feet of distance from others in the clinic. • If your pet requires urgent care or has a medical emergency, and you are ill, please arrange for a trusted friend, neighbor, or healthy family member to transport your pet to our hospital. If you call ahead, we will gladly accommodate your representative and make appropriate arrangements. We appreciate your business and your patience during this time, and we hope you understand the measures we are taking are to protect all of us. Susan Gaffney, DVM and the staff of Angel Fire Small Animal Hospital ATTENTION
Friends of the Valley, We just wanted to post an update on some information for public safety in our area. Please be aware that we have had 2 confirmed Rabies cases and 1 possible unconfirmed case. (a bat & 2 skunks) The skunks were out during the day and came into contact with household pets. (All who are OKAY) If you see a wild animal acting abnormally, such as approaching animals or people without fear, be cautious. This is not normal behavior for them and is one of the symptoms of Rabies. If you have a concern or question about a wild animal please call us so the matter can be handled safely and correctly. Feel free to call us and check if your pet's Rabies Vaccination is up to date or to schedule an appointment for them to get the vaccine. AFSAH Phone: 575-377-3165 Dr. Gaffney recommends doing a heartworm test every other year. We will be offering 50% Off Heartworm Tests with the purchase of at least a 6 month supply of Heartworm Preventative during the months of April and May. Please call our office to make an appointment: 575-377-3165.  An interesting case came into the clinic this week so I thought I would share what happened with website followers.
A couple brought their 8 year old Shetland sheepdog in for frequent urination and having accidents in the house. They had conveniently brought in a urine sample that I started to process as my technician was taking a history. The multi test urine analyzing strip immediately showed me the probable cause of the history I was listening to from the other side of the exam room door. I walked in and showed my clients that the glucose test on the strip was the highest it could be. I explained this almost positively meant their dog had diabetes. In the next 20 minutes we obtained a blood sample and I launched into my explanation of giving insulin injections, finding insulin at an affordable price, monitoring needs, costs, symptoms to watch for etc. We sent them out the door ready to buy insulin and return for more instructions. We had a lot of bloodwork to process on different patients that morning so I was thinking I must be getting my patients mixed up in my mind when I saw the blood results with a normal blood glucose. I went back to my technician, Shalese, and asked if this was really the result from the dog with the high urine glucose. She said she was sure it was but would rerun the glucose and the urinalysis. The results were the same. The urine read the highest it could for sugar and the blood serum test was normal! Huh! I was trying to figure it out when Lakeisha, the clinic manager, picked up the container that the urine was brought in and asked “Do you think the ice cream container has anything to do with it?” The urine had been brought in inside a Talenti Gelato container. That had to be the reason! The sugar had been absorbed into the plastic of the container and then leached out later into the urine. Long story short the clients were very happy their dog didn’t have diabetes after all. We are treating him for an infection instead and we were so glad we waited for bloodwork before giving him an initial dose of insulin! |
