Introducing Nexgard Plus
We are very excited to introduce a more convenient way to provide your dog with excellent protection against heartworm disease, intestinal parasites, fleas, and ticks! We strongly recommend using a preventive to protect against both heartworms and fleas/ticks monthly. Now that we reliably have periods of time above freezing every month of the year, we can see tick and mosquito activity year-round. Nexgard Plus is a new all-in-one preventative product, so you can give your pet all the benefits of Heartgard and Nexgard in a single, convenient, yummy beef-flavored chew. Nexgard Plus is safe for puppies as young as 8 weeks of age and weighing at least 4 pounds. It also has a wide margin of safety, including for dogs with MDR-1 mutations.
Nexgard Plus will be available at St. Francis beginning April 1st. Interested in learning more about Nexgard Plus? Visit https://nexgardforpets.com/nexgard-plus for detailed information!
Price-Shopping For Preventatives
We know that you want to do the best you can for your pet, including making sure they get preventative medications to protect them against diseases like heartworm disease. We also know that these medications can be costly, especially if you have multiple pets, and price shopping for these products is a great way to make sure your pet gets the care they need in a way that is as gentle on your budget as possible. While online shopping is often a great way to save money, you may be surprised to know that St. Francis is often less expensive than internet pharmacies such as Chewy and 1-800-Pet-Meds. We negotiate pricing and work hard to provide you with the best available discounts and rebates, keeping costs as low as we can. We also have the benefit of getting our products directly from manufacturers. Unfortunately, preventative medications are one of the most commonly-counterfeited medications, and online pharmacies that are selling very inexpensive products may be selling knock-offs. By ensuring that the medications you receive are not counterfeit products, we know that your pet is getting the protection they need. We also appreciate your decision to shop locally and by choosing to purchase preventatives through St. Francis, you help us invest in our staff, facility, and equipment to help your pet get even better care. If you want to compare our prices to Chewy, reach out and we are happy to send you price information!
Lilies, chocolate, and other Easter risks
Easter season is upon us, and with Easter comes Easter lilies. True lilies, which include Easter lilies, stargazer lilies, and tiger lilies, are very dangerous for cats. Ingestion of any part of the lilies, including petals, leaves, stems, and pollen, can cause acute and life-threatening kidney failure. We advise against having these plants in homes with cats, even if you think they are well out of reach.
Easter also is a holiday heavy on chocolate. Make sure that Easter baskets or chocolate-filled Easter eggs are kept safely away from dogs, who often find chocolate irresistible. Chocolate ingestion can cause GI upset such as vomiting and diarrhea, or more severe issues such as seizures or even death.
Many families decorate Easter baskets with plastic Easter grass. Cats often love the texture of Easter grass and will chew and ingest it. Because plastic is not digestible, this material can lead to a GI obstruction or intestinal perforation. If you want to use something like this as an Easter basket filler, we recommend using paper-based material.
Happy National Awesome Veterinarian Week!
On the third week of March, we at St Francis celebrate our own made-up holiday we call National Awesome Veterinarian Week. Our veterinarians are often unsung heroes, and we want to make sure we honor all of the hard work, emotional labor, and physical effort (do you know how many times our vets get on and off the floor every day for the sake of keep patients feeling safe and secure? So many!) that it takes to be a vet. Visit our Facebook page to learn about each of our doctors and please leave some comments of appreciation for your favorite vets!