Paws Colchester Vets's home page
  • Call our surgery01206 561407
  • Out of hours01206 842224

Services

How can we help your pet?

  • Clinical Services
  • Laboratory
  • Dentistry
  • Nurse Clinics
  • Surgery
  • Insurance
  • Vaccinations
  • Worming

Clinical Services

Ultrasonography 

We have an ultrasound machine that enables us to scan for preganancy, bladder stones, liver disease, cystic kidneys and other conditions. 

Generally we can do this conscious but occasionally we may need sedation if the patient is restless.


ECG

Echocardiography is a way of monitoring and assessing the heart. By attaching a series of leads we are able to look for any abnormal heart beats, check the heart rate and analyse the heart function.


Endoscopy

We have rigid and flexible endoscopes. These scopes can be passed into the oesophagus, trachea and stomach to check for foreign bodies, ulcers or other lesions. 

We require a general anaesthetic to do this but it is less invasive than surgery and can give us some good information.


Radiography

We have a digital X-Ray machine capable of radiographing geckos to Great Danes. Radiographs are very useful for assess the size of lesions and their position in the body. We can also see some foreign bodies.

As it is digital we do not need chemicals to process the images and we can manipulate the images without having to continually repeat the radiographs.

Being digital also enables us to transfer the images easily.


Blood Pressure

Blood pressure readings are also performed at the practice. Blood pressure readings are especially useful for geriatric cats and dogs. Cats with an overactive thyroid and animals with kidney disease can also suffer with high blood pressure.

Laboratory

Internal Laboratory 

We provide onsite haematology and biochemistry, enabling us to diagnose and treat serious conditions quickly.

Microscopy: we perform onsite urinalysis, blood smear evaluations and ear smear examinations which can give us results within 12 hours.

Bacterial Culture and Microbiology: we have onsite facilities for routine bacterial culture and antibiotic determination so that we can decide which antibiotics to use within 24 hours.

Haematology analysis gives us results regarding red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets within 15 minutes.

Biochemistry analysis helps to assess organ disease such as kidney, liver and pancreas diseases from one blood test. These results are also available within 15 minutes.                     


External Laboratory 

We also use an external laboratory which collect blood samples in the evening and deliver to the external lab for fast results on specialised tests. Examples are allergy testing and antibody determination or genetic disease testing.

Dentistry

Our air driven dental machine comes with a fibreoptic light in order to perform best dental procedures. We offer ultrasonic scaling and polishing services along with extractions if necessary. Referrals are possible for tooth capping.

We have a range of dental products to maximise your pet’s health such as medical toothpaste, angled tooth brushes, microfibre finger tooth cleaners and antiplaque additives for the drinking water. 

Dental disease can affect a pets health by spreading bacteria from the teeth and gums to organs in the body such as the kidneys. Keeping your pet's teeth clean is important for their best health. 

If you would like any help with keeping their teeth clean, please feel free to contact a member of our staff.

Nurse Clinics

Anal Gland expression: appointments can be booked with the nurses for routine anal gland expression.

Nail Clipping is available for dogs, cats and exotics at a reduced price.

Microchipping: for dogs and cats. For exotics an appointment with a vet would be required as this is a more specialised area.

Post-operative checks: for all routine procedures such as spays and castrations and for suture removals.

Tick and Flea advice: ask one of our staff if you would like to know which product would be safe for your pets and suit your circumstances. There a large number of products available.

Dietary Management and Weight Clinics: whether your pet is losing weight, gaining weight or needs a specific diet, we are available to help. This is a free service.

Routine Injections: such as allergy desensitising and monthly Cartrophen injections.

Puppy and Kitten Advice and Health checks: information on when to walk, how much to feed and things such as free insurance cover.

As we have seen a lot of dogs with behavioural issues that have caused serious problems we are now running special free nurse clinics to help socialise and adjust puppies for all factors of life.

If you would like to find out more, we are happy to help with any questions you may have.

Surgery

Theatre light has adjustable light intensity, height and angle.

Pulse oximetry is used in general anaesthesia to monitor oxygen levels and heart rates. This helps to reduce the risks associated with anaesthesia.

Heating: all animals are provided with heating during surgery to help maintain body temperature which can be affected during anaesthesia.

Fluids are available for all anaesthetics to regulate blood pressure and blood circulation.

Theatre table: adjustable height and angle to decrease pressure on chest.

Gas Anaesthesia: all our patients are maintained on gas anaesthesia to minimise the risk of overdosage. Gas is expelled quickly from the system

Pain Management: we are very aware that our patients cannot tell us when we are in pain so we give pain relief before surgery to reduce inflammatory chemicals from being released and we maintain pain relief after surgery as well. If it is major surgery we may use morphine as well and discharge patients with a morphine type of painkiller plus a NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug).

We also aim to minimise pain by using local anaesthetic for as many procedures as possible. We want your pets to be happy to come in.

Insurance

Facts about pet insurance

Pets are an important member of the family, and you want to take care of them as well as you can. While pet insurance isn’t always cheap, it can save you money in the long term. Here are some things to look out for.

When choosing a pet insurance you need to consider a number of things. Our guide can help you make the best choice for your pet.


What does pet insurance cover?

Most Pet Insurance companies cover care for dogs and cats. Some may even cover for exotic pets such as tortoises and rabbits.

Pet Insurance covers for accidents or illnesses but does not cover for routine health care such as worming, flea, vaccinations and nail clipping. These would be covered in a health care plan. 

Many insurance companies also don’t provide first time cover for pets that are above a certain age and will exclude conditions that are present at the time of taking out the insurance plan. Therefore, you should look for insurance as soon as you get a pet. As your pet ages, the company might also raise the premium, so check this before you purchase the cover.

Read more.

Vaccinations

Why should I vaccinate my pet? 

Often, there is no complete cure for life threatening diseases such as Distemper, Hepatitis, Parvovirus and Cat ‘flu. Vaccination is the only proven method of protecting against certain specific diseases your pet might be at risk of contracting. There are other diseases, such as Kennel Cough in dogs, which are less life threatening but where protection can also be provided by vaccinating.


How do I know that the vaccines are safe? 

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (an Executive Agency of Defra) regulates all veterinary medicines in the UK, including vaccines. Before any vaccine can be sold in the UK it must pass a strict, independent, scientific assessment.

Read more.

Worming

Worm eggs are shed by dogs and cats in their faeces and so worms can be picked up from contaminated soil. Some worms are transmitted to our pets via other species such as slugs, snails, sheep etc. (This is called an Indirect life cycle). 

Some immature worms (larvae) migrate through body tissues causing damage to the organs such as the liver. 

Worms from dogs and cats can affect people who don’t have a good immune system. This would include the elderly, diabetics, people with HIV-infection, patients undergoing chemotherapy or who have had organ transplantation or who are having treatment for autoimmune diseases. Also pregnant women, babies, toddlers and the mentally handicapped have a higher risk of picking up worms from pets. 

People working with animals such as farmers, kennel workers, hunters and other animal health professionals would also be more exposed to worms and consequently at a higher risk.

Read more.

Practice information

Paws Colchester Vets

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  • Mon
    8:30am - 6:30pm
  • Tue
    8:30am - 6:30pm
  • Wed
    8:30am - 6:30pm
  • Thu
    8:30am - 6:30pm
  • Fri
    8:30am - 6:30pm
  • Sat
    Closed
  • Sun
    Closed
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Find us here:

Willows Shopping Centre Mersea Road Colchester CO2 8PZ
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