A vet nurse's diary: Applying ear drops, cat nutritional advice and changing a splint
I had a few admissions to do in the morning - a 10-year-old dog booked in for a dental and a four-year-old English springer spaniel in for a castration.
My first nurse clinic of the day was a very lively three-year-old chocolate labrador, who had been brought in for a general check up. The client wanted to ensure they were doing everything correctly. According to the owner, the dog is fed on a complete diet and gets plenty of exercise. She was in excellent health, with a clean and glossy coat, good teeth with no plaque and she was a good weight.
My next patient was a Shih Tzu who is being brought in twice daily to have ear drops applied as the owner struggled to do them at home. Another nurse held him for me and we put a muzzle on the dog, but she was very well behaved.
Next I saw a seven-year-old cat for a booster check. He was quite overweight and when I discussed this with the owner, I found the cat receives lots of treats at home so I advised the client to cut some of these out and just feed a complete cat food, while increasing exercise.
In the afternoon I changed a splint on a dog that had had a fracture repair on his leg. The wound looked very good where the incision had been made and was healing well. I padded out the leg and reapplied the bandage and splint.
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