VCA Arboretum View Animal Hospital

Vaccines and Immunization are important and necessary to help prevent hospitalization and stress to your pet. Make sure to speak with your veterinarian on which vaccines are right for your pet's age and lifestyle.

Happy ! 🎉😺 To celebrate, we're spotlighting some of our Associates' adorable furry friends!

Can you guess that pet? 🐾 Answer in the comments 👇!

Hint: They make a clownish and fun-loving companion.

Comment below and let us know if you guessed correctly!

With heat waves sweeping across the country, blue-green algae is appearing in new areas and posing an increased risk to pets.

Found in lakes, ponds or any source of standing water, it’s extremely toxic and consuming it can be fatal. The best way to prevent accidental poisoning is to keep a close eye on pets when they’re around water.

If you think your pet has been exposed, take them to the nearest emergency veterinary hospital and contact the ASPCA Poison Control at 888-426-4435.

Tornadoes form during intense thunderstorms and can reach wind speeds of 200+ mph. Although tornadoes can occur anywhere, they are prevalent in the Southeast and Midwest. Stay informed by downloading the FEMA app and signing up for weather reports and evacuation notices.

Keep a list handy of pet-friendly shelters and contact information for your local animal control office and ASPCA Poison Control (888-426-4435) in case of evacuation.

Hurricane season is here and keeping pets safe is our top priority. Help prepare your pets for when disaster strikes with these Hurricane Safety tips.

Get your FREE Hurricane Preparedness Playbook Now: https://vca.mobi/HurricanePreparednessPlaybook

Have a happy Fourth of July! 🇺🇸 Wishing you and your pets a safe holiday weekend!

Tips for a safe Independence Day: https://vca.mobi/FourthofJulySafety

Remember to keep them safe and secure. More pets are lost during the Independence Day holiday weekend than any other time of year. Make sure your pet's microchip information is up to date.

Always remember to pack extra water and a travel bowl for your pets when adventuring outdoors this summer! Even when dogs are swimming, the can still be at risk for dehydration or heat related illness. Contact your veterinarian if your pet has fallen ill after spending time outdoors.

Today is I Forgot Day! What would your pet be horrified to find out you forgot?

July is National Pet Hydration Month. A reminder that, with July's typically hot temperatures, your pet having access to plenty of water is important. If you enjoy long walks or hiking with your dog, be sure to take along a supply of water and a collapsible bowl for them.

July 1st is National ID Your Pet Day. Make sure your IDs worn on collars have up-to-date contact information and notify your microchip company if you have moved or changed phone numbers!

World Social Media Day was launched by Mashable on June 30, 2010 as a way to recognize social media’s impact on global communication and to bring the world together to celebrate it. Just about everyone uses some form of social media every day. So, in celebration of World Social Media Day share a photo of your pet where you used one of the photo filters popular on many of the sites. We're pretty sure Spenser knew something was up when this photo was taken, and Asher just makes a very cute bunny.

June 29th is International Mud Day!
A day not only to play and have fun with mud, but also to raise awareness about cleanliness and access to sanitation in different parts of the world! Children and early childhood professionals all over the world celebrate International Mud Day by getting really muddy and observing nature, the outdoors.

Why not let our dog join in the fun? We’ve all experienced a muddy dog, and memorialized it with a photo. Let’s see those mud loving pups! See if your dog can top surgery tech Joie’s Doberman “Sprout”, or general practice tech Hayley’s dog “Lemon”.

Today is National Insurance Awareness Day. Healthcare costs are rising for people and pets. Here at VCA Arboretum View Animal Hospital we strongly recommend pet insurance. We've seen it make a difference in so many pets' lives.

You can achieve full nose-to-tail coverage by signing up for Care Club. Care Club adds the well care benefits that accident and illness policies don't always cover. Not sure what pet insurance would work best for your pet? Pawlicy Advisor lets you compare coverage and rates side by side: reptn.co/A70kAFBAwAG

Our staff will be happy to discuss the Care Club plans available for each life stage of your pet. Feel free to call us at 630-963-0424.

Don't wait until it's too late!! Current exams are required by federal and state laws for medications commonly used for fireworks and storms anxiety. Call use today 630-963-0424

Heatstroke is no joke, and now that the summer heat is here, you can bet that our pets are feeling the heat in a big way!

Check it Out Now: https://vca.mobi/UrgentCareHeatstroke

A reminder that if your pet needs medication to ease their anxiety with the upcoming Independence Day fireworks, please do so BEFORE the holiday festivities get under way. Many of these medications, by federal and state law, require a recent exam before we can dispense them.

Thyroid scintigraphy, or a thyroid scan, is a diagnostic tool used for diagnosing, staging, and managing thyroid disease in cats. In this video Dr. Galvao discusses how this has become the "gold standard" for diagnosing mild hyperthyroidism in cats.

Thyroid scintigraphy uses a gamma camera to capture radiation emitted radioisotopes injected into the patient that are absorbed by the thyroid gland, creating an image. These images show changes in the size, shape, and location of the thyroid glands. This allows Dr. Galvao to see the level of the functional thyroid tissue that causes hyperthyroidism. This can help diagnose the hyperthyroidism before laboratory tests are abnormal, as well as rule out hyperthyroidism in cats with elevated thyroid hormone levels that aren't caused by the thyroid gland.

Thyroid scintigraphy also helps Dr. Galvao determine the severity of thyroid disease, and evaluate the stage and extent of thyroid tumors, which is important for treatment and prognosis.

The Importance of Thyroid Scintigraphy in Diagnosing Feline Hyperthyroidism Welcome to our channel! 🐱❤️ In this video, we delve into the crucial role of thyroid scintigraphy in diagnosing feline hyperthyroidism. If your furry friend...

We love all pets no matter what they look like, but Wild Thang is making our heart sing! 💙

Meet Wild Thang, crowned the World’s Ugliest Dog after 5 tries Wild Thang, an 8-year-old Pekingese, and his owner Ann Lewis stop by TODAY to celebrate his newly crowned title of World’s Ugliest Dog after competing in the contest five times. NBC’s Gadi Schwartz, who was a judge in the competition, shares highlights for TODAY.

Road resurfacing has begun today on Cross Street and Warrenville Road. At times there will be limited access to our parking lot. Please see map for routes off Ogden Ave and Warrenville Road, using Authority Drive, to access the employee parking lot next to the hospital.

It's Cat World Domination Day! What...or who...will your cat conquer today? 😹

Fostering a pet can be so rewarding! Are you a pet foster parent? Share their photo below!

Bruce, a 5-year-old cutie that transferred to VCA AVAH from Medvet with severe azotemia secondary to bilateral ureteral obstruction that was confirmed on pyelogram. Bruce underwent surgery for subcutaneous ureteral bypass placement (SUB) with Dr. Galvao and Dr. Przywara.

The subcutaneous ureteral bypass (SUB) device was developed to provide an alternate pathway for urine to flow from the renal pelvis to the bladder. SUBs are placed during an open abdominal surgery using fluoroscopy. The SUB device consists of a pigtail catheter that is placed through the renal parenchyma into the renal pelvis with the aid of a guide wire and intraoperative fluoroscopy. This catheter exits the abdominal cavity through the body wall and is connected to a flushing port located under the skin. The other end of the port is connected to another catheter that enters the abdomen and is placed in the bladder, thus providing an ‘artificial ureter’ bypass pathway for urine to flow from the renal pelvis to the bladder. For this procedure our surgeon, Dr. Przywara, opens the abdomen and carefully dissects the kidney and ureters to allow Dr. Galvao access for the stent placements. Dr. Przywara then dissects the pocket in the abdominal wall for placement of the flushing ports.

Bruce’s SUB placement was successful and we’re happy to report that he was eating the next morning. His creatinine, which was 17.2 prior to the procedure, had dropped 12 hours post SUB placement to 2.9. Bruce will return to have his ureteral bypass catheters flushed every 3-6 months.

Extensive research has been done to evaluate SUB devices and excellent results were reported for a series of 137 cats that had SUB placement for ureteral obstruction. Over 93% of the cats survived to discharge. Renal pelvis dilation resolved and improvement in kidney values was seen. In one study, kidney values dropped 77.3% between admission and discharge from the hospital. Cats with more severe renal disease have worse long term survival, but because it is impossible to know how much previous damage a kidney has, there is no way to know how the animal will do after the procedure. Owner satisfaction following the SUB procedure is high (>90%). We have been implanting SUB devices at VCA AVAH since 2015 with good success. SUB placement has become the treatment of choice for cats with ureteral obstruction.

VCA AVAH is one of seven facilities in the USA to have an Interventional Radiology and Interventional Endoscopy Suite that uses Storz OR1 technology to perform minimally invasive procedures like laser lithotripsy and percutaneous cystolithotomy for bladder/urethral stone removal, endoscopic placement of ureteral stents, coiling of intrahepatic shunts, subcutaneous ureteral bypass placement, among many others.