The way we vaccinate cats has changed. A decade ago vets would vaccinate against all the important diseases every year regardless of the cats lifestyle, age or risk of infection. This has no doubt saved many a cats life but this blanket vaccination policy also resulted in many cats having vaccinations that may have not be needed. In July 2009 a panel of specialists in feline medicine and vaccination published a series of recommendations for vaccination in cats. The European
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The way we vaccinate cats has changed. A decade ago vets would vaccinate against all the important diseases every year regardless of the cats lifestyle, age or risk of infection. This has no doubt saved many a cats life but this blanket vaccination policy also resulted in many cats having vaccinations that may have not be needed. In July 2009 a panel of specialists in feline medicine and vaccination published a series of recommendations for vaccination in cats. The European
Cats are now Britain's favourite pet: there are 7.7 million cats as opposed to 6.6 million dogs. For thousands of years cats have lived with people, the ancient Egyptians even worshipped them as gods! Changes in our lifestyles have helped the cat increase in popularity, the cat's independent nature has proved advantageous as more and more of us live in homes where one or both owners work. We also live in more urban environments, where space and time are
At Purton Veterinary Group we are proud to say our clinical standards are amongst the best available and and you can rest assured that we put your pet first. A recent study published by a team at the University of Cambridge has shown there is a significant disparity between the clinical standards clients think their vets provide and what actually happens behind the scenes. 328 owners were surveyed and their expectations compared to what 56 vet students had experienced in
Are all veterinary practices the same? Surely when you castrate a dog it's the end result that counts, and it must have been done the same way. So why would one practice charge more than another? Why would removing a stick from a dogs stomach have a different cost at different vets?From time to time a client might mention that a practice in the next town or some out of town area is cheaper than we are and I ask
The organisers of the Coniston Challenge had a video made which they uploaded to You Tube.Look out for the pink tutu's
A big thank you to everyone who donated and helped us raise £2000 for Guide dogs for the blind! Jos, Rachael, Amber, Linda, Kirsty and Nichola all undertook a three discipline challenge comprising of a 10k hike up the old man of Conistion, a 17 k bike ride up and through the Grizdale mountains and a 3 km canoe across Coniston water to finish. We arrived at the Lake District on the Friday night after a long journey and had
We have had a busy few months here at Purton Vets. Since the installation of our new cat cabins for the Wootton Bassett and District Branch of the Cats Protection they have not been empty at any point! We have successfully fostered and rehomed 25 cats in the last 6 months. I guess as a hazard of seeing some many cats that need loving homes two of these have been rehomed by ourselves! Nichola Robertson, one of our vets, took
Following rigorous inspection by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) we are pleased to announce that we passed with flying colours. The Practice Standards Scheme is currently voluntary and was established to promote and maintain the highest standards of veterinary care within practices in the UK. This is something that is very important to us and it demonstrates our commitment to the high level of care we offer your pets. As a Veterinary Nurse Training Practice for the past
With considerable regret we are having to close our Cricklade Surgery in the mornings. The decision has been a difficult one to make as some clients rely on the morning opening hours between 9am and 10am. The Cricklade surgery remains open in the evenings!The economic slowdown has had an impact on our clients as well as our practice with less appointments being made especially in the morning at Cricklade. 70% of our Cricklade consultations occur in the evening. Relocating
The 12th of June was a perfect day for the annual Purton Carnival. Many of you attended and the high street was packed with familiar faces from across Swindon. The theme for this year's carnival was 'film' - so keeping with the animal theme Purton Vets entered the walking group section as the Disney film - Madagascar. You know the one - the dancing lemurs and talking penguins? Not only were we lucky with the weather but our efforts
Six brave (and slightly mad) volunteers have taken up the challenge of hiking 10km up the dizzying heights of The Old Man Of Coniston, cycling for 17km through the dangerous Grizedale Forest and completing a white knuckle 3km canoe trip around Coniston Water. Whats more they only have 10 hours to complete the task if they have any hope of being crowned champions. Most important of all is that this insanity is driven by their collective desire to raise £2500
CHILDREN'S PET SHOW at Purton Carnival Fete - Bradon Forest School Field, SATURDAY 13th JUNE 2009 from 3pm. BRING YOUR PETS ALONG AND JOIN THE FUN! CLASSES: 1. Dog with the waggiest tail 2. Most unusual pet 3. Best conditioned pet PLEASE NOTE: It would probably be distressing for a cat to visit the carnival. And we would advise against this. ENTRIES: To Amber Dunham at Purton Veterinary Group or on the day. For more information visit www.purtoncarnival.co.uk and download
Graeme and Jos have recently registered as volunteers for the Cats Protection joining 6800 others who work to help improve cat welfare. The practice will help look after cats while they wait to be rehomed and we all look forward to contributing towards the excellent work of the Wootton Bassett Branch, the most proactive Branch we have ever worked with. Rachael, one of our veterinary nurses, has been a cats protection volunteer for a few years now and seems to
We have subscribed to a new service which allows pet owners to ask questions and help make a decision on whether they need to contact the surgery. What makes the service useful is that it prompts you to ask the right sort of questions, those we would ask if you contacted us directly. A link to the new service is found on the front page of our website. Designed and run by vets, Vet Help Direct's interactive questions direct you
Hi. I'm Jim, the practice cat. I came to the surgery in 2007 when a kind human found me and thought I looked a bit worse for wear so brought me to the nice people here at Purton Vets as I had lost my way home. I was really skinny when I arrived and they took me in and kept me in one of their nice warm kennels with a comfy bed. They fed me lots of good food
Our new wards and diagnostic imaging room are up and running! It's been just over a year now since Graeme and Jocelyn bought the practice. Our plan is to slowly upgrade aspects of the surgery over the next 5 years. Development of our new patient wards and diagnostic imaging room started in early August 2008. The building work is now complete. If you would like to take a look around ask at reception and we will show you if we can (it depends on
For the last few weeks we have been "coping" without Amber, our practice manager as she helps her mother prepare for the Paralympic Games. It took a few weeks for the horses and riders to recover from their flight to Hong Kong but all is going to plan. Teddy is Anne's mount for this year's Paralympic Games. He is a Welsh section D, owned by Sally Ann Brown. Sally Ann is a longstanding member of our reception team and
What should you do if you come across an injured or distressed bird? There's no easy answer to this question, as every case will be different. However birds with no obvious injuries should be left where they are as they do not cope well in hospital conditions so unfortunately they rarely survive. Also many baby birds which seem to have been abandoned will have their parents close by, who know where they are and are feeding them. Sometimes their best
This year's carnival went really well, with a good turn out and we didn't get wet! Purton Vets teamed up with Wootton Bassett branch of the Cats Protection. Both organisations vans were decorated and many volunteers dressed up as cats etc. Our efforts netted us 2nd place in the judging of the carnival entrants! The prize money of £10 was donated to the Wootton Bassett branch of the Cats Protection. We were accompanied by our Client Care Manager,
The practice is a member of the Feline Advisory Bureau We believe in FAB's principals of improving feline health and welfare through improved knowledge. FAB has turned 50 this year and has a new publication that may be of interest to those still struggling to understand what goes on inside cats heads. You'll be helping by donating money to this excellent charity. Essential Cattitude: an insight into the feline world is much more than 'just another cat book'. It
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