bluehouse vets

A practice with 'Cattitude'
Cats are special – as a cat owner, you know that they are not just dogs with sharper teeth!

We aim to treat your cats as such, taking into consideration their own peculiarities, & their likes and dislikes. If your cat is happy and relaxed, you will be happy – and we will be happy!

This edition of the bluehouse bugle details the measures  we take to make your cat’s visit to bluehouse as trauma-free as possible. 

Many of the latest advances in cat care have been developed and promoted by the F.A.B – the Feline Advisory Bureau. They are a charity who promote high quality education of both the general public and vets in all matters feline, and have a great website www.fabcats.org. Unlike most ‘vetty’ sites it is written in easy-to-understand language, and gives very comprehensive information on virtually everything catty you need to know.

Reception
Our spacious reception area is furnished as a ‘home-from-home' – comfy chairs and cushions, soft lighting, with original artwork on the walls – no tatty posters, or pet-shop stands! 

And our doorstop is a taste of things to come - with thanks to Sue Hammond for her artwork! 
With the hubbub of the hospital situated in a different building, there is none of the smell or atmosphere most people associate with a vets – just a welcoming smile and the smell of freshly brewed coffee and home baking! 

Avoiding those nasty yappy things (a cat's perspective!!)
Not every cat is used to dogs – nor is every client, and to this effect we offer the following options to minimise your cat’s stress
• We have a cat-only clinic from 2 – 3pm Tuesday through to Friday.
• Cats will always be fitted in at start and end of normal surgeries if this suits you best - please ask.
• We now have a new conservatory, which allows us to admit and discharge our dog and cat in-patients via different doors, each having its own waiting area
• Receptionists have blankets for placing over cat baskets to reduce stress from other pets
• We have a table in the waiting room on which you may place your cat basket – cats feel much more secure when off the ground (alternatively you may feel happier holding your cat basket on your knees) 

The consulting rooms have no hidey holes, so your cat can explore unhindered, the relaxed atmosphere helped by Feliway pheromone diffusers – these are also used in the cat ward. 

If you are unfamiliar with Feliway products, please click here for further information.

Explanations
Communication is everything – we can know everything there is to know, but if we can't communicate it to you, its worth nothing. 

Moreover, we are a small practice, and we place a great importance on case continuity - barring holidays, you are always welcome to see the same vet (rather than an endless stream of different faces every time you attend the practice)
We place great importance on explaining the why’s and wherefore’s of everything we do - and that includes the cost! 
Booking an operation
Having your pet undergo an anaesthetic is always a worrying event- it is very difficult to be objective about one’s own animals (we are the same with our own animals!). However, it is a fact that most anaesthetics are very safe procedures. 

In order to reassure you, we give you our anaesthetic booklet when you book your pet's operation. This explains the anaesthetic procedure from start to finish, so that you understand what we do, and why we do. We hope that it will reassure you and lessen your anxiety. 
You should also consider the journey to us as a potential stressor of your cat - click here for tips on how you can make the whole episode much less traumatic for all concerned.
In patients
In-patients include cats coming in for operations, and those being treated for medical conditions.
Our most important in-patient consideration is admission.  We have a comprehensive admissions-form especially designed for cats, making sure that we know as much as we can about our patients, and making sure that we have got the correct information – pointless to have an emergency contact number if it’s not right!
Anaesthetics

Our theatre facilities are modern and well equipped, with an electronic operating table, and an advanced X ray machine. 
We have the latest in monitoring equipment, including blood oxygen and carbon-dioxide measurements (pulse oximetry and capnography). 

Pets are very prone to hypothermia during anesthetics, especially during longer procedures. We now use continuous-read thermometers inserted up the rear end of our patients. Moreover, all pets go into snug 'Trover' coats, surrounded by foil blankets. If you check out this site, you will see it is all about dogs. Trover are currently developing a cat anaesthetic coat in conjunction with bluehouse.
Hospital facilities
We have a separate cat-only ward in quiet part of the hospital building. This was specifically designed with two rows of cat cages, all at a sensible height (many vets have found to their cost that squeezing in 3 rows means that the top cages are two high, and the bottom ones too low!)

The top of the upper cages are used to store the cats' own baskets. 

The cages are made of fibre-glass rather than stainless steel, being warmer and less noisy, and the ward has a heavy sound-proof door. 

All cages are lined with a new rubber-backed ‘vetbed’ type of fleece fabric – with a comfy deep pile, which doesn’t get scuffed up so that the cat ends up on the cage floor (for sale on reception - also great for lining cat baskets, or covering car seats if you have dogs!)

The fabric has a great absorptive capacity - it soaks up and 'fluids' keeping your cat high and dry!

For cats who like to hide, we provide snuggly 'Trover' cat beds - your cat could not be more comfortable.

Recovery
In the human world, patients go from theatre to recovery, allowing extra observation at this critical time. Most vets have just a theatre and a ward. We have brought the human concept into our feline surgery by investing in two critical care units. 
Cats are thereby kept under close observation during the early stages of recovery, before being transferred back to the comfort and quiet of the cat ward.

Dentistry

All dentistry is done to the highest standards, with X-rays taken wherever the health of a tooth is in question. Mini dental  X-rays are developed in seconds, and we can show you the films when you collect your pet. We also photograph your cat's mouth, with before and after photos, so you can see quite clearly what we have done.

If teeth need to be extracted, this is done 'surgically'. This involves cutting the gums, and using a high-speed burr to remove the bone holding the tooth into the socket - just the same as when you have teeth removed. 

If teeth can be saved, 'root-canal therapy' is performed - this is when a comprehensive insurance policy that includes dental work comes in!

Cats 'n kids
Our website photo-gallery is a great favourite with the younger generation, who love to see their pet 'on the internet'. Our gallery includes an e-mailing facility, so you can send pictures of your kitten to friends and family, plus the ability to right click on the photo and 'set as background', creating a feline screen-saver on dad's computer!
Our commitment to cats
We are members of the Feline Advisory Bureau, and actively promote them as a worthwhile charity to support. FAB are our chosen feline charity.
We have a 'local services' section on our website - if you are new to the area, you can find out about all the local catteries and the like.