The Easter Holidays have approached us and we are all excited to bring the family out and travel around our beautiful country – and for many of us, that includes taking along our beloved pets!

Before you leave, there are a few things to consider when it comes to your pet and keeping them as safe as possible from any nasty problems you can encounter along the way. Never fear, the caring team at Vet Central Animal Hospital are here to help you!

Firstly, make sure that your pet is all up to date on general healthcare checks, vaccinations, and all preventatives – these are the intestinal worms, flea, tick and heartworm medications. The team at Vet Central Animal Hospital, Earlwood can assist you with checking up on your beloved pet’s file with us and making sure that they are in the best possible condition before they travel.

Particularly travelling towards the coast or the warmer, more tropical climates, such as Queensland, tick prevention is definitely essential! Just one chew, topical treatment or a tablet can do the trick to prevent your pet from Paralysis and Brown ticks for as long as 6 months, depending on what product you choose to use on your pet. The team at Vet Central Animal Hospital can assist you in using the correct product for prevention.

Heartworm is carried and transmitted by mosquitoes, so if you are travelling with your pets to areas with river banks or streams, it is especially necessary to make sure that your heartworm prevention is up to date. This prevention can be given either by oral tablets, or as an injection – which for an adult dog, is given yearly, usually made to be cohesive with the yearly C5 adult vaccination (for prevention of diseases such as Parvovirus and Distemper).

We all Stop, Revive and Survive! It’s very important that we stop and relax from driving atleast every two hours. It’s also important for your pet to do the same. As animals tend to dehydrate a lot quicker than humans, regular drink and toilet stops are required. Make sure you have plenty of cold water for them available at all times, just like you would at home. Let them have a well deserved sniff and walk around on a well restrained lead before you get back in the car for more travelling.

Make sure you have a well fitted harness or cage for your pet to be comfortably sat in. Invest in a well designed, comfortable harness that attaches to the seatbelt and will be strong and large enough to fit your pet comfortably, adjusted to the correct size. For cages, make sure it is sturdy and large enough for your pet to stand up in comfortably. Add food, blankets, water and their favourite toy to let them know that this is a safe and inviting place to be.

As well as humans, pets can get car sick as well! While medication, feliway sprays and adaptil collars can assist with this, Vet Central Animal Hospital recommend taking your pet on a few short trips close to home before leaving to condition them to being in the car.

References:
www.vetwest.com.au