Dr. Siegle poses with a patient who receives heartworm, flea, and tick prevention year round.

Why is year-round prevention essential for parasite control?

As a veterinary hospital in the midwest, we get a lot of questions about preventative medications. For example, “Why do I need to give my pet heartworm protection in the winter when there are no mosquitos around?” Well, while it’s true that we are for the most part free of mosquitos this time of year, it’s still important to keep giving your pet their parasite prevention medication all year long, no matter what the weather is like.

Sara snuggles with her own cat.

The importance of dental health is easy to see

As veterinary professionals, we can never emphasize enough the importance of regular dental care for dogs and cats. There’s a reason the entire month of February is dedicated to pet dental health! Recently, a CHFA staff member saw in living color the importance of maintaining healthy mouths for our pets.

Dr. Mincks, who provides behavioral consultations, poses with a patient.

CHFA now offers Behavioral Consultations

Your love for your pets can overcome anything, but at times their behavior causes stress and friction for the entire family, especially when you don’t know where it’s coming from or what to do about it. Whether the cat has stopped using his litter box or the dog is barking at strangers during his walk, these issues make life difficult for everyone.

Brittney poses with a grooming client

Protect your dog's coat this winter

Winter has hit West Michigan in full force, and along with cold weather, shorter days, and snow come dogs’ winter coats. “Many dogs have a different type of coat in the wintertime that’s thicker and heavier,” said CHFA groomer Brittney. To some dog owners, it may seem like a good plan to leave that heavy coat alone until spring. According to Brittney, however, maintaining your pet’s coat, including regular professional grooming, can be more critical during the winter than at any other time of year.

Dr. Mincks poses with a patient.

Welcome to the team, Dr. Holly Mincks!

Cascade Hospital for Animals and Breton Village Animal Clinic are excited to announce that Dr. Holly Mincks has joined our veterinary team! Dr. Mincks is passionate about her career. “What I really love about vet medicine is the problem-solving. It's so, so rewarding when pets come in with a problem and they're feeling really crummy and you can figure out what the problem is and how to fix it and they can feel better. And when the pets are happy, that strengthens the bond they have with their humans,” she said.

Dr. Grace Longcore smiles with a Pomeranian patient.

Welcome aboard, Dr. Grace Longcore!

Cascade Hospital for Animals and Breton Village Animal Clinic are proud to bring Dr. Grace Longcore on board! Dr. Longcore began her career at Animal Emergency Hospital, where she worked before joining us.

Multi-cat households are a joy but they need careful consideration to work for everyone.

Multi-Cat Households: How to Make them Work for Everyone

For some cat lovers, their family just isn’t complete with one cat! And while there are many advantages to having more than one cat—they keep each other active and mentally stimulated for starters—there are many considerations and necessary first steps before making your household a multicat one.

Gabe Kleinschmidt, RVN, poses with a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Our Licensed Veterinary Nurses Set us Apart

For many years, there has been an issue across the veterinary world that the pandemic only worsened: a shortage of licensed veterinary technicians, now more commonly called registered veterinary nurses (RVN). It’s difficult to fully account for the shortage, but to make up for it, many veterinarians employ non-credentialed assistants to carry out certain tasks.

Dr. Siegle poses with Morgan after Morgan's TPLO surgery.

CHFA is now offering TPLO surgery

When your pet suffers an injury that affects daily functioning, surgery is an important option to consider. Your veterinarian will weigh the advantages and disadvantages of different types of surgeries to treat the injury and work with you to determine the best treatment for your pet. 

Lola and Emily celebrated Lola's birthday one day during their rehab session.
Lola and Emily celebrated Lola's birthday one day during their rehab session.

For one senior dog, veterinary rehab has been lifechanging

This is part three in a three part series about the veterinary rehab program at Cascade Hospital for Animals and the benefits it brings to pets. In part two, we explored the two primary types of patients rehabilitation nurse Emily Harkness sees and the best courses of treatment for them. In part one, Emily talked about how she and Dr. Greg Paplawsky view veterinary rehab for seniors as age management to ease the transition to their golden years and how she works with owners to make home life as comfortable as possible.