               
505 Madison Avenue
Mankato, MN 56001
Phone: 507-345-5900
Monday - Friday
7:30 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
8:00 AM - noon
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Our goal at the Minnesota Valley Pet Hospital is to exceed your expectations! We strive to provide you and your pet with the highest quality veterinary care in a warm, caring, and safe environment.
The Minnesota Valley Pet Hospital is a full service veterinary medical facility located in Mankato, MN. Our professional and courteous staff seeks to provide the best possible medical, surgical, and dental care for our patients.
We are committed to promoting responsible pet ownership, preventive health care and health related education for our clients and their pets. We strive to offer excellence in veterinary care to Mankato and the surrounding communities. Originally founded as the Boerboom Pet Hospital we have proudly served the area since 1971.
Please feel free to contact us to find out more about our hospital, our services, and how we can serve the needs of you and your pet.
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WINTER WEATHER TIPS FOR CATS:
This winter, while you are averting the cold in front of the fireplace or radiator, remember that your cat will also need some warmth to stay healthy. Despite having a fur coat with them at all times, not all felines are suited to or comfortable with chilly environments and some precautions must be taken to ensure their safety during this time of year.
Keeping your cat indoors until the weather warms up again is highly recommended. If they are left outside too long, they may catch hypothermia, suffer from frostbite or become lost in the changed landscape. If they have to spend time outdoors though, it is time to do so early enough to allow them to grow a thicker coat before the temperatures drop further.
If your cat's shelter is outside, use straw to line it. Do not use blankets, paper or towels as these can hold in the cold and become stiff. Also, the door should be covered with heavy plastic and face away from the wind to keep out drafts and the worst weather. Finally, the size should be large enough so that your cat can turn around, but small enough to hold in the heat.
As well as this, outdoor cats like to sleep underneath the hoods of cars for extra warmth. Before you start up your vehicle, bang on the hood to make sure that your kitty (or a neighbour's) is not underneath. If your feline friend spends any time in the garage, remember to clean up any antifreeze spills as these can be fatal to your cat if ingested.
For indoor cats, ensure that they have a place to sleep that is off the floor and located away from any chilly draughts that may come in from outside. As well as this, place a screen in front of your fireplace to protect their fur from being damaged by any errant cinders and sparks that may fly out.
Keeping warm during the winter can consume additional energy, so it is essential to feed your cats more during this time. Food containing high amounts of protein and fatty acids will help with this, and will also result in a thicker coat with which your cat can fend off the cold. Finally, small amounts of vitamins B and E can make your feline more resistant to the chilly weather.
As for water, conduct constant checks of your cat's bowl to ensure that it is not frozen over. By ensuring that your kitty always has a source of clean water, you will make sure that they stay away from polluted puddles and harmful spills such as antifreeze which may look thirst quenching to a thirsty feline.
Speaking of harmful substances, if you live in a town where de-icing agents are used on the roads or driveways, make sure to wash or wipe off your kitty's paws when they come back home. If your cat licks his or her paws and ingests these compounds, they can then cause indigestion or other stomach upsets.
WINTER DOG PARK DANGERS:
Short winter trips to the dog park can be a great way to let your dog burn off some of that pent-up energy from staying inside more during the cold months. But the temperature and snow, among other things, can pose hazards to your pup.
Here are some tips for keeping your dog safe. (Not sure where the nearest dog park is? Check out the new interactive dog-park map on Animal Planet.)
1.Check with your vet. Senior dogs, dogs with arthritis, dogs with short fur and puppies can be especially sensitive to the cold weather. Ask your vet whether it's better to keep your dog indoors and restrict his outdoor activity to short walks. If your vet thinks a trip to the park is okay, ask her what cold-weather precautions she recommends.
2.Bundle up. Dress your dog in a warm coat or sweater with a high collar or turtleneck; it should cover her back from the base of her tail and also protect her belly. Dog booties can protect paws from ice and salt -- get your dog used to them indoors first.
3.Know the signs of frostbite and hypothermia. The risk of these conditions is especially high when the temperature dips below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Frostbite typically affects poorly insulated body parts such as the tips of the ears and is evidenced by skin that is pale or red, swollen and painful or numb. Signs of hypothermia include slow pulse, shallow breathing, disorientation, collapse and unconsciousness. If you think your dog has either, call your vet immediately!
4.Stick to fenced dog parks. More dogs are lost during the winter than any other season, possibly because dogs can lose your scent in snow or ice and become lost if they can't see you. (Read our article: "Cold Weather Tips.")
5.Avoid salt. Stick to dry or snow-covered areas where road salt has not been used to melt ice. Not only can it hurt your dog's paws, many varieties contain harmful chemicals that can cause stomach upset and even death if ingested when your dog licks his paws.
6.Trim your dog's paws. If your dog has furry feet, ask your groomer to "scoop" the pads -- trim the hair that grows between your dog's toes and under his feet -- during the winter to prevent ice buildup between the paw pads. (Read our article: "Caring for Your Pup's Paws in the Winter.")
7.Play fetch with toys, not sticks. Sticks -- so plentiful in winter -- can cause choking and severe injuries. (Read the Daily Mail article: "How throwing Fido a stick could kill him.") So if your dog likes to chew and chase, pack a Frisbee, tennis ball or other toy.
8.Watch out for bad play. Check out our video, "Dog Parks and Good Play vs. Bad Play," to learn the signs that play has turned aggressive. Trust your instincts and leave if play is too rough. (Read our blog post: "Protect your dog from dog park bullies.")
9.Wipe your dog off as you get home. Balls of ice can form between your dog's toes, and antifreeze, salt and other chemicals can stick to his paws and upset his stomach -- or worse -- when he licks them. Thoroughly wipe down your dog's belly, legs and feet as soon you come home -- and while you're at it, check for issues such as dry and cracked paw pads.
FALL/WINTER ANIMAL CONCERNS:
Ah, fall—there’s nothing like crisp, cool air, the first months of school and luscious foliage to get you excited for the changing seasons. Your pet, too, is probably welcoming the break from hot, sticky weather. But pet parents, beware—fall is also a time of lurking dangers for our furry friends. From household poisons to cold weather hazards, the season is a minefield! Here are some tips to keep your pet snug and healthy during the autumn months.
•The use of rodenticides(mouse poisons)increases in the fall as rodents seek shelter from the cooler temperatures by attempting to move indoors. Rodenticides are highly toxic to pets—if ingested, the results could be fatal. If you must use these products, do so with extreme caution and put them in places inaccessible to your pets.
•It’s back-to-school time, and those of you with young children know that means stocking up on fun items like glue sticks, pencils and magic markers. These items are considered “low toxicity” to pets, which means they’re unlikely to cause serious problems unless large amounts are ingested. However, since gastrointestinal upset and blockages certainly are possible, be sure your children keep their school supplies out of paw’s reach.
•Training tip: If you and your pooch haven’t been active outdoors in a while because of the summer heat, do some remedial recall training. Dogs, like people, get rusty on their skills if they aren't using them.
•Fall and spring and are mushroom seasons. While 99% of mushrooms have little or no toxicity, the 1% that are highly toxic (PDF) can cause life-threatening problems in pets. Unfortunately, most of the highly toxic mushrooms are difficult to distinguish from the nontoxic ones, so the best way to keep pets from ingesting poisonous mushrooms is to keep them away from areas where any mushrooms are growing. Contact your veterinarian or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center immediately if you witness your pet eating a wild mushroom.
•In order to generate body heat, pets who exercise heavily outdoors, or who live outdoors, should be given more food during colder seasons. Make sure horses and other outdoor animals have access to clean, fresh water that is not frozen.
•Autumn is the season when snakes who are preparing for hibernation may be particularly “grumpy,” increasing the possibility of severe bites to those unlucky pups who find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Pet owners should know what kinds of venomous snakes may be in their environment—and where these snakes are most likely to be found—so they can keep pets out of those areas.
•Many people choose fall as the time to change their car’s engine coolant. Ethylene glycol-based coolants are highly toxic, so spills should be cleaned up immediately. Consider switching to propylene glycol-based coolants—though they aren’t completely nontoxic, they are much less toxic than other engine coolants.
COLD WEATHER TIPS:
Brrrr—it's cold outside! The following guidelines will help you protect your companion animals when the mercury dips.
1.Keep your cat inside. Outdoors, felines can freeze, become lost or be stolen, injured or killed. Cats who are allowed to stray are exposed to infectious diseases, including rabies, from other cats, dogs and wildlife.
2.During the winter, outdoor cats sometimes sleep under the hoods of cars. When the motor is started, the cat can be injured or killed by the fan belt. If there are outdoor cats in your area, bang loudly on the car hood before starting the engine to give the cat a chance to escape.
3.Never let your dog off the leash on snow or ice, especially during a snowstorm, dogs can lose their scent and easily become lost. More dogs are lost during the winter than during any other season, so make sure yours always wears ID tags.
4.Thoroughly wipe off your dog's legs and stomach when he comes in out of the sleet, snow or ice. He can ingest salt, antifreeze or other potentially dangerous chemicals while licking his paws, and his paw pads may also bleed from snow or encrusted ice.
5.Never shave your dog down to the skin in winter, as a longer coat will provide more warmth. When you bathe your dog in the colder months, be sure to completely dry him before taking him out for a walk. Own a short-haired breed? Consider getting him a coat or sweater with a high collar or turtleneck with coverage from the base of the tail to the belly. For many dogs, this is regulation winter wear.
6.Never leave your dog or cat alone in a car during cold weather. A car can act as a refrigerator in the winter, holding in the cold and causing the animal to freeze to death.
7.Puppies do not tolerate the cold as well as adult dogs, and may be difficult to housebreak during the winter. If your puppy appears to be sensitive to the weather, you may opt to paper-train him inside. If your dog is sensitive to the cold due to age, illness or breed type, take him outdoors only to relieve himself.
8.Does your dog spend a lot of time engaged in outdoor activities? Increase his supply of food, particularly protein, to keep him, and his fur, in tip-top shape.
9.Like coolant, antifreeze is a lethal poison for dogs and cats. Be sure to thoroughly clean up any spills from your vehicle, and consider using products that contain propylene glycol rather than ethylene glycol. Visit the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center more information.
10.Make sure your companion animal has a warm place to sleep, off the floor and away from all drafts. A cozy dog or cat bed with a warm blanket or pillow is perfect.
11.Download the ASPCA's PetWeather iPhone and Android App for free. The ASPCA's PetWeather App lets you know at a glance what kind of weather your furry friend can expect for your location, and will alert you if weather conditions make it uncomfortable or even dangerous for your pets to be outside.
ON-LINE PHARMACY
If you are thinking of ordering your pets medications from an on-line pharmacy, please consider using the adjacent link to yourvetspharmacy.com.
This is a veterinarian run pharmacy in conjunction with MediPets in Mounds View, MN and the Veterinary Hospital Association (a buying group that we are a member of). In contrast to other on-line vendors, because it is veterinary run all manufactures guarantees of quality, safety and effectiveness remain in effect.
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