Chips with everything...

Just a reminder that as of 6th April 2016, it becomes a legal obligation for any dog in the UK over the age of 8 weeks to be identified by a microchip. So if you haven't had your dog microchipped yet, you'd better get on with it. Now is the time.

In a shameless piece of clinic promotion, I can let you know that we have plenty of microchips in stock at the clinic, so if your dog needs one, compliance is just a phone call away. And that phone number is 020 7723 0453, in case you forgot.

And another thing that many people don't realise is that even in the electronic microchip age, your dog still has to wear a collar with an ID tag at all times when out in public.

Funnily enough, we can supply these too. A wide range of perfectly delightful collars that your dog will be proud to wear in the best society, and some exquisitely designed and crafted ID tags to match.

And you of course, as their significant human other, are responsible for your dog's good behaviour at all times, so if you need a dog trainer (or in many cases, it's you that needs a little update on dog training), guess what, we can help with that too.

So many things to do and think about.

See you soon.

Happy Birthday Hyde Park Vets

Not that anybody is really interested, But the Hyde Park Veterinary Centre came of age today. We turned 18!

There's been a clinic in Connaught Street continuously since 1872 which is rather more impressive, but it's current incarnation started on March 30th 1998.

The clinic was initially at the Connaught Square end, catering more for the many thousands of working horses in the capital. It moved about 30 years ago to the small rooms behind the flower shop, finally gravitating to 61 Connaught Street in the mid 1990's.

We expanded into number 63 just 4 years ago.

The Hyde Park Veterinary Centre at 18 years old - does that mean I finally get my own door key?

Chocolate is NOT good for dogs. Just in case you didn't know

Easter weekend is just around the corner and we all know what that means...

It's probably going to rain and there's going to be a lot if chocolate around.

Which is great, because chocolate contains a substance called theobromine which is a bit of a stimulant (like caffeine) and it makes some of us feel a bit better (in some cases a LOT better).

The problem is that some dogs find it hard to resist eating chocolate when they find it lying around at home and theobromine is quite poisonous for dogs. Too much theobromine affects the heart, nervous system and kidneys. It can cause vomiting, diarrhoea, restlessness and agitation, a raised heart rate, muscle tension, loss of coordination, rapid breathing and in severe cases seizures and death.

Symptoms can start just a few hours after eating chocolate. 

Different types of chocolate contain different amounts of theobromine. For example white chocolate contains very little. Every 25 grams of milk chocolate contains around 50 milligrams of theobromine and unsweetened (baking) chocolate contains around 400 milligrams of theobromine in each 25 grams.

The toxic dose of theobromine for dogs is around 100-150 milligrams for each kilo of bodyweight. In real English that means that a 250 gram bar of dark chocolate can be fatal for a Labrador weighing around 25kg.

So what should you do if your dog eats some chocolate?

Our first advice would be to call your vet. Once they know your dog's body weight, what type of chocolate they've eaten and roughly how much (and it's best to over-estimate if you're not sure), they'll be able to calculate fairly precisely whether you need to be worried or not.

If your dog has eaten a toxic amount, veterinary treatment is likely to involve making your dog vomit, possibly washing out the stomach, and maybe giving a substance called activated charcoal to absorb any remaining toxins. If this is done quickly, the prognosis is generally good, but far better to intervene quickly than to wait until it's too late.

On that happy note, have a Happy Easter but best to hide the chocolate!