VCA All Caring Animal Hospital

The VCA All Caring Animal Hospital is nestled in the heart of the beautiful Berkshires in Western Massachusetts. We service Berkshire County, as well as certain parts of Columbia County in New York, and Litchfield County in Connecticut. We offer both holistic and conventional veterinary medicine. In addition to regular veterinary services such as preventative medicine, diagnostics, radiology, dentistry and surgery, we offer alternative therapies such as acupuncture, Chinese herbs, and cold laser therapy. We tailor our care to reflect your needs as well as your pets! We are proud to be an AAHA accredited veterinary hospital.

Local Medical Issues

Having a pet is one of the best parts of life -and it is our job to help keep your pet healthy. Awareness of common medical issues is key in preventing pets from disease. Local medical issues include problems with intestinal parasites and tick-borne diseases. There are things we can and should do to protect our pets from these diseases.

Intestinal parasites can be transmitted through contaminated soil, drinking water or contact with fecal matter. Yearly fecal testing is highly recommended to check for parasites you may not be aware your pet has. Parasites can be easily transmitted from pet to pet or pet to human - so detection and treatment is very important. As a preventative, pets should be on year-round parasite protection such as Vethical or Interceptor.

The tick population has grown substantially in this area and thus so have tick-borne diseases. These diseases include Ehrlichia, Anaplasma, and of course, Lyme. Symptoms of a tick-borne disease include lethargy, lameness on one or more legs, fever, diarrhea/vomiting, and/or weakness. Untreated tick-borne disease can cause mild to severe health complications, even death. Detection involves a simple blood test, and treatment is often as easy as a course of antibiotics. It is best to catch and treat these diseases as early as possible. Using a regular monthly tick preventative such as Simpleguard and checking your pets daily for ticks is a great way to prevent these diseases from being transmitted.

If you are concerned about any of these issues, give us a call! We will be happy to help you out.