FAQ

Acoma Animal Clinic has been in business & at the same location since December 1986.

We strongly RECOMMEND that you make an appointment ahead of time. We do accept walk-ins, however, appointments allow us to reserve an adequate amount of time to see each patient individually in a prompt fashion.

Full payment is due upon check-out, when services are rendered.

No, we do not take payments however, we do accept Care Credit, which is a health care finance program offering low or no interest payment plans. You can apply online at www.CareCredit.com.

Call the clinic IMMEDIATELY & ask the receptionist or staff member what to do. If it is an emergency they will be able to help you decide how best to handle the situation.

Yes at Acoma Animal Clinic we offer both a puppy & a kitten wellness program.

If your puppy is 6-8 weeks old or older you should make an appointment to start vaccinations as soon as possible.

If your kitten is 8 weeks or older you should make an appointment to start vaccinations as soon as possible.

That depends on the age of your dog

If you have a puppy they will need to receive a series of puppy vaccines.

• DHPP (distemper, hepatitis, parvo, & parainfluenza combo vaccine) starting at around 6 weeks old until they are approximately 18-20 weeks old.

• Rabies vaccine, once puppy is at least 12 weeks old.

• Leptospirosis vaccine

If you have an older dog that has been kept current on vaccinations they should receive

• DHPP annually

• Rabies vaccine once every 3 years.

If you have an older dog that you are unsure of their vaccination history we recommend they receive

• DHPP, with a DHPP booster in 30 days

• Rabies vaccine, with a Rabies booster in 1 year, then a Rabies vaccine once every 3 years.

That depends on the age of your cat

If you have a kitten they will need to receive a series of kitten vaccines.

• FVRCP (Feline viral rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, and panleukopenia) starting at around 8 weeks of age until they are approximately 15 weeks old.

• They should be FELV (Feline Leukemia) tested after they are 10 weeks old

• If the FELV test is negative then they should receive an FELV vaccine, with a booster in 30 days

• If kitten is an outside cat they should receive a Rabies vaccine.

If you have an older cat that has been kept current on vaccinations they should receive

• FVRCP every other year

• FELV once yearly

• Rabies vaccine once every 3 years.

If you have an older cat that you are unsure their vaccination history we recommend they receive

• FVRCP, with an FVRCP booster in 30 days

• An FELV test

• If test is negative then they should receive an FELV vaccine, with a FELV booster in 30 days.

• If cat is an outside cat they should receive a Rabies vaccine.

There are many reasons to have your dog or cat spayed or neutered

Better health – Dogs & Cats that are spayed or neutered have no chance of developing uterine or testicular cancer; in females, the risk of breast cancer is drastically reduced, females should be spayed prior to their first heat cycle. Each subsequent heat brings a greater chance of mammary cancer at a later time. Also, reproductive cancers can occur in older dogs that have been bred.

Eliminates Chances of Pyometritis – Pyometra is a dangerous infection that attacks the uterus of dogs & cats, soon after estrus, and is a potentially fatal infection

Better behavior – Male dogs & cats that are neutered when young are much less likely to roam, mark their territory (and your belongings) with urine, and show aggression toward other males. Intact (unneutered) male dogs & cats can go to great lengths to get to a female in heat-they will dig their way out of yards, break fences and leashes, and cross streets in heavy traffic if a female in heat is in the area.

Easier care – An unspayed female dog bleeds for about 10 straight days twice a year. She bleeds on your carpet, your furniture, the interior of your car, and on the ground outside.

Female cats will basically stay in heat until they have been bred, during this time they can be very vocal and behave oddly.

No accidental pregnancies. If your dog or cat accidentally becomes pregnant, you will have to provide additional medical care – for her and the puppies or kittens – and be responsible for finding good homes for half a dozen or more offspring.

Another very good reason to spay or neuter your dog or cat is some 70,000 puppies and kittens are born every day in the U.S. Between four million and six million pets are euthanized every year because they are homeless.

That means between 11,000 and 16,000 pets are euthanized every day simply because they are homeless.

An animal in a shelter is killed every 1.5 seconds.

Only one animal in 10 born in the U.S. gets a good home that lasts a lifetime.

These alarming statistics present a good enough reason, all by themselves, for preventing more pet animal homelessness, misery, cruelty, and death.

We recommend spaying or neutering your dog or cat at around 5 or 6 months of age.

We recommend you make an appointment for your pet to be examined. There are many reasons a dog or cat will vomit, some of those reasons can be serious so it is best to be safe than sorry.

We recommend you make an appointment for your pet to be examined especially if the diarrhea has been going on for more than a day. Diarrhea can be caused by a change in diet, internal parasites and many other things. Dogs & cats can get dehydrated from severe bouts of diarrhea. You should try to bring a fresh stool sample in with you to your appointment, if possible.

Dogs & cats can get internal parasites whether they are young or old, they are exposed to different parasites throughout their lifetimes, from dog parks to just being in the backyard. Some parasites can also be passed from dogs or cats to people. We recommend checking fecal samples yearly.

We recommend that you make an appointment for your pet to be examined.

We would recommend that you not give over the counter pain remedies to your dog or cat without first getting a recommendation from your veterinarian, some medications can be toxic to your dog or cat & others can be hard on your dogs stomach & intestines. If the problem is serious enough for you to consider a pain reliever, then the problem is serious enough for you to make an appointment & take your pet to your veterinarian.

Dogs can have allergic reactions to many things & they can show many different signs from welts & red bumps on their skin, to a very swollen face & eyes, to vomiting & lethargy, to problems breathing & collapsing & in very rare & severe cases of anaphylaxis, death can occur. Allergic reactions are considered a medical emergency.

Yes, they can. Cats, can lose patches of their fur or get red bumps on their skin they can also show signs of vomiting & lethargy, sometimes they will stop eating.

We recommend that you make an appointment for your pet to be examined.

We recommend that you make an appointment for your pet to be examined. Signs of an ear infection can range from redness in the ear, to a fowl smell coming from the ear to constant shaking of the head or scratching at the ears. If you have seen any of these symptoms you should make an appointment for your pet to be examined.

Heartworm disease is a serious and potentially fatal condition caused by parasitic worms living in the blood vessels of the lungs and occasionally in the right side of the heart of dogs and cats. It can be prevented by using a once monthly oral prescription medication.

Ideally yes, you should have your pet Heartworm tested prior to starting the medication. Please ask your veterinarian for more information.

Ringworm is a fungus that lives on the skin, yes it can be very contagious to other pets & to people & can be transmitted from your dog or cat to you just by petting an area of the skin that is infected.

Yes, it can be treated. Please make an appointment for your pet to be examined.

If you think your dog has licked or gotten a hold of a toad you should immediately wash their mouth out with water, while you or someone else call your veterinarian & make an appointment on an emergency basis for further care.

If you noticed your pet have a seizure do not panic, most seizures will only last a short time (less then 1 minute), just watch & make sure that they can not hurt themselves. But always be careful handling your pet while they are seizing as they may accidentally injure you. Also, remember that when your pet seizures their body temperature normally rises so be careful if they are outside that they do not overheat. If you see your pet have a seizure you should call your veterinarian & make an appointment to have your pet examined.

Usually they will have their litter somewhere around 61-63 days. However gestation periods have been reported as short as 59 days to as long as 70. If your female has not gone into labor within 61-62 days you should have them examined immediately.

The female might stop eating a day or so before delivery, might start to “nest”, her temperature should drop below 100 degrees (approx 101.5 is normal), she may seem restless, might have some diarrhea or vomit, these are all normal possibilities, sometimes you might notice some, all or none of these signs.

If she has been having strong persistent contractions & has been in hard labor for 30- 45 minutes without delivering a puppy you should call your veterinarian immediately. If the female is contracting intermittently but not strong and persistently you typically can allow up to 2 hours before seeing the vet. Allowing 2 hours between puppies is a standard guide as long as mom is not exceeding 30 minutes of strong persistent contractions. If a puppy/kitten is partially visible and not delivered within 30 minutes contact us ASAP. If you see a dark green or a puss like discharge from her vulva, or there is a smelly discharge, you should call your veterinarian. If you are not sure what’s normal call & ask your veterinarian, delivering puppies or kittens can be a wonderful experience, but it can also be scary whether its your first time or not.

Yes, she should be seen within 24 hours of delivering her last puppy, or sooner if you are not sure if she has delivered them all. The veterinarian can do a physical exam, sometimes they will take an Xray to be sure all puppies have been delivered & administer what is called a “clean out shot” it is an injection to make sure all the placentas have been delivered & it will help the uterus contract back down in size.

Increased thirst can be due to many different things, we recommend that you make an appointment to have your pet examined. Please try to bring a fresh urine sample from your pet with you to your appointment.

Increased urination can be caused by many different things, we recommend that you make an appointment to have your pet examined. Please try to bring a fresh urine sample from your pet with you to your appointment.

We recommend that you make an appointment for your pet to be examined, & try to bring a fresh urine sample from your pet with you to your appointment.

We recommend that you make an appointment for your pet to be examined, as soon as possible.

We recommend that you call to make an appointment IMMEDIATELY, male cats can get blockages that make them unable to pass urine & this can become an emergency situation depending on how long it has been since he has passed any urine.

We recommend that you make an appointment for your pet to be examined, coughing can be due to many different reasons.

Valley Fever is a fungus that lives in desert soil & can be released by digging, walking, construction or high winds that disturb the soil. The most common early symptoms of Valley Fever in your dog are coughing, fever, weight loss, lack of energy & lack of appetite additional symptoms that can occur is lameness or swelling of limbs, sore back or neck, & swollen lymph nodes. Yes, Valley Fever can be treated, we recommend you schedule an appointment to have your pet examined if you have any concerns.

Yes, cats can also get Valley Fever & can manifest the same signs however, cats are affected much less than dogs are approximately one cat case for every 50 dog cases.

We do recommend that you use some kind of flea tick repellant as ticks can carry certain diseases & fleas from some area up north have been known to carry diseases as well.