Hamilton Veterinary Clinic is equipped with a comprehensive range of equipment to facilitate the best care for your pet.
On your arrival after checking in with reception staff we have a large waiting room area for your convenience with television and an extensive array of merchandise to browse.
We have 3 large fully computerised consultation rooms that can fit all the family if necessary whilst we examine your pet.
There is an under cover car park at the back of the building that can cater for 4 cars. This is a big help on rainy or hot days.
Hamilton Veterinary Clinic also boasts a vast array of technology for surgery and hospitalised patients.
Diagnostics
Ultrasound
We now have a new machine, which gives us better detail than before. Ultrasound is good for diagnosing heart conditions and for giving accurate soft tissue detail of the abdomen. It can also be used for pregnancy diagnosis and staging.
Radiology
Hamilton Veterinary Clinic uses radiology extensively in our diagnostic procedures. Anything from fractured bones, arthritic joints to lung and heart function and abdominal imaging are catered for with our in house x-ray machine and automated processor.
Endoscopy
Endoscopy is the imaging of the gastrointestinal or upper airway with a flexible light source. Procedures such as retrieval of bones or other objects from the esophagus or stomach, biopsies of the stomach or large intestines, examination of the trachea and nasal passages for foreign objects or tumors are possible with this instrument.
Electrocardiograph
We have recently purchased a state of the art ECG Machine to complement our ultrasonic and radiographic work up of cardiac disease. This machine measures the writting of the heart and is most useful for diagnosing, and monitoring response to treatment of cardiac treatment.
Doppler Blood Pressure
Because our pets are so small and their arterial pulse is difficult to fine we need to use a Doppler Probe to identify and amplify the pulse to enable blood pressure monitoring. At Hamilton Veterinary Clinic we use a Parkes Doppler Machine to achieve this meaurement. Is the most useful in house way of measuring blood pressure in animals. Hypertension can be secondary to other problems such as Cushing’s disease and can cause pathology such as retinal detachment and blindness, cardiomyopathy and renal disease. Medication is available and monitoring of blood pressure is a useful service.
Pathology
We have an in house blood analyzer, which can do such tests as biochemistry, electrolytes, and full blood counts as well as more specialized tests such as thyroid and adrenal gland function. Hamilton Veterinary clinic recommends routine blood tests prior to anaesthesia and surgery.
We also have fast access to major laboratories for more complicated blood work and tissue sampling, as well as an array of modern diagnostic tests for such things as heartworm, parvovirus or feline aids, and microscopy for cytological diagnoses, which is particularly useful for skin and ear disease.
Surgery and Anaesthesia
Here at Hamilton Veterinary Clinic we strive to use the most modern techniques and equipment for the ultimate care of your pets.
Once admitted to hospital our trained nurses check your pet, to make sure they are healthy for surgery. We recommend intravenous fluids during the procedure, which enables a safer anaesthetic- it helps maintain blood pressure, prevents dehydration and facilitates speedy excretion of drugs after the surgery.
Once anaesthetized a trained nurse is always in attendance of your pet to monitor the anaesthetic. We also utilize specialist equipment such as a pulse oximeter, which measure heart rate and oxygen levels in the blood. For more involved surgery or for more at risk patents we use an ECG, which records the electrical rhythm of the heart, and a Parkes Doppler blood pressure monitor.
All patients are intubated and placed on oxygen and Isoflurane anaesthesia and kept on a heat mat. On recovery a trained nurse again monitors them.
We at Hamilton Veterinary Clinic pride ourselves on the array of procedures we can offer our patients:
Dentistry
We have a state of the art dental machine with ultrasonic scaler and dental polisher for cleaning the teeth, and a high-speed drill to help with teeth extractions. We also have a full array of dental elevators and extraction forceps to help conquer the most difficult extractions.
We also discuss preventative measures for your pet’s teeth as well as recommend regular check ups for problem mouths.
Soft Tissue Surgery
The veterinarians at HVL are fully versed in the most up to date techniques for soft tissue surgery, from routine desexing thru to more complicated procedures such as liver and kidney surgery.
Orthopaedic Surgery
Services in this category range from the more common problems such as Ruptured Anterior Cruciate Ligaments and medial luxating patella’s, thru to repair of broken bones using various implants such as bone pins, plates and screws and external fixatuers.
Specialists
There is a wide range of specialists available these days and if we diagnose a problem that is best treated by a specialist we can organize referral for you.
Oncology
These days a diagnosis of cancer is not necessarily the death sentence it used to be. We can liase with oncology specialists to provide the most up to date chemotherapy protocol for certain conditions, and can administer these chemotherapeutic drugs in house. There is also a new drug being trialled now that shows promising results that should be available commercially next year.