Page 4 - Paws and Hooves - Spring 2016

for your support!
Your support has given thousands
of poorly pets access to pioneering treatment at the RVC’s hospitals, saving lives and advancing veterinary care. Thank you. Here are just a
few examples of the state-of-the- art equipment purchased with your donations in the past year.
Therapeutic laser
Pets that previously could not be treated
or would take a long time to recover from their conditions can now receive innovative laser therapy at the Royal Veterinary College thanks to a new therapeutic laser. Laser treatment is proven to help a range of problems by stimulating tissue healing and decreasing pain associated with trauma or ongoing complaints such as arthritis. The new therapeutic laser will bene t dogs, cats and exotic patients being treated across multiple specialist services at the RVC’s hospitals.
Fluoroscopy C-Arm unit
The new uoroscopy C-arm unit has vastly superior image quality and increased speed and ef ciency over the previous model, which enables our vets to pursue the latest techniques and improve the standard of care they can provide. Fluoroscopy is an imaging technique that uses x-rays to create real-time moving images of the inside of
an animal, such as the pumping action of the heart. This is extremely useful for both diagnosis and treatment and can be used during image-guided surgery. The QMHA
is a leading centre in Europe for several pioneering surgical techniques using uoroscopy, for example portosystemic shunt (otherwise known as liver shunt) surgery and the new unit will help to expand these important services.
Equine CT scanner
The UK’s rst specialised equine computed tomography (CT) scanner has been installed at the RVC’s equine hospital. Read all about this exciting development on page eight.
Help is in hand for pet owners thanks to ACT funded apps
Pet owners can now easily monitor and improve the lives of their pets suffering with diabetes or epilepsy thanks to new apps, developed by leading Royal Veterinary College veterinary specialists and funded by your donations to the ACT.
The apps revolutionise the way in which owners can manage these conditions in their pets, allowing owners to detail crucial factors in the control of these conditions such as seizure activity for epilepsy or weight and thirst for diabetes. The apps also send helpful medication reminders to owners who may need to administer drugs several times a day.
As well as having a massive effect on the animals’ lives, diabetes and epilepsy can be an emotional burden for owners. A huge commitment is required for looking after sick pets, including testing and medicating the animals several times per day, constantly monitoring for drug side effects and ongoing nancial costs. The apps provide a source of support for these owners and for the rst time enable them to conveniently manage these life-long disorders in their much-loved pets.
By recording this data pet owners will also be actively participating in research which will transform the understanding of these challenging conditions amongst vets and researchers, as well as the way they are treated.
The apps can be downloaded for mobile phones and tablets on Google Play for Android devices and Apple iTunes App Store for Apple devices. Just search for RVC Diabetes app or RVC Epilepsy app.
4 Paws & Hooves 2016
a BIG thank you