Companion Animal Exam 2: Physical Exam, Parasites, Vaccinations (Dr. Still)

What are physical exams used for?

used to assess the overall health of an animal and to find abnormalities that may need to be treated

Where should physcial exams start?

at the head and systematically work through the body all the way to the tail

What must be done to the animal for a physical exam?

they must be restrained

Physcal exam format?

SOAP

SOAP

subjective, objective, assessment, plan

subjective

signalment: age, breed, sex

history

problems

objective

TPR

physical exam findings

testing

Assessment

differential diagnoses

lab findings

plan

treatment

TPR

temperature, pulse, respiration

temperature

most often taken rectally in animals

normal for dogs and cats 100-102 oF

pulse

beats per minute

heartbeat

inside the back leg (femoral artery)

respiration

breaths per minute

visually count breaths

listen with stethoscope

instruments for TPR

thermometer

stethoscope

Trick to doing pulse and respiration rate on an animal?

count the number in 6 seconds and add a zero

Questions to ask yourself when doing a physical exam

Are they BAR?

Are they moving free of pain?

Are they limping?

Are they wagging their tail?

Are they aware of their surroundings?

Are they having difficulty breathing?

eyes: normal

bright, alert, vision

eyes: abnormal

discharge, redness, structural abnormalities, obvious foreign bodies, problems with vision

structural abnormalities in eyes

eyelids not formed properly and globe of the eye is too large or too small

instruments used for eye

ophthalmoscope to view internal structures of the eye

ears: normal

clean, non painful, pink, alert hearing

ears: abnormal

bad odor, abundance of wax or infectious drainage, red/inflamed, painful, itchy, excoriations (scratching) around the ear

instruments used on ears

otoscope

nose: normal

slightly moist, clean, symmetircal nostrils

nose: abnormal

drainage, swelling, dry, crusty

mouth: normal

pink, moist gums, clean teeth, CRT

CRT

capillary refill time

what is the CRT?

less than 2 seconds

mouth: abnormal

odor, tartar accumulation, sores/lesions, infected teeth, bleeding, excessive drooling, masses

Chest: normal

no heart murmurs, consistent steady heart rate, clear lungs

chest: abnormal

heart murmurs, arrhythmias, muffled or absent heart or lung sounds, wheezing, crackles

instruments used on chest

stethoscope

abdominal palpation: normal

non painful, soft and doughy

abdominal palpation: abnormal

masses, foreign bodies, pain, fluid, gas, abnormal organ size

skin: normal

clean, soft, bright, shiny haircoat

skin: abnormal

rough or dull haircoat, parasites, lesions, masses, excoriations (scratches)

excoriations

scratches

orthopedic exam: normal

easily moveable legs, non painful, flexible

orthopedic exam: abnormal

pain, cracking, popping, swelling, heat, broken bones

tail/rear end: normal

flexible tail and clean

tail/rear end: abnormal

diarrhea, pain, drainage, staining on fur, skin infections

tail/rear end: anal glands

produce a secrete a liquid that is stored in 2 anal sacs located on each side of the rectum

used for marking territory, pheromone, defense mechanism

routine testing for pets

fecal, heartworm test, FeLV/FIV cats, +/- bloodworm +/- urinalysis

FeLV

feline leukemia virus

FIV

feline immunodeficiency virus

parasites: external

fleas, ticks, mites, lice

parasites: internal

heart worms, hookworms, roundworms, whipworms, coccidia, giardia

flea life cycle

egg, larva, pupae, adult

flea: egg

not sticky, fall of the animal into the environment, hatch in 1-10 days

flea: larva

feed on blood and flea feces

flea: pupae

tightly encapsulated, impossible to kill, can lay dormant for months

flea: adult

lay eggs, infect dog and cat

treating a flea infestation

Must treat all the animals in the household

Must treat the environment

Use flea preventatives that kill eggs, larva, adults

Vacuum floors and empty vacuum bag immediately

Any Pupa that are removed with a vacuum cleaner will usually hatch and go right back into the environment

The vibration from the vacuum causes the pupa to hatch

When treating a flea infestation, expect to see live fleas on the pet 3-6 months after cleaning the environment and treating the animal. WHY???

Because all the pupa will hatch around 3-6 months later. Owners MUST continue using preventative in order to kill the fleas that emerge.

What is flea dirt?

flea feces, digested blood

What does flea dirt do?

gives us evidence of the presence of fleas even if we don't see them on the animal

How can you tell the difference between flea dirt and black spots?

Place the suspected flea dirt on a WET gauze pad.

Why do you place suspect flea dirt on a wet gauze pad?

Because flea dirt is dried blood. Place flea dirt on a wet material causes the spots to bleed red on the material

Ticks: ameircan dog tick can carry what disease?

ehrlichia

clinical signs of ehrlichia

fever, swollen lymph nodes, bleeding nose, weight loss

ehrlichia prevention

using tick preventatives

tick preventatives

nexgard, bravecto, simparica trio, advantage multi

WNL

within normal limits

writing a medical record

Medical Records are legal documents

Great attention to detail and accurate recording are extremely important

Values should be recorded in a systematic way that endures the entire animal was properly examined.

common canine vaccinations

DHLPPC, Bordetella, rabies

DHLPPC

distemper, hepatitis/adenovirus, leptospirosis, parvovirus, perainfluenza, coronavirus

bordetella

respiratory

rabies

neurological

distmeper

respiratory, GI, neuromuscular

hepatitis/adenovirus

GI and liver

leptospirosis

renal

parvovirus and coronavirus

GI

parainfluenza

upper respiratory

Basic Canine Vaccination protocols: 1st visit

6 weeks of age with DHPPC (no Lepto)

Basic Canine Vaccination protocols: 2nd visit

9 weeks of age DHLPPC (with lepto)

Basic Canine Vaccination protocols: 3rd visit

12 weeks of age with DHLPPC and rabies

Vaccination up to clinic:

some will do an extra parvo booster and most will add in bordetella

bordetella common name

kennel cough

common feline vaccinations

FVRCP, FeLV, FIP, rabies

FVRCP

rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, panleukopenia

rhinotracheitis

upper respiratory, ocular

calicivirus

upper respiratory, ocular

panleukopenia

parvovirus- GI, immune system

FeLV effects what part of the body?

immune system, cancer

FIP

feline infectious peritonitis

FIP effects what?

coronavirus, weight loss, fever, immune system, effusions (chest or abdomen)

Common Feline Vaccination Protocols: 1st visit

6 weeks of age, test FeLV/FIV blood test, 1st FVRCP

Common Feline Vaccination Protocols: 2nd visit

9 weeks of age, 2nd FVRCP, 1st FeLV

Common Feline Vaccination Protocols: 3rd visit

12 weeks of age, 2nd FeLV and rabies

When should your pet be spayed or neutered?

5-6 months of age

What are some cosmetic procedures in dogs and cats?

Ear crop, tail dock, dewclaw removal, declaw

ear crops

cosmetic procedure only, performed 4-6 months of age

tail dock

performed around 3 days of age

Dewclaw removal

performed around 3 days of age, actually beneficial for animal b/c it is easily caught and ripped on things

declawing is performed on who?

strictly indoor cats to prevent them from tearing up furniture or injuring their human companions

What must you do before declawing?

inform owners of procedure

What is declawing?

removing the phalange 3 (P3) in its entirety

What can declawing cause?

arthritis and pain when walking

Dec.awing procedure can be what?

painful and it takes aways the cats natural defense of using its claws to defend itself and climb to safety