There may be times when your veterinarian determines that your pet would benefit from advanced diagnostics, specialized treatments, or intensive care beyond what they can provide. In these cases, we are here to help. We’re proud to offer a range of specialized diagnostic options, access to expert consultations, and round-the-clock monitoring in our intensive care setting, ensuring your pet receives the highest level of care when they need it most.

To help speed up your check-in process, we recommend downloading and completing our new patient forms in advance. You can find them under the “Pet Owner Forms” section on our website.

• When you arrive, please check in at the AVIM&O reception desk and let us know you're here!

• Once checked in, our veterinary team, including the doctor and technician, will meet with you to gather a full medical history, perform a physical exam, and assess your pet’s condition. Additional diagnostics or exams may be recommended based on our findings.

• After the initial assessment, we’ll review your pet’s treatment options, estimated costs, and next steps. Our team will discuss everything with you, and together we’ll create a personalized treatment plan.

• If more advanced procedures are needed, we may schedule them for a later date.

• To help us perform certain diagnostics, we ask that you withhold food from your pet for 12 hours before the appointment. If your pet is young or has a medical condition like diabetes, please consult your primary veterinarian or call us for guidance.

• Please continue to provide water as usual, this will not affect any diagnostic testing.

• These guidelines apply to most referrals, but if your veterinarian has given you specific instructions, please follow their recommendations.

Absolutely! We believe in a team approach when it comes to your pet’s care. Once your pet has been seen at AVIM&O, we will send your veterinarian a detailed report so they can keep your pet’s medical records up to date. If needed, our team will also consult with your veterinarian by phone throughout your pet’s treatment to ensure seamless care.

Both family veterinarians and veterinary specialists have earned their Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree, which requires an undergraduate education, four years of veterinary school, and successful completion of licensing exams.

A veterinary specialist, however, undergoes additional intensive training,typically a one-year internship followed by a three-year residency in a specialized field such as Internal Medicine, Oncology, or Surgery. To become board-certified, specialists must pass rigorous exams and meet strict training and experience requirements. Those who achieve this distinction are called Diplomates in their area of expertise.

Human treatment is generally aggressive and prioritizes a full cure or survival beyond 5-10 years at the expense of their quality of life. In contrast, for animals, the focus is on maximizing their survival time while maintaining a good quality of life, due to their shorter life spans and unique environment and lifestyle. Unlike humans, animals’ behaviors and interactions expose them to potential infections, so chemotherapy must be carefully balanced to treat their condition without suppressing their immune system. Thus, lower doses are used in animals to improve symptoms and extend both quantity and quality time.

The majority of animal chemotherapy patients have minimal to no side effects due to differences in treatment from humans. Rare side effects include gastrointestinal signs (poor appetite, vomiting, diarrhea) within 3-5 days, often treatable with medication. Preventive medications are given to avoid these types of side effects. Another rare side effect is bone marrow suppression, expected around day 7 after chemo. We carefully monitor white blood cell levels through a CBC to find the right balance of treatment. If levels are too low, we start antibiotics and adjust the chemo dose to prevent severe bone marrow suppression.

In general, only hair that continuously grows is affected by chemotherapy. Breeds that need grooming to prevent overgrown appearance (Poodles, Shih Tzus, Sheepdogs, Maltese, etc.) are more likely to experience hair loss. Breeds with short fur that doesn’t grow significantly (Labs, Hounds, Frenchies, Bulldogs, etc.) should not experience significant hair loss. However, they may take longer to regrow shaved sites, and they may lose selective continuously growing hairs (whiskers, eyebrows, leg feathers), which will regrow after chemotherapy is completed.

NO! It is very common that we need to sedate patients for pre-treatment diagnostics as well as chemotherapy administration. Any medications other than oral chemotherapy agents (e.g. Palladia, Chlorambucil Melphalan, Cytoxan, Tomozolomide) can be given the morning of a chemotherapy appointment. If needed, a small treat can be given with medications in the morning.

YES! Please continue these preventive measures, even in winter months!

Immediate illness after exposure to these residues is highly unlikely. The greatest concern with chemo exposure is REPEATED exposure over extended periods (weeks/months/years), which may lead to cancer development in 10-20 years. Thus, the highest risk is to the HUMANS in the household who are more likely to experience long-term side effects.

• Wear gloves when cleaning contaminated body secretions (urine, feces, vomit, litter box).

• Chemotherapy patients should not eliminate outdoors in areas where small children play (e.g., sandbox) while their urine/feces are contaminated (usually within the first 72 hours).

• Promptly remove contaminated feces from outdoor areas.

• Scoop cat litter boxes daily (preferably using clumpable litter) and change them frequently. Wash the pan with detergent. Cats can share the same litter box.

• Young children, immunosuppressed individuals, or pregnant women should avoid exposure to contaminated body secretions.

• Store chemotherapy drugs away from children.

• Oral chemotherapy should be administered wearing gloves, either in a small piece of food or directly down the throat.

• IMPORTANT: Do not break the chemotherapy tablets, open capsules, or dissolve them in water.

• Avoid allowing your pet to chew on chemotherapy pills because there is a higher risk of exposure when the powder is released from the tablet or capsule.

• Oral chemo is generally absorbed within 2 hours. If vomiting occurs during that time, the vomit is considered contaminated and you should wear gloves to clean it. Depending on the timing of the vomiting, all or part of the medication may not be absorbed. Unless the vomiting happened within 15 minutes of chemo administration, giving another dose is usually not recommended. Please call us if this occurs.

Nausea comes in MANY forms: poor appetite, drooling, lip smacking and even gagging. Vomiting is the most extreme form of nausea but it is important to detect other symptoms of nausea so we can intervene earlier.

If your pet is acting normally (energy, appetite, etc.) then there is nothing to do differently. If your pet is going outside and visibly straining or attempting to defecate without producing any feces, please let us know.

Pain comes in MANY forms: limping, poor appetite, licking at the area, lethargy, chattering teeth, etc., and it’s important to recognize these because most animals will not “cry” when they’re in pain. MOST cancers are not necessarily painful, though there are a few exceptions (bone cancer being the main cancer that causes pain). If you have any concerns that your pet is in pain, please give the prescribed pain medications or contact us for additional medications to help manage pain.