News & Stories at Mill Road Vet Hospital

Leah is a 12year old female black Labrador who has been a patient with us for 10 years. Initially trained as a guide dog, she was rejected from the program because of fainting attacks. Even the Veterinary Specialist Group (VSG) in Auckland could not find an answer.

As we head into the cooler seasons, rats and mice can start to head indoors which can be a nuisance. Often rat bait is laid out to solve the problem. If the bait is not in a secured station, an inquisitive dog could ingest the bait. Unfortunately, rat bait is highly toxic to dogs.

You may or may not know that the number one health problem we see in pets is periodontal disease. Estimates of disease occurence state that by 2 years old , 70% cats and 80% dogs have clinical signs. Small and short-nosed (bracycephalic) breeds of dogs are susceptible because of the overcrowding of their teeth in their small jaws.

One of the common concerns of being a pet parent is figuring out how to get the medications that your pet needs into or onto them without it being traumatic for both of you.  Below are some tips and tricks which may help make things easier.

Pannus or canine superficial keratitis is a disease that affects the surface of the eye. It occurs mainly in middle-aged German Shepherd dogs but can sporadically occur in other breeds. The cause is not fully understood but there is likely a strong genetic component with UV light as...

“HALITOSIS”.  A word many people haven’t heard, but something that many of your pets probably experience.  It is the technical term for “bad breath”.  By 2 years of age, a whopping 80% of dogs and 70% of cats will have some form of periodontal...

If you have a puppy (or are considering getting a puppy) one of the diseases that you may or may not be aware of is Parvovirus. We sadly see a number of puppies that become very sick and die with parvovirus every year. What is parvovirus? Parvo or parvovirus is a serious, highly contagious...

I have met many, many people who regretted not getting pet insurance.  But I have never met a single one who has regretted getting pet insurance!  I have pet insurance for my 3-year old Schnauzer, and most of our staff members now have pet insurance for their pets.  More and more...

We have recently invested in a handheld veterinary tonometer at the practise. This vital piece of equipment has now become an integral part of our routine eye exams here at Mill Road and it only takes a minute or two to do! It is vital in the diagnosis, prevention and management of glaucoma. It...

Recently, we have seen a 'Covid-19' puppy boom at the clinic!...It is very exciting getting a puppy, and when you come along to see the the vet with your new addition, one important thing that we will discuss with you is.... neutering! What is neutering? It is a surgical procedure...

Cats commonly get cystitis which we often see as frequent small urination often with blood in it and discomfort. It can be caused by stress, infections or crystals forming in the urine and it can become extremely serious in male cats because the urethra (the tube that passes the urine out of...

  Rabbits and Guinea Pigs make great pets.  Full of character and sociable they can be just as much fun to own as a dog or cat.   And many share the house with their human family. Sadly, their lives as pets are often not as long as they should be and there are some very...

  For many pets a trip to the vet is a stressful event, which in turn makes it stressful for their owners. Unfortunately, going to the vet is just as important for animals as the doctor is for people, and depending on your pet’s health they may frequently be visiting. Finding ways...

    As the resident “bird vet” I deal with a lot of pet birds here at Mill Road.  There are loads of different species kept in NZ.  From the more common budgies and Cockatiels to rarer varieties of Cockatoo – pictured is a “Red Tailed Black...

Meet Bentley!  He is a beautiful, and luckily very laidback little Shih Tzu Cross.  I first met him when he came in with long fur and multiple abscesses in both of his armpits, between his toes, and underneath his bottom.  His owner had already identified the problem, Bentley had...

In order to understand diabetes mellitus, we will go through the way the body metabolises glucose.  The cells in our body require fuel to function. This fuel comes in the form of glucose, fat or protein (amino acids). A hormone called insulin is produced by the pancreas. Insulin...

A common issue that we see in our patients at Mill Road is lumps!  Even our exotic patients (rabbits, Guinea pigs, rats, mice, birds etc.) get these!  Lumps can be a cause of panic to our clients, especially when they appear suddenly and the animal is unwell or sometimes can be...

I had the pleasure of meeting Jill and her shy cat Marmite at a routine health check and vaccination appointment last year.  Marmite had dropped a large amount of weight in the previous months, had been eating ravenously and frequenting her water bowl.  Jill had noticed that she was...

Dude is a VIP (Very Important Pooch) at our clinic! He belongs to our staff-dog family, and he was also a blood donor for many years. When his nurse owner Monica noticed that he was behaving unusually, she brought him in for a check-up. Vets Leanne and Michelle did many tests on Dude including...

Addison’s disease can be caused by the body’s own immune system destroying at least 80% of the areas in the adrenal gland responsible for producing the hormones. Dogs may also experience Addison’s disease if there are complications from treatment of Cushing’s disease,...