The Center for Veterinary Medicine of the FDA announced earlier this month that Vetsulin (Veterinary Porcine-Zinc Insulin manufactured by Invervet/Schering-Plough) may have quality control problems leading to inconsistent amounts of insulin in the formulation.  This has the potential to cause a delay in the action of the insulin, or a longer duration of action of the insulin which might lead to problems with diabetic regulation in patients receiving Vetsulin.

The current recommendations are simply to observe your pet more closely for signs of hypoglycemia/low blood sugar (lethargy, weakness, seizures) or hyperglycemia/high blood sugar (drinking more water, urinating more than normal, weight loss).

The complete FDA Notice can be accessed at:  http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/NewsEvents/CVMUpdates/ucm188752.htm

And of course, please don’t hesitate to give us a call anytime if you see any changes or problems with your diabetic pet receiving Vetsulin insulin.  We are always available to discuss any concerns you may have, or to evaluate your pet if there are problems.

The Mt. Nittany Boarding Kennel was just named the “Best of State College” by readers of State College Magazine!

We’re thrilled with this recognition, with “kudos” to Mary Glincosky and her staff who work diligently to care for those pets boarding in our facility!  They do a fantastic job of providing a warm and comfortable setting for our four-legged friends, and work closely with the rest of the staff at the Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital to address any individual needs for those pets who require special care!

WHAT A MESS!  But I guess that’s what we have to expect considering the scope of our ongoing project to remodel/rebuild our practice!

We’ve completed the “demolition” process now, and are starting the “construction” process . . . which is very exciting.  All of the major work to cut through the floor to install new plumbing is complete, the concrete has been poured to repair the floor, and we’re putting up the new walls and new electrical throughout the new work areas.  We still have a little final planning and “tweaking” to do associated with the installation of oxygen systems, anesthesia exhaust gas systems, and the digital network to support both our upgraded computer system and the digital imaging systems, but it is starting to come together.

Of course everything takes longer than initially planned, but we are making good progress now, and the changes are apparent on a daily basis!  Hopefully this initial phase in our remodeling will be completed by the end of the year, and then we’ll move forward to update our Waiting Room and Reception Area, with a newly remodeled General Store for Animals slated to be the third and final stage of this project!

It’s all good!!!  We’ll be very excited to “show off” our new facility in the Spring!

Okay . . . I was reminded after publishing my last blog that not only is it a good idea to call early to reserve space for boarding over the holidays, but the same is true for scheduling a grooming appointment for the holidays (or while your pet is boarding).  Our groomers, Nancy and Julia, will be busy, so call early so we’ll have your pet looking his or her best for the holidays!

Seems like 2009 is zipping by, autumn has arrived (and it appears she is imitating winter over the past week) . . . it’s a beautiful time of the year in Happy Valley.  It won’t be very long until Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, and the New Year arrive!

And with the holidays comes the time to travel and spend some time with friends and family!  The Reception Staff at Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital wants to remind you that if your holiday plans call for travel and you’re unable to take your “four-legged” family members with you, then please give us a call soon to make reservations in our Boarding Kennel.  The holidays are always a busy time in our Kennel, and space is limited.  So give us a call, and we’ll do our best to accommodate your pet!

Tomorrow marks the beginning of National Veterinary Technician Week, and we’d like to recognize our Certified Veterinary Technicians, Diane, Amy, Kim, and Devon!  Diane has been with the Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital since 1988, Amy joined our Team in 2004, Kim has been working with us for many years (mostly in Philipsburg), and Devon just recently came on board.  Veterinary Technicians really function as Veterinary Nurses, and they truly make up the “heart of patient care”.  Our technicians oversee anesthesia and provide basic dental care under the supervision of our doctors, assist in a variety of procedures (taking X-Rays, helping with Ultrasound, performing Laboratory Diagnostics), and we can only imagine how difficult it would be to practice quality medicine and surgery without their skills, compassion, and commitment to our patients!

Hopefully you’ll have the opportunity to meet Diane, Amy, Kim, or Devon when your pet comes into our hospital, or maybe when your pet is discharged from the hospital, but even if you don’t get the chance to speak with either of them directly, rest assured that your pets are in excellent hands . . . and those of us who are lucky enough to work with them sure appreciate the amazing work they do!

The Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital would like to announce that Dr. John Thomas will be retiring from active practice after 40 years of providing veterinary services in State College and surrounding communities!  Dr. Thomas graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in 1969, and has spent his entire career here at the Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital.

Dr. Thomas has developed a well-deserved reputation as a caring and compassionate veterinarian in the community, and his skills and expertise have helped many pets and their owners over the years.  There is no doubt that Dr. Thomas is truly “The Mt. Nittany Vet”, and we know that his departure will be felt both in the practice and in the community for many years to come.

As Dr. Thomas leaves the Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital to enjoy spending more time pursuing his other interests (and maybe even to relax a little), we hope you’ll join all of us in wishing him all the best in the years ahead!

It was a busy weekend at the practice, as a number of our staff spent the afternoon Saturday moving everything out of the Mt. Nittany General Store for Animals in preparation for construction which is scheduled to start this week.  We moved all of the products out of the Store, including several thousand pounds of pet food, making for a challenging afternoon.  But it was a beautiful afternoon with all of the windows and doors open, and we got it all mostly completed by sunset!

Obviously, we will not have a General Store for Animals to browse through over the coming months as our remodeling project moves forward.  But we do still have every product that we’ve always carried in stock and available, you’ll just have to ask Pat or one of our Team at the front desk.

And looking at the scope of our project, no doubt our waiting room and facilities will be just a bit more crowded as we work, so please bear with us as we work hard to build the new Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital and General Store for Animals.

Special thanks to Pat (our Store Manager), Michelle (our Practice Manager), Andrea, Aaron, and Becky who spent much of their Saturday afternoon helping us get this challenging job done!  Great job!

The Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital upgraded all of the vaporizers on our gas anesthesia machines this week.  Our older isoflurane vaporizers were replaced with new sevoflurane vaporizers, which will allow us to use sevoflurane as our inhalant anesthetic agent whenever inhalant anesthesia is required.

Although isoflurane is still considered an excellent inhalant anesthetic and is used routinely in veterinary practice, the upgrade to sevoflurane will offer us a little more flexibility and efficiency for procedures and surgery . . . and will also offer a little additional safety for injured, sick, and geriatric patients who require sedation and/or anesthesia!

We’d like to thank Melody and our friends at Abbott Animal Health who worked with us installing and setting up our new sevoflurane vaporizers.

There’s going to be some very exciting changes starting at the Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital in the next week or two, and we’re very excited about it all! We have been planning a major “remodeling” project within our hospital for some time now, and hope to get started within the next week or two!

We will be moving our current clinical work areas (the treatment room and surgery suite) to the areas currently occupied by the Mt. Nittany General Store for Animals. This will entail the construction of a new surgery suite and a new open treatment area which will be larger and more functional than our current facilities. We will also be adding new computer workstations for the clinicians and staff, a new in-house laboratory, and a new X-Ray suite. The General Store for Animals will be relocated to the area where the treatment room and surgery suite are located currently, and we’ll also be enlarging and remodeling our Reception area.

The coming construction is certainly going to make things a bit “interesting” in the practice in the next few months, but we’re going to try our best to minimize any inconvenience, keep the “mess” of construction to a minimum, and ultimately build a great hospital in which we can continue to provide the quality veterinary care you expect at the Mt. Nittany Veterinary Hospital.

We’ll keep you “up to speed” with our progress on a regular basis . . . so check back frequently to see what we’re up to!