While wishing you and your pets a very Happy Easter, we would like to highlight a particular hazard that frequently arises at this time of year, and that is chocolate poisoning in dogs. Chocolate contains an ingredient called theobromine, which is a chemical stimulant similar to caffeine. While humans are able to easily metabolise this chemical, dogs take longer to digest their food, so theobromine can be in their system for up to 20 hours. During this time, the dog’s nervous system, heart and kidneys may shut down. We would like to urge all pet owners to keep their chocolate baskets hidden well away from their hoover-mouthed pooches. More important is to impress upon everyone — especially children — that while they might think they are being generous offering the dog some of their Easter treats, chocolate can be 
poisonous even in the smallest of doses. If hiding eggs in the house or garden, please ensure that all are collected before letting your dog out- he or she will sniff them out in an instant due to their incredible sense of smell. Even foil wrappers will not deter a hungry
This is Dougal, who belongs to our vet Dennis. He is not alone in suffering from dental disease, as this is a common problem affecting our pets, with nearly 80% of dogs and cats suffering to some degree. 
The culprit of dental disease is plaque, the same problem that causes poor dental health in you or I, and the reason that we must brush our teeth twice daily. Although brushing your pet’s teeth is the gold standard method for keeping those pearly whites nice and healthy, it is often easier said than done. We are more than happy to help assist you in learning to do this.
Dental disease is often difficult to detect in pets, as they will rarely show signs of discomfort or appetite changes. Bad breath can be an indicator that there is a problem but not many of us would consider our pet’s breath sweet smelling at the best of times! The best way to assess your pets’ dental health is to avail of our FREE dental check up clinic. We can use a special torch which will make any plaque on your pets teeth glow in the dark. We can visually examine the externa