Minnesota Valley Veterinary Services is a full service animal clinic. We are here for your pet as they grow for wellness and preventative healthcare, as well as when medical conditions arise throughout their life.
Below are detailed descriptions of the service areas we offer. Scroll through to learn more about our capabilities and as always, call us if you have any questions.
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Dentistry | Dermatology | Internal Medicine | Laboratory | Pharmacy | Radiology | Surgery | Wellness & Preventative Care
Dentistry
Dental disease, also called periodontal disease, is one of the highest killers of our pets. When periodontal disease is not addressed, the bacteria in the mouth can get into the bloodstream, leading to disease in the heart, liver, and kidneys.
When you pet has a dental cleaning with us, they will have a full physical exam in the morning, and then be placed under gas anesthesia. This allows us to get the most extensive exam, perform radiographs, and offers protection of their airway. Radiographs are critical as they allow us to "see" beneath the gum line, where the majority of the problems and pain lie! Each surface of each tooth will then be scaled (cleaned), polished, and probed to check for any potential problems.
Why do we use general anesthesia?
Simply put, because it is the best and the safest. Anesthesia free dentistry is not a safe option because it doesn't allow us to reach all aspects of the tooth, we cannot clean beneath the gum line, and it can be dangerous for the pet and practitioner. Finally, a lot of dental problems can be missed when you only can take a quick look and do not take x-rays. By missing these problems, your pet would have to deal with pain much longer than necessary. For these reasons, we consider “anesthesia free dentistry” to be just a cosmetic procedure and not a real treatment for dental disease.
Dermatology
Itchy dogs and cats are one of the most common reasons owners bring their pets to the vet. We understand itching is not only irritating for them, it's very frustrating for you as the owner! The most common causes of itching are fleas, skin infections, and allergies. Our primary goal when working up dermatology cases is to make your pet comfortable. This is achieved primarily through different diagnostic tests to understand the cause of the itching so we know how to stop it. We utilize a multimodal approach to treat your pet including topical therapy like shampoos, flea prevention, supplements such as fish oils, and new advancements in pharmaceuticals.
Internal Medicine
Some of the common "internal medical" issues we see are:
- Endocrine (hormonal) diseases
- Cardiac and pulmonary diseases
- Gastrointestinal disease
- Ophthalmologic issues
- Systemic disease processes such as infectious causes, organ dysfunction, tick-borne pathogens, cancer, and more
We commonly use different diagnostic modalities including specialized blood tests, calibrated instruments, diagnostic imaging and more to fully understand your pet’s illness. If there is a procedure that would best be done by a board-certified internist, we will discuss referral options for you and your pet.
Laboratory
We have a fully functional in-clinic lab to help diagnose ailments right away, leading to faster treatment and a quicker return to normal for your pet. Our capabilities include certain blood tests, ear cytology, fecal float examinations, cytology of skin masses (FNA), and analysis of the urine sediment. There are also many other laboratory tests we can send off to our reference lab to help diagnose a specific condition.
Pharmacy
We have a variety of commonly used prescriptions kept on hand so your pet can have the medications they need right when they need it. We also have an expansize online pharmacy that can ship prescriptions medicine, foods, and supplements right to your door with typically zero cost shipping.
If needed, we can work with different compounding companies to acquire products that are less common and more convenient in dosing. For example, some pills can be made into gels that are applied to the skin for easier administration, or into “tiny tabs” so they are smaller in size. If you’d prefer to fill a prescription that we do carry at a third party online pharmacy instead of with us, we a have a once a year $15 prescription transfer fee to offset the time of transferring the prescription paperwork.
Radiology
With our wide array of imaging modalities, we can get the most comprehensive internal look at our patients. Our imaging modalities include digital dental radiographs, CR digital radiographs, and portable ultrasound for reproductive work and focused abdominal scans. For some cases, when advanced imaging such as echocardiography, CT or MRI are indicated, we will refer you to one of our local specialty centers.
Surgery
We offer a wide variety of both soft tissue advanced procedures and elective surgeries in our surgery suite. Our clinic is well equipped with two gas anesthesia machines and monitoring equipment. This is so we can keep a close eye on your pet’s vital parameters, such as heart rate, respiration rate, blood pressure, carbon dioxide output, and ECG during surgery. The following are just a sample of some of the routine surgeries we offer:
- Sterilization: also called spaying and neutering, this procedure removes the reproductive organs in an animal and prevents pet overpopulation as well as various medical and behavioral problems.
- Soft tissue surgeries such as mass removals, both from the skin and internally from the abdomen. As well as organ specific surgeries like bladder stone removal, splenectomy, or cesarean sections.
- Gastrointestinal surgeries to remove foreign objects from the stomach or intestines, as well as gastropexy surgery so the stomach cannot flip (called a GDV).
- Orthopedic surgeries are limited in-house, but we do have a traveling board certified surgeon that can perform more advanced procedures in our facility.
If your pet is in need of a surgery we do not routinely do, we will refer you to a surgeon at a specialty center so that your pet can have the best expertise possible. We commonly recommend Blue Pearl in Eden Prairie, the University of Minnesota, or South Metro in Apple Valley. See our helpful resources page for contact information for referral hospitals.
Wellness and Preventative Care
Yearly physical exams are very important for our pets, as they age much faster than humans. Annual exams help to monitor for abnormalities. If found, we can treat your pet that much earlier, leading to a longer, more comfortable life for them. Puppies and kittens require more frequent exams and vaccinations while the antibodies they received through their mothers' milk are waning and their own immune system is building antibodies. See our detailed vaccination protocols below.
Our preventative and wellness care includes:
- Examinations
- Vaccinations
- Routine tests to screen for heartworm and tick-borne illnesses, fecal parasites, and baseline wellness blood panels
- Parasite protection to prevent against heartworms, fleas, ticks, and intestinal worms
We carry Simparica Trio, Heartgard, Proheart 12, Nexgard, Frontline, and Revolution Plus in the clinic to protect your pets from parasites. These products also protect the humans in your household as some of these parasites are zoonotic and cause blindness, skin irritation, and gastrointestinal upset in humans. If you are interested in another brand of preventative products, we offer an expansive list on our online pharmacy. Click here to visit our pharmacy.