A Deeper Understanding of Your Pet's Health

Pet diagnostics are a critical component of maintaining your pet’s health and treating illnesses or injuries. At Bayside Animal Hospital, we use our on-site laboratory to provide results with a minimal waiting period. We perform early detection screenings on our healthy patients, blood test all patients scheduled for surgery, and use our lab to identify abnormalities in sick animals.

Early Detection Screenings

Basic laboratory testing is recommended in all of our pet wellness exams. These values are recorded at every visit and used as a reference for the following exam to identify trends and abnormalities. For example, complete blood count screens are especially useful in the detection of infection, anemia, and other harmful conditions. The more data we have on your pet, the better we can anticipate complications. Routine early detection is especially vital for senior pets and testing becomes more comprehensive as they age. Our early detection tests include:

• Heartworm
• Tick borne diseases
• Kidney and liver functions
• Chemistry panel (glucose, electrolytes, etc.)
• Fecal screening
• Complete blood count screens

Preoperative Tests

All patients scheduled for surgery are required to undergo a pre-surgical screening test. We use these tests to determine how well your pet will respond to general anesthesia and enable us to tailor our anesthetic and pain management protocols to your pets needs through his or her procedure.

Testing Sick or Injured Patients

We may recommend a diagnosic laboratory testing if your pet:

• Displays symptoms of illness
• Is experiencing a trauma or emergency
• Exhibits changes in weight or behavior

Often lab testing can be used in combination with radiology, ultrasound, and other various diagnostic tools. Your veterinarian will be able to draw conclusions from the variety of diagnostic tools we offer and initiate a treatment based on your pet’s results.

DNA Testing

Bayside Animal Hospital works in tandem with a specialized outside lab to offer dog and cat owners the exciting opportunity to receive a DNA profile for their pet. Our Genetic Health Analysis provides clients a report more detailed than what you can expect from “off the shelf” brands. Though not required, we recommend genetic testing for dogs and cats of pure and mixed breeds. Profiling their DNA could reveal information that might be crucial to developing your pet’s long-term wellness plan.

The advantages of utilizing the Genetic Health Analysis include:

• Enhanced, tailored health care—we will customize a long-term health care plan to your pet’s genetic code. This includes breed identification, nutrition planning, lifestyle needs, and diagnostic screenings targeted to monitor what the report may indicate could be future complications.
• Diagnostic assistance—your pet’s DNA is screened for more than 130 genetic disease mutations. Genetic Health Analysis will search for genes that make pets prone to certain diseases. When your pet shows signs of illness, the information provided by the DNA profile could be valuable to your veterinarian when determining the best diagnosis and treatment for your pet.
• Boosts behavioral understanding—knowing your pet’s breed grants owners a greater insight into the actions and instinctual mindset of their pet. Certain breeds are often predisposed to specific traits. Behavior you may have thought of as a simple quirk might be a cornerstone of your pet’s breed. The Genetic Health Analysis could give you a peek into your pet’s heart and mind and ultimately offer you a deeper connection with your pet.