AAHA Accreditation - Standards for Excellence

It's time for another one of Mason's Mewsings!  Today, we'll be talking about AAHA, the American Animal Hospital Association.  You may have seen their logo on our website or around the hospital.

So, what is AAHA?  Per Wikipedia, "The American Animal Hospital Association is a non-profit organization for companion animal veterinary hospitals.  Established in 1933, the association is the only accrediting body for small animal hospitals in the U.S. and Canada.  The association develops benchmarks of excellence, business practice standards, publications and educational programs.  Any veterinary hospital can join AAHA as a member, but must then pass an evaluation in order to receive AAHA accreditation."

And what does this accreditation entail?  Well, to become an AAHA-accredited practice, animal hospitals and clinics willingly undergo a rigorous evaluation process to ensure they meet the 900+ individual standards of accreditation put forth by AAHA.  These 900+ standards include but are not limited to: "Patient care, diagnostic imaging, laboratory, pain management, pharmacy, safety, surgery, client service, anesthesia, contagious disease, continuing education, dentistry, examination facilities, medical records, leadership and emergency/urgent care. To maintain their accredited status, hospitals undergo comprehensive on-site evaluations every three years, which ensures that hospitals are compliant with the Association's mandatory standards."  And it's not just limited to general practice veterinary facilities - specialty hospitals can become accredited as a "Referral" practice, as well.

So, what does this mean for you, our clients?  It means that you can expect a higher standard of quality and veterinary care from us.  It means that we are holding ourselves to higher expectations and that we try to maintain and exceed current veterinary medical standards.  It means that we provide a safe, clean, contagion-free environment to come to, that we use high quality medications and anesthesia, and that our hospital protocols are designed to meet AAHA's high standards of quality.  AAHA also recommends continuous learning and keeping staff skills up-to-date.  This helps members build team confidence and ultimately helps hospitals provide a positive client “experience,” while improving the level of patient care.  AAHA-accredited practices use a team approach to meet the needs of their clients and the pets they love.

We're proud to say that we are AAHA accredited and have been for many years!  If you have any questions regarding our accreditation or practices, please contact us and we'll be happy to speak with you.  My favorite part is when the staff gives me copious amounts of treats and lets me stay at the hospital as their cat!  

Well, you cool cats, that's all for me today!  I have some much-needed napping to attend to!

Til next meow,



MASON



Great Falls Animal Hospital

703-759-2330

POISON CONTROL HELPLINE

PET POISON HELPLINE: (800) 213-5774

ASPCA POISON CONTROL: (888) 426-4435

24 EMERGENCY FACILITIES

THE HOPE CENTER- Vienna: (703) 281-5121

THE LIFE CENTRE- Leesburg: (703) 777-9968

VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center Fairfax: (703) 752-9100 

Low-Stress Handling in the Veterinary Office

Hello, all you followers of Mason, you!  I have a very important topic to talk about today: low-stress handling.  The name may sound self-explanatory, but there is a lot of buzz about this "new" way of handling pets.

With animals, we have to rely on rewarding behavior as soon as it happens, and we must remove rewards for bad behavior before the animal is actually rewarded.  This is how we (and you) communicate with your pet.  And while animals may learn to recognize individual words, they don’t understand human language; however, they do understand our body language.  As a result we have to be aware of every action and movement we make because they all communicate something.  And we have to realize that whether we’re aware of it or not, every interaction we have with the pet is a training session.  Unfamiliar smells, sounds, and sights, and potentially threatening pets and people inundate our patients the moment they enter our office.  We perform unpleasant, sometimes painful procedures, often by force due to the unwillingness of the patient.  A single such experience can condition a negative emotional response where the animal learns to fear us.  This learned fear can result in fidgeting, attempts to flee, and/or aggression at subsequent visits.

So, what are some of the steps we take to handle your pet in a low-stress way?  We work to condition a POSITIVE emotional response.  This approach can prevent fear from developing, as well as counter-act a fear that has already been established by previous encounters elsewhere.  We pair the experience with something that naturally elicits a positive emotional response in the animal - food and love.  Food is the easiest and most powerful means of providing this response because we are all programmed with an innate positive response to food.  And we use gentle motions, soft voices, hugs, and lots of petting to calm your pet during the exam and treatments.  We use small sharp needles that do not hurt as much when we give injections or vaccines.  We use pheromone sprays and diffusers in the exam rooms to help alleviate any stress your pet may be feeling.  We use appropriate but minimal restraint for procedures and examinations, include towel restraint for cats versus scruffing.

Pets who have already developed a strong negative emotional response to a clinic setting may need a slower, more systematic approach as they may be too stressed to find food appealing at that point.  These pets are best helped by setting up a series of "Desensitization" visits. If the care needed is urgent or necessary, then sedation is recommended before beginning any stressful procedures.

With both positive reinforcement as well as coercion, the timing is the same and owners need to be equally consistent.  So, if a pet owner does not have the ability to reward consistently and with the right timing, it’s not likely they will be able to perform the punishment technique well either.  It is important to continue training your animal when not at the veterinarian's office so that your pet will learn to be more comfortable with us and in other stressful situations.  If you are interested in low-stress handling, consult the works of Dr. Sophia Yin, the leading expert on behavior modification and positive reinforcement training.  You are also welcome to call our office and ask about low-stress handling!

Well, cats and kittens, that is all for today.  I know I always appreciate being treated gently and with lots of treats, so I'm sure your pet will, too!

Til next meow,



MASON



Great Falls Animal Hospital

703-759-2330

POISON CONTROL HELPLINE

PET POISON HELPLINE: (800) 213-5774

ASPCA POISON CONTROL: (888) 426-4435

24 EMERGENCY FACILITIES

THE HOPE CENTER- Vienna: (703) 281-5121

THE LIFE CENTRE- Leesburg: (703) 777-9968

VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center Fairfax: (703) 752-9100 

TNR - Trap, Neuter, Return

Mason, here!  Talking to you about a very important topic with regard to felines who live outdoors.  We all know the problem with feral cat colonies and cats who live outdoors: a lot of them aren't spayed/neutered and their population keeps increasing!!  Trap-Neuter-Return (called TNR) is a humane and effective approach for cats living outside.  Scientific studies show that Trap-Neuter-Return improves the lives of feral cats, improves their relationships with the people who live near them, and decreases the size of colonies over time.

Trap-Neuter-Return is exactly what it sounds like: Cats are humanely trapped and taken to a veterinarian to be neutered and vaccinated, and to have their ears tipped to indicate that they have been neutered and returned to the outdoors.  This practice stops the breeding cycle of cats and improves their lives.   Since most feral cats are not adoptable, they have been trapped by animal control services and subsequently killed in pounds and shelters due to their wild nature and lack of domesticity.  Trap-Neuter-Return helps prevent the need for euthanizing these felines while allowing them to live without adding to the problem of overpopulation.

Our own Dr. Snellgrove and Vet Assistant Elizabeth Board participate in TNR clinics and love talking about their experiences in aiding outdoor felines!

 

Here, Elizabeth is helping another volunteer to prep cats for surgery. This involves removing hair from the surgical site and scrubbing it clean.

 

Here, Dr. Snellgrove (in the red top) and another doctor perform neuter and spay surgeries while technicians monitor the patients and stand by to give additional anesthesia if necessary.  The doctors have to work very fast because the felines are anesthetized with injectable medications versus gas anesthesia, to prevent any medical complications.

  

Don't worry, this cat is just asleep!  Each cat has an ID number and paperwork that accompanies it, so there's no worry of getting the animals mixed up.  You may also see animals laid out on trays in preparation for the surgeries - this helps cut down on time that the cats have to stay asleep so the neuter and spay surgeries can be done quickly and efficiently.  

This kitten just had her ear tipped in surgery prep (she's asleep, too!).  The clamp will stay on through her surgery and be removed in recovery.  Chances are if you see a cat with a clipped ear, it was once an outside cat who has gone through a TNR program and was adopted!

With Trap-Neuter-Return, veterinarian professionals can stabilize the feline outdoor population humanely, improve the cats’ lives, save taxpayer dollars, address neighbors’ concerns, and help the entire community reach a solution that benefits everyone!  If you are interested in helping with Trap-Neuter-Return programs, you can contact Alley Cat Allies or Metro Ferals for more information.  Here at Great Falls Animal Hospital, we work with 4Paws Rescue Team directly to care for their cats and spay and neuter them!

I hope that sheds some light on a very interesting and life-saving practice that we believe in wholeheartedly!  Well, kittens, that's all for now.  I'm going to snuggle up here and wait for Christmas!

Til next meow,



MASON



Great Falls Animal Hospital

703-759-2330

POISON CONTROL HELPLINE

PET POISON HELPLINE: (800) 213-5774

ASPCA POISON CONTROL: (888) 426-4435

24 EMERGENCY FACILITIES

THE HOPE CENTER- Vienna: (703) 281-5121

THE LIFE CENTRE- Leesburg: (703) 777-9968

VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center Fairfax: (703) 752-9100 

Building Stoves in Guatemala

Hello, All!  Mason here.  I wanted to share a very special project that one of our employees worked on this summer!  Our technician Denise went to Guatemala with her church group to help build brick stoves for one of the villages there. 

Did you know that exposure to cooking fire smoke kills approximately two million people worldwide every year?  In Guatemala, as in many other countries, breathing in the toxic fumes while preparing food puts Mayan women and children at risk for respiratory illnesses, blindness, and burns on a daily basis.  A majority of Guatemalan families use wood as their main fuel source, and many of Guatemala’s forests are lost annually, mainly due to the need for fuel for cooking fires.  Precious family resources and a great deal of time are spent on gathering or purchasing wood.  The cooking fires themselves are open air and not contained, so the smoke fills their huts and causes a buildup of smoke, ash, and noxious fumes with nowhere to go.

 

Building stoves helps alleviate these problems by building vented stoves that are adapted to Mayan cooking methods.  These stoves are made of cement blocks held together by mortar, and feature a chimney pipe or smoke duct that takes the poisonous smoke out of the house.  The design of the stove reduces wood consumption and pollution greatly.  It is an ‘improved cooking stove’ and while most of us would find it rudimentary, Guatemalans are so very grateful for the vast improvement to their health and lifestyle.  They can now avoid spending the better part of the day gathering wood and cooking, and no longer have to worry about getting burned or developing respiratory problems!

Along with building stoves, the group also helps paint walls and brings materials for education that drastically improves the villagers' every day lives.  With more time in the day available, education is very important and more attainable.

 

The villagers are so very grateful for the improvements to their lives.  Denise says the Guatemalans gave lots of beautiful flowers to the group as thanks for their hard work, and you could see the gratitude in their eyes and smiles!  What a wonderful project to be a part of!!

Well, kids, that's all for now.  This is Mason, signing out until next time!

Til next meow,



MASON



Great Falls Animal Hospital

703-759-2330

POISON CONTROL HELPLINE

PET POISON HELPLINE: (800) 213-5774

ASPCA POISON CONTROL: (888) 426-4435

24 EMERGENCY FACILITIES

THE HOPE CENTER- Vienna: (703) 281-5121

THE LIFE CENTRE- Leesburg: (703) 777-9968

VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center Fairfax: (703) 752-9100