FAQs

What are your hours?

Mondays 8-5:30

Tuesdays 8-5:30

Wednesdays CLOSED

Thursdays 8-5:30

Fridays 9-5:30

Saturdays 9-2

Sundays CLOSED

We are closed on major holidays (New Years Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas).

My pet is having an emergency, but you're closed, what do I do?

If your pet has an after hours emergency, there are a number of qualified emergency clinics in the area:

Veterinary Referral Center of Colorado
http://vrcc.com/
(Located near Hampden & Santa Fe)
3550 South Jason Street
Englewood, CO 80110
(303) 874-7387
Animal Hospital Center
www.ahscvets.com
5640 County Line Place #1
Highlands Ranch, CO 80126
(303) 740-9595
Wheatridge Animal Hospital
www.wheatridgeanimal.com
3695 Kipling Street
Wheat Ridge, CO 80033
(303) 424-3325

Where are you located?

We are located at 200 W. Lehow Avenue. Lehow Avenue is one block south of the Broadway & Belleview intersection in Englewood. Click here for a map.

What are your thoughts on vaccinating?

I prefer to vaccinate as little as possible, but the actual program will vary with the individual pet. I think vaccines are most important in puppies, and that adult dogs need very few, if any to stay healthy. Most importantly - vaccines are not benign and can cause serious side effects and chronic disease issues.

What form of payments do you take?

We accept cash and credit cards (Visa, Mastercard and Discover). We also accept Care Credit (For more information, see www.carecredit.com). Checks are not accepted from first-time clients, and never for more than $350.

Do you treat small mammals like. hamsters, rabbits, gerbils, or ferrets?

Unfortunately we do not treat small mammals or exotics (reptiles/amphibians) at this time.

At what age should I bring my puppy or kitten in for vaccines?

We recommend starting puppies at 8-10 weeks of age. If your puppy has had vaccines prior to this, we will develop a schedule based on its future risk of exposure to disease.

Do you recommend I put my pet on heartworm prevention, and if so when should I start?

Heartworm disease is spread by mosquitos, so is not a huge problem in Colorado unless your dog is exposed to large numbers of mosquitos. If you do use Heartworm prevention in this area, I recommend June, July, and August, as these are the biggest mosquitos months. If you travel outside Colorado - these recommendations may change - please ask us for more information.

How can I tell if holistic medicine is the right course for my pet's illness?

Holistic medicine can benefit any health condition. Depending on your pet's condition, we will discuss whether it is a good choice as the only treatment option, or it may be used in combination with more traditional therapies. Holistic care can be a longer course of treatment as our goal is to facilitate healing, not just treat symptoms. Some conditions, such as cancer, may not be cured, but we can often increase your pet's vitality so it feels better during the treatment process.

What age should I have my puppy or kitten spayed or neutered?

Please see our article on early spaying and neutering.

What is your practice's philosophy of feeding a RAW diet?

Please read our article on feeding your pet naturally

Do you declaw cats?

We do not declaw cats, and encourage owners to look at the many different options they can try before making this drastic decision. Before deciding to declaw your cat click here

What's the difference between raw & BARF?

BARF is a specific formulation of raw food - Please refer to barfworld.com for more details

Which is better—Raw or cooked food?

Fresh food is the way to go!

Pet owners have become conditioned to feeding commercially –prepared diets to their pets as the standard of good nutrition. All commercial foods are processed at high temperatures which can cause the loss of nutrients, no matter how good the ingredients are initially. Think about it – how much nutrition do you really think there is in a dried piece of kibble? Dry food unquestionably has advantages such as convenience and price that are attractive to a person with a busy lifestyle.

Fresh meat and vegetables are the healthiest ingredients to feed your pet. These can be fed raw, lightly cooked, or even some canned foods are more nutritious than their dry counterparts. There are commercial products that combine meat, vegetables, bones, and other ingredients to make a complete diet in a frozen raw form. Meat and vegetables can be lightly cooked in the crock-pot to create a nutritious meal for your pet that can then be frozen and stored for convenience. Even human left-overs are healthy for your pet if you stick with meat and vegetables and avoid grains, sugars, and excessive fat.

How do you choose what is best for your pet? This will take some experimenting – your pet will tend to eat what agrees with him best. Some pets do not care for raw, but will eat a fresh-cooked diet with vigor. This is not just being picky or spoiled, pets need to eat what is best for their constitution to be healthy – and pets will listen to their bodies. Balance is achieved over time – your pet does not need to eat the same thing everyday – we don’t, and maintain our health.

Try your pet on fresh food and you will see an increase in energy, vitality and general health. We often see chronic problems such as skin and digestive issues resolve when fresh food is added to the diet. It is ok to use commercial foods for convenience when necessary – just add fresh food whenever you can!

Ask us for help, and we will help you design the best diet plan for your pet.