All creatures great and small

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This article was published 04/02/2022 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For Dr. Carolyn Eichkorn, owner of Winrose Animal Hospital, variety is indeed the spice of life. 

“There’s never a dull moment,” she said.

Eichkorn assumed ownership of the hospital at 534 St. Anne’s Rd. in 2007 but the business has operated for about 30 years, serving the needs of pet owners. Eichkorn and veterinarians Amanda Malboeuf, Ingrid Sproll and Heather McDonald, treat creatures ranging from dogs and cats to hamsters to parrots and even reptiles such as iguanas, geckos and bearded dragons.

Winrose’s current veterinarians are all women and Eichkorn said that’s mainly due to the fact that between 80 and 90 per cent of veterinary sciences graduates are now women. This has changed greatly from when she attended the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon, when men and women were more evenly represented.

Eichkorn estimates that dogs make up to 50 per cent of their animal patients, 30 per cent are cats and the rest are comprised of smaller animals and exotics.

“It’s never the same thing twice. All of our vets see exotics,” Eichkorn said.

She said there isn’t as much information available on treating more unusual pets as there is on dogs and cats, so the vets must extrapolate from what they know about animals in general. She pointed out that some pets such as turtles and parrots can live up to 30 and 65 years respectively. 

“Veterinary medicine adapts to fads,” Eichkorn said, mentioning that there are fewer ferrets and pygmy hedgehogs around now than there were 10 years ago. She added that rabbits seem to be quite popular now.

However some of the currently popular dog breeds, such as the doodles and short-nosed and flat-faced breeds are prone to ailments such as allergies and skin problems.

Over the 30 years in which she’s practised, Eichkorn said she’s seen feline obesity become more common as cats are kept indoors.

Another trend that has affected veterinarians, and not necessarily in a positive manner, is the public’s general reliance on ‘Dr. Google’ for diagnosis and treatment of animal illnesses. Eichkorn said this can result in sicker animals being brought in and owners who are skeptical of a veterinarian’s assessment.

“They can get some bad advice on the internet,” Eichkorn said.

She said adapting to the pandemic protocol of keeping pet owners out of the animal hospital was tough. 

“In general, curbside medicine was hard. It was stressful for pets and owners,” she said.

She said having to communicate the findings of a pet’s examination by phone is time-consuming, as each appointment usually involves multiple calls.

Eichkorn said the pandemic pet trend is real and has resulted in an uptick in Winrose’s business by between 15 and 20 per cent. 

“Every day we’re seeing new puppies and kittens,” she said.

While a new pet can offer companionship and bring joy to people staying at home much more than they did pre-pandemic, problems can crop up particularly for dogs. They can experience separation anxiety when their owners start heading back to the office or going out more. Eichkorn said medication can sometimes help, along with recommended training.

Veterinarians are health-care professionals and like many others working in this field, are sometimes overwhelmed by changes wrought by the pandemic. Eichkorn asks that pet owners remember this and be kind and patient.

Andrea Geary is a community correspondent for St. Vital. Email her at ageary@mymts.net

Andrea Geary
St. Vital community correspondent

Andrea Geary is a community correspondent for St. Vital and was once the community journalist for The Headliner.

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