I Care about Your Pet's Skin!

Dermatology, encompassing skin, ear, claw & anal sac disease, represents a major element of the small animal general practice case load. It can be a challenging aspect of clinical companion animal work. Recurrent skin irritation is especially frustrating & upsetting for the pet, the owner and veterinary surgeon concerned. Repeated visits to veterinary surgeons can become costly & time-consuming for chronic cases.

I have seen dermatology cases for over one hundred separate clinics in the South-East of England (not including branch surgeries within group practices) – some centres have referred over three hundred cases to me over the years.

Tailored Animal Dermatology Consultations

I offer extended consultation periods, often sixty to ninety minutes duration, to encompass a complete discussion of the patient’s dermatological & general clinical history, including the response to previous treatments. I will perform various diagnostic tests and explain the possible diagnoses. I will schedule future diagnostic tests, establish a long term treatment regimen & tailor advice for each individual patient.

I plan to use medications that have been proven to give good clinical performance, are well-tolerated by the pet as well as the owner, without controversial ingredients. At the same time, I will try to limit the practical difficulties with the protocol of use, a convenient formulation, & practical packaging. I will often recommend topical products that are a pleasure to use considering their sensory characteristics, application & fragrance. I will try to avoid products with rebound effects. Better compliance will be established by selecting medications with all of these characteristics – ease of use, tolerance & performance – in mind. This in turn will benefit the pet by controlling their condition better.

It is not uncommon that we need to look at establishing a lifelong regimen & it is my goal to put this plan in your hands by giving you the ability to start, continue & maintain various treatment strategies that you can adjust at home, throughout the subsequent months & years to come. This should reduce the number of times you will need to attend your own Vet & this will ultimately reduce your costs & stress. This will also improve both you & your pet’s quality of life & re-invigorate the close family bond between you.

A detailed report will be sent promptly to the referring veterinary surgeon after each consultation. Case progression will be monitored during re-examination & through e-mail & telephone follow-up.

There are continuous advances in veterinary dermatology including improved understanding of underlying disease processes, recognition of new diseases, advanced diagnostic techniques and innovative treatments. I endeavour to keep up-to-date with the ever-changing and expanding field of dermatology around the world, in order to better manage and/or alleviate acute and chronic skin disease in our pet population.

*I am the only independent, full-time veterinary dermatologist working solely within the South-East. I have complete clinical freedom from any corporate practice prescribing constraints.