Arthritis is a painful condition. Understand most pets will never cry or vocalize their pain. Pets demonstrate their discomfort by losing function and displaying some of the signs listed above.

Glucosamine is a popular joint relief pill used to manage arthritis and is a typical first line treatment. Glucosamine is a complex chemical aggregrate of proteins and large sugars. This group of substances makes up the components in joint cartilage and joint fluid. Treating arthritic and injuried joints with glucosamine is based on the concept that it will reduce pain and inflammation by promoting healthy cartilage and joint fluid. Often we combine glucosamine with stronger medication depending on the patients needs. Glucosamine is not a drug, it is nutritional supplement. As such there is no FDA approval process regulating these products.

There is no standard quality level for glucosamine and most products have not been tested for effectiveness. Different brands of glucosamine are not equal in potency. At Rolling Hills Pet Hospital we carry high quality glucosamine products formulated for dogs and cats. Our products have been tested for effectiveness.

For arthritis treatment Rolling Hills offers nutritional supplements, prescription diets, and medications both oral and injectable. Please call if you have any questions on treatment for your pet.

Our entire hospital is flooded with natural light from solar tubes that were installed throughout the ceilings allowing us to power down the lights on sunny San Diego days. We use Energy Saver appliances to wash and dry all our doggy blankets and towels, and wash our dishes. Believe me that’s a lot of laundry generated by the hospitalized pets and with our groomers bathing over 10 pets a day!

Our medical records are all computerized minimizing the need for paper, no more hand written charts for us. We also reuse 90% of the paper we do print for use as memo or note sheets. We recycle all paper, plastic, cans, as well as packaging from our medical supplies. To make it easy we place a recycle bin next to every trash receptacle throughout the pet hospital, grooming department, and boarding facilities. One of the unique ways we recycle water is to recapture the water runoff from our air conditioning units, then water our plants with it.

Rolling Hills Pet Hospital wants to help our clients be green too! We provide these Rolling Hills Pet Hospital reusable tote bags to our clients FREE at their appointments. They are great for the grocery store, or to carry your pet supplies in.

Local Owner Finds Dog After 10 Months; Baton Rouge Dog Missing Two Years Found in San Diego

Remarkable Story

Two remarkable cases in the past month once again illustrate the power of the tiny microchip to reunite pets with owners, even when time and distance make it unlikely. On Tuesday, Jamee Lynn Smith of North Park visited the Department of Animal Services in San Diego to show off Watson, her 2-year-old Maltese who had been missing for 10 months before a microchip helped bring him home last week.
And just a few weeks ago, another dog missing two years and hailing all the way from Baton Rouge headed back home after being found here and identified through a microchip. “Stories like these prove that a microchip can truly be your pet’s ticket home,” said Dawn Danielson, Director of the Department of Animal Services. When Jamee Lynn Smith’s dog went missing 10 months ago, she was distraught. She searched for the dog constantly and filed a police report. Her San Diego City Council representative, Todd Gloria, publicized Watson’s case on his Twitter account, and the community helped Smith search. Still, no one could find the dog. But in the early morning hours on Monday Nov. 15, a County animal control officer responded to a request for assistance from San Diego police officers who had taken a man with a dog into custody for psychiatric observation in Linda Vista. The animal control officer brought the dog to the County’s shelter, where all animals are scanned for a microchip upon arrival. Staff detected Watson’s microchip, and a check of the database found that the dog had been reported missing. Smith was soon at the shelter, reunited with her missing pet. “I got the call last Tuesday; it was breathtaking—I didn’t think I’d ever see him again,” Smith said Tuesday while hugging the 5-pound dog. “A microchip is really the best present you could ever get your pet.” Just weeks earlier, another remarkable reunion had taken place at the San Diego shelter. In October, a pit bull came into the shelter that had vanished from his home in Baton Rouge two years earlier. It’s unclear how the dog got to San Diego, but after the microchip revealed the dog’s identity, the owner, Dawn Dowling, drove all the way from Baton Rouge to pick up her missing family member. The Department of Animal Services strongly encourages all pet owners to have their animals microchipped. Microchips can be obtained at all three of the County’s animal shelters every Thursday from 1 to 3 p.m. For more information regarding microchips, visit the Department’s website at www.sddac.com.

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