Services

Please click the following links to learn about Dr. Oswalt’s services:

Home Pet Vet’s Service Area

Dr. Oswalt makes home visits for cats and dogs within a 10-mile radius of Mercer Island, Washington.

This includes the following neighborhoods:

  • Mercer Island
  • Newport Hills
  • Newcastle
  • Renton inside 405 and Kennydale and north
  • Bellevue: Crossroads, Somerset, Eastgate, Lakemont, Lake Hills, Enatai, Beaux Arts, downtown Bellevue, Maydenbauer, Clyde Hill, Bridal Trails
  • Medina
  • Hunts, Yarrow and Evergreen Points
  • Kirkland: waterfront, downtown, west of 405
  • Seattle: downtown including Belltown and the waterfront, the Central District, Madrona, Madison Park, Leschi, Mt. Baker, Capitol Hill, Rainier Valley as far as Columbia City and Seward Park, Beacon Hill, Queen Anne, Lake Union, Montlake, the U-district, Ravenna, Maple Leaf, Wallingford, Fremont, north of Boeing Field
  • West Seattle: Alki, Admiral District; the Junction; north of Lincoln Park, and South Seattle Community College

Dr. Oswalt’s Home Care Services

Health Maintenance

I will discuss with you what vaccinations, diet, exercise, lab work, etc. may be appropriate to be sure we keep “Rover” or “Fluffy” as healthy as possible.

You can learn how to trim toe nails and express anal glands, and when these need to be done.

Pet Examinations

*Geriatric exams include discussion of old-age considerations

The usual examination is a nose-to-tail once over, in which I look for anything that might be abnormal.

I will:

  • Document your pet’s current weight and temperature.
  • Note your pet’s general appearance and attitude.
  • Check your pet’s skin for itchy areas; skin (or coat) that has changed colors; lumps and bumps.  Because some pets have such thick coats, it is always helpful if you can point out areas of special concern.
  • Evaluate your pet’s  musculo-skeletal system for arthritis and loss of muscle tone.
  • Evaluate your pet’s circulatory system. Sometimes it is necessary to check blood pressure. I use a stethoscope to evaluate lungs, but if they are abnormal, I may refer your pet for a  radiograph (X-ray).
  • Palpate your pet’s abdomen to check for abnormalities.  We will discuss your pet’s history of diet, appetite, and stool — especially abnormalities –  to help determine that the gastro-intestinal tract is normal.
  • Check your pet’s eyes for abnormalities and signs of aging.
  • Check your pet’s ears to be sure they are clean and without evidence of infection.
  • Check for swelling in your pet’s lymph nodes, which can indicate an infection distally, or possibly a cancer.
  • Check your pet’s mouth to be sure its teeth and gums are healthy (sometimes gum color can be the first indication of anemia).

I depend on you to notice and alert me to changes in your pet’s elimination behaviors. If needed, the lab can run a stool sample, urinalysis or can culture the urine for bacteria.

If your pet is ambulating and behaving normally the neural systems are assumed to be normal, but special neurological tests can help evaluate problem areas.

Diagnosis

When you call me  to your home to check a problem your pet is having, I will have a short list of ideas of what might be wrong. To narrow down the list, lab work may be indicated.  For samples we can collect in your home, I have access to an excellent lab for processing.  Results are usually available by the next day.

Medical Care & Treatment

Once we have a tentative diagnosis, I may be able to give you medication from the small pharmacy I carry with me, or I can call or write an appropriate prescription.

Since you will be responsible for the nursing care, I will need to teach you how to do whatever care you are not familiar with.

Home Euthanasia

Euthanasia procedure for dogs

After taking care of the necessary paperwork at your home, I will administer a sedative injection — a combination of tranquilizer and pain killer, similar to the sedatives they give us prior to a general anesthetic.  It will take 10-20 minutes to take effect.  The plan is to have the dog in a mental state where he doesn’t care when you apply the tourniquet to his leg for the final injection.

The euthanasia injection is an overdose of a barbiturate anesthetic that goes intravenously.  It takes effect as fast as it gets into the circulatory system. The dogs are usually gone before the end of the injection, but if there are any signs of life I will not remove the needle, until I’m sure we won’t need any more medication.

When it feels to you like your dog has passed, I will double check the heart with a stethoscope, and the eye reflexes for brain activity, before I declare death.

If you need help with the aftercare of your dog’s body, I can make arrangements for private or non-private cremation.  If your dog weighs over 25 pounds, I will need your help to get him into my van.

Euthanasia procedure for cats

After we finish the paperwork at your home, I will administer an overdose of a barbiturate anesthesia.  It will take effect as fast as it gets into your cat’s circulatory system.  I will go over stages of anesthesia with all who are present so you can know what to expect.  When it feels to you like your cat is gone, I will double check the heart with a stethoscope, and the eye reflexes for brain activity, before I declare your pet dead.

That is the medical part of the procedure.

If you need help with the aftercare of your cat’s body, I can make arrangements for private or non-private cremations.

Euthanasia procedure videos

Here are two YouTube video examples of euthanasias. Every practitioner’s procedure is slightly different and every animal is unique, so your experience may differ. But this videos will give you an idea of what the procedure might be like.

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After Care of Bodies

After a home euthanasia, you have several options for caring for your pet’s body:

  • I can leave your pet’s body with you and you can make your own arrangements.
  • I can arrange a non-private cremation, which means I would take your pet’s body away and arrange for a cremation with the bodies of other pets. Ashes are not returned to you.
  • I can arrange for a private cremation. In addition to removing your pet’s body, I will arrange for it to be cremated in a kiln by itself. The cremains will either be returned in a metal urn with a screw top or a cherry wood box– your choice, no extra charge.

I try to carry the means to make paw prints for keepsakes. You may also ask  for a clipping of your pet’s hair.