Goddard Vet Group

05/12/2025

🎄 Festive Hazards Advent Calendar – Day 5 – Candles: A Cosy but Risky Glow 🕯️

Candles add a lovely festive atmosphere, but they can pose real risks to curious pets. Wagging tails, playful paws or a passing nose can easily knock over a lit candle, leading to burns, wax spills, or even fire hazards.

Scents can also be tempting, encouraging pets to get closer than they should. Always place candles well out of reach and never leave pets unattended around open flames.

A little awareness keeps your home cosy and your pets safe.

04/12/2025

🎄 Festive Hazards Advent Calendar – Day 4 – Batteries: Small but Serious 🔋

As you wrap Christmas toys and gadgets, remember that pets are naturally inquisitive — and batteries can look like tempting objects to chew or swallow. Ingesting a battery can cause severe damage to the mouth, oesophagus, and gastrointestinal tract.

Large, chewed, or punctured alkaline batteries often need urgent intervention, and lithium disc (‘button’) batteries pose the greatest risk of all due to the rapid burns they can cause.

If you think your pet may have swallowed a battery, contact your vet immediately.

03/12/2025

🎄Festive Hazards Advent Calendar – Day 3 – Antifreeze: A Hidden Winter Danger ❄️

As the temperature drops, many households use antifreeze to protect cars and outdoor equipment — but even tiny amounts can be extremely toxic to pets. It can even resemble water to pets, making accidental ingestion more likely.

🚗 Check your drive and garage for leaks, store bottles securely, and clean up any spills immediately. Keeping antifreeze out of reach is one of the simplest ways to protect your pets this winter.

02/12/2025

🎄 Festive Hazards Advent Calendar – Day 2 – Alcohol: Keep It Out of Paw’s Reach 🍷

With the Christmas season in full swing, it’s easy for curious pets to sneak a sip of your festive tipple. But pets should never consume alcohol — their livers can’t break it down like ours can. Even small amounts can cause serious alcohol toxicity and potentially life-threatening symptoms.

🍞 Did you know? Unbaked bread dough is also a danger. As the yeast ferments in their stomach, it produces alcohol that’s quickly absorbed into the bloodstream.

🍻Always store drinks safely and supervise your pets around food and drink — it only takes a moment to prevent a serious accident.

01/12/2025

🎄Festive Hazards Advent Calendar – Day 1 – Emergency Contacts: Be Prepared This Christmas 📞

The festive season can get busy fast — and the last thing anyone wants is to be searching for phone numbers in a panic. Make sure you’re prepared by noting down:

✔️ Your Goddard Vet Practice Phone Number: Keep it somewhere easy to access — on the fridge, saved in your phone, shared with pet sitters, and written in your pet’s travel bag.

🌙 Your Nearest Goddard 24-Hour Hospital: Accidents don’t keep office hours. Know which hospital is closest to you and have their number saved for out-of-hours emergencies.

🐾 Top Tip: Create a quick “Pet Emergency Contacts” note in your phone and share it with family members so everyone knows who to call.

11/11/2025

🥹🥹🥹

Albert catching some Zzzs 😴🐾 before his very first vaccine appointment — such a calm little champ! 💉💛

29/10/2025

🎆 Fireworks season is here — and while we love the sparkle, our pets often don’t! 🐾💛 Swipe through for our top tips to help keep your furry friends calm and safe when the fireworks start.

💬 Share this post to help other pet owners prepare
📌 Save it so you’re ready for the big night

17/10/2025

Some heroes wear capes. Ours wears a stethoscope 🩺 Watch Vet Sam and the team at Mandeville Hospital help Max!

22/09/2025

Not your everyday patient! 🦅

19/09/2025

👀 Your pet’s eyes do a lot more than help them see — they’re also a window into their health. But because pets can’t tell us when something feels wrong, it’s up to us to spot the signs early.

Here are 7 common warning signs of poor eye health:
1️⃣ Asymmetry – eyes don’t look the same
2️⃣ Irritation – rubbing, squinting, or redness
3️⃣ Blindness – clumsy, confused, or vision loss
4️⃣ Tear Staining – reddish-brown streaks under the eyes
5️⃣ Redness – inflamed or swollen eyes
6️⃣ Cloudy / Colour Change – eyes lose their sparkle or change shade
7️⃣ Runny / Sticky Eyes – watery, mucus, or unusual discharge

🐾 Eye problems can be painful and progress quickly. If you notice any of these changes, the best thing you can do is book a check-up with your vet. Early care means happier, healthier eyes — and a happier, healthier pet. ❤️

18/09/2025

🐾 Pet Eye Health Awareness Week: Rusty’s Story 🐾

Rusty, a retired police search dog, developed a sore patch near his eye linked to a chronic skin condition. Thanks to specialist care at our South Woodford practice, his condition is now well managed.

Vet Adam Thoms explained:

“Rusty’s condition is being managed with medication and he’s responded very well to treatment and is feeling much more comfortable.”

Rusty’s story is a reminder of how important eye health is for our pets. Here are 7 common signs of poor eye health to look out for:

👁️ Asymmetry
👁️ Irritation
👁️ Blindness
👁️ Tear staining
👁️ Redness
👁️ Dull, cloudy, or colour change
👁️ Runny or sticky eyes

If you notice any of these, book a check-up—early care makes a huge difference.

💙 Read Rusty’s full story on our blog here: https://www.goddardvetgroup.co.uk/blog/our-support-for-london-retired-police-dogs/

Find out more about how we are supporting the London Retired Police Dogs Trust (LRPD) charity.

17/09/2025

👀✨ It’s Pet Eye Health Awareness Week!

Did you know that eye problems are surprisingly common in pets? From redness and cloudiness to discharge or pawing at the eye, small changes can sometimes signal something more serious. By checking your pet’s eyes regularly, you can help spot issues early and keep them comfortable, happy, and healthy 🐾💙

08/08/2025

08/08/2025

It’s International Cat Day! 🐾 Swipe through: Which emoji is your cat? Post below 👇 Tag your cat-friends and let the chaos begin!

🎙️ The Vocal One - talks back, announces every entrance, meows like they pay the rent
💨 The Chaotic Zoomer - random sprints, wall runs, parkour wannabe
🛋️The Couch Potato - sleeps 23/7, wakes up for food and stretching only
👀 The Judgy One - constant side-eye, always watching, definitely thinks they’re better than you
💻 The Keyboard Supervisor - sits on your laptop as soon as you open it
🧽 The Clean Freak - always grooming - themselves, you, other pets, the air…

29/07/2025

BOOP🐾💖

📍 Goddard Vet Group Raynes Park

Not-so-little Lila was in for her first puppy check, and we couldn’t resist this close-up! That nose? 10/10 would boop again 😍

18/07/2025

Those pesky grass seeds 😫 www.goddardvetgroup.co.uk/blog/how-to-protect-your-dog-from-grass-seeds/

Grass seeds: 0, Rue: 1 ✅

This brave girl came in after one made it deep into her ear—and we found 20+ more hiding in her fur! Please check your dog’s ears and paws this time of year 🌾🐶