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MICROCHIPPING DAY - SATURDAY, SEPT. 25th!

Linwood is happy to volunteer its services on September 25th for the Massachusetts Veterinary Medical Association’s MICROCHIPPING DAY. Intervet is donating its Home Again microchips and the MVMA is coordinating registration online for $20/pet to cover costs. If you are interested in getting your pet microchipped at Linwood, contact the MVMA by Sept. 13th at www.massvet.org by selecting “Pet Owners” and clicking on the “click here” section or by calling 508-460-9333. Select Linwood as a participating clinic to have your pet microchipped and set up an appointment.

Microchipping helps ensure that your pet can always be identified and returned to you should it become lost. Microchipping is a permanent form of identification. Each microchip has a unique identification number. Registering a pet’s microchip number with owner contact information in a national pet recovery database such as HomeAgain is a critical step in identifying and contacting a pet's owner when a lost pet is found and scanned for a microchip. Once enrolled, a pet's microchip will be registered in the HomeAgain National Pet Recovery Database for its lifetime.

In addition, an optional annual HomeAgain membership for $16.99 includes:

Research published by the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association shows that nearly three out of every four lost pets that are microchipped are reunited with their owners.

The State of Massachusetts Animal Response Team, Animal Control Officers Association of Massachusetts, Medical Reserve Corp and the Animal Rescue League of Boston have joined with MVMA to support this event. The microchips are being donated by HomeAgain Pet Recovery, part of Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health.

The Massachusetts Veterinary Medical Association’s mission is to promote the veterinary profession, improve animal well-being and public health, and provide programs and services that enhance the ability of member veterinarians to succeed.

Pet Oxygen Masks Donated to Dracut Fire Department

On July 8th, Dr. Emilia Agrafojo from Linwood Animal Hospital, presented the Dracut Fire Department with three pet oxygen masks that were donated by the Massachusetts Veterinary Medical Association. The Pet Oxygen Mask program was created by the MVMA in hopes to outfit each of the 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts with a set of pet oxygen masks.

The goal of the program is to raise awareness regarding pet safety in the home. Pets are just as susceptible to smoke inhalation as people are. In the event of an emergency, it is important to have an evacuation plan for your family and your pets.

Chief Leo Gaudette and his crew were very excited to have the pet-specific oxygen masks donated to their department. In the past, the firefighters have had to use pediatric oxygen masks to treat animals in distress. The pet oxygen masks are designed specifically for small and large pets, to guarantee the correct fit.