In-House Diagnostics

Modern digital X-ray and ultrasound equipment, as well as an on-site diagnostic lab, are available at Island Tides Veterinary Hospital to help veterinarians better understand your pet’s health.

Appointment

In-House Diagnostics

Island Tides Veterinary Hospital is pleased to be equipped with an extensive in-house laboratory for both dogs and cats to allow quick turnaround of blood tests, ear and skin cytology, urinalysis, and fecal examinations. In addition, our in-house digital cytology machine will allow us to send images of needle biopsies to a veterinary pathologist (specialist) for review.

Many test results are available on the same day to allow for efficient decision-making on treatment plans for your pet.

Who needs bloodwork?

Bloodwork gives us a snapshot of your pet’s health and can tell us a lot about them. Pets who are sick will often have bloodwork run to check for underlying kidney, liver, blood, or endocrine diseases. Blood work can also be helpful for pets who have traveled to or come from areas of the world that are more likely to carry infectious diseases.

Blood testing is not only for sick pets. Pets of all ages have bloodwork prior to procedures that require sedation or general anesthesia to ensure they are safe to undergo the procedure and allow us to customize their sedation and anesthesia plan. We also run screening panels on our senior patients to facilitate catching certain issues early, which can help create plans for preventative care. Cats and dogs are considered seniors between the ages of 8 – 10 years of age.

What is Cytology?

Cytology is the examination of microscopic samples, often used to determine the cause of an ear, skin, or bladder infection. Microscopic examination of your pet’s blood or a fine needle aspiration of a mass can also help diagnose some diseases.