The Pet Doctors

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The Pet Doctors Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from The Pet Doctors, Veterinarian, 946 East Coast Road, Northcross, Auckland.

The Pet Doctors is an independent Small Animal Vet Practice offering high quality veterinary care to the Northern East Coast Bays area of the North Shore, Auckland

Did you know that daily brushing is the gold standard for keeping your pet's teeth healthy? Just like us, plaque and tar...
16/10/2026

Did you know that daily brushing is the gold standard for keeping your pet's teeth healthy?

Just like us, plaque and tartar build up on your pet's teeth, potentially leading to bad breath, pain, and dental disease.

Brushing can take some time for your pet to get used to. If they are not accepting straight away, slowly build up to brushing by taking baby steps. Let them get used to the toothbrush, to you touching their mouth, opening their mouth, the taste of the toothpaste and the sensation of brushing. It can be a slow process, but worthwhile to avoid painful dental disease for your furry friend!

Here's a link to a video to help you get get started with tooth brushing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfsUfaeeXKY

While getting your pet used to brushing you can also try:

🦴 Offering a dental diet. Hills Dental Care has large kibble made with long fibers so that it stays together longer when bitten into. This gives a brushing effect as the tooth goes through the kibble. Royal Canin Dental is coated in a polyphosphate that reduces the accumulation of calculus on the tooth surface by binding calcium in the saliva.

🦷 Dental chews use a special shape and texture to help brush plaque off the tooth.

For more detailed or personal advise, please give us a call. We can arrange a free dental check with our nurse, Lorien

☀️ Where did the sun go?!We were loving the hot sunny weather last week! We hope you stay dry and snuggled up on this ra...
15/10/2026

☀️ Where did the sun go?!

We were loving the hot sunny weather last week!

We hope you stay dry and snuggled up on this rainy day, like our friend Ninja here, who recently visited us for some x-rays.

🌸 Spring is here - and fleas are springing into action too! As the weather warms up and our pets are outside more, fleas...
13/10/2026

🌸 Spring is here - and fleas are springing into action too!

As the weather warms up and our pets are outside more, fleas are also becoming more active again and looking to hitch a ride inside on our pets fur. If you are noticing increased scratching, licking or biting at the skin, and small black flecks in the fur ("flea dirt"), then your pet might already have some unwanted friends hiding on them.

Good news - we've got all your regular go-to flea treatments in stock, and we've also got a new option! We're now offering 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼 𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺, a single in-clinic injection that gives up to 12 months protection. Bravecto Quantum is suitable for dogs and puppies over 6 months old.

If this sounds like something you're interested in, give us a call on 09 478 4349 and we can arrange an appointment for you. If you're happy with your regular treatment just pop in when you need your next dose 🐶🐱

25/09/2026

🐶💦 Ever wondered why are dogs such messy drinkers?

Unlike us, dogs don't have cheeks and lips able to form a seal and create suction to have a tidy drink. Instead they have evolved a totally different trick.

Dogs curl the tip of their tongue backwards into a little "ladle" shape and then flick this down into the water at high speed. It was first thought that dogs "scooped" the water up to drink it, but further research showed that as the tongue darts back up to the mouth, it drags a column of water upward with it, using momentum and inertia to carry the liquid into the air. The dog then snaps its jaw shut at just the right moment to catch that column of water before gravity pulls it back down. This happens super fast - multiple times per second.

So if they are not scooping water, why curl the tongue into a ladle shape? The tongue acts like a piston, and punching the water with a larger area allows them to pull out a larger column of water, so more to drink with each lap.

And what about the water that is in the ladle of the tongue? It ends up underneath the tongue in the dog's mouth. Humans would just push this water out from under the tongue and swallow it, but dogs can't do this, so the liquid just dribbles out.

The dribbling, combined with splashes from the tongue punching the water, and from the jaw snapping at the water column, all add up to an often messy drinking experience for dogs.

Check out our slow-mo video below of Cathy's dog Esther having a drink! 🐶💦

Meet Leopardus TilcayoFor the first time in over a century, a new live species of cat has been discovered! In the Yungas...
22/09/2026

Meet Leopardus Tilcayo

For the first time in over a century, a new live species of cat has been discovered!

In the Yungas cloud forest of Bolivia, a family dropped off a tiger cat at a wildlife sanctuary. It caught the staff's attention as it didn't quite match other descriptions of tiger cats. This spurred a study into the genetic makeup of the cat - and it has now been confirmed to be a new species!

Leopardus Tilcayo is just a wee thing, smaller than your average housecat - weighing around 1.4kgs and about 46cm long. It is light brown with dark, irregular rosettes over its body - like a leopard. Locals have called the cats Tilcayo, and so researchers kept that name when naming the species. Not much else is known about the species, with only 2 live individuals identified at this stage.

Just goes to show - there's still so much left to discover out there! 🐆🌎

Photo by Fernando Faciole/National Geographic

Today is Check your Chip Day!Did you know your pet’s microchip needs to be registered to help bring them home? 🐾If your ...
14/08/2026

Today is Check your Chip Day!

Did you know your pet’s microchip needs to be registered to help bring them home? 🐾

If your pet’s chip isn’t registered, or your contact details aren’t up to date, it can make it much harder to reunite you if they ever go missing.

The New Zealand Companion Animal Register (NZCAR) is New Zealand’s national companion animal microchip register. It links your pet’s microchip number with your contact details, helping vets, councils, shelters and other authorised users identify lost pets and reconnect them with their families.

Whether you have a new puppy or kitten, or your pet has been part of your family for years, it’s worth checking their details are correct.

Log into https://www.animalregister.co.nz/ today to check everything is up to date

Have you noticed your pets breath is a little less than pleasant lately? It's worth taking seriously. Persistent bad bre...
11/08/2026

Have you noticed your pets breath is a little less than pleasant lately?

It's worth taking seriously. Persistent bad breath is a common sign of dental disease.

What’s actually causing the smell?

🦷 Plaque and tartar build up - bacteria multiplying in plaque release sulphur compounds as they break down food particles.

🩸 Gum inflammation - inflamed gums often bleed slightly, which can add a metallic edge to the smell.

🕳️ Hidden dental disease - loose teeth or infections under the gumline trap bacteria and pus in pockets you can't see, further adding to the smell.

Dental disease isn't just about bad breath. It is painful, can affect your pet's ability to eat, and can impact overall health - bacteria from the mouth can enter the blood stream and has the potential to affect the heart, kidneys and liver.

Pets are great at hiding pain. Many will keep eating and acting totally normal even with significant dental disease. Since your pet can't tell you they're in pain, their breath might be the only clue you get. It's worth getting checked out.

Did you know ❓It has been found that of cats and dogs with teeth that appeared normal, 28% of dogs and 42% of cats actua...
07/08/2026

Did you know ❓
It has been found that of cats and dogs with teeth that appeared normal, 28% of dogs and 42% of cats actually had diseased teeth!

We're telling you this as August is Pet Dental Month. So what better time to remind you to think about your pets oral health.

We often have clients ask if their pet needs a dental, and that answer is often yes! For starters, it's very hard to get a good look into any animals mouth while they awake. Secondly, plaque can start forming minutes after brushing teeth - and how often are most of us actually brushing our pets teeth? Plaque then turns into hard tartar, which can't be removed with a toothbrush. From here, dental disease sets in - causing pain, infection and even tooth loss if left untreated.

So what do we mean when we say your pet needs a "dental"? We really mean a Comprehensive Oral Health Assessment and Treatment or a COHAT!

Here's what's included:
🦷 Full anaesthetic - pets can't stay still long enough for a proper oral exam. This lets us assess every tooth thoroughly and safely - not many pets will open wide like the ones pictured!
🦷 Complete oral exam - checking each tooth, the gums, tongue and soft tissues for anything abnormal.
🦷 Dental X-rays - to see what's happening below the gum line, where most problems actually hide.
🦷 Scale & polish - removing plaque and tartar above and below the gum line, then polishing to slow future build up.
🦷 Treatment - extractions if needed, based on what the exam and x-rays show.

It's called "comprehensive" for a reason - every step is there to catch problems early and keep your pet comfortable - not just make their teeth look nice.

Wondering if it's time for your pet to have a COHAT? We offer free dental check ups with our nurse Lorien! Just give us a call to book one

🐱 Fun Fact Friday: If I Fits, I SitsThis is why your cat can squeeze into that box that looks way too small for them — i...
31/07/2026

🐱 Fun Fact Friday: If I Fits, I Sits

This is why your cat can squeeze into that box that looks way too small for them — it's all thanks to their unique collarbone.

While cats do technically have a collarbone (clavicle), theirs is tiny and not attached to the rest of their skeleton like ours is. Instead, it sits within the shoulder muscles, held in place by connective tissue rather than a joint. This gives cats an incredible amount of shoulder flexibility, letting them narrow their body width to match the size of their skull.

Combine this with their extremely flexible spine, which has many more vertebrae and looser connections between them than humans, and you get a creature able to squeeze through tiny gaps and sit in spaces that look much too small for them!

🌿 FAQ: Why does my pet eat grass?If you've ever watched your dog or cat nibble on a patch of grass and wondered what on ...
24/07/2026

🌿 FAQ: Why does my pet eat grass?

If you've ever watched your dog or cat nibble on a patch of grass and wondered what on earth they're doing, you're not alone — it's a common question!

The honest answer? No one is really sure!😄

A few things that might be going on:
👅 It just tastes good. Some animals simply enjoy it — grass is a texture and flavour experience, not necessarily a medical event.
😐 Boredom or habit. Especially in dogs, it can simply be a habit with no deeper meaning.
🌱 Instinct. Wild ancestors of both cats and dogs regularly consumed plant matter (often through the stomach contents of prey). Grass-eating may just be a leftover behaviour.
🤢 It's often said animals eat grass to induce vomiting, but studies show that less than 25% of dogs actually vomit after eating grass

⚠️When should you be concerned?

For most pets, the occasional grass snack is perfectly normal and nothing to stress about!

However, occasionally a strand of grass may get caught in their throat. We call this a nasopharyngeal foreign body. Signs to look out for include sneezing, gagging, snorting, changes or difficulty breathing and pawing at their face.

A trip to the vet clinic will be necessary so we can safely remove the foreign body with as little stress and discomfort to your pet as possible.

Address

946 East Coast Road, Northcross
Auckland
0630

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 6pm
Tuesday 8am - 6pm
Wednesday 8am - 6pm
Thursday 8am - 6pm
Friday 8am - 6pm
Saturday 9am - 12pm

Telephone

+6494784349

Website

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