Dairy Flat Veterinary Clinic

25/10/2026

We will be closed tomorrow, Monday 26 October, for Labour Day and will reopen on Tuesday.

If your pet needs emergency veterinary care during this time, please contact one of the following clinics:

ARC North
📍 224 Albany Highway, Schnapper Rock, Auckland 0632
📞 09 281 5815

North Shore Veterinary Emergency & Critical Care
📍 96A Ellice Road, Glenfield, Auckland 0629
📞 09 443 5640

For large animal emergencies, please contact the Wellsford Veterinary Clinic
📞09 423 8008

We hope you have a safe and happy long weekend, from the team at Dairy Flat Vets.

18/10/2026

What's fun for us isn't always fun for our pets! 🐾🎃👻

With Halloween creeping closer, here are a couple of things to keep in mind to help keep our furry friends safe and happy:

🍬 Keep the treats out of reach! Chocolate and many other Halloween sweets can be harmful to pets, so make sure little hands keep them well away.

🧟 Costumes can be scary! While dressing up is fun for us, unfamiliar costumes, masks and spooky decorations can be stressful for our pets. Give them a quiet, safe space to retreat to if things get a little too frightening.

A little preparation goes a long way in keeping our pets safe, comfortable and happy this Halloween 🐈‍⬛

14/10/2026

🐾 GET TO KNOW OUR TEAM: GRETCHEN! 🐾

With Veterinary Nurse Appreciation Week last week, what better time to get to know our veterinary nurses - starting with the amazing Gretchen!

Gretchen has been with our team since 2019. She often helps out at our Cat Doctors clinic too, where she can indulge in her love of all things feline! 🐱

She has a particular passion for cats and their health and welfare, and at home she has a very spoilt ginger and white cat named Hamish! 🧡

Her love is of animals big and small - before becoming a vet nurse, Gretchen spent over six years working on Thoroughbred stud farms in both Australia and New Zealand, mainly as part of the breeding team.

When she’s not caring for animals, Gretchen loves swimming, diving, reading and travelling (or dreaming about her next adventure! ✈️). She also has a passion for conservation and marine life and hopes to do more volunteering in this area when time allows. 🌊🐬

And here’s a fun fact you might not know about Gretchen: she’s played a variety of musical instruments, including the saxophone and clarinet! 🎷🎶

We’re lucky to have Gretchen as part of our Dairy Flat Vets team!

09/10/2026

Fleas can be a real itch! 🦗

Get a single Nexgard FREE when you purchase a Nexgard 3-pack as part of our Dermatology Focus.

While stocks last.

05/10/2026

Happy Vet Nurse Appreciation Week to our awesome Veterinary Nurses! 🐶 😺 💉🩺

It’s Vet Nurse Appreciation Week, and there are some people we really need to talk about.

Our incredible vet nurses.

They’re there for the cuddles, the kisses and the happy reunions.

But they’re also there for the mess. The blood. The vomit. The poo. The wee. The a**l glands. And all the other things we probably shouldn’t mention while you’re eating lunch.

They hold nervous paws and comfort frightened animals. They find ways to make scared patients feel safe, even when that patient is doing their absolute best to bite, scratch or escape.

They monitor anaesthetics, take blood, place catheters, assist in surgery, care for hospital patients and somehow manage to keep track of a million things happening at once.

They sit with animals waking up from surgery so they aren’t alone.

They celebrate the wins.

And they feel the losses.

Sometimes they cuddle an animal while a family says goodbye, then wipe away their tears and walk into the next consult with a smile because another patient needs them.

Vet nursing is messy, exhausting, emotional and sometimes heartbreaking.

It is also filled with love.

This week, we want to say a huge thank you to every one of the amazing vet nurses across Veterinary Hospital Group.

For every cuddle, every cleaned-up mess, every patient you advocate for, every worried owner you reassure and every animal you love like they were your own.

We see you.

And we appreciate you more than you know. ❤️

27/09/2026

Spring has sprung! 🌷🐣

Spring is that time of year when vet clinics and bird rescues can become overrun with baby birds, as well-meaning people “rescue” fledglings that actually could — and should — have been left alone.

Below is an excellent diagram to follow if you find a baby bird or fledgling 🐦

If it is fully feathered, appears uninjured and is not in any immediate danger, the best thing you can do is usually leave it alone so its parents can continue caring for it.

Don’t become a “bird-napper”! 😜

21/09/2026

Owen’s incredible comeback ❤️

When Owen arrived at our clinic in March, we weren't sure he was going to make it.

Owen is a 4-year-old black domestic short hair cat that had been missing for a year and a half before turning up at a neighbour's house, walking and vocal but weak. He became increasingly weak and was rushed to the Dairy Flat Vets in a critical condition.

At just 2.38kg, Owen was recumbent, severely emaciated, dehydrated and hypothermic. He had a weak pulse, pale gums and a temperature of only 35.1°C (normal temperature for a cat is 38-38.5°C).
His initial blood tests were also extremely concerning. He had marked kidney compromise, significant electrolyte abnormalities and a very high white blood cell count, raising concerns about serious infection. Given his condition, his prognosis was very guarded.

Owen was admitted and received intensive supportive care, including IV fluids, active warming, antibiotics, anti-nausea medication, gastrointestinal support and carefully managed nutrition. Because he had likely been without adequate nutrition for some time, food had to be introduced gradually because of the risk of refeeding syndrome.

And slowly, Owen started to fight his way back.

His temperature normalised, he began eating, his kidney values improved dramatically and his electrolytes stabilised. After several days in hospital, he was well enough to go home.

There were still some hurdles along the way, including further episodes of diarrhoea, poor appetite, dehydration and anaemia which required additional treatment and hospitalisation. But Owen kept fighting.

By April, Owen had improved dramatically! He was eating well, jumping up on things, and becoming his smoochy old self again. His kidney values returned to within normal limits, and with continued care at home, Owen continued to put on weight and regain his strength.

Fast forward several months…
We recently received the most wonderful update from Owen's family:

"To all the lovely people who cared for our cat Owen when he returned home after a long absence. Thank you for caring for him and the kindness you showed us, his human family.
He is back to normal, as far as we can tell, he seems happy and healthy and I thought you might like to see some update photos of him - attached.
He has the run of the house, has us twisted around his little paw and puts his other two cat brothers in their place which is naturally below him 🤣
He enjoys spending the cold nights sleeping on our bed, telling us, by purring very, very loudly when he thinks it’s time we should get up because in his mind it’s his breakfast time, sometime between 4 and 5am!
We still wonder where he went and how he got by for all that time, something that will remain a mystery.
Thanks again!"

Welcome home, Owen.
A huge thank you to Owen's family for their commitment to his care, for trusting us to care for him and for sending us the update and gorgeous photos. Our entire team were rooting for him and are thrilled at his incredible recovery ❤️

17/09/2026

There’s still a few spaces left to take advantage of our current dental promo! Get $200 off an eligible dental procedure plus a free bag of dental biscuits while stocks last.

And while you’re looking after those pearly whites, we also have 20% off Plaque Off this month! We have plenty in stock, with options for both dogs and cats.

Give us a call on 09 426 9535 to book your pet’s dental appointment or ask our team about the Plaque Off offer.

Don’t miss out - the dental promo ends at the end of September!

17/09/2026

Meet Mr Choccie Baa! 🐑

Mr Choccie Baa is an AG Day lamb from Dairy Flat School who visited us this week for his docking, ringing and vaccinations — and, of course, cuddles from Vet Izzie!

If you have a lamb needing their vaccinations, docking, ringing or a general health check, give us a call on 09 426 9535 to book an appointment.

15/09/2026

Ever wondered what actually happens when your pet comes in for a dental?

🩺 1. Pre-anaesthetic check
After going through the admission forms, the vet will check over your pet. Depending on their age and health status, we may recommend blood tests to check internal organ function and tailor our medication protocol accordingly.

💤 2. Safe anaesthesia
A dental requires your pet to be fully anaesthetised to allow us to safely examine every tooth, including areas below the gumline, while keeping them comfortable and still. We have qualified veterinary nurses carefully monitoring throughout the entire procedure, recording vital signs, administering medications and intravenous fluids, and adjusting the anaesthetic accordingly.

🔍 3. A thorough examination
The vet will assess each tooth and the surrounding gums for signs of dental disease, fractures, infection and other problems. Dental xrays may also be recommended so we can access what may be hidden below the gumline.

✨ 4. Professional cleaning & polishing
Ultrasonic scaling removes plaque and tartar from the teeth, including beneath the gumline. The teeth are then polished to help leave the surface smooth and less likely to accumulate plaque.

🦷 5. Treatment if needed
If a tooth is damaged, infected or affected by advanced periodontal disease, extraction may be necessary. We’ll always discuss significant treatment with you and make your pet’s comfort a priority.

❤️ 6. Recovery
Your pet is closely monitored during recovery from anaesthesia. Once they’re awake and comfortable, we’ll call you to organise a discharge time. At discharge we'll discuss any treatment performed and post operative care and medications required.

✨ DENTAL PROMO: During September receive $200 off an eligible dental procedure plus a free bag of dental biscuits, while stocks last! Give us a call on 09 426 9535 to book! ✨