Board-Certified Cardiologist
At Community Animal Hospital in Shrewsbury, we’re proud to offer you and your pet high-quality in-house echocardiograms, or an ultrasound of the heart performed by board-certified cardiologists. Ultrasound plays an important role in our diagnostic process as it allows us to gain a detailed image of your pet’s heart and it's surrounding area. This helps us diagnose dangerous heart conditions before they become a bigger problem.
Heart disease is common in animals and can often be successfully managed. Dogs, cats, and many other animals acquire heart disease, although the type of diseases in animals often differ from those most commonly found in people.
Using the most advanced diagnostic tests, including echocardiography, electrocardiography, Holter monitor recordings, and radiographs the Cardiology Service is able to successfully diagnose and manage heart disease in a wide variety of animals. The board-certified cardiology specialists, veterinarians and technicians work closely with you to find the best approach for management of your animal’s unique needs.
Ultrasound Technology: A Live Internal View
Ultrasound uses ultrasonic sound waves that bounce off internal structures of your pet’s body and give a detailed view inside. Instead of a still image produced by x-rays, ultrasound allows us to view organs as they are working, which makes it easier to detect any issues with an organ’s functionality.
What to Expect from a Procedure
All of our ultrasounds are performed by our licensed veterinarians, so you know your pet is in good, capable hands. Ultrasound is a completely non-invasive, safe procedure that does not involve anesthesia. All we do is clip your pet’s hair in the area we are examining to allow for an unobstructed view and easy gliding of our ultrasound device. Your pet will not require any recovery time or post-procedure care—they’ll be able to go home right after the procedure. A pet ultrasound generally takes less than an hour, and we’ll have information about your pet’s condition as soon as we’re done.
If you are interested in learning more about our pet ultrasound procedures and how it could benefit your pet, please get in touch!