X-Rays 

Everyone is aware of the benefits x-rays bring to diagnostics, assessing fractures for repair, investigating heart and lung problems ,investigating abdominal conditions and assessing joint quality etc. but I would like to tell you a little about how this diagnostic tool differs in veterinary compared to human use.

Our main difference is cooperation, we cannot ask a pet to stand and place their leg, jaw, abdomen etc. over an X-Ray plate. Well, we can ask ... but ... other than the occasional very docile guinea pig or hedgehog sitting in a cardboard box, it never works! For this reason all pets being x-rayed will be given a sedative or general anaesthetic. This allows us to position them, with the help of special aids and a lot of imagination, to get the image we need. Our patients are monitored during diagnostic imaging just as they are during surgical procedures.

Another difference is patient size. We use a modern, powerful x-ray machine which can cope with any patient from a tiny mouse to the largest Great Dane or Mastiff.

At Weardale Vets we are lucky enough to have a team of vets and nurses who have years of experience of radiography and have worked alongside Radiographers. This results in quality images of a high standard, often complimented by Referral Practices.

Hip Dysplasia Scheme

As well as using x-rays for our own diagnostics we also regularly carry out x-rays for the British Veterinary Association/Kennel Club Hip and Elbow Dysplasia Schemes.

Hip Dysplasia is a term which includes a number of specific developmental and other abnormalities involving the hip joint. HD is a genetically transmitted condition and the purpose of the Hip Scheme is to reduce the incidence of the disease in dogs used for breeding.
There is a list of protocols which must be followed before submitting x-rays for examination, details of these can be found by reading the BVA ‘Procedure Notes’ which can be found at www.bva.co.uk/canine_health_schemes/Hip_Scheme.aspx .

Good quality X-rays are of utmost importance as X-rays which do not fulfil all requirements set out by the BVA/Kennel Club or are not of the required quality will be returned.