24 HOUR EMERGENCY

Internal Medicine

//Internal Medicine
Internal Medicine2018-01-24T16:33:25+00:00

Internal medicine specialists use their training and experience to work with your veterinarian and determine what is causing your pet’s ailment. They typically help to diagnose, treat, and manage chronic conditions. The symptoms of these conditions often include one or more of the following: vomiting, diarrhea, exercise intolerance, lethargy, coughing, rapid breathing, weight gain or weight loss, urinating more frequently (called polyuria), drinking more water (called polydipsia), hair loss, or other chronic changes.

Our animal internal medicine specialists often develop long term relationships with patients and their primary care veterinarian as they work together as a team to manage your pet’s illness. A few of the tools that are available to internists include:

  • Abdominal ultrasounds (sometimes called sonograms)
  • Echocardiograms (an ultrasound of the heart)
  • ECG or EKG (electrocardiogram) which allows the doctor to evaluate the electrical activity within the heart muscle
  • Endoscopy (a camera that enters through the mouth and can visualize the esophagus, stomach, and sometimes the upper portion of the intestines)
  • Colonoscopy (a camera that enters through the rectum and can visualize the colon and lower portion of the intestines)
  • Numerous tests that can be run on blood, urine, and other fluids

If your pet is severely ill and requires hospitalization, our animal internal medicine doctor will work with our staff of emergency veterinarians and critical care doctors to ensure your pet gets the care he or she needs around the clock.

If you think that your pet may benefit from a consultation with our animal internal medicine doctor, please ask your veterinarian or, if they are not available, contact our emergency pet hospital in Pittsburgh at 724-717-CARE (2273).