Emergency 0131 440 4229
Loanhead Clinic 0131 440 4229
Balerno Clinic 0131 449 5773
Gorebridge Clinic 01875 821 088
Pentland Clinic 0131 451 5111

Client Services

We are here to assist our clients in preventing and treating their pets' illnesses

We will endeavour to assist our clients when pets become ill, and in preventing illnesses.

  • Nurse Clinics
  • Cat Friendly Clinic
  • Preventative Healthcare
  • Emergency
  • Euthanasia

Nurse Clinics

Our team of Registered Veterinary Nurses have extensive training in a wide range of areas of animal care and can provide many clinics for our patients.

Your pet can visit our nurses for a 20 minute consultation for the following reasons:

  • Weight Checks and Weight reduction clinics
  • Dental clinics
  • Geriatric Clinics
  • Postoperative checkups
  • Neutering advice
  • Bandage changes
  • Parasite control clinics
  • Microchipping
  • Preoperative admission
  • Preventative Health Care advice
  • Expression of anal glands

Alongside helping your pets in a consultation, our nurses are trained to:

  • Provide appropriate pain relief
  • Monitor patients under anaesthesia
  • Perform in­house testing of blood and urine samples
  • Provide regular and diligent care for our hospitalised patients
  • Carry out diagnostic procedures
  • Provide wound care
  • Assist in surgeries
  • Give medications

Many of our nurses are interested in supplementary learning and driving the veterinary nursing profession forward. They have undertaken additional training and research into aspects of pet care, such as: wound care, obesity management, physiotherapy and emergency medicine.

Cat Friendly Clinic

At ICR Vets we understand cats. For cats in our practice we do all we can to help them feel less worried.

We have a separate section of the waiting room for cats, so they can be away from other animals that might scare or stress them. In the consultation room our staff are mindful that cats often feel worried in unusual surroundings, so give them time to adjust if needed.

The cattery is away from the canine patients in a quiet part of the practice, meaning they feel less stressed while they are hospitalised with us, whether that’s for the day or for a longer stay. We have a variety of litters, food and water dishes, and diet options so our feline patients can have what they desire.

Preventative Healthcare

At ICR Vets we are passionate about prevention.

With no protection our pets are prone to some serious illnesses, however with some simple measures they can be protected as much as possible, giving you peace of mind.

No owner likes the thought of their pet becoming ill, so to minimise this ICR vets offers a complete range of preventative health care services:

Our affordable Healthy Pet Club allows you to ensure you’re doing the best for your pet with costs spread over monthly payments. Twice yearly checks with a vet, core vaccinations and flea and worming prevention are included. Click here to find out more.

Dental disease is a toothache for a lot of pets, with over 70% of cats and dogs affected. As our pets are often in pain from dental disease, without us necessarily realising, we offer free nursing clinics to diagnose, evaluate and provide advice on dental care. Alongside free nursing clinics, members of the Healthy Pet Club receive a 10% discount on dental procedures.

Routine spaying and neutering prevents many diseases of our pets, as well as unwanted puppies and kittens. Members of the Healthy Pet Club receive a 10% discount on routine spay and neuters.

Nutrition and weight control can be an uphill struggle for many pet owners, so we are here to help ­ with free nurse weight clinics and nutrition advice. You will never be alone in managing your pet’s weight.

Contact us today to talk to a member of our staff about preventative health care.

Emergency

We are always ready to help in an emergency. In contrast to many veterinary practices moving to using external out of hours providers, we use our own vets to care for any patients requiring emergency care when the practice is closed. This means you will always see an ICR vet, at an ICR clinic.

Our own vets and nurses work night shifts at our Loanhead surgery, meaning that they are awake and in the building all night. This means pets are not left unattended in the clinic when they are hospitalised, and there is someone available to help you if needed at any hour of the day.

Euthanasia

Taking care of our beloved pets comes with life­ changing positive moments, however, it also comes with potentially difficult choices towards the end of their lives.

Saying final goodbyes to our pets is one of the hardest things to do. At ICR Vets we are here to support you at the most difficult time, with staff trained in bereavement and vets and nurses to help in the decision making process.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about euthanasia.

Some answers which may help...

How do I know if it’s the right decision?

Assessing quality of life in pets is very tricky. Our pets cannot tell us how they feel and they often don’t show overt signs of discomfort. We recommend you have a consultation with your vet to determine the best way forward for your pet.

It is entirely natural to feel upset when your pet passes away. After all, your pet is a beloved family member. Do not be embarrassed about showing your emotions – veterinary staff expect you to be upset. It takes time to get over the loss of a loved one and, although reactions differ, very often a mixture of feelings – sadness, loneliness and anger – can follow.

Try not to feel guilty or blame yourself – the decision for euthanasia is taken with your pet’s interests at heart to avoid suffering. Some people find themselves questioning whether they did the right thing. It is normal to feel some doubt, though this will ease in time. We will always support you in doing the right thing for your pet.

How Is Euthanasia Performed?

The way we perform euthanasia depends very much on each individual patient. For dogs who are not stressed by procedures, a small patch of fur on the front leg will be clipped to enable an intravenous cannula to be placed. A nurse may assist the vet to do this. The vet will then inject an overdose of an anaesthetic, and your pet will fall asleep in a matter of seconds. They may twitch or take gasps once the injection is given – this is a reaction to the drug and they are not aware when this happens. The may also empty their bladder and/or bowels on passing.

For worried dogs, and many cats, it can be nicer for them to have a sedative injection prior to the placement of the intravenous cannula. This will be injected into a muscle in the rear end by the vet, who will then allow your pet 10-20 minutes to become drowsy before placing the cannula.

If you choose not to, or are unable to, be present for euthanasia, rest assured they will be loved and cuddled by our fantastic nurses throughout.  Please do not feel guilty if you feel unable to stay.

For smaller animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs, we will usually allow them to fall asleep with some gas anaesthetic. This is so that they cannot feel the needle when injecting the final anaesthetic dose, as they are so tiny. Because of the gaseous anaesthetic it is sadly not safe for owners to be present for this procedure. 

Is It Best In the Veterinary Practice or at my House?

This is entirely your choice. Some pets are more comfortable in their own homes, however the memory of them passing at home may be hard to have. Euthanasia at home may also be difficult if there are children or other pets in the house. If done at the clinic we have a compassionate team who will ensure privacy for you and your pet.

What Happens To My Pet Afterwards?

You are welcome to take your pet home to be buried but most owners choose to have their pet cremated. The standard cremation is a communal cremation where you do not get your pet's ashes back. If you wish to have your pet's ashes returned then this is something that we can arrange. There are several options you need to consider for ashes return but we can go through these with you at the time, or beforehand if you prefer.

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