Internal Medicine Consultation
Comprehensive care for lifelong pet health
Veterinary internists are like master puzzle solvers for pets. They gather various pieces of information to form a complete picture of your pet’s health, which involves:
- Listening to you about your pet’s health history.
- Assessing your pet’s clinical signs and symptoms.
- Assessing and analyzing prior diagnostic tests, including imaging, lab results, and therapeutic responses.
- Determining the most appropriate next steps to help diagnose or manage your pet’s condition.
By connecting the pieces, a veterinary internist works on providing options to ensure your pet’s health and well-being.
Dr. Chantal McMillan, DVM, MVSc, DACVIM, Dr. Nessa Forde, BVM&S, MRCVS, and the PetDerm team are here to support you and your pet in diagnosing and treating these complex conditions. Quality of life for your pet is our top priority. PetDerm’s veterinary internal medicine service ensures your pet receives the most thorough and compassionate care possible. We believe small animal internal medicine is a complementary addition to PetDerm, as some dermatological symptoms are signs of underlying disease.
Internal Medicine consultations at PetDerm offers a comprehensive and meticulous approach to diagnosis and ongoing medical management. Our team will create personalized diagnostics and treatment plans that are suitable for you and your pet’s circumstances, with the central goal of improving their well-being and enhancing their quality of life.
Stable medical cases are best suited for this service. If your pet has been recently diagnosed and stabilized or is struggling to manage symptoms (non-urgent), we are here to help! Discuss with your family veterinarian for a referral to PetDerm’s internal medicine team.
PetDerm’s Internal Medicine pet service is designed for stable, non-urgent patients only. Below are some examples of chronic illnesses in pets that are suitable for Petderm’s services:
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Endocrine & Hormonal Disease Management: Diagnosis and long-term management of conditions such as thyroid disease, diabetes, Addison’s, Cushing’s, etc.
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Tailored treatment plans, monitoring and follow-up
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Gastrointestinal (GI) & Internal Organ Disorders: Chronic vomiting or diarrhea, inflammatory bowel disease, liver or kidney issues, etc.
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Nutritional counseling, supportive care, long-term treatment management
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Autoimmune & Immune-Mediated Conditions: Diagnosis and treatment of complex immune disorders that may also affect the skin (joint consultation with dermatology) or multiple organ systems
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Coordinated care with dermatology when relevant
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Chronic Disease & Long-Term Care: Ongoing management of chronic conditions to maximize quality of life
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Regular re-checks, monitoring, client education, and coordinated care with your primary vet
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Dr. Nessa Forde brings with her experience in offering a spectrum of care, managing complex medical cases, and performing many procedures.
- GI endoscopy (esophagus, upper, and lower GI tract)
- Cystoscopy
- Voiding urohydropropulsion for bladder stones
- Joint taps
- Bone marrow aspirates and biopsies
How to book this service?
We encourage family veterinarians to refer challenging or chronic cases to PetDerm for internal medicine specialty evaluation. Please ask your family veterinarian for a referral. Send your veterinarian a referral request to get your initial consultation booked!
We understand you may be struggling to find the help you need for your special pet. We want to help so we created a pet owner self-referral process for a internal medicine consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Calgary’s PetDerm internal medicine vet is a board-certified Veterinary Internist. They complete an additional 4 years of dermatology or internal medicine residency before they become board-certified. The residency program involves extensive training in anatomy, physiology, pathology, clinical diagnosis, research, and more. A board-certified veterinarian dedicates at least 10 years to education and residency, similar to a doctor in human medicine.
A pet Internal Medicine specialist is trained in diagnosing and treating a broad spectrum of internal health issues in animals. They are highly trained and experienced in managing gastroenterology, endocrinology, infectious disease, urology, nephrology, respiratory medicine and hematology & immunology. It is common for a patient’s disease to impact multiple organs, requiring a detailed understanding on how to balance multiple issues for the best quality of life.
Whether it’s endocrine disease, gastrointestinal troubles, autoimmune problems, or chronic organ disease, our team works closely with your primary-care veterinarian to provide thorough diagnostics, personalized treatment plans, and ongoing support.
Yes! We request medical history from your primary veterinarian(s) and you. A complete history will help us make the best recommendations. Please complete the New Patient Intake before you visit.
If you are the pet’s primary caregiver, it’s important that you’re here for the first internal medicine consultation so that we have the most information possible, and we can walk you through the initial options for your pet. When we meet, we’ll review past medical records, then our veterinary internist will perform a full exam. Together, we will develop a management plan. This consultation is just the beginning of our relationship — additional visits may be required throughout your pet’s journey towards improved comfort and quality of life.
Learn more about what to expect from your first visit.
Our Library is ever growing with resources. You can start your search with symptoms or diagnosis your pet may have.
Many pet insurance plans cover chronic disease management, but coverage varies by provider and policy. It’s important to understand how pre-existing conditions are covered under your pet insurance policy. If you’re looking into insurance, take time to review each provider’s coverage. We recommend checking with your insurer to confirm what’s included.
Yes! Even though pictures say a thousand words, the skin and ears need to be viewed and assessed in-person. We would need to meet you and your pet to determine the most probable diagnosis and treatment plan.
For dermatology patients, if you and your family veterinarian suspect a diagnosis of atopic dermatitis, PetDerm can schedule the consultation and allergy testing on the same day. Please note that more than one visit will be required to help you and your pet.
Start the process today by asking your family veterinarian for a referral today!
You can find a list of veterinary dermatologists and internists in Canada to locate the one nearest to you!
Expect to be at PetDerm for approximately 60 minutes. If you did not fill out the New Patient Intake form, please arrive 15 minutes early to fill out the form.
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