Nolan River Animal Hospital is a full-service hospital for small animals, which means dogs, cats, and pocket pets such as rabbits, guinea pigs, and other small mammals. We care for patients at every life stage, from puppies and kittens through their senior years.

If you are not sure whether your particular pet is a good fit for our hospital, ask us before you schedule. We would rather tell you up front than have you make a trip that does not serve your animal.

Yes. We welcome new clients and their pets, and we serve families throughout Cleburne and the surrounding communities. Many of our clients have been with us for years, and we would be glad to add you to that group.

The best first step is a wellness exam so we can meet your pet, review records from a previous veterinarian, and build a care plan together. New clients complete a short registration form before that first visit.

We see patients by appointment so that every pet gets unhurried attention and your time in the lobby stays short. Appointments are available on weekdays and Saturday mornings.

If your pet is sick or injured, call us and we will work you into the schedule as quickly as we can. We also offer a drop-off option when your day will not accommodate a full appointment window.

Complete our new client and patient registration form ahead of time and bring it with you, along with any vaccination or medical records from a previous veterinarian.

It also helps to bring a list of the food, medications, supplements, and preventives your pet currently receives, plus a fresh stool sample if we have asked for one. The more history we have, the more useful that first exam will be.

We recommend a physical examination at least once a year for healthy adult pets. Pets age faster than we do, so twelve months covers a substantial span of your pet's life, and an annual exam lets us find problems while they are still manageable.

Puppies, kittens, senior pets, and animals with chronic conditions often do better on a semi-annual schedule. We build each plan around your pet's age, breed, weight, lifestyle, and health history.

Our vaccination protocol follows the standards set by the American Animal Hospital Association. Core vaccines protect against diseases that are widespread, serious, or transmissible to people, and we recommend them for every patient.

Beyond the core set, the right vaccines depend on your pet's lifestyle, travel, and exposure risk. We review the options at each wellness exam and recommend only what genuinely fits your animal.

North Texas weather keeps mosquitoes, fleas, and ticks active through most of the calendar, so parasite exposure here is a year-round concern rather than a summer one. Heartworm disease in particular is far easier and less costly to prevent than to treat.

We consider heartworm and flea prevention essential to your pet's health and will recommend a product suited to species, weight, and lifestyle. Consistent monthly dosing is what makes it work.

We generally recommend spaying or neutering at around six months of age, though ideal timing can shift with breed and size. Sterilization lowers the risk of certain cancers, ends heat cycles, and often reduces roaming and marking behaviors.

Older pets can still have the procedure. Bring it up at your pet's wellness visit and we will discuss current scheduling availability along with the approach that suits your animal best.

Anesthesia carries some risk for any patient, but modern protocols and close monitoring make it safe for the great majority of pets. We follow sterile surgical protocols and track vital signs throughout every procedure.

Beforehand we perform a physical exam and may recommend bloodwork to check organ function. Experienced veterinary technicians observe your pet through recovery, and every surgical patient receives pain medication both in the hospital and at discharge.

The American Veterinary Dental Society reports that more than eighty percent of dogs and seventy percent of cats show some form of dental disease by age three. Because roughly two thirds of every tooth sits below the gum line, brushing alone cannot reach where the damage happens.

Untreated dental disease lets bacteria into the bloodstream, where it can affect the heart, liver, and kidneys. We examine your pet's mouth at every wellness visit and recommend cleaning when it is warranted.

Pain management is a priority in everything we do. Pets feel pain much as people do but instinctively hide it, so we watch for quieter signals such as changes in posture, appetite, grooming, vocalization, heart rate, and reaction to touch.

We use a combination of medications and techniques, given ahead of expected pain whenever possible, for surgical patients and for pets living with arthritis, injury, or chronic illness. Comfortable pets recover faster.

A microchip is a small permanent identification device placed just under the skin near the shoulders. Insertion feels much like a routine vaccination, takes only seconds, and needs no anesthesia.

A chip is not a GPS tracker. It carries an identification number that shelters and veterinary hospitals can read with a scanner, so registering your contact details and keeping them current is what actually brings a lost pet home.

Subtle changes are often the first sign of significant disease in older pets. Watch for shifts in appetite, thirst, weight, energy, sleep, mobility, house habits, and temperament, and tell us what you are seeing even when it seems minor.

Many age-related problems improve substantially or resolve entirely with early detection and treatment. Our senior patient questionnaire helps you organize your observations before the appointment so nothing gets missed.

We use the VitusVet app, which puts your pet's records in your pocket. Records from our hospital flow into the app automatically, and you can share vaccination history with a groomer, boarding facility, or specialist in a few taps.

You can also invite family members, sitters, and other caregivers onto your pet's care team, upload your own documents, and set reminders for medications and upcoming care.

Yes. Our online pet pharmacy lets you order prescription medications and preventives and have them shipped to your home, with every prescription verified by our team before it ships.

If you would rather fill a prescription elsewhere, we ask that you complete our internet pharmacy release so we have a record of your choice. Ordering through us keeps your pet's medication history complete and in one place.