In-House Veterinary Diagnostics in Hilton Head

Understanding your pet’s health requires an exam more in-depth than the standard physical. At Island Holistic Veterinary Center, we have many diagnostic tools in house for screening, diagnosing, and treating our patients. This includes an in-house laboratory with an array of testing equipment for doing blood work, fecal exams, and other evaluations; digital X-ray for viewing the bones, joints, and chest cavity; and ultrasound imaging for viewing the abdominal organs with stunning clarity.

If your pet needs blood work or an X-ray, contact us at (843) 671-PAWS to book an appointment or use our online request form.

Why is Lab Testing Important?

No illness can be properly identified and diagnosed without the help of our in-house laboratory, but healthy pets also benefit from testing to make sure they don’t have any underlying conditions. By running blood, stool, urine, and occasionally skin samples through our advanced testing equipment, we can get a much clearer idea of what’s going on inside your pet. With our sophisticated microscope, we can analyze in detail a wide range of samples.

Blood and fecal tests can alert us to parasites, diseases, and various other issues, and urinalysis can help us detect and diagnose urinary tract infections. In addition, our veterinarians have a lot of experience with diagnosing and treating skin disorders, which are often the result of an allergy.

Digital Radiography

If your pet has a chronic cough or a limp, we might suggest an X-ray or two to get to the bottom of the issue. Our digital X-ray equipment enables us to view the bones and joints and check for fractures, inflammation, deformities, and other orthopedic problems. We can also visualize the heart and lungs, which can alert us to signs of heart failure or an enlargement of the heart, for example.

Ultrasound

To view the abdominal organs, ultrasound is our best tool. Non-invasive and painless, our ultrasound equipment shows us the soft tissue organs in real time, so we can see how they’re functioning. We can evaluate their shape, size, and even texture, and pick up on abnormalities such as fluid in the abdomen, cysts, and tumors.