For pet owners

General information

• Schedule an initial consultation with STVAD by calling the reception team at (210) 930-8383.
• Ensure that your veterinarian has provided STVAD with pertinent information regarding your pet’s skin or ear disease.
• Complete the initial consultation history form, client information form and the pet information form.
• Please arrive 15 minutes prior to your appointment time to fill out any necessary paperwork.

What to expect

STVAD operates as an outpatient specialty referral service. Nearly all diagnostic tests are performed by the veterinary dermatologist and the dermatology technician during the appointment time so an assessment and initial treatment plan may be formulated specifically for your pet. Therefore, your pet’s dermatology consultation will be longer than a typical appointment with your primary care veterinarian. Initial consultations are about 60 minutes in duration and reevaluations are typically 30-45 minutes in duration. Some procedures require a block of time, which may mean your pet is in our care for a few hours or is scheduled for a procedure on another day. Please know that we are working efficiently during your pet’s appointment, yet will ensure that all pets entrusted to STVAD and our staff will receive the highest quality of veterinary dermatology assessment and treatment. Dr. Pinchbeck appreciates the commitment of time you make for your pet and STVAD, and will continue to provide complete and personalized care for your pet’s dermatologic problems.

Importance of a dermatology history

Most dermatology problems have been present for a period of time and have characteristic historical and clinical patterns of development the dermatologist is trained to identify. Therefore, a significant amount of your initial consultation time is spent obtaining and reviewing a detailed dermatology history. Your observations of how the problem started and how it has progressed are important. Equally important are observations made after the administration of prescribed treatments from your veterinarian or STVAD, as each piece of information may assist the dermatologist in confirming a diagnosis. 

• Bring a list of ALL medications (oral or topical) your pet is receiving or has been given previously. You may also bring the bottles with you to the appointment.
• When referred, your veterinarian should complete a referral form and fax or send this electronically to STVAD prior to your appointment with copies of the pertinent medical record. Ideally, the referral information should include a brief but pertinent summary of the case. Least useful is simply copying the medical record.  *** The fax number is (210) 930-8040.
• Bring copies of prior laboratory test results or reports.
• Know what foods your pet is eating (including treats). It is fine to bring labels of the ingredients.
• Write down a list of questions you might have or write your own summary of the problems your pet is having. You may give this to STVAD at the time of the appointment. We find this beneficial and your observations often provide valuable information. It also allows Dr. Pinchbeck to ensure all your questions are answered.

The day of the visit

• We will call within 24 hours to confirm your appointment
• Please call if you are running late or call to reschedule if you cannot make your appointment.  
• Do not feed your pet the morning of the appointment in case a procedure requiring sedation is recommended.
• Do not bathe your pet within 5 days of the appointment. 
• Allow for 15 minutes of paperwork that needs to be filled out when you arrive. You may also perform this step electronically via the STVAD website.
• For you and your pet’s safety during travel to and from STVAD, please have cats travel in a carrier and bring your dog on a leash and collar.

Reevaluations

In addition to obtaining a complete dermatologic history and following through with prescribed treatments, reevaluations with the veterinary dermatologist are a critical component of successfully managing your pet’s skin or ear disease. Most diseases a veterinary dermatologist treats, especially pet allergies, are chronic. Thus, throughout your pet’s life, alterations will need to be made to the management plan specifically designed for your pet. Continued communication with Dr. Pinchbeck and Kimberly Thoma is therefore essential. In our opinion, reexamination and consultation is the only way for Dr. Pinchbeck to ensure treatment is going as expected. This is especially true at the beginning of your relationship with STVAD. Depending on the problems initially identified and the treatments required, it may take a few visits to make a definitive diagnosis. As a board-certified veterinary dermatologist, Dr. Pinchbeck’s goal is making a definitive diagnosis of your pet’s skin or ear disease so that specific treatments may be prescribed. Typically, that is also the reason your primary care veterinarian referred you and your pet to STVAD.

Telephone communications

Telephone communications with STVAD team members are for established patients. If you are interested in having your pet’s skin or ear disease evaluated at STVAD, please discuss the referral with your primary care veterinarian and/or call (210) 930-8383 to schedule an initial consultation.

Management of your pet’s skin condition may require telephone updates or you might have a question for STVAD. Please know that messages left for the dermatology team will be returned in a timely fashion, typically by the end of the business day or the next morning. Whenever possible, a team member will accept the call right away. If, however, we are with a patient or another client, we will have to take a message. Please inform the reception team if you feel the problem you are calling about is an emergency and requires immediate attention.