TulsaPets Magazine July 2021

July/August 2021 • TulsaPets 35 VCA WOODLAND BROKEN ARROW ANIMAL HOSPITAL 2106 W. Detroit, Broken Arrow 918-505-1276 vcawoodlandbrokenarrow.com VCA WOODLAND EAST ANIMAL HOSPITAL 9509 E. 61st St., Tulsa 918-615-2001 vcawoodlandeast.com VCA WOODLAND SOUTH ANIMAL HOSPITAL 9340 S. Memorial, Tulsa 918-524-9565 vcawoodlandsouth.com VCA WOODLAND CENTRAL ANIMAL HOSPITAL 5326 E. Skelly Dr., Tulsa 918-770-4950 vcawoodlandcentral.com VCA OWASSO ANIMAL MEDICAL CENTER 8811 N. Owasso Expy., Owasso 918-212-0144 vcaowasso.com VCA COLLINSVILLE ANIMAL HOSPITAL 2425 W. Broadway St., Collinsville 918-205-0011 vcacollinsville.com CareClub Memberships are preventive pet health care plans and not pet insurance. CareClub Membership covers only the selected health care services and products which are specifically identified in the applicable CareClub Membership agreement. Unlimited exams are any exam during regular business hours excluding specialty or emergency exams. Free unlimited live chat is provided to CareClub members through the myVCA mobile app, available at Apple’s App Store and Google Play. Annual savings assumes that all included CareClub Membership services and products are consumed during the membership year. ©2021 VCA Animal Hospitals, Inc. VCA logo and CareClub are registered trademarks of VCA Inc. or its affiliated companies. AT VCA ANIMAL HOSPITALS, WE CARE SAVINGS OF UP TO 25% UNLIMITED EXAMS LIVE CHAT WITH A LICENSED VETERINARY PROFESSIONAL MONTHLY MEMBERSHIP FEE PERSONALIZED CARE PLAN vcacareclub.com WHAT YOU NEED WHEN YOU NEED IT VCA Woodland Central Allison Ruicker, DVM O ne of seven veterinarians at VCA Woodland Central Animal Hospital, where it is a standard to practice Fear Free techniques with every patient, Dr. Allison Ruicker is an Elite Fear Free Certified Professional along with numerous staff members who are Fear Free Certified. Over the years, Dr. Ruicker has en- countered many Humane Society dogs suffering from heartworm disease. She successfully nurtured them back to health by implementing heartworm treatments and utilizing Fear Free techniques. While there are many animals that have touched Dr. Ruicker’s heart, two special dogs made a lasting impression—Leia and Boy. Leia was adopted by her loving owners from the Tulsa Humane Society at the beginning of the pandemic. She was very nervous during her first visit to VCA Woodland Central, and having all services performed curbside by masked strangers only added to Leia’s stress. To make mat- ters worse, Leia was diagnosed as heart- worm positive. During her first few visits and treat- ments, Dr. Ruicker and the caring staff at VCA Woodland Central implemented many Fear Free practices. While Leia did require sedation for her first treatment, by her last round of treatments she was comfortable enough to be treated without sedation. In fact, when Leia returned for her follow-up testing, blood work samples were collected with no anxiety. She is now a healthy and heartworm negative dog. Boy was found by a Good Samaritan on the side of the road. He had massive swell- ing on his abdomen and several puncture wounds that had developed into a severe infection. After Dr. Ruicker performed an exten- sive examination of Boy’s wounds, she dis- covered that his condition was worse than expected. Boy’s abdominal muscles were shredded into many pieces, which caused a hernia. Dr. Ruicker was able to close his abdomen by carefully piecing each muscle layer back together. Unfortunately, Boy was also diagnosed with heartworm disease. Once again, Dr. Ruicker was able to provide care to Boy and successfully brought him back to health. Thanks to excellent care by Dr. Ruicker and everyone at VCA Woodland Central, Boy recovered with no complications. Throughout the duration of his treatment, Boy transformed from a terrified dog to a sweet, loving dog. And in the Good Samaritan, Boy found his fur-ever parent! You can meet Dr. Ruicker and the rest of the wonderful staff by visiting VCA Woodland Central. For more informa- tion, call (918) 496-2111. TulsaPets Magazine DVM Annual Feature Dr. Ruicker and Boy