Today we are having phone issues that appear to be related to the weather. Our main phone line is not working and also not rolling over to our other lines. If you need to reach us today, you can call 301-371-6120 or 301-371-6154. Note that our fax line is also down at this time so we cannot receive any faxes. We hope to have this situation resolved by this afternoon. Thank you for your patience.

It’s official—Our solar project went “LIVE” today, and our electric meter is actually running backwards on this sunny day as we are making more power that we are using.
The array is pumping out a near max 38 kW of power and we are happy to see things working so well. Be sure to check out the solar array and the monitor in our waiting room
on your next visit!

If you have visited our office recently, you have noticed some activity out in our fields. We have decided to join the “green revolution” and install a solar array for our office.  This array is not on our building though. Since we have plenty of land, we decided to put in a ground-based system. This allowed us to make it as large as needed to meet our electrical needs and to face the array in the most ideal direction. It should be generating electricity before Christmas, and after that we should have hardly any electric bill at all.

Solar Arrays In Construction

Our Two Arrays With 150 Panels

Dr. P Posing With the “Big” Array

Some facts about our solar array:

–We use about 59,000 kWh of electricity per year at a cost of about $8000 annually. This array is designed to produce 99% of that amount and leave us with a minimal electrical bill.  (NOTE: it generally is not cost-effective to overproduce electricity because the utility then only pays you wholesale rates).
–This is an ideal location for solar panels because they are elevated on a hill where they should never be shaded and they are oriented to within 1 degree of facing south.
–The production of the panels is guaranteed for 10 years by Paradise Energy. The panels have a life expectancy of 25 years, and there is a small drop in production as they age (approx 0.5% per year, so after 25 years they will produce 12% less)
–During the day, our electrical meter should actually be running backwards. At the end of a year, if we produce more electricity than we use, the utility will pay us. This is possible because with our ideal location, the production of the array could be slightly greater than anticipated.
–There are significant tax saving for building a solar project, especially for a business. With tax credits, depreciation, and electrical production, the array will pay for itself in about 7 years, and then we will have a very, very small electric bill.
–Unfortunately, the solar array will not operate when the electrical grid power goes down. This is a safety issue because the array cannot backfeed the grid during outages. We could avoid this problem by installing a battery system, but the expense and current technology do not quite make that cost effective.
–The array was constructed by driving metal posts 7 feet into the ground and attaching a rack system. The array is supposed to resist winds upto 130 mph. Let’s hope it doesn’t ever get put to the test on that!
–There are two sets of panels in our array consisting of a total of 150 panels. The smaller set is 100 feet long with 60 panels, and the larger one 150 feet with 90 panels. These panels feed into 5 inverters that convert the DC electricity from the panels into AC current the powers our building and backfeeds and extra to the grid.
–We actually had to upgrade our electrical transformer (that big green “box” towards the rear of our building) because it wasn’t big enough to handle all the power this array will generate. The original transformer was 25kW, and our array will generate 38kW.

–There will be a monitor in our waiting room showing us how much power we are making—be sure to check it out next time you are in our office

Hope everyone is having a great year. The Holiday Season is fast approaching and both Christmas and New Years Day are on a Monday this year.
Our holiday hours will be as follows:

Sat, Dec 23rd 8AM-12N (regular hours)
Mon, Dec 25th CLOSED
Tue, Dec 26th 8AM-8PM (regular hours)

Sat, Dec 30th 8AM-12N (regular hours)
Mon, Jan 1st CLOSED
Tue, Jan 2nd 8AM-8PM

We always try to take care of our patients as much as possible over the holidays, but there are always things that come up. If you need medical care for your pet when we are closed,
you can contact one of the emergency hospitals in our area (both are open 24/7):

CARE
1080 West Patrick Street
Frederick, MD
301-662-2273

Mountain View Animal Emergency
18501 Maugans Ave #105
Hagerstown, MD 21742
301-733-7339

Its that time of year again to protect your pets from heartworms. Mosquitoes transmit heartworms from dog to dog in the spring, so it is time to get your pet into a Veterinarian and tested for heartworms. To start your pet on prevention, a veterinarian will draw blood and run a test. If the test is negative they can start on heartworm prevention such as HeartGard. Prevention for your pets should start around April 1st to December 1st. Here at Palmer Animal Hospital we believe year-round prevention is best for two reasons. First, if the prevention is stopped for the winter,  your pet will have to be tested every year.   If your pet is on year-round prevention they will be tested every other year.  Secondly, if your pet stays on heartworm prevention year-round, it is easier to remember to give it every month and you are less likely to forget the medication. Prevention is definitely recommended instead of treatment.   Heartworm treatment may be long and painful. dogs and cats of all ages are susceptible. Heartworms spend their adult life in an animals heart or pulmonary arteries, could cause right-sided  heart failure. Signs can vary from nothing at all to persistent cough, fatigue, fainting, and weight loss. Heartworms are serious and can be fatal. So bring your pet into your veterinary hospital and get your pet tested for heartworms.

Many pet owners like to buy their products online, but they don’t always know what they’re actually getting. When you order online products make sure its from a trusted source.  If not the product you order may be ineffective or dangerous for your pet. For example, a customer bought Frontline Plus online for his two cats. Frontline is supposed to kill fleas, flea eggs,  and ticks but when they gave their two cats a dose of Frontline they went from having a few stragglers to a full-blown flea infestation. Since this product didn’t seem to kill the fleas like it was supposed to, one cat started to get a really bad flea allergy and the other started to get sick at the same time.  Be cautious of where your product is coming from; unknown sources may provide fraudulent product or one only available in other countries.  These products are not legal in the US, probably will not be effective, and may be harmful to your pet.   There are different ways to make sure you are getting safe, effective products for your pet. Purchasing from a veterinary hospital is usually the best way to go because veterinarians buy directly from the  manufacturer.  Online products are often diverted through 2nd or 3rd parties.   If buying online be sure you are purchasing from a reputable site. Be sure to check the package graphics, they should match with an authentic box. Keep in mind the even when buying authentic product from a unauthorized online source, manufacturers will not honor the product warrantee if something a problem occurs.  Veterinary medicine is nothing to joke about, if you want the best product for your pet buy it from a trusted source.

With the arrival of the New Year, we are planning on trying to catch up with the age of technology by  using electronic reminders.    This means that we will be sending out emails and texts to 1) remind you about health care services your pet is due for such as Annual Well Pet Exams, Vaccinations, and Routine Testing; and 2) to confirm and remind you about existing appointments.     We think is a great step forward as it will be much more convenient for our clients as well as our staff.   These electronic reminders will start to replace the postcard system we have used for years as well reduce the number of phone calls made by our staff.

If we do not have an email address or cell phone associated with your account, you will likely be contacted by a staff member for that information.   If you continue to receive postcards from us, it means we do not have email or cellphone information on your account and you should contact us with that information.   If you do not wish to receive emails or text reminders, please let us know and we can mark your computer file appropriately.

Note that we will still be calling all of our anesthesia/surgery/procedure cases the night before to re-confirm and to remind you to fast your pet as required.

Please feel free to call with any questions, or better yet, to update your file with an email address and phone number!

It’s that time of year again where the cold weather and precipitation can make it difficult for our staff and clients to make it into our office.    While most of our staff is able to make it into work on most days, there are times where the amount of snow and ice on the roads dictates that the safest course of action is to stay home.   Don’t worry, if your pet is boarding or hospitalized, someone will be in the office to make sure that they are taken care of (even if Dr. Palmer has to drive his tractor into work!).

However, if you have an appointment or are planning on coming to our office on a day where the road conditions are questionable, you should first call our office to be sure we are open.   And please be sure to leave a message if a live person is unable to answer to the phone.

Have a safe and fun New Year!!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of our clients and patients!

Both Christmas and New Year’s Day are on a Sunday this year, so it will affect our schedule a little differently.   Our holiday hours will be:

Sat, Dec 24th 8AM-12N (Normal Hours)

Mon, Dec 26th 8AM-5PM (Limited Hours)

Sat, Dec 31st   8AM-12N (Normal Hours)

Mon, Jan 2nd  8AM-8PM (Normal Hours)

If there are any questions about our schedule, please call the office.

A quick announcement that we are having phone issues today.   The nasty storm that blew through our area this afternoon did something to our phone system and right now we are limited to one phone line in and out.   So if you can and can’t get through, please keep trying.   You can also try to email us and we will get back to you as soon as possible:   info@palmeranimalhospital.net