There are many instances in the lives of our pets where we are required to provide Veterinarian Signed Certification so that our pets can participate in certain activities.
At the Suffolk Veterinary Group Animal Wellness & Laser Surgery Center, we can provide Veterinarian Signed Certification for your pet because we have an established family-patient-doctor relationship with your pet documented in their patient medical records. The first time we provide a certificate the fee is included in the examination fee, and is at no additional charge to you outside of any regular examination fees incurred at the time of the visit. There is a charge for any additional copies you may require in the event you have lost your pet’s initial certificates, or require multiple copies for submission to multiple agencies.
The Suffolk Veterinary Group Animal Wellness & Laser Surgery Center PetCare Team Members Will Not Provide Veterinarian Signed Certificates For Any Services That Were Not Directly And Personally Provided By Suffolk Veterinary Group Veterinarians.
If your pet received services, such as vaccination or spay/neuter surgery, elsewhere, please remember to request a certificate from the organization that provided such services for your pet before your pet’s discharge, and to keep those certificates in a safe place. There have been many instances of pets having received medical care outside of Suffolk Veterinary Group needing certification that we cannot provide because we have no history on file in a patient’s medical records.
We can provide certification for patients for any of the following reasons:
Health & Vaccine Certification: A certificate of health signed by the Veterinarian includes a history of all your pet’s recent vaccinations and recent visit, as well as a statement by the Veterinarian that they have personally provided examination of the patient, and have found said patient to be in good health at the time of that exam. This certificate is required by many kennel, boarding, grooming, pet sitting, or training facilities before your pet can participate in these activities. We include this certificate upon the completion of a patient’s Yearly Health Exam, but there is a fee should you require additional copies.
Click Here to learn more about a Lifetime of Wellness for your pet
Rabies Vaccination Certification: A certificate of rabies vaccination separate from a Health Certification is required by New York State law to indicate that a pet has been vaccinated against this deadly disease, even though rabies vaccination information is also already included on a Health Certification. We recommend that you keep this certificate on file in a secure location so that it will not be lost. You may also be required to submit a copy of this certificate in advance of any boarding, grooming, or training of your pet. We include this certificate upon the completion of a patient’s rabies vaccination, but there is a fee should you require additional copies.
Click Here to read about New York State’s mandatory rabies vaccination law
Vaccination Exemption Waivers: In certain medical circumstances, Dr. Winkler may exempt a patient from vaccination. In such instances, Dr. Winkler can provide a letter of recommendation as to the medical necessity of forgoing vaccination Only When We Have An Established Family-Patient-Doctor Relationship With You And Your Pet, and have continued care documented in a patient’s medical records. Also, we may require that patients complete certain vaccination titers to qualify for vaccination exemption waivers. These waivers require diagnosis of specific medical conditions within a patient, and are not provided based upon any client’s personal beliefs regarding vaccination, as we must still comply with all New York State mandatory rabies vaccination, and public health and safety laws.
If you have a personal belief in not vaccinating your pet, we require the completion of regular vaccination titers during your pet’s Yearly Health Examination for the issue of health and vaccine certification. Your pet will still requires rabies vaccination in accordance with the law.
Click Here to read more about vaccinations for your pet
Spay or Neuter Certification: If you have had your pet’s spay or neuter procedure completed by the Suffolk Veterinary Group Laser Surgery Center, we will provide for you a certificate of spay/neuter signed by Dr. Winkler indicating that he has performed this procedure on your pet, and that your pet is indeed sterilized. We cannot provide certification of spay/neuter for your pet if we did not perform the procedure ourselves, and request that if this procedure was performed elsewhere, that you please provide for us a certificate of spay/neuter that we can keep on file here in our office to update your pet’s medical records with. There have been many instances where we have no record of spay/neuter on file in our office, and clients have been declined by adoption agencies to process an adoption because we have no record of whether their current pets are spayed or neutered. Also, should you lose a certificate of spay/neuter performed elsewhere, but have a copy on file with your pet’s Suffolk Veterinary Group medical records, we can provide for you an additional copy upon request for a small fee.
Click Here to learn more about Laser Surgery Spay and Neuter
Zeuterin™ Certification: When your male dog has had our non-surgical neuter procedure by Dr. Winkler, he will provide a signed certificate of “zeuter” provided you have complied with all our Zeuterin™ follow-up care protocols. This certificate of “zeuter” will certify the sterility of your pet, and will be required for review should there be any question of sterility, or adverse reaction to the Zetuerin™ procedure itself. Please, keep it in a safe place. Additional copies can be provided for a small fee.
Travel Certification: In many instances where pets will be traveling out-of-state, out-of-country, or by plane and train, there are specific certificates necessary in addition to the standard Certificate of Health and Certificate of Rabies. In many instances Dr. Winkler will have to provide examination within a certain time frame, and then provide a letter of recommendation stating that your pet is healthy enough for that specific mode of travel, and has been vaccinated according to protocols specific to the pet’s destination. Please, contact your airline carrier, hotel, and country of destination well in advance of any travel plans so that we can provide services in a timely manner. Nothing can be more frustrating and inconvenient to you than a “surprise” that your pet does not qualify for certain travel because medical care or certification was not provided within specific travel protocols, or, when we can’t “squeeze in” your pet an appointment time “right away” because certain time limits for exam and certification have almost expired.
Click Here to learn more about traveling with your pet
Microchip Certification: When we at the Suffolk Veterinary Group Animal Wellness Center provide a microchip for a patient, we also provide for you a certificate of microchip that not only records your pet’s microchip information, but also acknowledges that Suffolk Veterinary Group verifies you as the owner of that particular pet carrying that microchip number and registration. If your pet was microchipped elsewhere, we can scan your pet with our universal microchip reader to verify the microchip’s number, and still provide a certificate of microchip, but will be unable to provide a verification of ownership unless additional ownership papers (sales papers, certificates of adoption, transfer of ownership certificates, etc) are on file here at our office.
Click Here to learn more about our Microchip services
Unfit-For-Sale & Pet Lemon Law Certification: New York State Law provides for pet owners certain laws to protect them from the sale of sick animals. This law requires examination within 14 days from the date-of-purchase, and if your pet is diagnosed as seriously compromised in health, you have recourse. We can only provide Unfit-For-Sale Certification if we have personally examined and diagnosed a pet, which is why it is important that you choose the Suffolk Veterinary Group Animal Wellness & Laser Surgery Center for your pet’s initial post-purchase examination, and that you do not wait until your pet “needs” something like vaccine boosters to schedule that exam. Waiting can compromise your ability to have recourse should your pet be sick.
Click Here to lean more about New York State Pet Lemon Laws
Call 631-696-2400 to schedule an examination for your pet should they require certification.