Winter Hours

Our hours have changed so please plan around them. Starting Jan. 5, 2009

For Dale City hours are as followed.
Monday 7:30am-12:00pm and 2:00pm-7:00pm
Tuesday 7:30am-12:00pm and 2:00pm-7:00pm
Wednesday 7:30am-1:00pm and 4:00pm-6:00pm**
Thursday 7:30am-12:00pm and 2:00pm-8:00pm
Friday 7:30am-2:00pm and 3:00-6:00**
Saturday 7:30am-1:00pm
**These hours are for drop offs for boarding or picking up pre-approved prescriptions and food. There is no doctor on staff. Our sister hospital, Gunston Animal Hospital, is staffed until 6:00pm.

For Gunston hours are as followed.
Monday 7:30am-12:00pm and 2:00pm-6:00pm
Tuesday 8:00am-10:00am** and 4:00pm-6:00pm**
Wednesday 7:30am-12:00pm and 2:00pm-6:00pm
Thursday 2:00pm-6:00pm
Friday 7:30am-12:00pm and 2:00pm-6:00pm
Saturday 7:30am-1:00pm
**These hours are for drop offs for boarding or picking up pre-approved prescriptions and food. There is no doctor on staff. Our sister hospital, Dale City Animal Hospital, is staffed until 7:00pm.

Happy Halloween!

This is a great video: World's Ugliest Dog - Spooky Dog

And here are some more: Ugliest Dogs

Enjoy and be safe!

Have We Changed Our Name?

Many of you have asked us about our "new name," Noah's Ark Animal Hospitals. Truth is, we have always been incorporated under that heading, but most people knew us as one of our separate business names, Dale City Animal Hospital or Gunston Animal Hospital. Recently, we merged the two businesses into one, to allow ease of management. The most important improvement is that we can access your pets' records from either location or even from our homes. In the event that you were to need to see a doctor at our other site, or if you needed advice for your pet after hours, it is a simple matter for us to pull up their history and give timely, exact advice.

We hope this clears up any misunderstanding you might have had. We are still the same doctors, the same technicians, and the same devoted staff.

Lake Ridge Doggie Paddle

Andrea Tiede, lvt, Stephanie de Metz, administrator, and Dr. Allison Mayo attended the Lake Ridge Doggie Paddle this weekend as the volunteer veterinary staff. Fortunately, it was a beautiful day and all the dogs played very well together. The only injury was to Striker, who injured a few toenails. The dogs all appeared to have a great time, even those who wouldn't go in the water. See the photos we have posted. If you would like a digital copy of the photo, contact Dr. Mayo at the office (703-670-6181).

Puppies for adoption at Dale City Animal Hospital

Please come by and visit our new puppies at the Dale City location! We continue to work hand in hand with the Prince William County Animal Shelter, and these pups and their moms were brought from there. The pups are about 2 weeks old, which is too young to be housed at the shelter. Additionally, the moms need special attention because they arrived at the pound parasitized and poorly nourished. One litter has 11 pups, and the other has 8, so there are lots to choose from! Both moms are mixed pitt bulls. Photos will be posted very soon.

We will hold onto these puppies until they are 8 weeks old and spayed/neutered. They will have had appropriate vaccinations and dewormings up to that point. The adoption fee ($125) will cover all services we provide up to and including the cost of spaying/neutering.

Separation Anxiety

By Joni L. Noel, DVM [Ed.: Dr. Noel published this previously, Fall 2002, in our Hospital Newsletter]

Does your dog love you so much that when you walk out the door or are out of sight for just a few minutes, she goes crazy? Does her love for you tear up the rugs, uncushion the cushioned couch, knock over your favorite vase, demolish your absolute, all time, favorite most comfortable shoes? If she is an absolute angel when you're home, or even your shadow, and only turns demonic when you're away, then she is probably suffering from separation anxiety. Most dogs with separation anxiety, as opposed to just plain bad behavior, only act anxious and destructive when they are unable to be with and see their owners. Beside the destructive behavior, she can excessively bark, house soil, attempt to escape, lose her appetite, become inactive, sad and depressed. Some can even get diarrhea, vomit and excessively coat lick.

So you ask, "Why does my precious pooch have this problem while the next door neighbor's pup is a perfect angel?" Well, it could be that your dog is a very dependent soul. She could have been left alone way too long as a puppy, abused or neglected before you acquired her, or she could have been one of the countless poor puppies that was transferred from home to home before finally ending up at your local animal shelter. She doesn't understand when you leave that she isn't being left yet again to a new stranger in a strange environment. Also, some dogs can be fine for years, then something changes and she suddenly acts out, and your favorite pillow is the best thing she's ever tasted. Maybe Mom or Dad went back to work, the kids left for college, or jobs changed and now longer hours are being kept. Bear in mind, she may think, "This is it! They're not coming back!" The stress then gets too much to bear and she acts out.

Now, how to tame this anxious beast. Do not punish. Once she begins to associate your return with punishment, her stress will only increase. The #1 goal is to teach her that she can trust in your return. A good exercise to start with is to make her sit and stay while you walk from one place to another. If she stays, give her a treat. If she moves, try it again for a shorter distance and less time, even if it's moving from the door to the couch. Slowly increase your time and distance. The next goal is to change your habits. Your dog is smarter than you think. She actually can associate certain things you do as clues to your impending departure.


Such things as kissing your spouse goodbye, getting your keys out, or closing your briefcase can prepare her for your leaving and then her ensuing destructive behavior. So, do something different from the norm. Grab your keys but don't leave; close your briefcase and go watch TV; kiss your spouse more often. Also, always leave a radio or the TV on when you leave, and go out and invest in a Kong toy. You can stuff it with peanut butter then put it in the freezer. Give it to her right before you leave and she will work so hard to get the peanut butter out that she is oblivious to your departure. Or, take her for a long walk before you leave. This can help tucker her out so that she will likely spend her time sleeping while you're gone. This also gives her something to look forward to because she gets some great exercise before you leave.

Ultimately, the goal is to increase your pet's self confidence. Always in the beginning, start with baby steps. Leave only for a minute, then come back in and do not fuss over her. Just go watch TV. Once she is relaxed, then tell her "good girl." You are teaching her that when you leave, you always come back. Do this exercise for longer periods each time but bear in mind, if she becomes anxious at any point, cut the time in half and start over. For example, if she acts up after 2 hours, then go back to being gone 1 hour and work back up very slowly. She has to be confident that you will return each and every time. This will probably take at least a week, if not longer, to accomplish. Clomicalm®, which is a new anxiety drug, can also be used while you start your behavioral modification. It is not a sedative. It is designed specifically to work in conjunction with behavioral modification for separation anxiety. Once the new behavior is learned, the drug can be slowly weaned from her system. Obviously, as with any drug, a thorough physical and consultation with your veterinarian is in order to make sure this medicine is appropriate for your pet.

With the knowledge you now have of this disorder, you can be well on your way to elevating your pet's self confidence. With enough time and patience, your pet should quickly gain the knowledge that you love her as much as she loves you and that destroying your underwear and socks isn't such a great way to show you she misses you. Together, you can both change her anxious love and your tattered drapes into a peace you both can enjoy for a long time to come.

Meet the StaffAndrea Tiede, LVTDale City Animal Hospital

Andrea Tiede worked her way from kennel assistant to veterinary technician at our Dale City hospital in just five years. She is truly a home grown success story.

Andrea was born in San Diego, California. However, her father was in the military, so she lived many places, including Hawaii and Las Vegas, before her family settled in our area six years ago.

While in high school, she began working at our hospital as a kennel assistant. She quickly mastered that position and began learning other skills. She enjoyed the work immensely, learned quickly, and was soon training as a veterinary assistant and a receptionist. She graduated from Hylton High School in 1999. Impressed with her hard work and potential, the hospital offered to send her to Northern Virginia Community College to become a licensed veterinary technician. Andrea completed the two-year program, including an internship at our other hospital at Gunston. She received an Associate Degree in Applied Science and is now a full fledged veterinary technician at our hospital.

We are proud to have Andrea as a member of our team at the hospital.