Our Services
Dr. Tapp specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of all skin, ear and nail diseases in dogs and cats. Veterinary Healing Arts provides a variety of services including consultation, extensive client education, intradermal skin testing, immunotherapy, cutaneous and otic cytologies, skin scraping for parasites, video otoscopy, biopsies and cultures. Digital photography is used in many cases for monitoring and record keeping. There are hundreds of different skin diseases currently recognized in dogs and cats. Many of these diseases look alike and only subtle differences distinguish diseases. Dr. Tapp, as a dermatologist, is specially trained to recognize those differences and pursue a work-up to make a diagnosis.
Dr. Tapp is also a Certified Fear Free® practitioner, focused on the emotional well-being, enrichment, and the reduction of fear, anxiety, and stress in pets so that our clients have the best experience possible.
What is a specialist?
A specialist is a veterinarian who has completed advanced training beyond veterinary school. They then go on to complete research in their field, publish articles and pass an exhaustive clinical examination in order to become "board-certified". There are currently less than 250 board-certified veterinary dermatologists in North America. Dr. Tapp is the only BOARD CERTIFIED VETERINARY DERMATOLOGIST® in the state of Rhode Island. Your veterinarian can help you decide if your pet would benefit from a consultation with Dr. Tapp.
We specialize in diagnosing and treating:
Environmental and food allergies
Chronic and severe skin and ear disease
Immune mediated and hormonal skin disease
Nail and nail bed diseases
Skin manifestations of internal disease
Our special services include:
Intradermal allergy testing
Video otoscopy
Cytology
Biopsies and dermatopathology
Skin scrapings
Cytology
Intradermal allergy testing
Skin scraping
Video otoscopy
“We have the utmost trust and confidence in Dr. Tapp. We first heard about her from neighbors who told a glowing story about a wonderful veterinary specialist in East Greenwich, RI, who correctly diagnosed their two Portuguese Waterdogs with mange in minutes (compared to the local vet who worked on it for 6 months to no avail). So when we adopted Max, a two year old German Shepherd who scratched and chewed himself incessantly, we knew who to turn to for help. Dr. Tapp’s manner is calm and gentle; she is also extraordinarily knowledgeable and very thorough. After allergy tests, Max was put on a regimen of regular allergy shots, with various medications used on an as-needed basis. We watch him closely, and we have a plan of attack if symptoms recur. Needless to say, Max is fine, and he no longer suffers from his terrible allergies.”