When Should Your Pet Be Seen By Your Veterinarian?

Our four legged companions mature much faster than you and I. For example, a 10-year-old Golden Retriever is proximately 70-80 homosapien years old. This age range explains why it is very important for dog owners to realize that their canine companions are here with us for a short period of time. We must supplies high quality dog or cat care for their whole precious life span.

Wellness is a word used to define health. Senior wellness requires evaluating their health as they grow old by physical exam and the complete baseline blood values throughout their life stages. Specific medical conditions cannot be diagnosed by observing, listening, and touching. Canine guidelines include comparing current blood values to their baseline values to correctly manage and treat everyday diseases. For example, a Wilmington, NC, senior pet requires dissimilar nutrition than a growing puppy. Keep in mind, the number one problem we see in our pets is obesity. By changing their diet, based on veterinarian expertise, you may help curb their cravings by fulfilling their nutrition. Obesity leads to similar medical problems that affect us. These include decline of our bones and joints, decrease in our blood flow as well as the risk of developing diabetes in our pets too!

Fortunately, in veterinary medicine, our pets are truly unable to describe the ins and outs of their issues. It doubtlessly takes an extremely skilled Wilmington, NC, veterinarian to be able to analyze, diagnose, and treat our senior pets. There may be subtle clues a pet owner may perceive on a day-to-day basis. These clinical symptoms include: their senior pet has a change in their appetite, water intake, and behavior change such as restless and agitated, inability to get up or jump. This list goes on and on. There are effective treatments for illnesses of the kidney, heart, liver, and intestines.

According to the recent senior wellness guidelines, a Wilmington, NC, senior pet ages in three months proximately 2 years. Consequently, it is vital to analyze your senior dog every 6 months. The tests that should be appraised include complete blood count, chemistry panel, urinalysis, thyroid testing, blood pressure, and electrocardiogram. These tests are considered the minimum guideline of care for our senior companions. These basic wellness steps can enable you as the pet owner to supply the best health for your companion.

We perceive time and time again that our senior pets rely on us to keep them happy, stress free and pain free. It has been determined that pets can reduce our blood pressure, keep your heart healthy and keep our spirits high. There is no reason why we can not recognize their conditions and treat their problems better and faster. Wellness testing ought to be performed every six months to provide us a chance to know the health status of our companions.

If your senior pet has issues ascending and descending the stairs and seems stiff in the morning, then you must have your senior companion’s spine and joints evaluated. Veterinary medicine has many recent advances parallel to human medicine. The recent diagnostic technologies include digital radiography and digital ultrasound. With these diagnostic tools, veterinarians can locate skeletal and joint abnormalities. A couple of common conditions include joint disease known as osteoarthritis and intervertebral disc disease. There are several ways to help manage these conditions. Once diagnosed, consider a natural product that abides by FDA standards for joint support known as Dasuquin. The human equivalent is Cosamine. This joint support provides wonderful results. Also, nutritional assistance includes Hills Science Diet JD for small, medium and large dogs.

By simply talking about your senior pet’s history, an all-encompassing veterinary physical exam and the minimum standards of tests including complete blood count, chemistry panel, urinalysis, blood pressure and electro-cardigram, your senior companion can receive the best medical care that you and I can provide. Your senior companion can have a wonderful senior life if you adhere to the senior wellness guidelines. Your veterinarian can personalize a treatment program and follow-up. Continue to monitor them regularly for any changes. If you could monitor them every time they mature one more year, then we would have to analyze your senior pet every 45 days. Wow, this sounds like it is too often. But in reality, your senior pet is 2 to 3 years older in only three months. Consequently at your senior pet’s annual visits, they have aged 6-7 years. After all, do you go to your physician every 6-7 years?

Now you should understand the relevance of the senior wellness. Growing older is not a disease.

Iva L. Nusbaum, DVM
North College Road Animal Hospital
Wilmington, NC 28405
www.wilmingtonvet.com