As pets grow older, their immune systems weaken and leave them more vulnerable to disease, illness, injury, or other health problems than when they were young. We often see the development of diabetes, kidney disease, adrenal disease, thyroid disease, dental disease, Cushing’s disease, prostate disease, cataracts, arthritis, and other conditions later in a pet’s life.

PREVENTIVE CARE & EARLY DETECTION OF DISEASE IN SENIOR PETS

Once your pet has reached a senior status, typically around the age of seven, he or she is more likely to develop the problematic health conditions mentioned above. For this reason, we highly recommend biannual (twice yearly) preventive wellness care exams rather than the previous annual care plan. This allows us to conduct extra pet wellness testing to help detect diseases in the early stages.

If your senior pet is displaying any symptoms listed below, schedule an exam with us soon to prevent or slow the progression of possible disease.

• Weight loss
• Decrease in appetite
• Increase of water intake
• Rise in urination volume or frequency
• Limping
• Stiffness or immobility
• Difficulty climbing stairs or hesitancy to jump
• Disintegrating mental clarity
• Restlessness
• Sudden loss of energy
• Hair loss
• Uncontrollable bowel movements

For those senior pets that appear to be in pain regardless of treatment, we can create a customized pain management plan to improve comfort and quality of life.

Do you have questions about starting biannual pet wellness exams? Call us! We will ask you some brief questions about your pet, and then provide further wellness care advice as it applies to your companion animal.