We’ve all heard that a dog ages 7 years for every human year. This reminds us that our pets go from birth to old age much faster than we do. Just like humans your pet is more likely to develop health problems as the body ages. Dogs and cats are susceptible to arthritis, kidney and heart problems, dental disease, diabetes and many other ailments just as humans. Detecting these problems early can let us manage them more effectively, and less expensively.

Recommendations:

Physical exams: yearly for all pets, twice yearly for senior pets
(Remember once a year for your dog is like every 5 to 7 years of age for you!)
(Senior starts at 6 for giant breed dogs, 7 for large dogs and 10 for small dogs and cats).

Vaccinations:

Vaccine needs should be reviewed by your veterinarian yearly and appropriate boosters given as needed. Infections in older pets can be more serious and take longer to heal so don’t skip them now!

Parasite prevention:

Heartworm disease, intestinal parasites, fleas and tick are a risk to all dogs: control and elimination of these pests is easy, let us help you today!

Dental Care:

Dental disease is common in animals and more so as they age. Tartar and dental disease are painful, and increase your pet’s risk of infection not only in the mouth but in other areas of the body as well. With appropriate pre-dental blood tests anesthesia can be done safely in senior pets. Keeping the teeth clean means brighter smiles, better breath and better health.

Other tests:

Screenings for problems before physical symptoms occur can help us manage your pet’s health better, leading to greater comfort and better life quality. It is often less expensive to catch problems early when simple interventions may avert more serious problems.

Blood tests can help us detect kidney and liver problem and diabetes early, and give us a baseline to evaluate future problems. We recommend annual blood work for senior pets.

Ultrasound screening tests are valuable, particularly in large breed dogs such as Golden Retrievers, Labradors and German Shepherds who are prone to splenic tumors.

We want you to have as much good quality time with your pet as possible. Our goal is to help your animal companion live a longer, more comfortable and healthier life.