What are the benefits of regular check-ups for your pets?
Our pets cant talk to us so sometimes its hard to know how things are going. Vets and Vet nurses are great at identifying any particular concerns that you may not be aware of. For this reason we recommend at least an annual physical exam. Older pets ( > 8 years) or pets with ongoing conditions benefit from more frequent examinations.
During this visit your vet will perform a full physical exam. They will check the eyes, ears and mouth paying particular attention to the health of the teeth and gums. They will listen to the heart and lungs and palpate the abdomen feeling for growths or other abnormalities. They will assess the limbs and spine searching for areas that may be painful. In older animals this is frequently the time we identify the early signs of arthritis that many owners simply put down to aging. Finally they will examine the skin paying particular attention to any lumps or bumps that may have appeared.
During this visit they will also assess your pets vaccination status and update these as required.
Parasite control and prevention is also assessed at this time. For dogs we recommend heart worm, intestinal worming and fleas and tick control. For Cats we recommend intestinal worming, flea and tick control.
We can advise on the most suitable products to keep your pets free of any parasites.
Our vets will assess your pets weight and discuss any concerns. We can offer advice around nutrition and exercise plans should this be required.
It is often useful to perform a range of diagnostic testing at this time to give an even more detailed assessment of how your pet is going. It is common for routine blood and urine testing to be performed at this yearly visit particularly as your pet ages. If we can identify a problem early we are much better placed to manage this process or take action before it becomes a major problem. Identifying diseases such as dental disease, heart disease, kidney disease, liver disease, cancer or arthritis is much easier to manage than waiting until the pet is ill from these.
