Why Regular Veterinary Check-ups are Important for Your Pet
Every pet owner strives to give their pet endless affection, attention, and high-quality food. But there is one thing most of them often overlook: scheduling regular vet check-ups for their pets.
Just as humans require regular doctor check-ups, pets also need regular vet check-ups. This ensures your pet stays healthy and lives their best life.
Since pets cannot speak when going through pain, many health conditions might go unnoticed, and that’s why regular vet check-ups are important to allow the vet to detect, diagnose, and treat any diseases before they worsen.
Keep reading to learn more about the benefits of regular vet visits and what to expect during the visits.
What Happens During a Regular Veterinary Check-up?
Knowing what happens during a routine veterinary check-up helps you get prepared and ease any anxiety for you and your pet. Before we look at the benefits, let’s first see what you should expect during a regular veterinary check-up.
1. Physical Examination
During the veterinary check-ups, your vet will conduct a head-to-tail exam to check for any health problems.
Your vet will examine your pet’s ears and eyes, listen to the heart and lungs using a stethoscope, palpate the abdomen, check the coat and skin for signs of irritation and parasites, watch how your pet moves, examine teeth and gums, and much more.
2. Vital Signs Assessment
Your veterinarian will measure your pet’s weight, heart rate, temperature, and respiration rate just to ensure they are within the healthy range. For example, an increase in your pet’s weight can indicate health issues like thyroid or diabetes.
3. Diagnostic Testing
Your veterinarian will review your pet’s record to determine which diagnostic testing is needed. However, this depends on your pet’s age and overall health.
For senior pets, your vet might run bloodwork to screen for diseases that are common in old age or check blood cell count. Additionally, the vet might also conduct X-rays or an MRI to screen for other conditions. Diagnostic testing gives insights that are not visible during a physical examination.
4. Preventive Care
Next, your vet will advise you on what type of preventive care your pet might need. At every vet visit or check-up, your vet might administer or schedule a vaccination. Dogs and cats have a high risk of getting parasites such as fleas, mites, ticks, and other external parasites.
Based on your pet’s age and environment, your vet might put you on an external parasite prevention and treatment plan.
5. Lifestyle and Behavior Discussion
During your regular vet visit, ask any questions or concerns you might have about your pet’s diet, exercise, or behavior. If you have noticed any changes in your pet’s behavior, this is the time to ask and get advice.
Benefits of Regular Vet Check-ups
Here are nine reasons why you need to take your pet for regular vet check-ups.
Early Detection of Health Issues
Pets are great at hiding signs of pain or illness, and often show signs when the condition has worsened. That’s why regular veterinary check-ups are important for every pet to detect signs of health issues before the condition worsens.
Our veterinarians at The Noble Veterinary Surgeons perform a thorough physical examination of your pet’s ears, eyes, teeth, and joints.
We also perform regular diagnostic tests, such as bloodwork, to detect issues like diabetes. Early detection can help improve the treatment outcome.
Monitoring Your Pet’s Weight
Regular vet check-ups are important to keep your pet’s weight on track. Obesity in pets is a serious concern and can cause serious problems such as heart disease, arthritis, and diabetes.
Most pet owners might not know their pets are overweight, but a regular vet check-up might. Here at The Noble Veterinary Surgeons, we will guide you on planning your pet’s or animal’s diet to optimize their health.
Ensuring Vaccinations are Up-to-date
Vaccines are important to keep your pet safe from contagious diseases like rabies, parvovirus, and calicivirus. Regular vet check-ups ensure your pet’s vaccinations are up-to-date, protecting them from fatal diseases.
Monitor Their Dental Health
Dental diseases are one of the common health issues in pets and often go unnoticed. Tartar buildup, tooth decay can lead to infections and even tooth loss. Regular veterinary check-ups perform a thorough oral examination to identify and treat dental diseases early.
During your routine check-up with us, we examine the oral health of your pet, and if there are any underlying conditions, we diagnose and treat them immediately.
Monitor Age-related Changes
As your pet ages, their health needs change as well. Senior pets are mostly prone to conditions such as arthritis or cognitive decline. So, routine veterinary check-ups allow vets to monitor these changes in your pet and adjust their care plans.
At The Noble Veterinary Surgeons, we offer customized wellness care that supports your furry friend in their golden years.
Evaluate Your Pet’s Behavior Patterns
A change in your pet’s behavior, such as anxiety, aggression, or fear, can indicate an underlying condition. Regular veterinary check-ups give your veterinarian a chance to evaluate the behavior and offer diagnosis and treatment if there are any conditions.
Helps Build a Strong Vet-Pet Relationship
Routine veterinary check-ups help build a relationship between your pet and the veterinarian. This makes your pet familiar with the environment, making each visit less stressful.
It also allows your vet to build a health history for your pet. The record enables your vet to compare results over time and even make an accurate diagnosis.
Can Help You Save Money
Regular veterinary check-ups can help you save money in the long run. By detecting and treating illnesses early, you can save a lot of money on emergency treatments and surgeries.
At The Noble Veterinary Surgeons, we perform a thorough examination at each vet check-up to ensure we detect illnesses earlier on and start treatment immediately to save you costly treatment plans later on.
Peace of Mind for Pet Owners
Regular veterinary check-ups provinces peace of mind to the pet owner. Knowing your pet is healthy and that potential issues with the health of your pet are being monitored by a professional allows you to enjoy your pet without any worries.
At The Noble Veterinary Surgeons, we answer every question and address any concerns each time you visit us to ensure you live stress-free with your pet.
How Often Should You Take Your Pet for a Veterinary Check-up?
The frequency of veterinary check-ups depends on your pet’s health status, age, and breed. Here is what we recommend:
Puppies and Kittens: Young pets (kittens and puppies) require frequent vet check-ups, at least every 3 to 4 weeks, for vaccinations, deworming, and to monitor their growth.
Adult Pets: Healthy adult pets only require annual check-ups. Check-ups usually involve physical exams and preventive care.
Senior Pets: Senior pets need vet check-ups twice per year to monitor age-related issues such as arthritis, kidney disease, or heart disease. We recommend more than two visits per year if your pet has health issues.
Final Thoughts
Regular veterinary check-ups are important for your pet’s well-being and happiness. From the above article, the benefits of routine vet visits are very clear.
Schedule your next vet check-up today with The Noble Veterinary Surgeons. We offer vet check-ups and visits for pets and animals. Contact us to book an appointment.
