When it comes to the long-term health of our pets, an ounce of prevention is truly worth more than a pound of cure. Just as your physician and dentist are concerned with preventing disease and discovering problems early for you and your family, your veterinarian has the same concerns for your pet.
Vaccination against diseases such as parvovirus, distemper, rabies and respiratory illness remain the center of veterinary preventive care. However, many pets may not require yearly vaccinations as previously believed. If your pet received an appropriate series of vaccinations as a puppy or kitten, and a booster one year later, your veterinarian may determine that booster vaccines only need to be given every 2 or 3 years. In addition, some vaccinations may not be appropriate for your pet, depending on their exposure risk.
I have discussed heartworm, intestinal parasite, and flea and tick prevention in previous articles but they are worth mentioning again. There are extremely effective and safe products available to prevent disease associated with these parasites. Monthly application or administration of these drugs can protect your pet from developing serious illness and keep your family safe from potentially zoonotic (transmissible from animals to people) disease. The cost of these preventives on a per month basis is quite low. Compared to treatment cost if your pet does become infected, the prevention makes sense financially as well as medically.
Pet health insurance is slowly gaining in popularity. In terms of preventive care, pet owners can receive reimbursement for a portion of the cost. Pet health insurance is similar to human health insurance in that there are varying levels of coverage that can be chosen, and the level of coverage (in addition to your pet’s age and breed) determines the monthly or yearly fee. One difference is that with pet insurance, the reimbursement is sent directly to the owner, not through the veterinary hospital. An internet search can help you locate several companies offering pet health insurance, or your veterinarian can provide you with information. Most companies allow you to get coverage for your pet over the internet.
Early detection of disease is extremely important for our four-legged family members. Because our pets can’t tell us if they have minor aches or pains or other subtle signs of disease, we need to get information from them in some other way. For adult dogs and cats, simple blood tests are recommended yearly to assess the health of internal organs and blood cells. Examination of feces for intestinal parasites is also important, since most “routine” de-wormers do not treat for all parasites. In most cases, if a disease process is not detected until a pet is showing significant signs, treatment can be more costly and less effective than if started early.
Proper nutrition is incredibly important for long-term health. In addition to feeding a high quality food appropriate for each animal’s age, feeding human food should be limited or avoided all together. Quality commercial diets are formulated to provide your pet with all of the nutrition (including vitamins and minerals) they require. In general, a food should not be chosen simply based on price. If your pet has a medical condition, your veterinarian may recommend a prescription diet that is specifically formulated to help treat that particular problem.
Finally, preventive care includes seeking veterinary advice early if your pet has any changes in behavior or outward signs of disease. If a problem is not recognized and addressed early, secondary problems can occur which make treatment more intensive, potentially less effective, and almost certainly more costly. Consult your veterinarian for further information on recommended preventive.
For reliable information, visit
www.avma.org;
www.aafponline.org; or
www.vmth.ucdavis.edu/vmth/clientinfo/info/info.html