Dogs and cats can live longer and have a better quality of life if they see their veterinarian at least once a year. At Long Lake Animal Hospital, we recommend annual wellness exams so we can keep close tabs on your pet’s health, and make suggestions to help them adapt to life’s curve balls. Aging is inevitable, but your pet can adjust more easily with the right medical care.
To set up your dog or cat for a long and healthy life, we evaluate their lifestyle and potential health risks to create an individualized medical plan, which typically includes regular physical exams, bloodwork and internal parasite screening, vaccination, parasite prevention, weight management, dental care, and more!
If we haven’t seen your pet’s adorable, furry face in over a year, it might be time for a checkup! Contact us today at (248) 689-8899 or make an appointment online.
Why Are Pet Exams So Important?
There are several reasons why your four-legged family member should visit with their vet on a regular basis:
During each pet exam, we conduct a thorough, nose-to-tail physical to look for signs of injury, illness, or congenital issues. Your veterinarian will ask questions about your pet’s diet, behavior patterns, daily habits, and more to understand them (and you) better. We also encourage you to ask any questions you have, because we want you to be fully informed about your pet’s condition and the medical care they need to enjoy the best quality of life.
The exam is also the first step in evaluating your pet’s health and establishing a medical history that will aid us in caring for your pet in the future. Each time we see you and your canine or feline family member, we review previous appointments to help guide our next steps. Do they need a diet change, or a new vaccine? Have they gained a little too much weight recently? Knowing your pet’s medical history means we’ll be able to provide them with more personalized care.
Pets can’t readily communicate their medical problems to us, but your veterinarian is trained to pick up on subtle signs of pain, infection, or disease through their physical exam. We also perform regular diagnostic testing such as bloodwork and urine testing to help us catch infectious diseases, changes in organ function, and other diseases early on, when they are most treatable. We typically ask pet parents to bring a recent stool sample that we can use to screen for intestinal parasites that can otherwise go undetected. If we discover an underlying illness in your pet, we can inform you of the issue and commence with an appropriate treatment as soon as possible.
In short, regular pet exams are essential to every dog and cat’s health and longevity. With them, we can determine whether your pet has a clean bill of health or needs to undergo additional care for an acute or chronic illness.
Care and Protection for Dogs and Cats of Every Age in Troy, MI
No matter where your pet is on their life journey, we can find a care plan that ticks off all the right boxes for their health. Every dog and cat has a plan that meets their unique needs and keeps them happy.
If you’re not sure what steps to take to protect your pet from infection and keep them bright-eyed and healthy year after year, get in touch with our animal hospital in Troy, MI by calling (248) 689-8899 today!