Pet Check: Senior Wellness

Lm - Dr. Chuck Burmeister from the peoria county vets association joins us in this weeks pet check talking a little about senior wellness for animals. We think about senior care for adults, but it's also important for our pets, too.

Dr - it is. We really empasize preventitive medicine, as a veterinarian. So, we talk about the age of a pet. An old dog or an old cat. It's not a symptom of an illness. It's just that the pet is getting older, just like people. Here, we try to recommend to people that we see the pet for senior wellness exams. Included in that we'll do certain diagnostic tests to stay ahead of some old dog/old cat illnesses.

Lm - what should people be on the lookout for?

Dr - increased water consumption, weight loss, change in appetite, just changes in the dog or cat's normal daily routine. The thing with senior wellness, however, is that some pets don't show many clinical signs with early diseases when they start early on. That's the nice thing about doing wellness checks on these guys as they get older at about ten years of age. Joe, here, is a little bit bigger, so we might recommend eight years of age cause he ages more quickly. We'll recommend senior wellness checks on a yearly basis say, eight or nine years of age. With joe, here, to look for early signs of kidney problems or heart disease. It really, really helps to start treatment early.

Lm - just like people.

Dr - just like people.

Lm - and for alot of people, they are critical members of our family and we want the best for them.

Dr - great companions.

Lm - so, if you have any questions about senior wellness, go see your vet.

Dr - absolutely, you bet.

Lm - thank you so much, doctor, for your time in this weeks pet check.

Dr - thanks alot.