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Free Health Checks for Senior Dogs

Has your old friend lost his bounce?

As dogs enter middle and old age they can start to slow down, becoming less agile and less willing to exercise and play. Others can show changes in behaviour—they may become dull, and some experience  confusion, stress or anxiety. Signs such as bad breath, a cough, changes in appetite or drinking habits can also be more common in older dogs.

It can be very difficult to know whether these changes are just signs that your pet is ageing normally, or whether he has a specific disease which could benefit from treatment.  Diseases which can cause some of the above symptoms and are frequently seen in older dogs include arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, kidney problems, senility and dental disease.

Dogs are often very stoical animals and they can tolerate a surprising amount of pain, particularly discomfort which is there every day. We regularly detect pain in dogs with arthritis and also tooth disease which they have managed to hide from their caring owners because they don’t know how to let them know.  Don’t expect dogs with toothache to stop eating, and equally it can be hard to tell a dog is limping if he’s lame on both backlegs!

As vets, we examine many senior dogs  every day so we can help decide which individuals would benefit from treatment or further investigations. Sadly we cannot stop our pets from getting older, but we do know that owners can help by good management and regular health checks to pick up problems early. There is plenty of evidence that early detection of disease enables us to give more effective treatment and improve both the quality and length of life for senior pets.

Toft Lodge are taking part in the XL Vets Senior Pet Health  Campaign to offer all ‘senior’ dogs a free veterinary health check during November and December. Different breeds and sizes of dog age at different rates (life expectancy can range from 6 years for giant breeds up to 18 years old for some smaller dogs!) As a general rule 8 years and over is a reasonable starting point for a dog to become a ‘senior citizen’!

If your dog is 8 or over and you would like to take advantage of the free health check please call to book your appointment. You will be given a questionnaire to fill in before your visit to allow us to get a thorough recent history of your pet. One of our trained nurses will go through your completed questionnaire with you and help you with any queries. Your dog will then receive a full veterinary health examination and the vet will discuss any problems found during the examination or from your questionnaire. We can also advise you on how best to feed, exercise and generally care for your senior dog.

Don’t worry, we haven’t forgotten all those older cats out there—we will be focussing on you in January!

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