What is a cat wellness exam at Advanced Animal Care?
A cat wellness exam is a thorough nose-to-tail exam. We look in their mouth, check their eyes and ears, feel all of their lymph nodes, examine their skin and coat, palpate their abdomen, and listen to their heart and lungs. It's just a nice thorough physical exam.
How often should we do a cat wellness exam?
We definitely recommend at least once a year. For our older friends, twice a year is even better. It can be tough to notice those small issues when you're with your pet every day, so it's helpful to have someone new check on your pet and let you know if anything has changed.
What do you think the benefits are of a regular wellness exam?
Regular wellness exams really help us identify any underlying conditions, like I mentioned, that we may not have noticed because we see them every day. They also help us check in on dental health, heart, lungs, and abdomen and anticipate issues that might arise in the future.
How do I prepare for a cat wellness exam?
It's always a good idea to keep your cat carrier in a place at home where it becomes part of their regular routine, so they aren't scared of it. Sometimes, bringing a towel or a t-shirt that smells like you can help while they're here. Of course, if your kitty isn't a big fan of us, we can always send you home with some medications to make them more comfortable during their visit too.
What should I expect when I come with my cat? What's going to happen with a cat wellness exam?
We'll check in at the front desk and have you come into the room. Our technician will come in and triage, asking if there are any problems going on with your little baby today. We'll come in, do our thorough physical exam, update any vaccines that need to be done, and grab any blood for blood work for wellness testing. That's pretty much it.
What questions should I ask my vet during the wellness exam?
If there's anything that's been concerning you, like changing eating habits, vomiting, defecation, or anything that's bothering you, definitely ask about it. If you have questions about weight, diet management, now is your time. We're here for all of your pet's needs.
What's the difference between a wellness exam and a sick visit?
Wellness exams typically are for coming in once a year to get an idea of how we're doing overall, like your general wellness checkup with your doctor. Sick visits are for when your cat has been vomiting all day or if there's something acute going on.
What vaccinations or preventative treatments might be discussed during the exam?
Rabies, of course, is definitely recommended and is required by law because it's something that humans can get and it's a deadly disease, so we want to protect your pets. FVRCP and FeLV as well are discussed. FeLV is the feline leukemia virus that can be spread from cat to cat, so particularly our friends that are outdoors, indoors-outdoors, or hanging out with other furry friends, we want to make sure they're protected. Those cats can certainly have a lot of disease issues and can die at younger ages due to complications of FeLV. FVRCP is the feline viral rhinotracheitis vaccine, so it helps out with all of our viral upper respiratory types of functions. That's good as well for our indoor-outdoor cats.
How do I manage any health issues or recommendations made during the exam?
We partner with you on that. We won't just walk in the room and say, "Hey, you need to do these things," and leave you alone. We say, "Hey, we recommend these things, and here's how we're going to implement that together." We give you tips and tricks to work through that, and we would certainly never tell you to do something and then say, "Good luck."
Are there additional services or tests recommended based on a cat's age or health status?
We definitely recommend, for our older kitty cats, doing annual blood work. Ideally, it would be every six months, but at the least, once a year is a good idea. Cats are certainly prone to things like kidney disease and hyperthyroidism, and we really want to get ahead of that. It's very helpful, as we get older, to have an idea of how our numbers have been trending, so that lets us know we can track things as we're going throughout the year.
What should I do if my cat shows signs of stress during the exam?
There are certain points where we say, "Hey, your baby is just too stressed out today; we're going to have to go home with some medications and come back." If that's ever happened to you before or if you just worry that your cat will be stressed out, call us, and we'll certainly send home some medications for you to help calm your pet down.
About how much does a cat wellness exam cost?
A cat wellness exam is just $58! If you’re considering additional services like vaccines, wellness blood work, or similar options, we’ll be happy to provide estimates along the way to keep you informed.
What happens if I miss a wellness exam?
Just call us to get back on the schedule. Let us know, and we can always get you in. It's better just to go ahead and come back in and make it up later than to say, "Oops, we skipped this year, we'll just do it next year."
If you have questions, we would love to answer them for you. Please give us a call at the office at (859) 625-5678, or you can email us at [email protected]. Our staff would love to talk with you!
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