How to care for an elderly cat

Thanks to better nutrition, disease prevention and proper home care, cats are now living longer than ever before. Senior cats have recently been redefined as cats over the age of 11 years, but it’s not uncommon for us to see a ‘super-senior’ feline over the age of 18 years. We have even had the pleasure of helping to celebrate some feline 21st birthdays this year!

Here are a few essential things to consider when it comes to caring for an ageing feline:

  1. Ageing pets need more regular vet check-ups.

Cats are experts at hiding pain and keeping to themselves if they feel unwell. It is common for a cat suffering from painful arthritis, insidious dental disease or chronic kidney disease to sleep a bit more or potentially be a bit picky with their food. Because of this, we like to see your elderly cat for regular health checks, at least every six months.

Blood and urine testing, as well as blood pressure checks, are also crucial for our ageing feline friends. We can get a lot of information about the health of your cat from these diagnostic procedures and diagnose diseases such as hypertension and kidney disease. 

  1. Keep a close eye on habits.

Knowing what is normal for your elderly cat in terms of eating, drinking, toileting, and sleeping is an excellent way to pick up on any changes early. Some older cats may have reduced appetite due to diminished smell and taste, but a lack of appetite can also be a symptom of diseases or pain. Conversely, an increased appetite may also be a symptom of diseases such as hyperthyroidism. 

Older cats may be less inclined to want to toilet outside, especially if it’s cold or if they have arthritis. It’s a good idea to provide multiple litter trays, in different areas of the house. This way you can also keep an eye on elimination habits and look for blood in the urine or changes in faecal consistency, also another indicator of disease. 

  1. Grooming and claw trimming is essential.

Geriatric cats are generally not as good at grooming themselves as they might have once been in their younger years. This may be due to sore joints or secondary to conditions such as dementia (a common condition in dogs that is now better recognised in cats). 

You may need to regularly brush your elderly cat and gently tease out any mats. This is also an excellent time to check for any lumps or bumps, skin irritations or other changes that could indicate illness. Please arrange a check-up with us if you find anything unusual. Long-haired cats are susceptible to severe matting – avoid attempting to cut these with scissors as more often than not your will end up cutting your friends skin. Our nursing team are happy to help with clipping mats using pet clippers. A de-furminator comb is a handy tool to use with long hair cats as it helps comb out the tangles from the skin, reducing matts and evening helping to remove them.

We recommend checking your elderly cat’s nails twice a week. It is common for older cats to get overgrown nails, which can get stuck in carpet and furniture and even grow into their footpads. Ouch! Ask us for more information on how to trim your cat’s claws, or call us if you would like to book in a nail trim with one of our nurses. Regular nail trims are also a great opportunity to have your elderly friend weighed on a regular basis to help keep an eye out for any early drops in weight.

If you have any questions or concerns about your geriatric feline friends please don’t hesitate to contact us.

2019 Resolution: Help Your Dog Lose Weight

Welcome to 2019! This time of year is one where many begin to reconsider their lifestyles and decide to put their health first. At our East Kew veterinary clinic, we believe it should be no different for your dog (did you know that 40% of dogs in Australia are overweight or obese?) To help with your goal for pet weight management, we’ve put together our top tips in today’s blog.

How do I check if my dog is overweight?

It’s easy to check if your dog is overweight with these three tips:

  1. Feel for the ribs: At a healthy weight, it should be quite easy to feel your dog’s ribs. To feel for them correctly, placed your thumbs on your dog’s backbone and spread your hands across his or her ribcage.
  2. Take a look from above: From above, a healthy dog will have an hourglass shape.
  3. Take a look from the side (at eye level): If your dog is at a healthy weight, you will be able to see his or her abdomen tucked behind the ribcage when you look from the side.

What can I do to help manage my dog’s weight?

Before you begin pet weight management at home, it is crucial that you book an appointment with a trusted vet at our East Kew veterinary clinic. Our vets will be able to create a tailored weight management plan for your dog, which is the key to protecting his or her health. Our vets will also be able to monitor the progress of your dog’s weight loss.

After your consultation with the vet, you can do a few things at home to help keep your dog in shape, including:

  • Swapping out a third of your dog’s kibble for suitable vegetables
  • Exercising your dog for around 30 minutes every day
  • Reducing your dog’s calorie intake by measuring and reducing their food portion sizes (as advised by your vet).

 

Looking for an East Kew veterinary clinic?

Vets on Balwyn is an East Kew veterinary clinic that is dedicated to improving your pet’s health. Our passionate and experienced vets offer a range of services for all kinds of pets, including weight loss planning and management for dogs and cats.

If you are concerned about your pet’s weight, please do not hesitate to contact us at (03) 9857 8100 or book an appointment online for our East Kew veterinary clinic today.

Feeding your Senior Cat

Cats spend approximately 40 per cent of their lives as seniors. It’s therefore important that they eat the correct food to maintain optimal health. Senior cats have different nutritional requirements than their younger counterparts. Well in this week’s blog, we give you our advice on how to how feed a senior cat to ensure they remain healthy and happy throughout their golden years.

How to feed a senior cat

When cats get older, their nutritional requirements change. Senior cats are less active, tend to spend more time indoors and have a slower metabolism – meaning less calories and less fat are required in an older cat’s diet. However, what senior cats do need more of is high-quality, easy-to-digest protein. This is essential to supporting a senior cat’s overall body condition.

So, a good senior diet is one that includes high-quality, low-fat protein and easy-to-digest carbohydrates for energy. The key minerals provided in these foods will support ageing joints, while the vitamins and proteins help fight infections that the body may become vulnerable to as the immune system declines.

Senior cat foods

It is best to transition older cats to specially formulated senior cat food. These foods are created to provide high-quality protein and lower levels of phosphorous to reduce the strain on kidneys. They also included added Vitamin E to strengthen one’s natural defences. Manufactured senior cat foods also contain less calories to help maintain your cat’s overall body weight as their activity levels drop.

An older cat will also have a weaker ability to smell and taste. This can hinder their capacity to chew effectively, too. So, make sure to feed your cat smaller, softer pieces of food to ensure they get the most out of their meals.

To familiarise your cat with the new food, start by mixing the new food with the old and slowly build up the portion over a week to ten days until you are only feeding the new senior formula food.

Senior cats with special needs

Whilst this is the standard diet we recommend for healthy senior cats, animals with certain age-related health conditions can have dramatically different nutritional requirements. For example, senior cats who suffer from kidney disease need a diet very low in protein and salt to remain healthy. The best way to determine your senior cat’s nutritional needs is to bring them in for a regular blood screen every six months at our Balwyn clinic. Dental disease can also affect the appetite of senior cats as oral pain or discomfort may cause them to eat less or avoid eating certain foods that require more chewing.

 

At Vets on Balwyn, we know better than anyone that every senior cat is different and has their own unique needs. We can tell you from experience that the needs of an 8-year-old senior cat are very different to those of an 18-year-old senior cat! To make sure your senior cat is eating the right diet for their health, we recommend bringing them in for a check-up and blood test once every six months. Regular appointments with the vet mean we can monitor your cat for any changes in condition, which in turn enables us to diagnose and treat age related diseases early. Make an appointment for your senior cat at our Balwyn clinic today by calling (03) 9857 8100.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pet Allergies? ‘Snot A Problem

Spring is already upon us, and with so much pollen in the air many of us use of hay fever medication to keep allergies at bay. But what about your pets? For cats and dogs, it’s a little more complicated to minimise the problems that come with environmental allergies. In this week’s article, we’ll be going over pet allergies in greater detail, so that you can help your furry friend enjoy the rest of spring.

 

What are some of the allergy symptoms?

While we may not speak the same language as our pets, they’re generally pretty good at letting us know that something isn’t quite right. For example, pets that are itchy are difficult to ignore. Itchiness is often symptomatic of allergies, so if you notice any excessive hair loss, licking or raw, red spots on your dog it may be a sign of an allergic reaction (and time to take them to the vet). Luckily, it’s rare for cats to suffer from seasonal allergies, although many sneeze due to irritation from pollen. Those cats that do struggle with allergies will show similar symptoms to dogs such as scabs and hair loss.

 

What can I do if my pet has allergies?

One of the best ways to manage your pet’s allergies is to simply limit their exposure to pollen. This can involve a weekly bath with a skin supportive shampoo, or wiping your pet’s paws and belly after they have been outside to remove the pollen. These are great steps to take, but don’t ignore house dust and dust mites found inside the home – these are often the worst culprits! Ensure that you’re cleaning your house regularly by vacuuming carpets and washing linen on a weekly basis. It’s also a good idea to consider paying close attention to the areas of your home where your pets spend most of their time. When it comes to your pet’s favourite toy, you can freeze these plush toys every now and then to kill any dust mites that may be lurking – just make sure to do so while your pet isn’t watching!

 

Many pets that suffer from skin allergies are also extremely sensitive to flea saliva, with one bite can cause them to madly scratch for hours if not days. Using a regular flea preventative can protect your pet (and your household) from these pesky blood suckers. Speak to one of our friendly staff members about the best preventative for your pet.

 

While these tips are helpful, if your pet is suffering from seasonal allergies, truly the best thing you can do is visit your local vet for advice. Veterinarian professionals are in the best position to diagnose the allergies, and provide you with medication that is appropriate to your pet. For expert support and advice on a range of issues including allergies, call Vets on Balwyn today on 9857 8100.

Preparing your pets for summer

The warmer months provide a great opportunity for us to get out into the sunshine with our pets! With the heat comes a few potential dangers – here are some of the more common things to be mindful of over the summer months:

Heatstroke is a common problem seen in both dogs and cats during summer and is very serious. A few simple tips can go a long way to help prevent it:

Never leave your pet unattended in a parked car. Temperatures in a car can rise to dangerous levels and can rapidly reach more than double the outside temperature even on mild days. Tinting, parking in the shade, or leaving the windows open do not help to reduce the inside temperature significantly.

If you find your dog panting heavily, doesn’t obey normal commands, has warm, dry skin and a rapid heart beat, he may be suffering from heatstroke. Other signs include vomiting, anxiety and high fever. Try to cool them off with cool water, cold packs and a cooler environment; and of course see a vet as soon as possible.

Avoid walking or exercising your dog at the park in the middle of the day. Apart from the outside air termperature, another good test for this is to take a few steps on the footath in your bare feet – if it’s too hot for you, it is too hot for them!

Senior pets and arthritic animals sometimes can’t get themselves out of their hot kennel. Kennels should always be kept in a shaded area with plenty of airflow around it.

Keep them cool – keep inside if possible, frozen pet treats, ice blocks, paddling pools are all great ideas on those really hot days.

Is your four-legged friend a Pug, Bull dog, Mastiff, or Chow Chow? Dogs with short muzzles like the breeds just mentioned are even more susceptible to over heating, so as their owners, you need to be even more careful.

Senior pets

We love to see senior pets! Dogs and cats age seven times faster than humans, so it is vitally important that your senior pet has an annual or twice annual health check.

Health checks in senior pets often identify health problems that owners simply aren’t aware of. For example, we often see untreated dental problems where owners are often mistaken by their pet’s ability to still eat well. Usually, the pet has just learnt to tolerate this painful situation.

Annual blood testing for pets over ten years old is also an excellent way of detecting disease. Animals with diabetes, kidney disease, liver disease and even tumours often do not show signs of the disease until they are very sick. So screenings for diabetes, kidney disease and liver problems are important. Blood can be taken without sedation and test results are received very quickly.

We also often see arthritis in senior cats and dogs. This is a painful disease, but fortunately it’s one that can be easily managed with medication. If your pet has symptoms of slowing down on walks, stiffness after getting up, or reduced activity levels, you should ask your vet about arthritis.

Suffering from high blood pressure? – your cat could be too! High blood pressure is very common in cats and can be associated with elevated thyroid hormones, kidney disease and even blindness. Just like in humans it is easy to measure and can unearth an otherwise silent killer.

Via:: Dr Kevin Pet Advice