Healthy pets
It’s important to have your healthy pets checked up by a veterinarian annually. Our dear pets can’t always tell us if there is something wrong with them. Some (chronic) diseases start without obvious symptoms. The sooner we find about them, the sooner we can start treating them and improve both the quantity and quality of your pets life.
A typical check up will include
- looking for signs of upper respiratory disease or congestion,
- assessing the eyes and ears for evidence of infection or disease,
- evaluating the health of the teeth and gums,
- looking and feeling for any abnormal masses or growths on or under the skin,
- feeling the internal organs in the abdomen in search of any abnormalities,
- assessing the nails to make sure they appear healthy,
- listening to the heart for signs of abnormal rhythm or other heart disease,
- listening to the lungs for signs of concerns like pneumonia or a more chronic condition like asthma,
- weighing your cat or small dog if possible
- assessing the joints, with particular attention in older animals for signs of arthritis
If there are some findings that are in need of further evaluation, Dr. Roncal can do these tests during the appointment, including taking blood and urine samples, or other diagnostics as needed. Of course, he will first discuss them with you.
Sick pets
If your pet is not feeling well, we advise you to contact us in order to explain to us what the problem with your pet is. During a house call we can solve up to 90% of all the problems that are seen in a veterinary clinic (services).
If you think that your pet is very sick and needs extensive diagnostic test (beyond what we can offer) and/or hospital care, we advice you to contact an emergency veterinarian. Of course, you can always contact us first for consultation and advice.
Seniorcheck
When animals get older, the chances that they develop a chronic disease gets higher. A few examples of chronic disease in animals: thyroid problems, diabetes and renal insufficiency. These diseases are mostly asymptomatic (without symptoms) in the beginning. Performing regular check-ups (physical examination and bloodwork) can lead to earlier detection of those diseases.
When this diseases are detected on time, there is usually little damage done and the chances of treating the problem with a good result is higher. For this reason we advise to perform senior check ups at least twice a year in older animals (>8 in dogs, >10 in cats).