SENIOR CARE
Millions of pets are living longer because of advances in nutrition and veterinary care. These older pets have problems veterinarians didn’t used to see when the average pet lived only until age 7. Many new products are geared toward these furry senior citizens. Some of the more interesting are pet foods from Iams, Hill’s and Nutro that contain fatty acids and glucosamine to help pets with arthritis, and new medications to help with senility in dogs.
Pay close attention to your cat or dog as he or she ages. Start tracking his behavior, so if signs of pain or dysfunction start to appear you can recognize and treat them before they become severe. Some diseases to watch for would be arthritis, kidney or heart problems or cancer. Problems such as lumps, changes in the skin and coat or differences in behavior should be brought to your veterinarian’s attention at once. Any of these symptoms may be caused by many different diseases - thyroid disorders, for example, commonly lead to changes in behavior. Your veterinarian will need to do a thorough physical exam and lab testing to find the problem affecting a particular pet.
Signs of altered brain function occur frequently in older pets. They can be subtle at first but tend to progress with time. They may include pacing, wandering as if lost, sleeping more or less or seeming disoriented or confused. With a new medication called Anipryl you may be able to slow or reverse the changes in brain function that occur with a specific disease of dogs called Canine Cognitive Dysfunction.
Laboratory testing or X-rays are essential to diagnose and treat age-related problems. Thyroid and adrenal gland problems, painful conditions such as arthritis, or liver or heart disease can all cause altered behavior in pets.
Many treatments exist to help pets as they age. There are nutritional supplements, disease treatments, special diets and pain medications for arthritis in dogs and cats. Safe and effective supplements and anti-inflammatory drugs that can help make your pet’s senior years much less debilitating and painful. New diets from Eukanuba, Hill’s and Nutromax contain nutritional additives that slow the progression of arthritis and reduce joint inflammation. Learn to recognize the signs of pain in dogs and cats, and be sure to use appropriate medical or dietary therapy when signs appear.
You might be interested in a few price comparisons between veterinary and human medicine, from a recent veterinary publication:
Kidney transplant
Cat or Dog............................$6000-7000
Human........................................$60,367
Radiation Treatment
Cat or Dog....................................$2500
Human..........................................$7000
Total Hip Replacement Surgery
Dog...............................................$2500
Human........................................$20,362
Routine spay (hysterectomy)
Dog.................................................$180
Cat..................................................$140
Human..........................................$8216
Pacemaker implant
Animal.....................................$550-650
Human.......................................$21,561
Brain tumor removal
Animal..........................................$1000
Human.......................................$28,445
Reconstructive facial surgery/skin graft
Animal...........................................$500
Human......................................$14,732
Knee surgery to repair ruptured anterior cruciate ligament
Dog........................................$700-800
Human........................................$7906
Routine office visit and exam
Dog or Cat.....................................$35
Human...........................................$49
Vaccination
Dog or cat..............................$15 each
Human..................................$28 each
Dermatology Consultation
Dog or Cat...................................$45
Human.........................................$90
Prices for animals provided by Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston. Prices for human procedures provided by HCIA in Baltimore and the MarketScan Database, The Medstat group, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
