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Your pets are next to your heart and you want to give them the best you can. Naturally, their health is the most important for you. When you take them to your vet for an annual checkup, the vet may talk to you about vaccines after giving your pooch or kitty a good look over. An expert West Lindfield vet like https://gordonvet.com.au may recommend you to preventative measures like grooming or dental cleaning. But you should also know what the commonest serious ailments your pet can suffer from are, that your vet wants to prevent or control. Here they are.
1. Cataracts
Cataracts are common in senior dogs. However, it’s not just the old age that brings these deposits on the dog’s eyes, but cataracts can also develop if the eye has to undergo a trauma or they can occur due to a disease. They can also occur since birth or can occur during the first few weeks of a dog’s life.
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2. Kidney Disease
While kidney disease is commonly seen in older cats, it can occur in cats as well as dogs of all ages. It can be hereditary or can develop with age. Cats having kidney disease can be treated and live for many years most of the time; however, dogs usually weaken faster. The yearly blood-work at your vet typically evaluates kidney health.
3. Diabetes
Similar to humans, pets too can suffer from diabetes while aging. Though the disease can be controlled by proper exercise and diet, some pets may require shots of insulin.
4. Arthritis
Arthritis is one of the commonest diseases in senior pets. The advent of the disease can be identified when your pet will become slow to get up in the morning or won’t quickly jump up to their favorite seat on the couch. Most types of arthritis can be diagnosed during a routine exam at your veterinarian, but an X-ray may also be recommended to rule out other possibilities or check how serious the joint inflammation is. Though arthritis is incurable, you can give your pet supplements and treatments like acupuncture to keep the pet as mobile as possible.
5. Ear Infections
Ear infections commonly occur in dogs, especially in those dogs that are outside most of the time. An ear infection can occur due to dust, dirt, or some other foreign body like a grass seed that gets lodged in the ear, resulting in irritation and eventually infection. It can be easily identified as the dogs often paw their ears. Your vet will usually prescribe antibiotic ear drops. Regularly cleaning your dog’s ears is a good habit.
6. Tick and Flea Borne Diseases
Ticks and fleas are definitely unwanted invaders on the fur of your pet, but they are a lot more dangerous because they can bring serious diseases for both pets and humans. If you want to keep your pet and your family healthy and free from tick and flea-borne diseases, check your pet’s fur daily for these creepy monsters, especially after they play with other animals or in tall grasses.
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7. Rabies
Rabies became famous due to the tragic scene in Fred Gipson’s novel Old Yeller. Fortunately, due to the extensive use of the rabies vaccine, incidents of rabies have become quite rare. Nevertheless, it has not been finished and still exists in wild animals. Since rabies is always deadly, it’s important to ensure that your pets are up-to-date on their rabies vaccination.
You can approach a good vet clinic near Ku Ring Gai like https://gordonvet.com.au/ku-ring-gai-vet/ to get information on the common pet diseases and how to protect your pets against them.
