What changes when a dog turns seven or a cat turns eight
Old age is not a diagnosis. Most of what owners describe as slowing down is arthritis, dental pain, kidney change or thyroid disease, and every one of those has something we can do about it.
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What changes, and when
- Dogs 7 to 10, cats 8 to 12
Early senior
Two checks a year and the first full screening panel. This is where kidney and thyroid change is caught while it is still cheap and slow.
- Dogs 10 to 13, cats 12 to 15
Senior
Blood pressure at every visit, arthritis managed actively, and a dental plan that accounts for the anaesthetic rather than avoiding it.
- Dogs 13 and older, cats 15 and older
Geriatric
Comfort, mobility and appetite are the measures. Quality of life is scored at each visit so decisions get made on a trend rather than in a crisis.
Services for senior pets
Health checks
Dogs and cats mask pain and illness well into the middle of it.
In-house pathology
Four hospitals run their own analysers, so a sick animal gets its biochemistry, haematology and electrolytes inside twenty minutes.
Dental care
By three years old most dogs and cats have something worth grading.
Rehabilitation and physiotherapy
Muscle comes off an operated leg in days and takes months to rebuild.
Nutrition and weight
Carrying an extra fifteen per cent shortens a dog's life and brings arthritis forward by years.
Diagnostic imaging
Imaging is where a guess becomes a diagnosis.
What we see most
Arthritis presented as slowing down
The single most under-treated condition we see. A dog that stops using the stairs or a cat that stops jumping is sore, and the difference treatment makes is usually obvious inside a fortnight.
See Rehabilitation and physiotherapyKidney disease
Very common in older cats. Urine concentration falls before the blood values move, so the yearly screen runs both.
See In-house pathologyDrinking and weeing more than usual
One of the most reliable signs owners bring up themselves. Increased thirst points at kidney disease, diabetes or an early Cushing's picture, and it is worth a blood and urine test rather than a wait-and-see.
See In-house pathologyWeight loss despite normal eating
An older pet losing weight while eating normally, sometimes with a bigger appetite, points at thyroid disease or diabetes rather than a diet problem. Weight recorded at every visit is what catches the trend early.
See In-house pathologyDental pain in an animal that still eats
Animals eat through a great deal of dental pain. A grade three mouth in a fifteen-year-old cat is worth treating, and the bloods and monitoring are what make the anaesthetic reasonable.
See Dental careLumps that were there last year
Bring in anything that changed size, shape or feel. A needle sample answers most of them in a single visit.
See In-house pathologyConfusion at night
Pacing, calling and disturbed sleep in an old dog often has a treatable component. It is worth a consult rather than an assumption.
See Health checksBook for your senior pet
Six hospitals across Perth, and one of them is open right now.