What Should My Veterinarian Be Doing At The Annual Visit?
Your Veterinarian’s annual visit is an excellent opportunity to get an overall health report for your four-footed friend. In this visit, they check your pet’s general routine and what risk factors they include. If your pet is struggling with a disease, they diagnose it very early.
It also helps make their treatment smoother to help the patient get back to their healthy life.
If your pet is young and healthy throughout the year and does not have a special medical condition or history, a single annual visit to a Veterinarian would be enough. However, if your pet is going through a medical condition or is older than five years, you should have a Veterinarian visit at least 2 to 3 times a year.
Here, we share what you should expect from a Veterinarian’s annual visit and how they help you keep your pet healthy.
1. Pre-Visit Guide
Before visiting a Veterinarian, you should make some arrangements to get the most out of your annual visit. For example, your dog must have a license tag, a little loud, then don’t forget the muzzle. In contrast, if she gets anxious about visiting new places, carry their favorite toys and treats. These are to ensure that she does not interrupt much between the check-up.
If you are switching your vets, you should take the health care information from your last visit. Also, carry some of her stool samples to test for intestinal parasites. And most importantly, you should have a list of questions, be honest, and share all information you know, and it will be the thing you can do for your pet.
2. Vet Gathering Information
The question-answer session between you and the vet is the most crucial segment of the annual visit. Here, they will ask you questions about your pet and diagnose them accordingly. Therefore, for your pet, you need to be brutally honest here. These questions can vary from vet to vet. However, there are some common questions that we are listing below.
1. From where did you adopt your pet?
2. What is your pet’s daily routine?
3. How much and what your pet eats in a single day?
4. Is your pet coughing or sneezing more frequently these days?
5. Does your pet have any special medical condition?
6. Is your pet comfortably using the litter box?
7. Did you travel to another state with your pet after the previous checkup?
8. Did you notice any visible difference in your pet’s running and jumping speed?
9. Your pet meets your neighbor’s pets too?
3. Routine Exercise and Nutritions
Firstly, Veterinarians check your pet’s daily routine. How many calories they consume and what exercises they are doing. Every two out of four pets struggle with obesity or being overweight in the US. These additional pounds can also result in medical problems in the future.
Therefore, veterinarians look for why your pet is gaining weight and would ask you to minimize those factors as soon as possible. Other than that, they also focus on how you can stop it with minimum medication. Also, if their weight is not decreasing or getting to the borderline of a disease, they can suggest an effective diet and exercise plan to help your pet get back to a healthy lifestyle.
4. Vaccinating your Pet:
No one wants to see their lovely pets suffering from a disease. Therefore, veterinarians check the patient thoroughly and suggest shots/vaccines on annual visits to eliminate the risk of catching a disease. There are several types of vaccines, and each is recommended to prevent different conditions, and if neglected or not treated, they can be potentially deadly.
Even though vaccination is important for your pet, Veterinarians usually do not recommend them in general checkups because each vaccine’s lasting time can vary. In most cases, one vaccine a year is enough.
However, there is also a difference of opinion that adult dogs should get vaccinated or not. Some believe that too many vaccines may also expose a greater chance of catching a disease. In contrast, most Veterinarians believe that one shot to your dog a year is likely to prevent health diseases.
On average, a Vaccine would charge between 75-100$, And if you contact an animal shelter, they charge around 20$ and even free sometimes. Also, the vaccine price for puppies is greater than for adult dogs.
5. Dental Checkup
The mouth is like a gate to the body. Therefore, you need to keep extra care of it. And all good Veterinarians would also give additional attention to your pet’s mouth. If their teeth are covered with tartar, they are likely to recommend some regular brushing, chewing treats, toys, and nutrition. All these things will keep their oral hygiene and help you keep their body and mouth healthy.
Remember, those unhealthy teeth can lead to many more prominent diseases. Therefore, you should never neglect it and show your brushing technique to the Vet and ask if they need to visit a dental specialist.
Conclusion:
Do you want your pet ever to suffer from dangerous diseases? If not, then you must pay an annual visit to the Veterinarian. Veterinarians take a look at your pet’s overall health during last year and diagnose diseases at an early stage. For early diagnosis, they take a deep look at your pet’s daily routine and look for room for improvement. Moreover, they recommend vaccines to ensure they stay protected from potential diseases.
A good Veterinarian should be aware of your pet’s lifestyle and medical history. After that, they would prevent future health problems for your pet.
