Did you know most vets have a Senior Dog Check Up in their services?
These are additional checks owners of dogs over 7 or 8 years old can ask for, either as a stand alone conduit if there is nothing else you need to see the vet for or or can be added to a regular consult etc.
I’ve done these with my three Senior Dogs, Cassie, Taylor and Merlin, and I’ll start with Ripley the next time she needs to go to the vets as she turns 8 on 25th May.
Now, I work with a lot of dogs over 8 years old that are active, fit and don’t look like they should be classed as Senior. But why wait until your dog shows symptoms of something that can be detected early with simple tests?
In general Senior Dog checks involve checking heart rate, general check of the body for anything obvious like lumps, teeth and gums, weight and compare for signs of increased weight loss or gain plus urine tests for kidney issues, diabetes and urinary tract infections. While weight and teeth are typically checked for dogs of any age l, senior dog checks can be more involved.
Surprisingly I don’t hear about vets suggesting senior dog checks to owners much; I know of them from researching several years ago for Cassie and while writing my ebook on caring for older dogs. If you spend time on your vet’s website you may find a section about their senior dog checks or you can ask next time you take your dog in – remember to get a urine sample that morning and take with you for the urinanalysis!
I recently registered with another vet after numerous issues with my vet of over 14 years and my first visit to them was with Merlin for a lump by his bum that suddenly doubled in size. I booked his appointment online and forgot to check on their website for senior dog checks but I got his urine sample the morning of his appointment and put it in a jar with his details on the side and during the consultation I asked about their senior dog checks – and I was thrilled with the response!
My new vets are called The Hadleigh Vets and are a reasonably new practice with state of the art everything and they do in house blood and urine testing, biopsy testing etc. They are also very holistic friendly so you get traditional veterinary expertise plus won’t be reprimanded for your choices in raw feeding or using a natural flea and tick preventative etc.
When I asked in Merlin’s appointment if they do Senior Dog Checks vet Jess said yes they do plus they do regular Senior Dog Clinics where dogs are weighed, full body check, owners are given practical advice on gentle exercises to keep our dogs strong while they move into older years, nutrition tips, arthroscopic treatment arthritis checks and more. As a Canine Fitness Trainer I am utterly impressed that they are trying to help dogs before they have problems and helping owners learn what to look out for with their dogs!
If your dog is 7-8 years old or over then regular senior dog checks will be available to you if your vet runs them. Check if there is a cost; 8-10 years ago my previous vet didn’t charge to put the test strips into the urine and it would just be the cost of the consult but when Merlin had his senior check a year ago at that vets there was a £12 charge on top of the consult. There was no issue with this as I know the checks are important but just so you can be prepared.
The senior check Merlin had the other week was no charge and the vet was so pleased I took the sample in already collected that morning and already labelled with Merlin’s name, my name, postcode and his date of birth so it would be easy to get the right details to send the results back to me.
What happened with Merlin’s lump?
Oh and in case you’re wondering about Merlin’s lump the biopsy showed that it is a perianal adenoma – an abnormal lump that will not spread to other parts of the body and is not cancerous. So that’s great and I just need to monitor it in case there’s any changes. Phew!
Plus his urine all looked normal so no issues there either – a great vet visit all round!
Now, getting mildly serious for a moment. I choose to not vaccinate my own dogs every single year. It’s a choice based on my own research and lifestyle and isn’t something I try to push onto anyone else. I’m mentioning this as usually when dogs have their annual vaccinations this is also a chance for vets to check dogs over, at any age. Despite not having the vaccination part I do still take my dogs for an annual check up as this keeps my dogs familiar with the vet practice and bring checked over, vets can make a record of baseline measurements like weight, eye and teeth condition, body score etc which can be compared each year and help highlight something unexpected.
As vaccinations are intended for ‘healthy dogs’ there’s a chance with each passing year that senior dogs will show a health issue that calls for vaccinations to stop or be reduced, but the vet checks each year are still important as they are not just about the vaccine!
Just to mention again that even if your dog over 7 years old is very fit and healthy, still doing activities, doing long hikes etc it doesn’t mean their body isn’t being affected by the previous years’ wear and tear. Don’t wait for your dog to develop an issue to then see the vet, take advantage of senior dog checks and help your super senior continue to thrive for longer x
We will be publishing more blogs very soon including noticing when your dog is having discomfort in the early stages and how to prepare your dog for their senior years.
You might be interested in our Blog on helping your dog after exercise or activity which is here: Post Exercise
For a friendly and easy to follow Ebook Guide to caring for your Senior Dog take a look at ‘Older Dogs DO Learn New Tricks’ on Amazon – currently free on Kindle! Senior Dog Ebook
Joe Nutkins
Senior Dog Specialist
Certified Professional Canine Fitness Trainer
Level 1 Certified with Canine Arthritis Management
