At Forest Hill Veterinary Hospital we are keen to be on the front foot with preventative healthcare to manage the health, wellbeing and comfort of your pets.
We actively schedule health visits and follow ups throughout the life of your companions to ensure that we are proactive in monitoring and assessing various parameters for health.
Young animals have an intensive period of assessment during the first 6 months of their lives to ensure that they are:
- Vaccinated to prevent against common diseases
- Provided appropriate nutrition for growth and development
- Started on appropriate parasite control
- Desexed or provided with appropriate advice for the reproductive health of breeding animals
- Assessed for development of social skills including advice about recognizing and encouraging appropriate behaviours and encouraging environmental enrichment
- Managed with appropriate skin and coat care.
As an adult we recommend a ONCE yearly visit for a physical examination and any additional care required. Should we identify any ongoing issues then we may schedule more frequent examinations.
As your pet becomes a ‘senior’ or if they are diagnosed with a chronic illness, their health needs to be monitored more closely and we recommend a TWICE yearly physical examination to be able to proactively assess health parameters and initiate appropriate treatments to maintain comfort and peak health.
Pets are considered seniors when they reach approximately 8 years of age for dogs (earlier in giant breed dogs) and 10 years for cats.
As a senior pet there is a greater risk of:
- Changes in vision, hearing and mental awareness
- Dental disease (smelly breath or dirty teeth)
- Lumps and bumps or skin changes
- Arthritis and lameness
- Heart and lung disease (coughing, changes in ability to exercise)
- Changes in eating and or drinking
- And elimination changes (wee or poo accidents)
Proactive health assessment and monitoring may include:
- Twice yearly physical examination taking time to consider all the changes you have noticed over the previous 6-month period
- Laboratory testing including blood, urine, sampling of lumps etc.
- Blood pressure testing
We will schedule reminders for your next visit after every consultation. Reminders will come in the post and outline the reason for the requested revisit. All you need to do is call and make a convenient appointment time.
Remember that if you have any concerns or questions about your pet’s health that we are only as far away as the telephone. All of our staff are fully qualified and experienced in providing advice. Our vets are always happy to discuss your pets health in person, over the phone or via email.
Although we prefer to examine your pets in the clinic environment where we have everything at out finger tips there is also the option of a house call for special cases in the local area.