You love your cat, and you want to help them live a long, healthy life. So how often should you take your cat to the vet to support their long-term health? Here's what our Brentwood vets recommend, from the time they are kittens through their golden years.
When to Take Your Cat to the Vet
The best way to make sure your four-legged friend has a long, healthy life is to prevent them from catching serious illnesses or have diseases diagnosed early, when they are more easily treatable. How often you should take a cat or other pet to the veterinarian will depend on many factors, including their age and general health.
We typically recommend annual wellness exams for healthy adult cats. However, senior cats, kittens, and felines with underlying health conditions should see their vet more frequently for an examination.
Think of taking your pet to the veterinarian for their annual wellness exam as similar to bringing them to the doctor for a physical health checkup.
Budgeting for Regular Veterinary Care
Our vets at Brentwood Veterinary Clinic understand that the cost of routine pet checkups and preventive care can be challenging to fit into your budget. You might wonder if you really need to book an exam for your cat every year, especially if they seem to be in perfect health. However, taking a proactive, preventive approach to your cat's health now can save you from having to pay for more expensive treatments in the future.
Additionally, we also offer Cat Wellness Plans to help make your cat's preventive care more affordable. These plans "bundle" the preventive care services your cat needs while providing you with great cost savings and the convenience of spreading the annual cost of your kitty's preventive care across 12 months.
Learn More About Our Cat Wellness Plan
Cat Health Checkups
Bringing your cat to your veterinarian regularly for a checkup, or as often as your veterinarian recommends based on their age, lifestyle and general health status, will allow your vet the opportunity to monitor your feline friend's overall health, check for early signs of disease, and offer you recommendations for preventive care products to help protect your cat against a variety of serious health conditions.
Kitten Preventive Care
For cats less than a year old, we recommend monthly exams. Their first veterinary appointment should be scheduled when they are about eight weeks old.
Kittens require multiple rounds of vaccinations during their first year to help protect them from common infectious diseases. They should get the Feline Leukemia vaccine and the FVRCP vaccine, which help protect your feline companion against three highly contagious and life-threatening feline diseases: feline Viral Rhinotracheitis (FHV-1), Feline Calicivirus (FCV), and Feline Panleukopenia (FPL).
Your veterinarian will administer these vaccinations over the course of about 16 weeks. These shots will go a long way in helping them remain healthy for their entire life.
The exact timing of your kitten's vaccinations will vary depending on your location and your furry friend's overall health.
Our vets recommend having your kitten spayed or neutered when they are between five and six months old to prevent a host of diseases and undesirable behaviors, along with unwanted litters of kittens.
Protecting Your Adult Cat's Health
If you have an adult cat between 1 and 10 years old, we recommend booking their exam once per year. Your vet can perform these annual physical checkups when your cat seems perfectly healthy.
During your adult cat's health checkup, your vet will implement a head-to-tail examination to look for early signs of diseases or other issues, such as parasites, joint pain, or tooth decay.
Your vet will also provide your feline friend with any vaccines or booster shots that are due at the time of the visit, have a conversation with you about your cat's diet and nutritional requirements, and recommend the appropriate parasite protection products.
If your vet spots a developing health issue they will explain their findings to you and recommend the next steps.
Providing Your Senior Cat With Targeted Healthcare in Their Golden Years
Cats are typically considered to be senior when they reach 11 years of age.
Since many cat diseases and injuries tend to be more common in older pets we recommend bringing your senior companion to the vet every 6 months. Twice-yearly wellness check-ups for your geriatric cat will include all of the checks and advice listed above. Additional diagnostic tests will typically be required to obtain valuable additional insights into your furry friend's overall health.
Some diagnostic tests we recommend for our senior patients include blood tests and urinalysis to check for early signs of problems such as kidney disease or diabetes.
Geriatric care for cats also includes a more proactive approach to keeping your feline companion comfortable as age-related issues such as joint pain become more common. If you have a senior cat, ask your vet how often you should bring your pet in for a routine exam.
Veterinary Care for Cats & Kittens in Brentwood
Our vets at Brentwood Veterinary Clinic understand you'll probably be filled with excitement, anticipation and lots of questions after you first bring home your first cat or kitten, especially if this is the first feline friend you've added to your family.
We're here for you every step of the way, from performing a thorough checkup and addressing all of your questions and concerns during the first visit to tracking your kitten's development milestones and treating any health issues that may come up. Our veterinary team looks forward to making sure you have everything you need, so you and your kitty can enjoy a wonderful life together.
Note: The advice provided in this post is intended for informational purposes and does not constitute medical advice regarding pets. For an accurate diagnosis of your pet's condition, please make an appointment with your vet.