Fortunately our pets are living longer lives. The downside to this is that we are now having to deal with how to care for our senior pets. It is something that veterinary medicine is not yet prepared to deal with and we are having to extrapolate a lot of things from human medicine. In our field we are typically about 10 years behind human medicine in many things.
First of all let me say that old age is NOT a disease. Old age just means you are more likely to have a medical condition such as organ deficiency, degenerative changes, or cancer. The American Veterinary Medical Association recommends that senior pets have a physical exam twice a year. This equates to a senior citizen going to the doctor once a year. Senior pets are more likely to have kidney failure, diabetes, liver cirrhosis, arthritis, thyroid disease, and cancer to name a few.
So besides regular vet visits what can you do to make your senior pet's life more comfortable? The first thing is to make sure your pet isn't carrying around any extra weight. The average cat should weigh about 10 pounds. When Fluffy weighs in at 12 pounds you may think "It's only 2 pounds, that's nothing." when in fact it is equivalent to an average person carrying an extra 30 pounds. Encourage your senior pet to continue moving around and stay active. Not only will this help keep the weight off, but will help keep stiffening joints more flexible and keep blood flowing. The next thing you can do is feed your pet a good quality food and limit how much you feed. A few extra kibbles each day can add up quickly. Our perception about what is a lot is usually not very accurate. Many cats only need 1/4 to 1/2 a cup of food a day. Pour that into a bowl and most people think they are starving their cat to death! Most pet foods quantity recommendation is based on a very active, intact, or even growing pet. Your senior Labrador that spends the day lounging on the couch only needs about 50-75% of the calories recommended on the bag.
It is very difficult to tell if your pet is overweight just by looking at them, especially if they have long hair or a thick undercoat. You will have to put your hands on them to really determine how much extra weight they are carrying. Purina has a great weight chart for
cats and
dogs with illustrations to help you "score" your pet. If your pet is too fat or too thin then an adjustment in their calorie intake is required. Especially if your pet is too thin some lab work should also be performed to determine if there is a more serious cause.
One study showed that 95% of cats over the age of 10 years old have radiographic evidence of arthritis. There are no specific statistics in dogs that I could find, but I am sure it is similar in smaller dogs and probably occurs earlier in large dogs. The signs of early arthritis are often over looked. Your pet may start laying in a different position, get up a little slower, take an extra second before deciding to jump, chase the ball a few less times than normal. Most people don't notice signs of arthritis until their pet is in obvious pain which they show by limping, difficulty getting up or down, no longer jumping up, etc. I don't think I have ever met a pet that cried because of arthritis pain. Most animals won't vocalize because of chronic pain. If your pet is limping, he is in pain.
Ways you can help your pet be more comfortable with arthritic pain are vast. Simple things like adding a stool or stairs to help them get up onto your bed. Give them a pet bed with extra padding. Raise your big dog's food and water bowl to shoulder level so they don't have to bend down to eat. Put your cat's food on the floor instead of the counter. Give your cat a more shallow litter-box so they don't have to step over a big lip. Do physical therapy in the form of stretches with your pet. Make sure your pet has a warm place to sleep when it gets cool to decrease stiffening of their joints. These are all simple things that can be done.
Talk to your veterinarian about joint supplements such as glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, MSM, and EPA. Adding vitamins such as Vitamin E and C and fish oils may also be beneficial. Make sure you talk to your vet before starting your pet on any supplement. Just because it is not a medicine doesn't mean that it is harmless and there are some medical conditions that could be made worse by giving certain supplements. There are also diets out there that have research backing their effectiveness in easing arthritic symptoms such as
Purina JM and
Hill's j/d.
Many older pets begin to suffer from hearing loss as well as changes in vision. If you think your pet is not hearing as well as before then consider getting a whistle or teaching them to respond to a loud clap if they don't seem to be able to hear you calling them. Put a nightlight in the hallway so your pet can get around easier in the dark.
Bathroom habits are also something that starts to change as a pet gets older. Dogs that potty trained in one day start having accidents in the house and cats start finding places outside the litter-box. When this happens there is usually an underlying medical reason. It is important to make a note of details such as: Is it urine or feces or both? Is it large amounts or small? Are they awake or sleeping when it occurs? Does it happen in the same spot every time or is it random? Is there anything abnormal about the urine such as color, smell, etc? Are the feces normal and formed or are they soft/diarrhea? Knowing these things will help your vet better pinpoint what may be the underlying cause and treat appropriately. Sometimes there is not a physiological reason for this to be occurring. Dogs and cats are both known to develop cognitive dysfunction which is similar in signs to Alzheimer's disease in humans and like humans there is no cure but there are treatments that may help.
Hopefully these are a few tips that you can use to help your senior pet. If you have any questions or want me to elaborate on any specific issue let me know and I will be happy to do so!
Thanks to Candace for the topic suggestion.
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