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Article created by: Mindaugas Balčiauskas
Some days it can feel like everyone seems to have an opinion on practically everything. So it’s vital that we look to the advice of seasoned professionals so that we don’t get lost in the sea of information when it comes to important things like the health of our beloved pets.
Luckily for all of us, there are a lot of friendly people on the internet. For instance, some veterinarians took to the r/AskReddit subreddit to give pet owners some great advice that’ll help make their pets’ lives better.
Read on for some interesting and useful vet tips, dear Pandas. And if there are any animal experts in the crowd today, we’d love it if you shared some of your personal pearls of wisdom with everyone else in the comments. We’re all animal lovers, after all. We want what’s best for our four-legged furry friends. Feathered, scaled, and two-legged, too! We don’t discriminate.
Bored Panda was interested in learning more about keeping our pets healthy, so we reached out to the wonderful team at the PDSA, the UK’s leading veterinary charity. PDSA Vet Claire Roberts was kind enough to go into detail about everything with us.
“Cats, dogs, and rabbits should have yearly vaccinations where they will get a full check-up from the vet at the same time. Older pets or those with specific medical conditions may benefit from seeing the vet more regularly to help pick up any problems early. And of course, all pets should be taken to see a vet if they are unwell or injured at any time,” she told us how often owners should take their beloved pets to see the vet. Scroll down for the rest of our interview with the pet health specialist.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
From my former vet tech girlfriend, don’t leave your pets to be euthanized without you. It’s hard to be there and it’s hard to watch, but if you leave them they will die scared and looking for you. She had to try and comfort pets whose owner’s couldn’t bring themselves to stay and it’s one of the few things that makes her cry.
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#2
Vet here. Here’s my best advice, condensed.
1) Thin pets live longer than fat pets. Google a BCS chart and make sure your pet has a visible waist and palpable ribs. No crash diets.
2) Dental disease is WAY more serious than you think. Get the scale and polish. If we have to extract teeth (and believe me, we would prefer not to), they will still be able to eat.
3) Get your pet a series of cartrophen (or zydax, or adequacy, or pentosan polysulfate) injections when they turn 8. They help slow down the progression of arthritis and are safe and cost-effective.
4) If your cat is stressed at the vet, take home some gabapentin to put on her food before her next visit. She will be safe, happy, and calm, and the vet will be able to examine her more thoroughly.
5) Know what’s toxic for your pet. DEFINITELY don’t have lilies in the house if you have a cat.
6) Discuss finances. Your vet wants what’s best for your pet, and is obligated to recommend all your best options....but if you tell us what you can afford we can usually come up with a reasonable plan.
7) You deserve a vet you trust. If you don’t trust yours, find one that you do.
8 ) Put your 24-hour ER vet’s address into your google maps/GPS favorites so you don’t have to find it in an emergency.
9) High-quality kibble is fine unless your vet tells you otherwise. Don’t feed a dog a grain-free diet unless YOUR vet tells you to (like for an allergy).
10) You can almost definitely give your cat a pill. Ask us for tricks.
11) BE NICE. We are human and we all care INTENSELY. Even if we hate YOU, we probably love your pet.
#3
Please don't get overly short-nosed breeds like french bulldogs, pugs or persian cats. And no, I've never met a single one who was healthy, even though the owners assured me IT was a special case without problems. Yeah....No, it's cruel and breeding them should bei illegal. (The dysfunctional breathing ist just the icing in the cake, there are many more problems with those breeds)
#5
I think the best thing you can do for your new pet, especially a puppy or kitten, is handle it A LOT when they’re young. Getting them used to having their feet handled, nails trimmed, mouth opened (even extra benefit if you get them used to teeth brushing daily - gold standard for at home dental care), ears touched (particularly breeds prone to ear infections - huge benefit in the future if you have to administer topical ear medication)… Restraint is also a big thing. I always tell my clients to practise restraint with their animals. That wriggly puppy that is cute when it nips when you hold it still grows up into a large dog that can’t be safely examined because it hasn’t learnt to be okay with restraint.
#6
I am a veterinarian . Please be kind to me and have patience with me. I see so many sick animals every day. I work 10-13 hours per day, 4 to 6 days per week. I’ve taken a lunch three times in four years. I’ve put so much blood, sweat and tears into cases, only to have the owners trash talk me by name publicly on Yelp because they don’t understand how medicine works, and they get mad when I explain it to them.
The best thing you can do for your pet is to believe me, trust my recommendations, and follow my instructions.
Yelp reviews of doctors or prescription medicines are meaningless and are irrelevant. People don’t know what they’re talking about, are controlled by their emotions, and write fabricated stories.
If you ask me to do a physical exam or diagnostics, there is going to be a fee associated with that. People stealing my services is fairly common.
Sometimes I spend the money and try my hardest to save the pet, and the pet still does poorly. There are no guarantees in medicine. People will often abuse me and my staff because they are grieving. Grief is not an excuse to be abusive.
Some problems are preventable! You can prevent heartworm disease for $8 per month.
I am not in the pocket of Big Kibble, and I truly want you and your pet to do well.
#7
If you think your pet might need a vet but you're not sure, pretend your pet is your child. So if your kid was: vomiting everything they ate for 3 days, scratching their ear until it started bleeding, not able to stand up from sitting without help, limping after playing at the park...etc, you'd probably book an appointment with their pediatrician right? So, book an appointment with the vet.
#8
(Obligatory not a vet, but used to work in a vets and have a BSc degree in Animal Sciences and Animal Management.)
Actually research your pet before buying them. It sounds obvious, but so many people don’t, and they just assume that they know how to care for an animal based on what they’ve seen on TV or heard from friends/family/pet shops.
For example, rabbits are one of the most neglected animals in the UK, because people still think that they belong in hutches. Rabbits actually need a LOT of space, and a companion, as well as platforms, rearing up space, and foraging opportunities.
I’m a rat owner, and it shocks and saddens me to see the amount of people who keep lone rats, in a cage with minimal enrichment, and fleece covering the base instead of a suitable substrate that enables them to display their natural digging & foraging behaviours. Not to mention cages with height, but insufficient floor space for rats to run & play, or cages just full of hammocks but no active enrichment.
Research your pets thoroughly before you do anything. Make sure you’re acting in the best interests of the animal, and not what’s convenient for you.
#9
Rather than just getting them a bunch of toys and hoping that keeps them entertained...just sit on the floor and actually interact with them for a bit. Establishes a connection, and is cheaper than a bunch of fancy products that you toss to them and hope they are enthralled.
#10
Don't love your pet with food. The amount of morbidly obese pets.. It really does shorten their life and their quality of life people.
And be a big enough person to let them go before they suffer. Don't drag the end out because you can't say goodbye
#11
Read up on the food you buy for your pets, you might actually be spending more money for bad quality food.
#13
Removing a mass when it’s small is faster (less anaesthetic risk), less invasive, less painful, less expensive and has a better chance of curing cancer should the mass turn out to be cancerous. This is even more pressing on delicate areas like eyelids and feet where there may not be a lot of extra tissue to work with should a large lump need to be removed.
Cartrophen/pentosan/zydax injections are relatively cheap and can keep your pet comfortable by not only helping to prevent future arthritis but by helping to ease any that is already present.
Dental disease is serious! Pets will continue to eat even with their teeth forming abscesses. The infection can spread through their body, including to their heart. Removing rotten teeth is the kindest thing you can do for your pets as they age, especially if you haven’t been proactive in preventing periodontal disease. They can still eat even with full mouth extractions, and will be /so/ much happier! People often tell me how their pet seems younger again after their rotten teeth are extracted.
#14
I am a veterinarian. I'd like to see people focus not just on quantity but quality of their pet's life. The best thing you can do for that is just incorporate them into your life as much as possible. Pay attention to them! Love them! Lots of walks! Lots of games! You'd be surprised what they can learn. Play hide and go seek. Play fetch. Sit beside them when you watch TV, pet them. Train and socialize them early and well so you won't avoid them because they're not well behaved.
We're all so busy, it's so easy to make them an afterthought. You are their whole world and unless you live on a big farm where they run free, you are their only outlet for activity and happiness. They get bored fast, just like we do. They can't wait for you to get home. They've missed you! Take them for a walk. Do a fun training or agility class with them if you'd like.
For health, the biggest things are 1. Exercise, 2. Pay attention to what can be dangerous/toxic for them and avoid it (heads stuck in potato chip bags is one people miss lately, and keep your drugs out of their reach! They're small and more easily affected), 3. Brush their teeth.
Enjoy your pets! They love you!
#15
Vets don't "over vaccinate" to make money. Vaccines don't make a lot of money compared to dogs hospitalized with distemper or parvo and cats with upper resp on long term meds. (Edited: some vets do. The ones I work with don't. We do our core vaccines every 3 years and others based on the pets lifestyle)
#16
For small pets, stop shoving them in tiny cages and then forgetting about them!! Most pet store cages are incredibly tiny compared to the bare minimum the specific animals need. Do your homework and make sure you are getting something large enough. And for pets that you can, LET THEM OUT! Guinea pigs, rabbits, some birds, they want to be let out and love the extra space. Just do it safely. Again do your homework to make sure you create a safe space for your pet to play.
#17
Don't give your pets human meds without vet recommendation. Why, just this week I've got at least 3 separate cases of acetaminophen poisoning.
#18
It is a lot cheaper and easier to prevent diseases than treat them. Get your pet vaccinated, put it on heartworm prevention, and make sure you’re feeding a food with grain.
#19
Stop googling. You can literally find something to back up every single theory or opinion on the internet. That doesn't make them right.
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