Routine care from our veterinary team at Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital focuses first and foremost on preventive care. Regularly scheduled routine care appointments help to ensure that your pet is in good health.
The Importance of Preventive Care
Routine care appointments are key to helping your pet keep up their long term health.
Combined with regular vaccinations, parasite prevention and proper nutrition, regularly scheduled routine care appointments include regular physical checkups to give your pet the best chance at excellent lifelong health.
When you bring in your pet for their routine checkup, we are able to prevent health issues from arising in your pet, or catch them as they are developing and before they are at a more advanced or serious stage.
What to Expect During Your Pet's Physical
One of your vets will give your pet a complete physical examination to understand their overall health. An routine care examination includes the following elements:
General Condition
Your pet's physical condition and behavior can provide use with clues about their health. Their weight for their size, how they stand and walk and how alert they are are all important indicators of overall health.
Coat & Skin
We will carefully check your pet's skin and coat for signs of any problems. These include lumps, bumps, dandruff, excessive oiliness or dryness and excessive hair loss.
Face & Head
We will check out your pet's eyes and nose for discharge or other abnormalities. We will also look at their mouth for any symptoms of oral health issues such as periodontal disease.
Internal Health
Heart rate and rhythm, pulse and blood pressure are vitally important to your pet's heart health. We'll test these to ensure they're normal. The lungs will then be examined for evidence of abnormal breathing.
We will also check your pet's lymph nodes for any swelling or pain. We will examine their abdomen for possible issues with your pet's kidneys, intestines, spleen liver, bladder and stomach to ensure they all feel as they should.
Puppies & Kittens
Puppies and kittens need proper medical attention in their first few weeks of life to get off to a healthy start.
We will give your new pet a complete physical exam, proper immunizations and parasite medications. We will test them for intestinal parasites. We will also provide you with a kit filled with educational materials for your new puppy or kitten as well as samples to help you care for your new furry family member.
Please never hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns you may have about caring for your new pet, both at your appointments or following your visits.
Once your pet's initial appointment is complete, you'll return periodically for his or her required booster shots.
Seniors
With recent advancements in veterinary medicine and knowledge as well as nutrition, our pets are living longer now that they ever have before.
This is something to celebrate, but as your pet ages routine veterinary care will become more important than ever to ensuring their continued good health throughout their golden years.
In addition to the routine wellness procedures we perform on all adult pets, we will give special attention to your senior pet's potential age-related conditions, such as arthritis or decreased vision. Additional laboratory tests will also provide information about your pet's overall health.
Vaccinations & Preventative Care
During your pet's physical exam, the veterinarian will also check whether they require preventive care, or if they are due for any routine vaccinations.