General Health Care

During a general health check, which normally lasts about 20 minutes, we will ask you questions about your pet’s health, weigh them, and perform a full physical exam.  For young dogs and cats, it’s best for this to be done annually (and it can often be combined with your pet’s yearly vaccinations). In older pets (cats > 10 years old, dogs >8 years old) and rabbits/guinea pigs, ideally we would perform 6-monthly checks, as changes can happen more rapidly in these animals.

If any abnormalities or changes are found during the course of our examination, we will discuss these with you, and make some suggestions of any follow-up treatment or diagnostics that would benefit your pet.

In pets with chronic health issues, e.g. heart disease, kidney disease, hormonal imbalances or arthritis, we often advise health checks every 3-6 months, depending on the progress of their particular issue. We may suggest performing intermittent recheck blood tests or imaging, to ensure your pet is getting the most appropriate care for their illness.

During a general health check consultation, we are also happy to answer common pet health care queries, such as:

• appropriate diet and food quantities
• appropriate exercise
• suitable parasite control routines
• breed-specific issues to monitor for
• maintenance of dental health
• should I get pet insurance?

Please phone us at Beach and Bay Vet if you would like your pet to have a general health care check.