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Veterinary Care

  1. Physical Exam
    Regular (at least once each year) examination of your cat by your veterinarian from kittenhood to the senior years is invaluable for identifying and managing problems in the aging cat.   This will provide your veterinarian with an accurate record of your cat's body weight over the years, so that significant changes will be obvious.   With the aid of a stethascope and an experienced eye, your veterinarian will be able identify early evidence of problems that might not be readily apparent to you at home.   And finally, you will receive information that will enable you to spot the subtle changes that occur in older cats, and will help you distinguish between those changes which are cause for concern from those that are not.
  2. Blood Pressure Measurement
    Hypertension (high blood pressure) can be an important problem in older cats.   As with people, you will not recognize this problem unless you measure blood pressure.   To measure blood pressure in a cat we use a special instrument called a doppler probe.   This is a painless, non-invasive proceedure which can be done in the exam room.   It only takes a few moments of patience on the part of the kitty.   Treatment of elevated blood pressure can help slow the progression of kidney and heart disease.   Left untreated hypertension can lead to blindness from bleeding in the eye and retinal detachment.
  3. Laboratory Testing
    When there is concern about a specific change, or to screen for potential problems, laboratory diagnostic tests are employed. "The Geriatric Profile" (analysis of a sample of urine and a sample of blood) gives us a clear picture of your cat’s biochemistry and metabolic function at any given point in time. Following changes overtime can be especially helpfull, so repeated sampling may be needed.
  4. Radiology and Ultrasonography
    These tools allow us to have a "non-invasive" look into the body.   Echocardiography (ultrasound exam of the heart) is particularly important in diagnosing suspected heart disease.   Ultrosonography can also be useful in obtaining a tissue sample for histopathology
  5. Biopsy and Histopathology
    Microscopic examination of tissue is critical in the diagnosis of cancers.   Obtaining tissue for examination often requires a surgical biopsy.   The surgery may be minor (skin punch biopsy) or major (exploratory laparotomy or thoracotomy).
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