Top 10 Medical Conditions for Vet Visits
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Top 10 Medical Conditions for Vet Visits
The nation’s largest pet insurer releases the Top 10 Reasons Pets Are Taken to the Veterinarian.
For the second year in a row, you guessed it, urinary tract infections was the top medical condition that cat owners filed claims for to veterinary pet insurance companies, according to a recent review of all policy holder claims.
Veterinary visits for skin allergies resulted in the most claims for dogs.
Several of the Top 10 conditions for both dogs and cats remained the same over the last several years, but there were a few new additions.
Osteoarthritis, enteritis (which is diarrhea) and thyroidism were more common in dogs than they were the previous year, and diabetes in cats made the list. Kidney disease was the 10th most common feline complaint and it jumped to number three. The spike in certain conditions for both dogs and cats can be explained by a host of reasons. From a pet’s age or genetics to nutrition or environment. For many of these conditions the main risk factor is age.
For example, Osteoarthritis and hypothyroidism have definite genetic and age related risk factors. Large breed dogs, for example, tend to develop arthritis at a younger age. Additionally, hypothyroidism, which is the failure of the thyroid gland to produce adequate amounts of thyroid hormone, is a relatively common age related disease in dogs. The increase in kidney disease in cats is also co-related with our aging companion cat population. Cats are simply living longer than their kidneys were designed to support them.
In order to help prevent such serious diseases from afflicting our pets, all pets should receive a comprehensive physical exam every year. If a disease is detected during the annual wellness examination, it may be early enough to treat and possibly prevent, and for sure, less expensive to take care of. In particular, geriatric cats need to see the veterinarian regularly, at least twice a year. Kidney disease can silently progress in an older cat, but the cat may not show any outward signs. So see your veterinarian twice a year!