Wellness and Preventive Care in Charlotte, NC for Every Stage of Your Pet’s Life
Annual wellness visits are integral for your pets because they allow our veterinarians to spot any potential health issues early. From puppy and kitten visits all the way up to senior wellness checks, this preventive care can help your furry family member live a long and happy life with you. Our hope is to help you achieve this through compassionate care, experience, and knowledge.
Wellness and preventive care for pets at every age:
Puppy and Kitten Wellness
Welcoming a puppy or kitten into your home is an exciting occasion, and Animal Medical Hospital & 24 Hour Urgent Care wants to ensure that your new life together starts off without a hitch. We recommend scheduling your first visit with one of our veterinarians at six weeks of age.
During the visit, you can expect:
- A comprehensive physical examination of your puppy or kitten
- Your puppy or kitten’s first vaccinations and the development of a vaccination schedule
- Testing for intestinal parasites and deworming
- Testing for viruses in kittens: Feline Leukemia and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV)
- Starting heartworm preventive and parasite control medication
- Nutrition tips
- Behavior tips (including house training for puppies)
- Answers to your questions about your new puppy or kitten
Not all of your new pet’s short-term wellness needs can be met in a single visit. New pet owners should plan to make several visits to Animal Medical Hospital & 24 Hour Urgent Care for wellness exams and vaccination boosters in the first few months of ownership, usually three to four weeks apart. This will give your veterinarian the opportunity to complete your pet’s initial vaccination series, dispense heartworm medication, and monitor any developing medical or behavioral conditions. Your pet should also undergo spay or neuter surgery between four and six months of age.
Adult Wellness
Animal Medical Hospital & 24 Hour Urgent Care believes that all pets under the age of seven gain significant health benefits from annual adult wellness exams. The wellness evaluations give your veterinarian an opportunity to minimize potential health risks through early detection and treatment.
During these visits, you can expect:
- A comprehensive physical examination
- Intestinal parasite screening
- Heartworm testing
- A junior wellness lab panel
- A dental examination
- A vaccination update
- Discussion of nutrition, behavior, and answers to any of your questions
Senior Wellness
Because a pet's lifespan is so short compared to humans, their health conditions tend to develop much more rapidly. While a once-annual veterinary visit may be adequate for younger pets, Animal Medical Hospital & 24 Hour Urgent Care believes that all pets seven years and older gain significant health benefits from two wellness exams a year. Senior pets often benefit from early detection of problems. Nutritional supplements and adjustments in diet and exercise are most successful when we treat conditions early.
Wellness screening in our older companions often begins with the pet owner. You may notice subtle changes in your pet’s activity, such as an increase or decrease in appetite or thirst, behavioral problems, signs of vision or hearing loss, dental problems, arthritis, constipation, or obesity.
Our senior wellness visits include:
- A comprehensive physical examination
- Intestinal parasite screening
- Heartworm testing
- Senior wellness lab panel and urinalysis
- A dental examination
- An ophthalmic examination
- Chest radiographs and/or EKG
- Abdominal radiographs
- Osteoarthritis evaluation
- Vaccinations update
- Discussion of nutrition, behavior, and answers to your questions
Nutrition
Proper nutrition is an important component of your pet’s wellness regimen. Your veterinarian will help you make healthful adjustments to your pet’s diet based on his or her age, weight, activity level, and the existence of any special medical conditions. Observing your pet’s eating habits and fluctuations in weight and appearance are critical in the early detection of medical conditions and any significant changes should be reported to your veterinarian.
All of our veterinarians are trained in the area of nutrition and can help you evaluate your pet's current diet and provide nutritional statistics. We can help with the following:
- Royal Canin®
- Hills® Feline Science Diet® (non-prescription)
- Hills Feline Prescription Diet
- Hills Canine Science Diet (non-prescription)
- Hills Canine Prescription Diet
- Dental care chews and diets
- Food allergy diets
- Joint supplements
- Probiotics
- Skin, hair, and coat supplements
Veterinary Nutrition & Proper Diet for Optimal Wellness
Maintaining a lean body weight can help your pet live a longer, healthier life. All of our veterinarians are trained in the area of nutrition and can help you evaluate your pet’s current diet and provide nutritional statistics. We can help you with the following:
- Life-stage diets
- Nutritional counseling and education
- Special-needs diets
- Weight management
Pet Identification and Microchipping
Statistics indicate that one out of three pets will become lost in their lifetime, and 90% of lost pets never find their way home because they have no identification. Collars and name tags can be helpful in recovering a lost pet, but they are external and can be removed or lost. The permanent way to secure your pet’s identification is with a microchip implant.
Microchip implants are a safe and reliable way to improve the chances of recovering a lost pet. This technology allows your pet to carry indispensable identification and contact information on a device the size of a grain of rice. During an office call, the chips are quickly and easily implanted under the skin and remain as a permanent means to identify your pet if lost. Microchips can also be placed while your pet is under anesthesia during a spay or neuter procedure. Veterinarians and animal shelters routinely scan recovered animals for microchips.
By implanting a microchip at your pet’s next visit, we are helping to improve the chances of your pet being returned home.
Call us today to schedule a wellness or nutrition visit for your pet.