2 Ways To Keep Your Elderly Dog Healthy And Happy

Keeping your elderly dog healthy and happy can often be quite difficult for many individuals as your dog is going to be more susceptible to illness and disease as they get older. Thankfully, there are a few things you can do to keep your elderly dog as healthy and as happy as possible, such as the two listed below.

Take Your Elderly Dog To The Vet Regularly

The most important step to take when trying to keep your elderly dog healthy is to take him or her to the vet regularly. The reason that this works is that the more often you see the vet the higher the chances are that the vet will be able to spot any troubling health issues before they get serious enough to be untreatable or fatal. Additionally, if your dog is experiencing some type of discomfort due to his or her joints or some other issue, the vet will be able to provide you with pain medication or even recommendations as to exercises or beds that can help reduce the pain that your dog is more energetic and happy.

Also, if you take your elderly dog to the vet regularly and tell the vet that you are trying to improve your dog's quality of life and extend his or her life as much as possible, they can give you a few recommendations and treatment plans that can achieve this goal. For example, the vet can recommend certain foods and exercises to keep the dog's weight down to reduce pressure on the joints and the risk of diabetes while also recommending supplements that can improve the strength of your dog's joints to stave off arthritis and other joint issues.

Make Sure To Properly Care For Your Elderly Dog's Teeth

Also, when trying to keep your elderly dog healthy and happy make sure to properly care for his or her teeth. In most cases, making sure to brush your dog's teeth several times a week is a great way to reduce the risk of plaque forming and save the dog's teeth, which is vital because once a dog starts losing his or her teeth it can make it very difficult for them to eat. Additionally, making sure to take your dog to the animal hospital for dental examinations and the removal of plaque will also help keep your dog healthy as this will prevent the formation of bacteria in their mouth that could potentially travel to their internal organs and lead to illness and disease in older dogs with weakened immune systems.

Make an appointment with a local animal hospital today in order to discuss how they may be able to help you keep your elderly dog healthy and to schedule an appointment for your dog to be examined by a vet. Making sure to take your elderly dog to the vet regularly and making sure to properly care for your dog's teeth are two of the most common and effective ways of keeping your elderly dog healthy and happy.