Why Even Fit Dogs Need An Annual Wellness Screen

Yesterday afternoon I had an opening in my pet sitting schedule and promptly filled it with a pet taxi appointment for my own two pups. Destination: Our Veterinarian for the pups’ annual wellness screens.

Instead of getting paid for the ride, however, I ended up paying for this one myself. $292 to be exact. 

Why Do My Fit Dogs Need An Annual Wellness Screen?

Why pay this much for a vet visit even though Missy & Buzz appear to be in great health?

The answer is simple: Peace of mind. I take the pups for their annual check-ups to ensure that their health is maintained beyond what my eyes can see.

What MY Eyes Can See

Here’s what my eyes CAN indeed see: I can see that both pups have visible waistlines, so they’re not overweight. I can see that their coats are full & shiny, that their eyes are bright & clear, that their ears are clean & without any build-up, so they’re not suffering from any allergies. I can see that their teeth are clean, so they’re not suffering from dental disease.

Beyond what my eyes can see, I KNOW that we exercise every single day, that I feed a balanced raw diet consisting of 80% muscle meat, 10% bone, 5% liver, and 5% other organ, and that I boost their immune systems with natural antioxidants.

You may wonder which antioxidants I use? Find out more in last week’s post How To Boost Your Dog’s Immune System With These 3 Natural Antioxidants

What MY Eyes CAN’T See

However, here’s what my eyes CAN NOT see: I can’t look inside their veins and tell if the ratio of different cells is normal or not (red blood cells/white blood cells, platelets). The annual wellness screen includes a CBC (complete blood count) which checks for abnormalities in the blood.  

When Missy underwent her chemotherapy sessions after her thyroid cancer diagnosis, a CBC had to be done before each chemotherapy session to ensure that enough white blood cells were present. 

I also can’t listen to the pups’ hearts & lungs. Our vet, however, does by auscultating Missy & Buzz and checking for abnormal heart rate & rhythm as well as breath sounds. 

Another part of the exam I’m not qualified for is how to palpate the pups’ legs, abdomen, & lymph nodes for any abnormalities. Our vet knows exactly how to do that & what to feel for.

The wellness screen also includes a heartworm test, lyme test, and ehrlichia test as symptoms for these diseases are not necessarily obvious. If left untreated, they can progress into a chronic infection. Heartworms are transmitted by mosquitoes, and ticks are responsible for lyme & ehrlichia.

We don’t have the test results yet, but our Vet Dr. Schaller was very happy with the pups’ body condition. One of the first things she pointed out was that she spent the vast majority of the day letting pet owners know their pets are overweight, and that it’s refreshing to see that Missy & Buzz are clearly NOT.

She also pointed out that both pups have very nice abs 🙂 This isn’t the first time she’s told me this, but it’s definitely something I’ll never tire of hearing. After all, it’s confirmation from a professional that our daily exercise routine is working!

Dr. Schaller was also very pleased with the pups’ white, clean teeth, especially Missy’s. She did notice a little tartar on ONE of Buzz’s teeth which is located directly underneath the molar which had to be extracted last year after breaking from chewing on a hard beef bone.

The molar no longer being there might have caused the tartar build-up on the tooth in question. I will need to pay specific attention to this one and brush it again (I stopped brushing the pups’ teeth once we began feeding a raw diet with meaty raw bones – they act as natural tooth brushes).

Side note: According to the APOP (Association for Pet Obesity Prevention), 52.7% of American Dogs are overweight, which translates into the fact that more than half of all American Dogs are going to have a shorter life span than they could have.

On average, obesity shaves off 2 years from a dog’s life expectancy, can cause diabetes & kidney disease, osteoarthritis (degenerative joint disease), high blood pressure, as well as certain types of cancer.

In addition to the wellness screen, the pups were also due for their intestinal parasite screens (a poop sample is checked for parasites) and their bordetella vaccines (aka kennel cough).

Now, the only reason why I went ahead with these vaccinations is the fact that I’ll have to board the pups within the next 6 weeks, and that the boarding facility requires proof of vaccination against bordetella.

Neither our vet nor the vet next to the boarding place offer titer tests for bordetella, so I’ll have to check with holistic veterinary offices to see if they do (none are close-by).

When doing a titer test, a dog’s blood is checked for the level of antibodies against a certain disease. If the level is sufficient, there is no need to revaccinate for the specific disease.

I’m very interested in this type of testing as over-vaccinating is directly linked to auto-immune diseases in dogs (and cancer in cats). Stay tuned for more on this topic once I’ve done a little more research!

Oh, before I forget to mention, I did DECLINE the Lepto vaccine refresher for now (the last Lepto vaccine was administered almost exactly one year ago). I want to speak with a holistic veterinarian on the topic of (over)vaccinating before I have any more vaccinations pumped into the pups’ bodies. So definitely stay tuned for more!

We’re joining the FitDog Friday Blog Hop brought to you by SlimDoggy and their co-hosts To Dog with Love and My GBGV Life. Join the Hop or just enjoy the links below – lots of fun fitness tips and advice!