Feline Life Stages

Cats usually live longer than most dogs and it is no longer uncommon for them to exceed 20 years or beyond. How long an individual cat will live depends on many factors such as genetics, lifestyle  (whether kept indoors or not),  diet, and of course the appropriate veterinary care he/she receives.

Since one year of a human's life may be comparable to 5 to 10 years in a cats life, many changes can take place in a fairly short period of time. That is why the American Veterinary Medical Association as well as the American Animal Hospital Association now recommend twice yearly physical exams plus appropriate blood work on all cats who are 5 years old or above.

Bundled together, we can offer these tests for much less than they would cost if charged for individually.

With this program, many health problems which are not readily detected in other ways can be caught early on and appropriate steps taken to ensure continued well-being and a longer life for your cat.

The Feline Medical Center recommends a physical exam every 6 months with one of those exams incorporated into our Senior Work-Up. This work-up is a comprehensive set of tests that includes:
    
    *blood pressure
       *urine analysis
       *thyroid function test
       *fecal exam for parasites
       *complete blood count
       *blood profile

The best approximation is that at about age 7, a cat is considered to be middle-aged. At age 10 and above, a cat is considered a senior.