Learn these pet care rules to ensure your furry friend is always healthy
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Pet ownership is a full-time responsibility. To keep your pet in good health, it is important to understand and implement general pet care rules. In this article, we have listed 8 important pet care rules that every pet owner should be familiar with. So read on.
Regular Medical Checkup
- Most domestic pets have a much shorter life span than humans. To maintain both the quantity and the quality of their lives, regular medical checkups are a must. Schedule an appointment with the vet once or twice a year. Regular medical checkups are a good way of catching any budding disease early on and treating it on time.
Due to their stranger anxiety, cats show a more pronounced aversion to visiting a vet. The best way to overcome this obstacle is to familiarize your kitten with the vet from an early age. Dogs don’t make that big a deal about visiting the vet. Still, it is better to choose a vet and stick to him from an early age so your dog won’t be anxious about visiting them.
Keep Up With The Vaccinations
- Vaccinations are an important part of pet care. As soon as you adopt a pet, schedule an immunization program with your vet. Starting vaccinations early on is a great way to protect your pup against different life-threatening diseases such as rabies, Lyme disease, and distemper. For cats, vaccines are effective at preventing the spread of feline herpes virus, leukemia, and rabies.
For puppies, vaccinations should start early on i.e. during the first few weeks of welcoming them into your family. Keep in mind that vaccines need renewal and are important for older pets as well.
They Should Always Have Proper Identification
- For the protection and safekeeping of your pet animal, they should always have proper identification which can help trace them out if they get lost. Young pets are particularly prone to losing track of their home as their sense of navigation is not fully developed and they might dash out at every single opportunity.
The best identification strategies are:
- Get your pet a safe collar that is equipped with an identification tag. The tag should have updated contact information all the time.
- Get your pet a microchip. A microchip is a very small electronic device that is inserted under your pet’s skin. The chip contains all necessary information about the owner which can be read by a scanner. Microchips are a more surefire way of keeping track of your pet animal and being reunited with them if they are lost.
Take Care of Their Dietary Requirements
- Providing your pet with fresh and healthy food and clean water are the two most important components of pet ownership. Keep in mind that all animals have different dietary requirements and it is your duty to learn about the food that is most beneficial for your pet. There are many store-bought pet food options available these days. You can feed your pet both fresh and ready-made food. Just make sure to read and understand the ingredients of canned food.
The ideal food for cats comprises a good balance of protein, carbs, and fats. The same goes for dogs with the little adjustment that dogs need more fiber than cats.
To give your pet the best healthcare, contact Autumn Trails and Veterinary Center. We offer boarding, urgent care, dental care, and general wellness services for a wide range of pets. Call us at 434-971-9800. We are located in Charlottesville, VA.