A healthy dog is a happy dog, and the below tips will help you keep your pup in the best possible condition. Besides being essential for your pet’s health, these preventative measures also save money and time by keeping illness at bay. Below are 6 preventative measures for dogs against diseases.
1. Check Your Dog When It Comes Into the House
It is important to check for fleas and ticks on any pet that spends time outside, even if you use prophylactic medications. If you have an indoor pet and another animal in the house, check on them often.
If you discover a tick on your pet, you should get rid of it quickly to prevent illness or infection. You must make an appointment with your veterinarian if you are having difficulty removing the tick on your own.
2. Seek Routine Veterinary Visits
Though it’s not uncommon for pets to exhibit sickness symptoms, not all of them are necessarily obvious. An annual wellness inspection by a trained veterinarian can detect problems, such as illnesses, that you may be unaware your pet is experiencing.
Your veterinarian will examine your pet thoroughly, from head to tail, during routine exams. They’ll look for warning signs as they listen, observe, and probe their environment. They’ll do a battery of tests, from bloodwork to a fecal exam.
Parasites and illnesses, for example, may be detected by these examinations. Your veterinarian may suggest surgery, antibiotics, medications such as advantage multi for dogs, or other treatments if they discover an issue.
3. Check for Signs of Illness to Take Action
Many different ailments might affect your pet, each of which manifests in its way. Examples of parvovirus symptoms include listlessness, anorexia, and bloody diarrhea. Coughing, shortness of breath, and facial swelling are all symptoms of Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
Even if your pet’s symptoms aren’t too bad, it’s best to check them out as quickly as possible. Most diseases are easier to treat if caught and cared for early.
4. Don’t Allow Your Dog to Come in Contact With Wildlife
Opossums, Raccoons, and other wild creatures may contain diseases that could be transmitted to your pet through a bite or scrape. If you protect your pets from wild animals, everyone stays safe. Maintain your pets indoors or on a leash at all times unless they are in a securely secured yard.
You should also take precautions against wild animals. Leave no food or drink out. Before trash day, ensure any outside trash cans are securely covered or put away in the garage.
Please double-check that your immunizations are ready. Contact animal control immediately if you discover wild animals living beneath your porch or anywhere on your property.
5. Remove Visible Ticks Properly and Promptly
If you see a tick implanted in your skin, get it out as quickly as possible. Spending less time in close contact with your dog reduces the risk of spreading illness. There are a plethora of resources online that detail the steps necessary to remove an implanted tick successfully.
Avoid blindly believing everything you read. You won’t kill a tick by burning it with a match; you can sing your dog’s fur in the process. If you attempt to remove a tick by covering it in a lubricant, you will make the tick slippery and more stubborn.
Ticks become fragile and more prone to shatter when exposed to acetone, a chemical usually encountered in nail polish removers.
Consult your vet about the best strategy for extracting the tick from your pet. Whatever approach you take, always use gloves to protect yourself from contracting an illness.
6. Proper Nutrition
The key to a healthy and long life is a proper diet. Why settle for less than the best for your pet’s diet? Heart disease, Dental disease, liver disease, renal disease, obesity, diabetes, skin disorders, vomiting, food allergies, diarrhea, and even cancer may be addressed or controlled using special diets for dogs. Find out what your veterinarian thinks is best for your pet’s diet.
Conclusion
Now you know the steps you can take to keep your pet healthy and happy. To prevent illness, some basic preventive measures are quite simple. Others may require a bit more work, but can save you a lot of trouble in the future.