How Often Should You take Your Cat to the Vet?

This article originally appeared on my ongoing series of articles for Flexcin International, Inc as How Often Should You take Your Cat to the Vet? Recent statistics are showing a drastic difference in the amount of veterinary care that felines receive in comparison to their barking counterparts. Dogs average about 1.8 visits to the vet each year while cats lag behind at .7 visits per year. Ironically, polls show that both cat and dog owners carry the same understanding about the value of regular veterinary care. Let's see why this is the case.

So why are cats not being brought to the vet as often as they should?

Although at least one annual visit is recommended to help keep your cat healthy and happy, cats are considered more independent and less fond of traveling which makes getting a cat into a carrier and into the veterinary office a daunting task. It is best to get your cat acclimated to a carrier prior to actually needing to transport them. Being unprepared for travel with your feline is no excuse to avoid veterinary care.

I thought my cat was safe inside my home

Another reason people don’t bring their cats to the vet as often is because they believe that since a cat stays inside, it is less prone to contracting any diseases or illnesses that may require attention. While cats may be less likely to contract an illness or disease than a dog, they can still easily catch something brought into the home by a pest or other animal. Law also states that regardless of whether your pet stays inside or not, they must be vaccinated against specific diseases such as rabies.

I had no idea my cat was sick

Finally, cat owners are often less aware if there is an issue with their pet. While dogs are typically always at one’s side and moving about under supervision inside and out, cats often remain elusive indoors. They do their business in a concealed box and spend much of the day lounging about making it difficult to tell if any issues such as arthritis or open wounds exist. Regardless of whether you own a cat that remains indoors, it is imperative they receive adequate veterinary care. Thank you for reading this article.  Your questions and comments are completely welcome (I’ll respond). Please feel free to communicate with me through Twitter (@PatrickMahaney) and follow my adventures in veterinary medicine by liking Patrick Mahaney: Veterinarian Acupuncture Pain Management for Your Pets on Facebook. Copyright of this article (2012) is owned by Dr Patrick Mahaney, Veterinarian and Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist. Republishing any portion of this article must first be authorized by Dr Patrick Mahaney. Requests for republishing must be approved by Dr Patrick Mahaney and received in written format.