How to Help Your Dog Age Gracefully

Our pets rely on us for their health and wellbeing. Taking your pet to a pet care center in Vancouver should be part of your pet care routine. Just like humans, animals can get sick, injured, and old.

Senior dogs are just as deserving of love as any other dog, and they can be excellent companions. Senior dogs require more care due to their age and should be closely monitored for signs of pain or illness.

Regularly taking your senior dog to a pet care center in Vancouver is the first step to them living the rest of their days in comfort. As dogs age, their mobility slows, and you may need to adjust their lifestyle and diet to keep them as healthy as possible.

A healthy dog is a happy dog, and a dog that lives as long as possible. Feeding your dog a diet that is nutritionally complete and made of high-quality ingredients that are appropriate for your dog’s age is very important for all stages of life.

For older dogs, diets high in fibre and less dense in calories are generally the best approach. Depending on your dog’s health history, and individual dietary needs, your local pet care center in Vancouver may suggest a different diet.

Exercise is just as important for older dogs as it is for younger dogs. While older dogs may not run around like puppies, it is important for them to keep moving. Exercising helps both you and your dog burn calories, strengthen muscles, improve heart and brain function, and contributes to better sleep.

As your dog ages, a few shorter walks instead of one longer walk may be the best option, it all depends on your dog’s physical limitations. Pet care centers in Vancouver have veterinarians who are knowledgeable and able to give advice in terms of exercise and what is best for your dog.

Exercising regularly also helps prevent injuries in older dogs. An important step in caring for senior dogs is to keep them pain-free. If your dog is in pain or injured, do not push them to exercise as much, or at all, depending on the injury. This can only make the problem worse. Your dog cannot tell you when it physically has had enough.

Pet care centres in Vancouver offer treatments to help your senior companions stay pain-free. Supplements, anti-inflammatory medication, and special diets are all things that you can implement at home through your vet’s guidance.

Acupuncture massage and rehab, such as underwater treadmill therapy, are available at a pet care center in Vancouver for dogs with mobility issues or injuries, or for dogs who are aging and sore.

It is very important to take note of any changes in your dog’s behaviour. If you notice them running into things more, or not coming when being called, take them to your pet care center in Vancouver to get their hearing or eyes checked. For dogs with hearing or sight problems, walks need to be done while leashed to protect them from injury.

Always make sure to know where your disabled, aging dog is. As dog’s age, they are less agile; if they are also hard of hearing or vision impaired, then the possibility of them not hearing or seeing a car backing up on the driveway or coming towards them on the road grows.

If you notice your dog is not eating, is vomiting, or has diarrhea, or seems to be less active and more lethargic than normal, take them to your pet care centre immediately for a checkup.