As a cat owner, you must know that regular checkups play an important role in maintaining your pet's health and longevity. However, if you're a first-time pet parent and don't know when to take your cat to the vet. No worries! CouponUpo is here to give an answer to the question "how often do you take a cat to the vet".
Normally, a baby kitten needs vet visits monthly, an adult cat needs checkups at least once a year, and elderly cats should visit the veterinarian 2 or 3 times a year.
And if you want to know more detailed information about this topic, keep reading the following article!
Should you take a cat to the vet?
Of course, the answer is Yes.
Regular health check-ups for cats are essential and should be maintained if you want to have a healthy, loving, and cute pet. Eapecially, when your cat has some strange signs, it's better to take a cat to the vet as soon as possible.
- Anorexic, emaciated and losing weight
- Coughing, sneezing, runny nose
- Fever, convulsions, vomiting
- Shivering or signs of hypothermia
- Red eyes or appearance of 3rd eyelids
- Hair loss
- Difficulty breathing
- Unusual drooling
- Sleep more than 16 hours/day
- Avoid human interaction and often hides
All these strange signs in pets can also be the beginning of dangerous diseases. So, when you see above any signs, take your cat to the vet as soon as possible. With many years of experience as well as quality machinery, and tools, veterinarians will accurately diagnose and apply the best treatment method, helping your cat recover quickly.
How often do you take a cat to the vet?
Depending on your cat's age, health status, and lifestyle, you will determine how often should you take a cat to the vet.
To help clear this up, let's take a look at when to take a cat to the vet based on age group.
Baby kittens (birth – 1 year)
At this period, your cat will need to visit a vet slightly more often than adult cats in order to make sure the cat gets the best start in life.
For baby kittens from 6 weeks until 16 weeks, you should take your cat to the vet monthly to receive essential vaccinations.
Veterinarians will determine the best vaccine schedule for your pet.
Typically, at 6-8 weeks old, kittens should receive the first batch of vaccination. At 9-12 weeks, the baby kitten should receive the second vaccination round. At six months, further vaccines are administered.
After 5 months, you don't need to take your cat to the vet every month.
Adult cats (1 year – 7 years)
With the question "How often should an adult cat go to the vet", the answer is an adult cat needs checkups at least once a year.
At this age, your cat has enough resistance against many viruses and bacteria, so you don't need to take a cat to the vet regularly. However, for each vet appointment, we recommend you have a full checkup for your cat. Annual checkups always include dental cleanings, vaccinations, blood work, and other inspections to find out potential developing diseases.
Especially, distemper and rabies vaccines are a must for this age group, even when your cat is an indoor pet.
Elderly cats (7 years+)
For an elderly cat, how often should a cat go to the vet? Well, once your cat reaches 7 years of age and more, we recommend you should take your cat to the vet at least 2 or 3 times per year.
At this age category, your cat is highly possible to have old age-related conditions and they need to have comprehensive physical examinations to determine the best proper treatment. Some common health issues in senior cats are arthritis, obesity, heart disease, liver, and kidney diseases.
Especially, by this stage in your cat's life, you need to pay more attention to your pet's health and take a cat to the vet as soon as possible if you detect any alarming signs.
Why should you take your cat to the vet regularly?
Well, you now have a clear answer to the question "How often do you take a cat to the vet", let's keep reading to know some of the common reasons why you need to take your cat to the vet regularly.
Wellness checks
Regular health check-ups for your pet are the best way to maintain their health and increase their lifespan.
Detecting many dangerous diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and hypothyroidism... There are no specific symptoms in the early stages, and difficult to recognize. If detected early and with timely treatment measures, the pet will quickly recover, increasing the chances of survival.
For older cats, the physical condition is worse and the examination becomes even more important, helping to reduce the risk of disease.
Keep your cat stay healthy
Helps maintain pet's health in good and stable condition, ensuring long life. The average lifespan of a pet is about 10-15 years and if we take care of it scientifically.
Get more proper pet care tips
During the examination, veterinarians will advise more on nutrition and effective and safe pet care tips. That will improve the quality of life, and prevent disease more effectively.
Through regular health checkups, veterinarians will advise you on vaccines that your pet is missing or new vaccines that are available today. Getting a vaccine at the right time will help your pet avoid many diseases that are harmful to the body.
Protect your pet and your health
Regular health checks for pets also contribute to limiting the spread of diseases from pets to pets, from pets to people. This will ensure the safety of other pets in the house and ourselves, and our loved ones!
How often do you take a cat to the vet? FAQs
Now, let's take a look at some common questions that people always ask when searching "How often do you take a cat to the vet"!
Does a cat need to visit a vet every year?
Depending on your cat's age and overall health, checkups would be different. However, it's better to take a cat to the vet every year to check up on its health as well as have proper treatment methods if detecting any alarming health problems.
How often should you take indoor cats to the vet?
We recommend you should take indoor cats to the vet at least once a year. Indoor cats are easy to have some health problems like obesity, so checkups help you detect your pet's health issues before it's too late.
When should you take your cat to the vet?
As we mentioned above, when you see any warning signs, your cat needs to go to the vet.
How much does a vet visit cost for a cat?
Normally, it takes $30-$500 annually for pet care which includes teeth cleaning, vaccinations, allergy tests, blood tests, pet spa, and more.
Besides, you will take a monthly expense for pet supplies. To save money on pet supplies, it's better to hunt for coupons for pets.
Today, there are so many pet stores and retailers that offer the best discount codes and deals for pets, so take advantage of them. Using a coupon code for pets correctly will help you save a cost on pet care monthly.
Where to find the best coupons for pets?
Couponupto.com is the ideal place to look for coupons and deals for pets. Especially, the Summer Pets Sales event is happing on our site which means pet owners can have more chances to get the deepest discounts and deals on pet supplies and save money on pet care.
Top recommended stores for pet coupons:
How often do you take a cat to the vet? - Conclusion
Hopefully, throughout our article, you get the answer to the question "How often do you take a cat to the vet". In general, you should take a cat to the vet at least once a year. However, the need for health checkups also changes based on your cat's age and health. So, pay attention to your pet and take it to the vet when having any warning signs.
