Preventative Health for your Cat

Vital Statistics

The American Veterinary Medical Association reports pet owning statistics every five years.  They released the data for 2011 in January.  Since the last report, the number of pet owning households has decreased.  More concerning, is that the pets in those homes received less preventative care - health exams, parasite preventatives, screening tests for disease, and recommended or legally required vaccines.  Of all pets, one in ten have a preventable disease or have painful conditions without any signs showing.  Dogs are seen on an average of 1.6 times a year, while cats are seen only 0.7 times a year.  Yet over 50% of people report that they consider their dog or cat a family member.  The most common reason for not taking a pet to the veterinarian was that their pets did not get sick or injured.  But, these same people also stated that routine check-ups and preventative care were important.  Another common reason for not taking the pet was that they could not afford it.  This is most likely due to the recent economic recession when everybody cut back on spending for a variety of reasons.

Partners in Wellness

For many years, paying for that veterinary visit was by cash, check, or credit card only.  Then newer ideas like pet insurance (Veterinary Pet Insurance, Purina Care) and third-party payment plans (CareCredit) were introduced.  Because the profession (and your individual veterinarian) have read the reports mentioned above and knows how much you love your pets, over the last two years wellness plans have also come into being.  Partners in Wellness is one such program.  Partners in Wellness is a convenient program that bundles wellness visits for your pet into affordable monthly payments.  The program has been designed as year-long wellness care that includes visits that the veterinarian recommends for preventative health care such as blood tests, dental treatments, and testing for intestinal parasites along with vaccines.  Each veterinary clinic creates their own, so look for your veterinary clinic on the website and check out the specific plans.  These are wellness programs, not insurance, although there may be some allowance for medical care.

The Cat Clinic

Obviously, only cats are treated here; but they are treated well as the Cat Friendly Designation indicates.  Dr. Pam Cuevas created six different plans to fit the needs of the kitten, rescued off the streets, to the senior cat.  Depending on age and past medical history of the cat, spays and neuters or dentals may or may not be included.  To give your pet the best wellness care - and give yourself peace of mind, call our office or visit www.partners-n-wellness.com. 

Dr. Pam Cuevas

La Grange Park Cat Clinic

3075 S. Wolf Road

Westchester, IL 60154

(708)562-2287

cat.doc@lgpcatvet.com