Helping Senior Pets Thrive

As our pets live longer, they experience similar issues to aging humans: mobility challenges, possible behavioral changes and a greater need for preventive care. But that doesn’t mean we can’t help them thrive into their sunset years.

“Age isn’t a disease,” says Dr. Erik Olstad, assistant professor in Communication and Professional Skills and clinician on the Community Practice Service team. “Senior pets are the best—they know the rules. But when you have an older pet in the house, it affects the whole family, so it’s important to understand how to keep them healthy, both physically and mentally.”

Olstad knows the special needs of senior pets well. His household includes a 12-year-old terrier mutt that he adopted during veterinary school at UC Davis, as well as two black cats (ages 13 and 14). And older pets are his favorite patients.

“There’s a close attachment between them and their owners—they’ve been in the family through many events and we get better medical histories on them.”

Olstad provides insight into how best to care for our aging dogs and cats. (We’ll cover horses in a future issue.)

Keep ’Em Moving

Mobility issues are the most common problem for senior pets, Olstad says. Sometimes they are correlated to being overweight, but not always. However, mobility issues can predispose pets to becoming obese because they aren’t as active as they were in their earlier years. Owners may need to adjust their pet’s diet to one formulated for older pets with lower calories.

Owners may look for a dog to limp or not use one of their legs, but mobility changes are often more gradual. Olstad urges people to notice if their pet is having difficulty going up or down stairs, jumping into a car or shifting weight from one limb to the next.

In terms of mobility, pet needs are very similar to those of humans,” Olstad says. “You’ve got to keep them moving. If they don’t use it (mobility), they lose it."

Joint movement promotes joint fluid production. He recommends joint supplements and seeking a senior pet food that has some of those ingredients (mainly chondroitin and glucosamine). Fish oil supplements may also help. Owners should seek their veterinarian’s recommendation for dosage based on their pet species, size and general health.

If arthritis is the main cause of limited mobility, there are medications to help with pain management and inflammation, especially for dogs. Canines need to be healthy to take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory meds and these can’t be used in cats long-term due to their lack of a liver enzyme. Gabapentin is often prescribed for pain in both species, although it doesn’t help with inflammation. Olstad also encourages owners to talk with their veterinarian about injections of Adequan, which can be used with early arthritis to help prevent further damage to joint surfaces.

Arthritis can be more difficult to diagnose in cats as we don’t usually take them on a walk or go hiking with them, so we don’t see the mobility issues as clearly. And owners don’t take cats to the vet as frequently.

“Cats are more private with their pain; they don’t show it in the same way that dogs do,” Olstad says. “So, it’s important to notice small changes in how they play, how readily they move about the house, if they hesitate before jumping to a higher surface”

Simple environmental modifications can go a long way to helping a pet that is struggling to get around or stand up from lying down. If you have floors with a smooth surface that cause slipping, provide area rugs where older pets need to walk or eat. You can also limit access to stairs and provide a ramp to enable them to get in and out of the car more easily.

Is your cat peeing outside the litter box? Consider its location and ease of getting into. Elevate food and water bowls for large, older dogs. Perhaps adjust their diet for more water intake to make stool elimination easier.

“There are basic solutions to making their lives easier that may not always be obvious,” Olstad says. “Make things more accessible, modify your lifestyle and be cognizant of their needs.”

Engage the Brain

Everything that has a brain can degenerate and experience cognitive changes. As the brain ages, it may not be a well-greased machine. Combine neural degeneration with medical issues and things can get challenging.

“We can’t ask pets what day of the week it is or give them cognition tests,” Olstad says. “Owners are the best gauge of changes they may see in their pets.”

Are they pacing at night? Panting? Incontinent during the night or at other times of day? Some incremental changes are much harder for owners to detect and certain medications can increase urination and thirst.

“Many things can creep into the picture of overall health, so we have to look at the big picture.”

Senility is challenging to get diagnosed, because veterinarians must rule out other medical issues first. And just like senior humans, aging pets can have good days and bad days, which get magnified as the pet gets older and issues become more visible.

“Behavior changes don’t always follow a clear path—they aren’t as visible as vomiting or diarrhea,” Olstad says. “We don’t really have any drugs to prescribe, although we can use antianxiety meds in some cases. Cognitive decline is one of toughest for veterinarians and owners to deal with because there is very little we can do; we do our best to manage the stress and anxiety.”

He also urges owners not to let an older dog or cat lie around all day. Engage them with toys, food puzzles and other activities. Keep their brains active as well as their bodies.

Preventive Care Beats Reactive Care

Olstad encourages owners to schedule regular preventive care appointments.

“You don’t want to wait until your senior dog isn’t bearing weight on their back limbs,” he says. “And with older animals (and younger animals too), don’t wait until they’re vomiting for a week before you bring them in.”

It’s easier to take preventive measures before jumping into reactive care. Veterinarians like to run a senior blood panel for aging pets to get baseline measurements before anything major happens. Those baseline numbers help your pet’s health care team look for small changes. Part of a good physical exam is also to check joints.

“I like knowing as much as I can about a pet’s health,” Olstad says. “It lets us jump into the game faster in a more controlled fashion than just reaching for pain meds. We would rather be more precise and prevent issues by getting a pet into physical therapy or acupuncture or some other form of integrated care. We don’t need to reach for pills for every little ailment.”

For older dogs especially, their veterinary appointments are big visits and a chance to talk with your pet’s doctor about particular issues along with normal preventive items like heartworm, flea meds, vaccines, etc.

Because UC Davis is a teaching hospital with fourth-year students doing clinical rotations, appointments may take longer, but pets seen here in Community Practice get double the exam time and attention.

“We talk to clients about everything possible at that visit,” Olstad says. “This is our specialty and the visit contributes to the learning of future veterinarians while pets get lots of love.”

If needed, clients can be referred to Integrated Medicine or other specialties such as Oncology.

“The sooner we see a senior pet, the sooner we can improve their quality of life in the vast majority of cases,” Olstad says. “We’re here to work with owners and take their considerations seriously.”

To schedule an appointment with Community Practice, call 530-752-1393.