A word about aging in pets

You often hear how pets age seven years for every one human year. This is not an accurate portrayal of pet aging. The truth is that during the first year of life, most dogs and cats go through the equilivalent of about 18 human years. A ferret goes through around 30 human years! In their middle years, from about 1 to 7-10 years of age (depending on breed), pets age much slower, probably equilivalent to around two to four years for each calander year. Finally, in their later years, relative aging speeds up again, and it is not uncommon to see 5 to 10 years of aging for each calander year.

While all this may average out to the oft-repeated "seven years for each human year," it is not at all the same, and medically speaking, the difference is very important to the health of your pet.

When we recommend several visits in the first year of life, yearly visits in middle age and every six month visits in the older years, it is really not enough for optimal health. But it is probably the best that is practical for most pet owners. Essentially it represents an attainable compromise that is the best for you and your pet, and one that our staff is comfortable making.