November is Fear Free Senior Pet Health Month. Shylo is a beautiful 20 year old black
domestic shorthair cat who has been coming to Rock Bridge Animal Hospital since 2004. In 2011 he had his first Senior Wellness Exam. He was healthy and all of the lab results were within normal limits. He continues to have them yearly. Since 2014, Shylo slowly began to lose weight. We checked his blood work and noticed he was hyperthyroid. He was treated at MU with iodine treatment and it has not been an issue since. In 2017 Dr. Forbes noticed he had elevated kidney values after reviewing his senior wellness lab work and he was subsequently prescribed Hill’s k/d food to reduce the workload on the kidney. He later he started taking Azodyl to reduce the excess waste products resulting from kidney disease. He also began taking Aluminum Hydroxide to reduce his phosphorus levels. With new food and new medications, Shylo’s renal values were steady for the next few years.
In March of 2020, Shylo started eating less which resulted in his kidney values going back up. Dr. Forbes noticed he had several painful cavities and after he was stable, she performed a dental cleaning with extractions.. He was hospitalized for a few days where he received daily IV fluids and started taking an appetite stimulant and he slowly began to feel better. For about a year, Lanis, Shylo’s dedicated owner, has been giving subcutaneous fluids every day at home, as well as his daily medications for kidney disease. At 20 years old, Shylo is doing well. He has had quite a few health battles in the past decade, but early detection and proper treatments have extended his life significantly and he has enjoyed many more happy years with Lanis.
While we all wish our beloved pets could stay young and healthy forever, aging is an
inevitable process. The staff at Rock Bridge Animal Hospital would like to help your pet as much as we can through this. Oftentimes, when your dog or cat starts exhibiting signs of illness, it has already become severe and may not be treatable, so early detection is key! Please let us know if you’d like to schedule a senior wellness exam or if you have any questions.
Written by Tanya
