Senior years, aging done right

The twilight of life

Golden age club, elderly, old-timers, seniors or even retirees are all terms used to designate a segment of the population who, let's say, has more experience than others. You are well aware that time does not pass, it is we who pass through it. Unfortunately not always without damage. Our head, our body and our limbs become fragile with the passing of time, but we are not the only ones to suffer the passing years.

You have probably guessed that we are talking here about our four-legged friends. Time flies even faster for them, it is as if multiplied and old age appears! So to ensure them a retirement worthy of the name, we bipeds roll up our sleeves and work to make their life gentle and full of love.

A courtesy visit is in order

We consider that a dog enters "old age" between 7 and 10 years old, while its feline companion reaches senior status between 10 and 12 years old. This advanced age requires increased attention to the state of health of one's animal, and for this it is necessary to have a technical check-up 1 to 2 times a year (depending on their exact age). For this we advise you to visit your veterinarian for prevention and to carry out a check-up of their state of fitness. Prevention is better than cure.

Eating well to feel good

The body changes and needs are not the same. You are well aware that life is a cycle, when we are at the dawn of our life, food is adapted, and it is the same for our old age. You must offer quality food. Careful, we are not saying that before this advanced age you can do whatever you want, quite the contrary! A few small pieces of advice:

• No poor quality kibble or bites: Sure, those with a thumbs up or a discount label were cheaper, but they risk costing you very dearly in veterinary bills! The intake is not always sufficient, especially for dogs and cats of a certain age. We recommend kibble offered by certain veterinarians, by pharmacies or by specialized online pharmacies such as Produits-veto.com for example.
• Adapted diet: Yes, deficiencies or illnesses can appear with time: Diabetes, allergies, being overweight, …

A healthy environment to spend their old age

A bit of cleaning, calm, a nice soft basket for their sore backside,… No, Mistigri is not becoming demanding but she needs comfort and a welcoming, warm home. The cleanliness of the home is essential, especially for allergic cats and dogs. For felines, cleanliness notably involves regularly cleaning the litter box. When we mention a healthy environment we think of the place but also of the conditions. As age advances, four-legged animals become more and more fearful and a bit temperamental. Situations of stress or those considered aggressive by our friends should therefore be avoided. It's not good for the heart or blood pressure!

Our product solutions

To calm nervousness, anxieties, and anxiety, here are a few small solutions for dogs and cats:

Nous pouvons vous proposer d’autres solutions, toutefois vous avez un rôle prépondérant dans la sérénité en le rassurant, en évitant les situations de stress et en le couvrant de tout votre amour.

Quels sont les symptômes de la vieillesse du toutou / minou ?

Oups pardon il ne faut pas dire vieux ou vieille, il/elle risquerait de se vexer ! Vous savez la susceptibilité de nos jours… Revenons à nos moutons, enfin à nos amis les chiens et chats. Produits-veto va faire un tour d’horizon des désagréments de l’âge mûr.

Rhumatismes, arthrose & raideurs : Vous êtes arrivés aux portes du grand âge

Se déplacer est une épreuve de chaque instant ! D’autant plus si vous êtes un chat de 11 ans. Papy Garfield a du mal à aller du salon à la cuisine, monter sur le canapé est une cascade digne d’un film d’actions, faire sa toilette, je ne vous en parle même pas ! Il est loin le temps où passer la patte arrière derrière la tête était un jeu d’enfants. Les mouvements sont approximatifs, la démarche est boiteuse et les gestes sont douloureux. Ces signes sont les résultantes du temps qui passe. Nous avons une bonne et une mauvais nouvelle, nous commençons par la mauvaise. Vous ne pourrez pas faire disparaître ses douleurs, la bonne nouvelle c’est que l’on peut soulager votre ami.

Les Rhumatismes nos solutions

Que ce soit pour l’arthrose, pour des inflammations ou encore pour la mobilité des articulations, nous avons des solutions :

This list is not exhaustive, the advice of your veterinarian is strongly recommended.

Overweight and diabetes

It can happen that the consequence of a lifetime of overindulgence, a rich diet and the lack of activity linked to joint pain leads to obesity in Grosminet and Gros-Blanc. This is why, as mentioned, it is a good idea to adapt the kibble used to feed your four-legged friend. All the more so as obesity will further strain the joints during movement.

Another condition made worse by the passage of time and by age is diabetes. This disease can occur at a young age, however the risk of it developing increases with advancing age.

Here are a few solutions we offer for this condition, which is characterised by hyperglycemia and an excessively high glucose level:

Navigating troubled waters: Heart & breathing

Let's continue the long list of what can await your geriatric care unit at home. The two elements mentioned seem, apparently, to be vital.

The heart at the centre of attention

Let's start with the heart, no less. Responsible for good blood circulation, it can sometimes encounter dysfunctions, particularly in older dogs and cats. These dysfunctions can be a heart murmur (systematic sound when blood passes from one chamber to another) or heart failure (irregular heartbeats and insufficient expulsion of blood). The ageing of the heart should be taken seriously, after all it plays a central role!

• Symptoms : Fatigue, coughing after exertion, breathlessness
• Support / Treatments: It always comes back to the same thing, but it is necessary to relieve the heart so that it can beat without straining, so avoid excess weight. It is essential to consult the vet so that they can identify the causes and propose a suitable treatment.

Taking a big breath of air

Let's move on to breathing. The respiratory tract in animals is like the pipes in a house, the walls become stiff, thick and leave little room for air to pass through. This phenomenon can cause conditions, coughing and/or bronchitis.

Filtration and evacuation, yes we are still on the subject of old age

Filtration and evacuation refer to the kidneys, urine and faeces. Yes, it's not all that cheerful, but unfortunately these diseases or discomforts are very present in cats and dogs of a certain age.

The kidneys, nothing is going right

An affliction, unfortunately too common, is renal failure. It is characterised by a multitude of symptoms, only a veterinarian with a blood test will be able to bring its presence to light. The disorders observed are fatigue, diarrhoea, vomiting, a lack of appetite and pain when your dog or cat urinates. In senior dogs, the animal is dehydrated, it urinates a lot. You can relieve it with Diarsanyl + (diarrhoea), anti-vomiting agents and diuretics to eliminate toxins. For the treatment of renal failure, the following treatment is recommended: Ipakitine 60 g and Ipakitine 180 g – Vetoquinol: Support for kidney function in dogs and cats. In cases of chronic renal failure. Pronefra, also available on Produits-veto.com, is not recommended for older dogs who may develop complications.

Urinary and faecal incontinence

We are on the dark side of old age, no pun intended of course. You can follow it by its trail, like little Tom Thumb, unfortunately old age is showing the tip of its nose. As for faecal incontinence, few actions can be taken, as it is rarer and often due to the spinal column. Urinary incontinence is manageable in most cases. The homeopathic solution Uricystyl – Boiron can help with urinary disorders such as incontinence or urinary infection.

The monkeys of wisdom,…. of old age

We are borrowing this well-known Asian symbol to address the three areas affected by old age in animals: the eyes, the ears and the mouth.

He who lives will see

In our case, it's rather the opposite. The longer your best furry friend lives, the less he will see! You know senile cataract. No, it's not the name of the latest Netflix series but indeed a disease of old age affecting the eye. A magnificent blue veil appears on your dog's retina, he turns into Super DogYouDog…. No, unfortunately this means that his eyes are in decline. That said, as long as the retina remains blue, vision is still functional, when it becomes whitish, nothing works anymore. The lens loses its transparency, and sight gradually disappears. Be careful, the life of your furniture is at stake, your dog risks bumping into it with every move. To identify this degeneration you must have an eye examination performed by a veterinarian. To fight against cataracts, the use of eye drops to stop or slow down the process is recommended. We offer VT Phak – Virbac, effective for this purpose.

Prick up one's ears

To begin with, fleas and dogs / cats don't mix well, but that's another subject. What interests us here is the ear. Indeed, your cat is not only blind, he is deaf now too. Long live old age! As you can see, we are not bearers of good news unfortunately. Mistigri is a living being and like his mistress or master, he gradually loses his hearing. Unfortunately no treatment can reduce this scourge, however we advise you to properly clean the ear canal of the cat and the dog.

Turn one's tongue seven times before speaking

"Your breath stinks!" No, don't be mistaken, this is not insulting. The "gueule" is indeed the animal's mouth. It is quite rare to come across a dog with breath smelling of orchard fruits. That said, don't be too smug about it, because when we wake up, we are all equal on the subject. Bad breath can intensify with age, particularly when your dog suffers from periodontitis. Periodontitis appears with tartar on the teeth, then if nothing is done to remove it, gingivitis develops, and finally the teeth become loose and leave the oral cavity. Simple solutions for your animal's mouth (even if old age hasn't yet shown the tip of its muzzle):

Mirror, mirror, who has the shiniest coat

We'll finish with a somewhat lighter part about ageing. I'm not saying it isn't important, but appearance may not be the priority at this age. Yes, we are indeed talking about coat here. Indeed, it loses its splendour, becomes dull and is no longer as pleasant to the touch. The first option is well known, notably for women and men, it is based on brewer's yeast, in tablet form from the laboratory Beaphar. The second option is based on Omega 3 and 6 to help revitalise the skin and coat. It goes by the sweet name of Megaderm < 10 kg and Megaderm > 10 kg. Finally, the last option is called Pelage et Peau – Vetoform for the natural version.

Is that it? Is that all? Is that ageing?

This article is not exhaustive and does not cover all the mishaps that dogs and cats can experience as they age. Why?

Firstly, because we don't want you to interpret your four-legged friend's symptoms too readily, at the risk of feeding them medications or unsuitable solutions, which can have an equally harmful effect on the dog's metabolism. Yes, yes, we have indeed noticed your hypochondriac side.

The second reason is that we are not here to replace vets, who do an extremely good job. We keep repeating this, but do not self-medicate Rantanplan and Félix. Produits-veto.com offers you treatments recommended by these animal health professionals.

So for other problems such as hypothyroidism, hypertension, cognitive dysfunction, etc., see them :)