Balanced nutrition
Pay attention to what you feed your senior dog. It is best if his diet is rich in protein and contains less fat, as the animal uses less energy as he ages. To keep your dog from gaining weight, you need to reduce his calorie intake. The food should contain enough minerals and vitamins. If you use ready-made foods, it is best to choose a complete and balanced diet for older dogs. It will usually include everything your pet needs to stay healthy.
If you prefer natural foods, after consulting your veterinarian, you can give your pet extra vitamin complexes. But it’s not just the right food that has an impact on your dog’s health. It’s important to keep his food rationed, make sure he doesn’t overeat and drink enough.
Regular health checks
Even if your dog looks perfectly healthy on the outside, you should take him to the vet once a year for a routine checkup. If your dog is more than 10 years old, such a checkup is necessary at least twice a year. Prevention will be able to prevent the development of the disease and take care of the pet’s health in time.
With regular prevention, the veterinarian will be able to identify potential problems and note any changes in the dog’s health. Any disease is easier to treat in its initial stages.
Physical activity
It’s a mistake to think that an older dog doesn’t need exercise. Yes, such a dog needs more rest and sleeps more often and longer. But just like a young dog, an older dog needs physical activity. If you don’t exercise your pet and encourage your dog to move, he will quickly fade away on the lie down. Don’t cancel walks with an older dog. You can reduce the amount of time you spend outside and change the route of the walk, but you don’t have to give it up.
Mindfulness
Training is an integral part of raising a dog. This issue is relevant for both puppies and adult dogs. If your pet’s brain keeps working, it will help him live longer. Buy your pet new toys, go for walks, learn new commands, or repeat old ones.
Most importantly, don’t give up any of the activities he used to do. All this will help keep his mind and body alert. Moreover, training together helps develop an emotional connection between dog and owner, and promotes the physical and mental development of an older pet.
Positive emotions and attention
Nothing encourages a dog like the attention and affection of a beloved owner. Only a truly loved dog will be happy and full of energy until his old age. Pay attention to your dog: give him your affection and care. Positive emotions have an impact on longevity. If your dog loves to play ball, don’t turn him down, even if he’s an adult. Watch him and see what makes him happy. Try to create such pleasant situations for your dog more often.
Stress is not just a bad mood, it is a serious psychophysiological process that can lead to behavioral disorders and health problems.
Neither humans nor animals experience stress of their own volition. But while humans can solve the problem, for example, by analyzing the situation in their favor or by talking to their loved ones, animals are helpless in this respect. And there are many stress factors for them: transportation, loud music, fireworks, gunshots, yelling and cursing, thunder, children and guests, other animals, vets, and even the emotional state of the owner.
Hamsters
Many people wonder why hamsters live so short, and how to increase their lifespan. This small animal is the least lucky, their life span is no more than three years.
In order for the hamster to fully live its short life, its health should be protected. It is a very sickly animal, any allergy or common cold can greatly undermine the health of the animal
How to prolong the hamster’s short life
A few points to follow to ensure a carefree life for the animal.
– Nutrition. It is known that good nutrition improves health. The food should consist of solid varieties of food which one can buy at the pet store. You can also buy vitamins at the pet store to improve digestion. Fresh fruits and vegetables should be a must. The 2GIS website can help you find a pet store near you.
In order that the hamster does not gnaw the cage umu put a wooden bar, to sharpen the teeth. It is necessary to remember about fresh water. The pet’s diet must include grass, it can be lettuce, plantain, dandelion, nettle. Even if the animal will not eat grass, he will make a nest. Do not give the hamster citrus fruits, as well as onions and potatoes.
– Comfortable cage. Since this animal is constantly moving, the cage should be spacious. Frequent cleaning of the cage keeps the animal healthy and destroys odor. If the cage is not cleaned every day, the bacteria appear and cause illness in the animal.
– Activity for the pet. The animal should be provided with physical activity. Hamster is very active animal, and if the pet is sedentary, its life is cut in half.
It is obligatory to have a running wheel in the house. Some hamsters really like to swing on a string attached to the ceiling of the cage. In the wild, these animals travel a long distance every day in search of food, so the wheel is necessary to keep the hamster in check.
– Cleaning. The hair of hamsters needs regular cleaning, then the animal will look neat. To take care of the coat, you need to buy a special powder, which will also help to get rid of fleas in the pet.
– Avoid direct sunlight, as hamster may overheat, and draughts should be avoided.
Hamsters never get bored if they are alone, since the animal feels its territory well. Do not use absorbent cotton or rags, which can be easily unraveled into threads as a filler, hamster may get tangled in their fibers, it is better to use only special filler.
Hamsters are very shy, and the slightest stress greatly shortens their life. You should not wash hamsters in water unnecessarily. It is not only stressful, but there is a risk of catching a cold. If there seems to be something unusual in the behavior and behavior of your pet, take him to the vet. The list of veterinary clinics in Kharkov can be found on the map at this link and do not hesitate to consult him. Remember: hamsters’ metabolism processes are very fast and the disease may develop rapidly. Sometimes you only have a few hours to spare!
Сat
Don’t let them go out on their own. There are many dangers outdoors – among them parasites, cars, other animals and people who can cause harm. In addition, it is easy to get lost outdoors. You should not let your cat walk alone, even from a nice cottage in the country, surrounded by meadows and woods. The street is a great stressor that negatively affects health;
Castrate/sterilize the cat. In this case, life will be prolonged for 2-3 years, as the risk of hormonal diseases will be reduced. In addition, the sex hunt period, and even more so, pregnancy and childbirth are also a source of stress;
Encourage the cat to play actively. For this purpose, it is better to buy toys and spend more time with your pet. Walking on a harness is also useful. If the cat spends all day on the couch and does not move much, it will lead to obesity and then to disease;
Choose a correct diet and provide a balanced diet. It is not desirable to feed a cat from its own table – such food is very different from the species. A quality dry food chosen together with the veterinarian will be optimal, but even then we must make sure that the cat will not overeat;
Monitor the health of the animal, timely examination and treatment. There are signs that should alert the owner, such as discharge from the eyes and nose, lethargy, refusal to eat and problems with toileting. However, even if there are no symptoms, the cat should be seen by a veterinarian at least once a year as part of preventive care and vaccinations, if required. The absence of chronic and acute pathologies is a sure step to a long life;
And, of course, it is important to show love and care for your cat. A cat that is left without attention, affection and play begins to experience anxiety, which is fraught with neuroses leading to behavioral disorders and disease. Noise and frightening surroundings can lead to heart problems, and poor nutrition can disrupt the gastrointestinal tract. A cat that does not sleep well and has no shelter can become aggressive. Punishment and yelling cause the cat to shut down.