Do's and Don'ts For Senior Pets

Healthy Aging For Dogs and Cats

Coat not as shiny? Joints creaking? Less energy? No, not talking about us older humans, but we can relate. If your dog or cat is entering those golden years over 7 or 8 years old, you may want to give consideration for these points about what you can do to ensure they are getting proper nutrition and dealing with some common ailments that dogs and cats face as they age.

Senior pets (over age 8) face many of the same issues that we do; compromised digestion, wear and tear on the joints, poor quality of skin and coat. From a nutritional standpoint, diet and nutrition is important to make sure that your pet doesn’t put on weight, which can exacerbate these issues, so controlling food portions and food types are critical. Additionally supplementation may be in order. Below is a checklist on the Do’s and Don’ts to help your pet with healthy aging.

DO If Your Pet is Over 8 Years Old

• Diet
  Keep your pet at a good weight; Control portions, Spit feedings over 2x per day. Do eliminate grains.
• Exercise
  Regular, Moderate exercise appropriate to your pet’s age.
• Sleeping/Resting Area
  Provide a comfortable and cool sleeping area.
• Oral Hygiene
  Take care of your pet’s mouth; especially for dogs either brushing or toys.
• Mental Stimulation
  Keep your pets occupied mentally (see toys), or take them with you when you can on chores, trips etc.
• Supplement Diet
  Do provide additional nutritional support for joint and digestive health.

DON'T If Your Pet is Over 8 Years Old

• Diet
  Don’t let your pet become overweight, May want to eliminate grains, don’t feed table scraps
• Exercise
  Don’t let your animal be sedentary, don’t overdue exercise if your pet has joint problems
• Sleeping/Resting Area
  Don’t keep your pet outside in harsh weather or when there are environmental issues or pollutants that could cause allergies or poor health.
• Mental Stimulation
  Don’t ignore your pet as they age. They need care and attention, regular check ups, activity and stimulation.
• Diet and Nutrition
  Don’t leave your pets nutritional to chance. Just like us humans as we age we need to be dialed in on our diet and supplements

Consider a well-balanced vitamin and mineral supplement for your older dogs and cats. Senior pets often need support for joints, digestion and for coat quality. Our Spectrin™ line of pet multivitamins provide all the necessary ingredients to address these age-related challenges to help dogs and cats stay vibrant and full of energy:

1. Key vitamins and minerals for energy and proper nutritional status
2. Joint support ingredients
3. Essential fatty acids for coat (and also for joint health)

Spectrin™ full spectrum vitamin, antioxidant and mineral is as simple way to fill the nutritional gaps that older animals can face and really increase their overall well-being. If your pet is over 8 years of age, please follow the guidelines in our Do and Don’t list for Senior Pets, and give consideration to adding Spectrin™ to their daily diet.