Office Visit

Just in case you were wondering what exactly goes on during a normal office visit? These are in general terms, every doctor has their own way and routine to go by, but generally they all will do the same thing. First when you come in they like to get a weight, just like in human medicine. Have they lost or gained a significant amount of weight. Both can be signs of things to look at. When they walk into  the room they will give the dog or cat a quick once over visibly, you probably don't even know that goes on. Is the dog or cat in good physical condition, is it overweight, underweight, skin issues, wounds, favoring a leg or foot and body language. You can tell alot just by observing the animal. Once they are on the "table" the doctor will go from head to tail. They start with the eyes, are they clear and bright, pupils even  and are they the same size. Does one eye seem to protrude out farther than the other.  Then they move to the nose, any discharge. They open the mouth to see the gums, color .any growths or problems. Then the teeth, again how bad is the tarter, any issues with a tooth, broken or chipped. They look down the throat for any problems there. Then its on to the lymph nodes in the neck and chest area, are they swollen or painful to the touch. The doctor will usually feel all over the dog while they are doing the above to look for any small bumps or tender areas that may need attention. They will listen to the heart and lungs, look at their feet and usually end up at the rear area. They will look for any signs of irration or redness that may indicate the need for further evaluation.  The assistant or technician should have already taken a fecal sample to look for intestinal parasites and a small blood sample to check for heartworms. They should finish up with asking if there has been any changes in their behavior or if you  have had any  problems or is there any questions you would like to ask.
 As the animal gets older the need for blood work to give the doctor a more complete picture of the animals health is important. There are  many problems that if found early can be treated, prevented or maintained. Its hard to know what is going on with an animal just by looking at them physically, you need to get a better idea by having the values of their kidney and liver functions, electrolytes and blood work up. Hopefully everything will be within normal limits and all the doctor will have is a good base line to compare future blood work too if the animal becomes sick.