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Routine Blood Work: The Best Defense is a Good Offense
Some people may be quick to say no when we suggest checking blood work on their pet. After all, their companion is young, healthy, and couldn’t possibly have anything wrong with him or her. However, there are some very good reasons to run routine blood work on seemingly healthy pets.
Establishing a Baseline
Our laboratory tests come with “normal” values, and when a pet’s numbers fall outside this range, we are alerted to the possibility of a health concern. This helps us identify many pets with conditions affecting the major organs.
However, this system isn’t foolproof. The normal ranges that we know and love are simply an average of a pool of animals that were tested. This means that while the vast majority of pets who are healthy fall into this range, not all of them will.
The best “normal” range we can identify for your pet is his or her individual average. By running blood tests early in your pet’s life, we can better learn what is truly normal for your pet.
This allows us to identify potential issues earlier and diagnose your pet before the numbers are abnormal. This has great advantages in both the treatment and cure of many diseases.
Routine Blood Work Identifies Problems Early
Instinctually, animals are very good at hiding signs of illness. Survival of the fittest is a strong motivator and leads pets to disguise any discomfort they may be experiencing. Unfortunately, simple observation is not always the best indicator of your pet’s health.
By running routine blood work, we increase our chances of diagnosing disease or illness at an earlier stage. Again, this is extremely valuable because we are most successful at treating problems when we catch them in the beginning. Early diagnosis leads to the best outcome for your pet.
Together, our goal is to keep your pet as healthy as possible. That’s why allowing your pet to receive routine blood work may be worth considering. Knowing what is normal for your pet and screening for early signs of trouble is our best weapon in the fight to keep your pet healthy.