October is a natural time to pause and check in on your animal companion’s health. Cooler weather changes routines, holiday travel may be approaching, and subtle symptoms can become easier to notice when your pet’s activity level changes.
For National Pet Wellness Month, consider making preventive testing part of your fall routine.
For most dogs and cats age 7 and older, a senior wellness check should include a blood panel, urinalysis, fecal testing, and a discussion about early cancer screening: along with a physical examination by your veterinarian.
Senior pets do not always show obvious signs of illness. Routine veterinary diagnostics can identify changes before your dog or cat appears seriously unwell. When testing is performed at home, it may also be a calmer option for pets who become anxious during clinic visits.
When is a dog or cat considered a senior pet?
Age 7 is a useful general guideline, but aging varies by species, breed, and body size.
- Many cats are considered senior at approximately 7 years old.
- Small and medium dogs often enter their senior years around age 7.
- Large- and giant-breed dogs may show age-related changes earlier, sometimes around 5 or 6.
- A healthy-looking senior pet can still have early kidney, liver, thyroid, metabolic, or cancer-related changes.
Senior wellness is not about assuming that something is wrong. It is about creating a baseline and watching for meaningful changes over time. Your veterinarian can recommend a testing schedule based on your pet’s age, breed, medical history, medications, and lifestyle.
The American Animal Hospital Association senior care guidelines generally support more frequent examinations and diagnostic testing for older pets, often every six months.
What should the four-test senior checkup include?
The ideal plan is individualized, but these four categories provide a practical starting point for a fall wellness review.
1. What can a senior blood panel reveal?
A blood panel usually combines a complete blood count, or CBC, with a chemistry panel.
A CBC measures red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. These values can provide clues about:
- Anemia, which means a lower-than-normal red blood cell level
- Infection or inflammation
- Immune system activity
- Bleeding or clotting concerns
- Some blood, bone marrow, or cancer-related abnormalities
A chemistry panel evaluates organ function and body chemistry. Depending on the panel, it may include information about:
- Kidney markers such as BUN and creatinine
- Liver enzymes such as ALT
- Blood glucose
- Proteins
- Calcium and other minerals
- Sodium, potassium, and other electrolytes
- Pancreatic or metabolic changes
Creatinine is a waste product filtered by the kidneys. When kidney function declines, creatinine may increase. However, bloodwork should be interpreted alongside urinalysis, your pet’s hydration status, medical history, and previous results.
For cats, thyroid testing is especially important. A total T4 test measures a thyroid hormone and can help screen for hyperthyroidism, a common condition in older cats. In dogs, thyroid testing may help evaluate suspected hypothyroidism or unexplained changes in energy, weight, skin, or coat.
Affordable Pet Labs’ Total Health Assessment for dogs includes a CBC, Chemistry 26 panel, T4 thyroid testing, and heartworm testing. The feline Total Health Assessment includes a CBC, Chemistry 27 panel, and T4 testing.
2. Why is urinalysis important for senior pets?
Bloodwork and urinalysis answer different questions. A blood panel can suggest that the kidneys are under strain. A urinalysis shows how the kidneys are concentrating urine and whether other urinary abnormalities are present.
A complete urinalysis may evaluate:
- Urine concentration
- Protein
- Blood
- Glucose
- Ketones
- Bilirubin
- pH
- Cells
- Crystals
- Bacteria or other microscopic findings
This makes urinalysis an important part of evaluating kidney disease in dogs and cats. It can also provide clues about urinary tract inflammation, infection, diabetes, stones, dehydration, and other conditions.
Common kidney disease symptoms in dogs and cats may include:
- Increased thirst
- Increased urination
- Larger or more frequent urine clumps
- Weight loss
- Reduced appetite
- Vomiting or nausea
- Low energy
- Poor coat quality
- Bad breath in more advanced cases
These symptoms are not specific to kidney disease. Diabetes, thyroid disease, infection, liver disease, and medication effects can cause similar changes. That is why testing matters.
A senior pet with no visible symptoms may still benefit from routine urinalysis. Early changes can be subtle, and a comparison with previous results can help your veterinarian identify a trend.
Affordable Pet Labs offers complete urinalysis testing for dogs and complete urinalysis testing for cats, subject to product availability and collection requirements.
3. Why should senior pets receive fecal testing?
Fecal testing looks for intestinal parasites, including worms and protozoa. Parasites may be more likely in pets who visit dog parks, spend time outdoors, live with other animals, or have contact with contaminated soil or water.
Some infected pets show no obvious signs. Others may develop:
- Soft stool or diarrhea
- Vomiting
- Weight loss
- A swollen abdomen
- Poor appetite
- Scooting
- Dull coat
- Coughing from certain parasite life cycles
Older pets may have less physiologic reserve, meaning an illness can affect them more quickly or severely. Testing a stool sample can help your veterinarian decide whether treatment is needed.
A fecal test is also useful when your pet’s stool changes, even if the change seems minor. Do not assume that every digestive problem is simply “getting older.”
For convenient collection, you can explore Affordable Pet Labs’ dog and cat diagnostic test collections or the digestive health testing collection.
4. What does early cancer screening actually mean?
There is no single test that can rule out every type of cancer in a dog or cat. Early cancer screening is better understood as looking for abnormalities that may require additional evaluation.
A senior wellness plan may include:
- A careful physical examination
- CBC and chemistry results
- Urinalysis
- Monitoring of weight and appetite
- Evaluation of new lumps or enlarged lymph nodes
- Imaging, such as X-rays or ultrasound, when indicated
- A cancer screening test when recommended for your pet
Routine bloodwork may show anemia, abnormal white blood cells, organ changes, or protein abnormalities. Urinalysis may identify blood or other changes that need follow-up. These results do not prove that cancer is present. They help your veterinarian decide whether additional tests are appropriate.
Contact your veterinarian promptly if you notice:
- A new lump or bump
- A lump that changes in size or texture
- Unexplained weight loss
- Persistent vomiting or diarrhea
- Decreased appetite
- A non-healing sore
- New coughing or breathing changes
- Reduced stamina
- Sudden behavior changes
Affordable Pet Labs provides early cancer detection blood testing for dogs and a home-visit early cancer detection blood test for cats. Discuss whether this type of screening is appropriate for your pet and how results should be interpreted with your veterinarian.
Could at-home testing make senior wellness easier?
Some senior pets become distressed by car rides, unfamiliar smells, loud noises, or restraint. Cats may hide for hours after a clinic visit. An anxious dog may be difficult to examine safely.
At-home testing can reduce some of those stressors. Depending on the service, you may be able to:
- Collect urine or fecal samples in a familiar environment.
- Schedule a licensed technician for an in-home blood draw.
- Avoid waiting-room exposure.
- Keep your pet’s routine more comfortable.
- Receive results to review with your veterinarian.
Affordable Pet Labs’ home-visit services bring trained professionals to your home for sample collection in participating areas. The company’s dog and cat health assessments describe results being available within approximately two to three business days, although timing can vary.
At-home diagnostics do not replace a physical examination, emergency care, or veterinary treatment. They are one tool that can make preventive monitoring more accessible.
How often should you test a senior dog or cat?
Many veterinarians recommend senior wellness examinations every six months. Testing frequency may range from every six to twelve months depending on your pet’s health.
Your veterinarian may recommend testing more often if your pet:
- Has kidney, liver, thyroid, or heart disease
- Takes long-term medication
- Has had abnormal previous results
- Has unexplained weight or appetite changes
- Has a history of cancer
- Is undergoing treatment
- Belongs to a higher-risk breed
- Has symptoms between routine visits
Keep copies of your pet’s reports. Trends are often more useful than one isolated result. A gradual increase in creatinine, a shift in urine concentration, or a change in blood cell counts may be important even when each individual result appears only mildly abnormal.
What is the kindest fall wellness plan for your pet?
Start with a conversation with your veterinarian. Ask which blood panel, urinalysis, fecal test, thyroid screening, blood pressure check, or cancer screening is appropriate for your pet’s age and medical history.
Then consider a practical four-part plan:
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Blood panel: Check blood cells, organ function, electrolytes, and selected hormones.
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Urinalysis: Look for early urinary and kidney-related changes.
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Fecal testing: Screen for intestinal parasites.
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Early cancer screening: Identify abnormalities that may warrant further investigation.
Preventive care is not about expecting bad news. It is about giving your veterinarian more information while your pet is still feeling well. This fall, a calm and timely wellness check may give you both something valuable: a clearer picture of your companion’s health and more time to act if a problem appears.
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