Is your cat displaying any of the 6 common illness symptoms below? Routine exams are vital to help ensure your feline friend has a long, healthy life. However, sometimes the most common reasons for veterinarian visits can be safely treated at home in the earliest stages, or even avoided altogether with a few inexpensive preventative measures. Here are our veterinarian's recommendations:

Urinary tract infections
Cats often present to the veterinary office due to a bladder infection or UTI. Nutritional supplements including UT Soft Chews and NaturVet Cranberry Relief may be helpful to support a healthy urinary tract.

Dental & gum problems
Dental disease often brings adult and senior cats to the veterinary clinic. Dental disease can result in gum inflammation/infection, tartar or even painful tooth loss. Adding Be Fresh Dental Care Solution to your cat's drinking water can help maintain healthy teeth and gums, killing bacteria that cause plaque and tartar buildup.

Vomiting
Vomiting may be caused by food allergies, hairballs, viruses, parasites or metabolic conditions. Of course, one of the leading causes of vomiting for cats is ingested hair from self-grooming. Hairball Plus can help reduce hairball-related vomiting. If vomiting persists or gets worse, a veterinary examination is recommended.

Diarrhea
Diarrhea may be caused by parasites, viral infections, food allergies or metabolic illnesses. Occasional bouts of diarrhea can often be helped or prevented with digestive enzymes and probiotics such as FortiFlora or NaturVet Digestive Enzymes Plus Probiotic. If diarrhea is persistent and/or bloody, bring your cat in for a veterinary exam immediately.

Skin allergies
Pet parents are often surprised to learn that flea bites are the number one cause of skin allergies in pets. Using Flea5X Plus for Cats for flea prevention can be the first step to help stop these bites that result in skin irritation, scratching and hair loss. Supplementing the diet with fatty acids can help.

Excessive shedding
Many pet parents rely on the FURminator to remove loose undercoat hair and reduce shedding. Feeding your cat natural food such as Nature's Variety Cat Food or Halo may help eliminate excessive shedding. Fatty acid supplements such as Be Well for Cats also can help improve skin health.