So, typically what we're going to have you guys do is consult with your veterinarian because there are many different types of pain medications out there, and not every one medication is going to be appropriate for the things that we're treating. So, you want to sit down with your veterinarian, have a good head-to-tail exam on your little pet there, and then they can identify exactly where the pain is, how severe it is, and what would a good plan treatment-wise moving forward.

Every time you bring your cat to the veterinarian for a well visit, we'll always look at their teeth and we grade them on a score of one to four, so we can follow the progress. One is the best they can be, four is the worst. So we'll always examine them, examine their teeth with an oral exam, and write a comment on there. So we'll follow that along as we go.

Well, that's the funny thing. They might seem healthy on the outside. When a veterinarian starts to examine them, however, and really gets out the otoscope and an ophthalmoscope and looks in the eye all the way back to the retina, and down the ears, opens up your cat's mouth, looks for dental tartar, dental disease, feels all the lymph nodes, puts on a stethoscope and listens for heart murmurs and arrhythmias, weighs your cat, you could be surprised that we could find and uncover some things that you didn't know just by looking at your cat.

Yes. Good question. When a cat is a kitten, there are going to be a series of developmental exams—usually starting at eight weeks, then 12 weeks, then 16 weeks. They often correspond with vaccines that need to be done at that time. Then as they grow into adults, we'll see them every single year. Sometimes when they're a senior, we may be following some blood work or some problem, and they might need that to be more frequent than once a year.

We recommend that adult cats have a wellness exam at least once every year. When they're older and they're senior cats, and maybe we're following a particular issue, they might need more than one examination or checkup in a year. But as a minimum, cats should get wellness exams once per year.