by Jamie Rider

Created on: April 13, 2008   Last Updated: June 15, 2008

Maintaining your pet's health in many ways parallels recommendations for a person to stay healthy. There are three legs to the stool of good health: diet, exercise, and medical care. Each of these applies just as critically to your pet's health as it does to your own.

Start with feeding a quality diet in appropriate amounts. We have all heard the old adage: You are what you eat. One of the most critical ingredients in keeping pets healthy is keeping them at ideal body weight. Obesity is an epidemic in America and it has crossed the species lines into our pets. For example, a recent study on dogs published in the British Journal of Nutrition, linked the 25% reduction to caloric intake from what a like body-weight at birth littermate ate when free-fed to a 1.8 year average extension of the dogs' lives. Additionally, annual x-rays indicated that on the "control" dogs those that were allowed to free-feed, hip arthritis appeared, on average, in year 6 of life while the dogs on a restricted diet averaged a hip arthritis diagnoses at the age of 12. As for defining a quality diet, they should have high-quality meat sources instead of "by-products" and either whole grains or be grain-free.

Exercise is also important both to the physical and mental well-being of your pet, and, in most cases, the owner mental health as well. A well-exercised dog tends to be less destructive and exhibit fewer behavior problems. The reason is two fold: they have gotten to work off excess energy and generally the exercise involves time with their person. Whether that exercise is a couple long walks, or a game of ball in the back yard, it is critical to your dog's mental and physical wellness. For cats, while you can't always take them for a walk, a playtime that encourages them to burn off both calories and energy can improve behavior and sometimes wear them out enough during the day to limit their nocturnal activities that might interrupt your own rest. My parents own a Bengal cat that refuses to each until he "kills" a bird-toy attached to a sting. He is so programmed to exercise (hunt) before eating that he literally refuses his meal if not exercised.

Finally, the last leg of the stool is medical and dental care. These go together hand in hand. If you have a young animal, start early with a well puppy or kitten visit within 72 hours of bringing them home. Make sure to follow standard vaccination protocols and have your pet into the vet annually for a check-up. During that checkup, have your

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