by Joan Lowell Smith
Friday July 18, 2008, 6:27 PM
Ever wondered what prompts pet owners to make an appointment with the veterinarian? What better source for answers than the largest and oldest pet health insurance company in the country: Veterinary Pet Insurance in Brea, Calif., which provided a Top 10 list of reasons for owners to plop their pooches and kitties in the car for a trip to the vet.
CANINE
1.Ear infection
2. Skin allergy
3. Pyoderma/hot spots
4. Gastritis/vomiting
5. Enteritis/diarrhea
6. Urinary tract infection
7. Benign skin tumor
8. Eye inflammation
9. Osteoarthritis
10. Hypothyroidism
FELINE
1. Urinary tract infection
2. Gastritis/vomiting
3. Chronic renal failure
4. Enteritis/diarrhea
5. Diabetes mellitus
6. Skin allergy
7. Colitis/constipation
8. Ear infection
9. Respiratory infection
10. Hyperthyroidism
Carol McConnell, vice president and chief medical officer for VPI, acknowledged that pet owners may be surprised by what's not on the list. "Falling just short of the Top 10 are major injuries -- broken bones, poisoning, trauma from car accidents or animal attacks," she said.
McConnell added that hypothyroidism in dogs rose from No. 11 in 2006 to No. 10 last year, jumping sprains to No. 13, and then explained that hypothyroidism occurs when the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormone, which is responsible for regulating metabolism. Dogs suffering from that malady appear lethargic and gain weight, despite a strict diet and exercise.
Feline enteritis leaped from No. 16 in 2006 to No. 4 in 2007. One-third of all common conditions are often related to or exacerbated by diet changes or "dietary indiscretions" -- a nice way of saying the owner is overfeeding or giving the wrong foods to kitty.
The good news is that the pet food recall has had a positive effect on dietary choices. "This past year," McConnell said, "our numbers indicate that pet owners took gastrointestinal and dietary difficulties more seriously."
Many claims are associated with age-related changes, such as osteoarthritis and renal (kidney) failure, but she said any of the Top 10 can occur at any age. As the economy squeezes consumer's discretionary income and many pet owners are recalculating budgets, VPI averaged claims state by state on non-routine veterinary care in 2007: California's $500 per pet topped the list. New Jersey's average was $437 and the lowest per pet non-routine medical expenses were Mississippi's at $207. For more data on VPI, call (800) USA-PETS or visit petinsurance.com.
Voynick's views
We checked with Brian Voynick, a veterinarian often quoted in this column. Owner of American Animal Hospital in Randolph and host for 11 years of "Pet Stop" on News 12 New Jersey, Voynick agrees with the lists.
"Sure," he said. "Those have been the reasons for the past 26 years I've been practicing, but it's not that complicated. Many of the items are related to the skin. For example, ears are an extension of the skin. Most patients we see have either skin problems or gastrointestinal problems."
"With cats, we're in the dark ages when it comes to proper nutrition," Voynick said. "We should be preventing most of those conditions. We've come a long way with dog diets, but we're pitifully deficient when it comes to cat nutrition." When he attends continuing education meetings, Voynick said the most crowded seminars are always those dealing with skin disease and GI problems.
He also explained hyperthyroidism in cats as "a benign tumor on the thyroid gland, which you can feel -- about the size of a pencil eraser -- accompanied by excessive appetite, weight loss and a racing heart that can hit 220 beats per minute."
At a conference in London a couple of years ago, a world-renowned endocrinologist named Mark Peterson tackled cat diets. "He showed us the perfect diet for a cat by displaying a giant cartoon of mice being poured from a cereal box," Voynick said. "Think of it. Mice are vegetarians, so the cat is getting veggies, too."
Contact Joan Lowell Smith at P.O. Box 302, Garwood,N.J. 07027 or e-mail her at jsmith@starledger.com.
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