Sure. We generally call mature dogs adult dogs. We tend to keep it simple and bulk them under seven, between three and seven years or two and seven years old. Now, again, it all depends on the size and breed of your dog. But a senior pet may be between seven to 10, or even in big dogs, between six and seven. And then you get to the geriatric pets who tend to have more issues like arthritis, are more fragile and slowing down, and who have different needs than your mature and senior pets.

So, nutritional needs will change as they age. Caloric intake or how much food they consume may also change because they're less active. Some senior dogs also need some medications or joint supplements to help with their joints as they age. And they need more regular doctor visits, just like people, as they age to prevent and catch things early if they are going to happen.

Generally we say between four to six months is a good time for a kitten - male or female - to get spayed or neutered. We tend to wait until six months in females, but males can be done as early as four months of age. One quick tip I want to give you guys as far as kitten care. The first thing we do is when we get the kittens and bring them home, we get a carrier. All cats should be brought to the veterinary clinic in a carrier because they can get scared and can jump and run away. What I recommend to people is don't put them in the carrier and bring them directly to the vet and then take them home, and that's the only time you use the carrier. Because they will hate going in the carrier and you will be fighting them the rest of their life to go in the carrier. So, what I recommend to people is when you get a kitten, put them in the carrier, give them food that they really want, leave the door open and let them go in and out, make it a happy place. Put them in, close it, walk around the house, walk outside and back in. Do that couple of times a week. That way when they're going in the carrier, they don't associate it with just going to the vet, getting shots and getting looked at, and your life as a pet owner will be much more pleasant...instead of having to come in with scratches on your arms for trying to squeeze them into that cat carrier.

So preventative care is a pillar of our clinic. This is part of our philosophy—strong, preventative care to just do that, prevent things from happening later in life...to prevent kittens from getting sick, prevent them from transmitting anything to the owner. So some preventative care is fecal testing or poop testing to check for any parasites. Because sometimes you can't see parasites that are worms on the stool. It can be eggs, and these can be zoonotic, or transmissible to people. We get them proper vaccinations to protect them from diseases that are common in cats. We administer blood tests to make sure they weren't born with that with a virus that sometimes some kitty cats can get. We check their heart, their lungs. So, regular veterinary appointments are going to be very important. Do not forget flea and tick control. Cats are very good at hiding fleas, as they groom often.