1. Aging and Veterinary Care of Cats, Dogs, and Horses through the Records of Three University Veterinary Hospitals
- Author
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Roberto Mantovani, Bruno Cozzi, Cristina Ballarin, and Ada Rota
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Veterinary medicine ,animal gerontology ,040301 veterinary sciences ,medicine.medical_treatment ,Population ,cat ,Animal-assisted therapy ,0403 veterinary science ,03 medical and health sciences ,Animal welfare ,medicine ,education ,Original Research ,education.field_of_study ,CATS ,General Veterinary ,business.industry ,Medical record ,aging ,Mean age ,animal life span, aging, animal gerontology, dog, cat, horse, animal hospital ,04 agricultural and veterinary sciences ,animal hospital ,horse ,Northern italy ,030104 developmental biology ,animal life span ,dog ,HUBzero ,Veterinary Science ,business - Abstract
The present article examines over 63,000 medical records belonging to the Veterinary Hospitals of the Universities of Bologna, Torino, and Padova, all in Northern Italy, and relative to dogs (approximately 50,000), cats (approximately 12,000), and companion horses (slightly less than 1,000). The animals of the three species were divided into age classes and categorized per sex into males, females, and neutered individuals. The mean age at visit and the effects of age classes and category (analyzed via ANOVA) are presented and discussed. The data indicate that many animals are presented to the hospitals either in the early phases of their life (presumably for vaccination and, in cats and dogs, gonadectomy) or in the advanced age (over 10 years in dogs, over 15 years in cats, and over 17 years in horses). The records of very old individuals of the three species are also reported. On the whole, the results suggest that a growing population of mature to old domestic carnivores or companion horses reaches ages that were considered exceptional only a few years ago. The data also testify an evolution in the animal–owner relationship and a renewed respect for the value of life in companion domestic mammals. more...
- Published
- 2017
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