Preventive examinations

You have likely heard many times how important systematic preventive examinations are for our own health and early disease diagnosis, often helping to discover an illness in time to successfully overcome it. But do you follow the same philosophy when it comes to your pet? Ask yourself: when was the last time you brought your pet to the veterinarian for a routine check-up? From experience, we know that animals are most often brought in only when a disease has already advanced or when acute, often difficult-to-treat symptoms are present. The reason for this is untimely or unsystematic prevention—or, in most cases, a total lack of it.

Today, we want to begin discussing one of the most vital aspects of veterinary medicine: preventive health screenings. This time, we will focus on UPC and SDMA tests, which help detect early-stage kidney failure in your pet.

UPC (Urine Protein-to-Creatinine Ratio) test: This measures how much protein is being lost through the kidneys into the urine and whether that specific amount poses a risk to the animal’s health.

SDMA (Symmetric Dimethylarginine) test: This reflects the level of kidney filtration and indicates whether it poses a threat to the animal’s life, often showing changes even while urea and creatinine levels in the blood still appear normal.

Simply put, even with slight changes in these markers, we can already suspect a kidney problem and begin treatment very early. This is of critical importance for the success of the treatment and the pet’s future quality of life.

From years of practice, we know that certain breeds have a higher predisposition to kidney failure:

Cats: Persian, Abyssinian, Siamese, Russian Blue, Maine Coon, and Burmese.

Dogs: Bernese Mountain Dogs, Bull Terriers, Shar-Peis, Boxers, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Labrador Retrievers, and West Highland White Terriers.

For owners of these breeds, we recommend preventive UPC and SDMA testing at the following life stages:
4–6 months, 1–2 years, 2–5 years, 6–10 years, and for seniors.

At “Siaurio Šnauceris” veterinary clinics, we possess all the modern capabilities for early disease diagnosis. All that is needed is the habit of preventive checking, as these examinations are the path to a healthy and long life for your beloved pet.