Veterinary animal care in 2016 was variable by pet species and other factors, with 82.8 percent of dog-owning households and 54.3 percent of cat-owning households making at least one visit to the pet clinic. Total spending on veterinary care for all types of pets was $27.8 billion during 2016.
Cats should visit the vet at least once a year to get their vaccinations. While indoor cats don't need as many vaccinations as ones that live primarily or partially outside, they do need what are considered "core" vaccines necessary for all cats. According to VetMed the core feline vaccines are those for feline herpesvirus 1 (FHV1), feline calicivirus (FCV), feline panleukopenia virus (FPV), feline leukemia virus (FeLV - kittens) and rabies.
Among cat-owning households that visited veterinarians 89.1 percent had a "regular veterinarian." The top two reasons that these households go to their regular veterinarian were for knowledgeable, high-quality care and because their regular veterinarian is kind and compassionate and handles dogs or cats well.
Cat ownership is less defined than dog ownership, said Dr. Apryl Steele, 2019 president of the American Association of Feline Practitioners and CEO of the Dumb Friends League in Denver. "People who feed community cats and even provide a safe shelter for them often do not consider themselves the owner of the cat. However, if the cat is injured, they may be the person who would bring the cat to the veterinarian," she said.
According to the AVMA Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook, "Visits to the veterinarian per pet per year have remained fairly stable for a decade or longer: 1.5 times per dog, 0.7 times per cat, 0.1 times per bird and 0.7 times per horse." The figure was 0.02 visits per specialty or exotic pet in 2016.
