Patton Veterinary Hospital Aims for Less Scary Visits for Your Pet

Fear-Free Visits to the Vet

We know many pets do not enjoy visiting our veterinary office.  Some are already shy or not well socialized, some have a bad experience at their first visit because they are sick or painful and they then remember that experience whenever they come in, sometimes, we don’t know the cause. 

Patton Veterinary Hospital has been trying to take measures to provide “fear-free” visits to the vet.  Of course, not every pet will love coming to see us, but here are some of the things we do to try to make it a little easier on your pet for what can be a stressful time.

For our feline patients, we have a separate area in the building for cats only.  Reducing sounds and smells of other animals can reduce anxiety in cats.  We also have a pheromone spray called Feliway shown to reduce fear and anxiety in many cats.  A few other things we try to do are to remove the carrier top rather than dump your cat out the front of the carrier onto the table.  It takes a little longer, and some carriers are easier to undo than others, but we feel it is a little less stressful for you cat.  We also try to use towels to give the cat a soft surface and a sense of security and we try to limit the time your cat is out of the exam room away from you.

For dogs, we also have a pheromone product called Adaptil that we might spray on a bandana for your dog in the waiting room.  If your dog seems very nervous, we may initially avoid eye contact and physical contact as staring at the dog or trying to touch him if he is very nervous may actually be more threatening.  Allowing him to calm down and acclimate to the room a bit first may allow for a calmer visit.  We never want to crowd, corner or overwhelm a nervous dog.  For smaller dogs, a non-slip yoga mat on the table makes it a little easier to stand on.  We also try to move slowly and use a quiet voice when handling your pet and offering treats often goes a long way toward making it a pleasant experience!

What about taking a pet’s temperature?  This causes fear and anxiety for many pets, so, unless your pet is ill, we may skip taking his or her temperature as it is more likely to cause undue stress in a healthy pet. 

Of course, safety must come first and we do not want our staff or your pet to be injured.  If a pet tries to bite, we may need to use a muzzle or other form of restraint, but we will still try to handle your pet as slowly and gently as possible. 

The goal of all visits is to perform a full exam on your pet and to try to do so with as little fear and discomfort as possible.  Let’s all work together to make veterinary visits less scary!

This blog brought to you by the Patton Veterinary Hospital serving Red Lion, York and the surrounding areas.