It can be a battle to get your pet to the vet. Since spring often means time for annual vet visits to protect our pals from the upcoming tick and flea season, we thought this would be a good time to remind our pet parents how to make the trip less stressful.

Increase crate comfort.
Pet parents can make the crated car ride to the veterinarian less stressful by allowing their pet to become familiar and comfortable around the crate a week prior to the scheduled vet visit. Keep the crate out for your pet to investigate or place him in the crate for short periods of time. This will condition him to feel more at ease and will reduce his reluctance to enter and exit it on his own.

Prepare for the car ride.
Preparing in advance is the best way to ensure the ride to the veterinarian office goes smoothly. Pets may become carsick as a result of motion sickness or stress caused by being removed from their home environment. To decrease the likelihood of your pet becoming anxious or ill while traveling, review our recent blog on traveling with pets.

Keep calm in the waiting room.
With all those unfamiliar smells and noises, some pets may find it stressful to be in the waiting room, which is why it’s a good idea to keep them crated if that is how they traveled. Provide plenty of attention and praise to help them remain calm and distract them from their surroundings. To keep pets safe from other animals in the waiting room, pet parents should always make sure their dog is on a leash.

Create comfort during the exam.
Once in the exam room, pets will likely be placed on a table to be assessed by the veterinarian. The combination of being in a foreign environment, isolated up on a table and touched by an unknown person can cause extreme levels of stress in dogs and cats. It is important to comfort your pet with petting and verbal praise to help alleviate any stress. Having a few treats on hand will also help your pet remain calm and forget about his current surroundings.

Keep an eye out for stress after the visit.
Many pets may continue to show signs of stress in the hours after a vet visit. If they seem anxious and whine excessively, be sure to act normal and do not to provide excessive attention as this will only reinforce their stress. If your pet is having a difficult time calming down several hours after the vet visit, provide him with plenty of exercise such as a trip to the dog park, his favorite special treat or a new fun toy. It is also important to stay home with your pet for several hours following a vet visit to help reassure him that life has returned to normal.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

This entry was posted on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 12:03 pm and is filed under Pet Care. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.