If your pet suffers from a phobia to the vet, don’t fret. You are not alone. Many pets without anxiety at home, can exhibit extreme panic and terror just seen only at veterinary visits. This can arise from one visit or multiple visits over time. The noise, stress pheromones from other animals, chemical smells and past traumatic experiences can all contribute to cause intense fear and reactions like freeze, flee or fight. It can also only take one vet visit to create this. Often, patients that seemed completely free of anxiety and doing well with puppy and kitten vaccination series, can develop a PTSD type trauma response from one elective surgery, at a formidable time in their life (adolescence). Pain can be contributing, as well as number of animals around them, and handling techniques.
Here are some tips:
Look for veterinarians that are ‘Fear Free Certified’. These veterinary clinics go out of their way to ensure that their handling skills minimize stress and fear, follow guidelines created by veterinary behaviourists to prevent panic reactions.
Ask your veterinarian how many other animals are having surgery that day.
If your pet is showing signs of anxiety at veterinary visits, ask your vet for ‘pre-vet visit drug protocols to help with stress at home, by giving a low level sedative 2 hours prior. The sedatives most commonly used are gabapentin and trazodone. These can often be combined. The goal with protocols is that your pet is not showing fear responses, even if that means they may be a bit wobbly for a few hours. These drugs are very safe, short acting and the long term risks of severe fear over time much more life and health altering!
Spray your kennel with Feliway spray pheromone (cats) or Adaptil pheromone (dogs).
If your pet is exhibiting confinement distress in their carrier, get used to a harness. Always purchase kennels that are much bigger than your pet. Kitties that struggle in small or cloth carriers can be completely fine in a small dog kennel by just increasing the size of the kennel. Feeding in the kennel one to weeks prior to the visit, and spraying it daily, will make the trip so much more pleasant, as they can just walk in.
Consider short drives that do not take them to the vet. Just starting your car, running it for a few minutes, then going home, a few times before you go can dramatically decrease the build up panic.
Book your appointments either for the first appointment of the day or the last, to minimize patients in the front area. If it is the last or in the middle time slot, call ahead to see how behind your vet is, how many people are waiting. Sometimes waiting in the car, allowing your pet freedom inside your vehicle, without the ignition on, is much more favorable than waiting in a busy waiting room on the ground. Also, NEVER place your cat carrier on the ground. This is the scariest area for a cat. Always keep it in your lap, or on top of a table, or even on a counter.
Consider finding a smaller practice that has less volume and noise. They still exist (visit Oak Bay Pet Clinic)
Take treats with you to the clinic, especially Temptations for kitties. Give many many many!!! Keep giving!!
Talk to your pet throughout the entire time with a gentle soothing voice. They hear and they do listen, even if it seems like they do not.
Lastly, if your pet has developed a severe phobia from a vet visit, do not be afraid to change vets, and know it may extend to develop other anxiety conditions at home. This may require the help of a veterinary behaviourist, so please visit kindheartvetbehaviour.com. You pet may actually need desensitizing exposure therapy and a daily anti-anxiety medication started.
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