If you have been moseying around any pet-related websites lately you may have seen this symbol more and more and wondered what exactly it stands for.
There is a new approach to handling veterinary patients that helps take care of a pets emotional well being, as well as they physical well being. Stress and anxiety, or white coat syndrome as we call it for people, exists with pets; especially cats. Stress and anxiety, just as in humans, can affect a pets health and can make treating those patients more difficult.
So what can we do?
The first thing is to recognize how a our pets react on their trips into the vet. Is it the walk into the hospital that is a stress or does it start before that? Is it the car ride or maybe even something at home that tells them what is about to happen.
Maybe your pet would benefit from a pre-visit sedation or supplements that you would give at home to help take the edge off and keep your pet happy and relaxed. Maybe it’s just a matter of waiting in the car rather than the waiting room? Maybe your pet prefers a non-slip floor?
Maybe pheromones might help relax your pet. In our exam rooms we use pheromones. We try to allow our patients time to explore the room and to give the pheromones time to help a pet relax a bit before anything physical happens.
Maybe your pet is food motivated. Bringing your pet to the vet hungry can make everything they experience positive with super yummy treats. This can make a trip to the veterinarian a good thing and will help keep their stress levels low.
Going to the vet doesn’t have to be stressful. We are proud to have Fear Free Certified Professionals on our team that are dedicated to caring for your pet’s emotional well-being as well as his or her physical well-being.
Interested in learning more about Fear Free? Visit fearfreepets.com