Do your pets dislike coming to the veterinarian’s office? Do you dread bringing them in for routine examinations and vaccinations? Do you put off veterinary visits because they are so difficult to handle? Would you like to prevent your NEXT pet from developing this level of fear and stress?
Guess what, you can teach your pets to enjoy coming to the veterinarian, especially if you start when they are puppies and kittens!!! As soon as you add a new puppy or kitten to your household, you should make an appointment for a checkup, even if they are not due for any vaccinations yet. This visit is a great way of socializing your newest addition and starting the process of teaching them that veterinarians are not scary!
When you bring your new puppy or kitten in for their first wellness visit, bring them in hungry! Do not feed them for a few hours before their appointment. Bring plenty of their favorite treats or some canned food with you when you come for your appointment. It needs to be something that is soft, easy to eat quickly, and something they do not get at home on a regular basis.
Cheese, peanut butter, hot dogs, liverwurst, soft chewy treats, or canned food all work well for puppies. Cheese, meat flavored baby food, canned cat food, cat treats, vanilla yogurt, or canned tuna or salmon work well for kittens.
If you puppy is toy motivated, bring their favorite toy with them. It should be something that they can tug and chew on. Balls do not work well, unless they are on a rope as it’s too easy for them to roll away.
We will use these treat items during the examination, especially when they are receiving vaccinations. It’s important whatever treats you bring are something that you know, without a doubt, that your puppy or kitten REALLY likes!!! Eating goodies, especially if they are already hungry, will act as a distraction from the examination itself. It can be extremely helpful holding wiggly patients still without having to manhandle them. Most importantly, this will create a positive conditioned emotional response (+CER) associated with the veterinary office, the veterinarian, and the staff!
Every time you experience something, it generates some form of emotion. Some experiences generate negative emotions, such as fear, anger, or anxiety, while other experiences generate positive emotions, such as happiness. Most pets experience negative emotions during veterinary visits. They are already anxious when they arrive, strangers are handling them, sometimes rather forcefully, they are being poked and prodded, and then something painful happens. It’s no wonder that many pets become progressively more difficult to handle with each veterinary visit.
Our goal is to create a positive emotional response whenever your puppy or kitten comes to the veterinarian! We want to pair their visit with getting a special, tasty treat. We want to set up an environment that is comfortable, such as allowing them to explore the examination room or putting towels on the exam table. We want to use minimal restraint to examine them and give them their vaccinations. If we do this for each appointment for puppy or kitten check ups and vaccinations, we will have patients that look forward to coming to the veterinarian!!!
Between visits, you can continue to develop this positive conditioned emotional response. Bring your pet in for a social visit. Walk around outside and play with a tug toy. Sit in our in the lobby, petting your puppy or kitten, and give them treats. If they feel the urge to socialize, let other people greet them. If one of the exam rooms is free, walk into the exam room, offer a few treats, maybe put them on the table or scale, feed them an additional treat, then leave, without anything scary happening!! Always call ahead before a social visit, to make sure it’s not during a busy time. We don’t want you to walk in the waiting area with several large, intimidating dogs, lots of noise and chaos that might scare your puppy or kitten. In general, social visits are best done during the lunch period, when there are no regular appointments scheduled, or first thing in the morning, before the day gets started.
A little extra effort when they are young can save your years of stress and anxiety over veterinary visits!!