Reducing Stress for (Unplanned) Veterinary Visits

Medical care in an emergency can be scary and unpleasant for pets and people. The unfamiliarity with a new place and people adds to the challenge of being injured or feeling sick. Pets might even feel scared because they can sense their owner’s worry. Fearful or stressed pets can mask signs of illness or pain, making for tricky diagnosis and treatment, and may even panic, causing injury to themselves or others. The good news is that there are many ways to help pets feel more comfortable when receiving medical care.

WHAT IS AN OPEN-CONCEPT HOSPITAL? 

When pets visit the vet, they are often separated from their family members and taken to a separate treatment area, even for routine care like vaccines and nail trims. At VEG (Veterinary Emergency Group), we’ve eliminated that fear factor by keeping you and your pet together throughout all phases of treatment. Our open-concept veterinary emergency hospital means no walls! This allows you to stay with your pet the entire time—that’s great for both you and your pet, as you can best comfort and advocate for your pet and be involved in the care process. 

WHAT DOES A STRESSED PET LOOK LIKE? 

Before learning about ways to reduce stress, it’s important to understand what stress looks like. As your pet’s guardian and best friend, you are the best person to advocate for them when sick, stressed, or in pain. Responses to fear typically fall into a few different categories: 

• Flight: hiding or fleeing a perceived threat
• Fight: growling, hissing, swatting, snapping, biting or scratching to make the scary thing (or person) move away
• Freeze: staying perfectly still in hopes the scary thing will disappear
• Fidget: pacing or trembling, unable to cope with the presence of a scary thing

When a pet expresses any of these signs of fear, it’s important to pay attention! These are the only ways that pets can tell us they’re feeling uncomfortable or frightened.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR PET’S BODY LANGUAGE

Cat Language and Doggie Language posters and books by Lili Chin are fun ways to learn or teach others about animal body language and help you identify when your pet is stressed or in pain. There are also hundreds of articles, handouts, and videos for pet owners on Fear Free™ Happy Homes for many different types of pets, covering a wide range of topics from making car rides easier to administering medications.

CALMING PHEROMONE PRODUCTS FOR PETS

One of the most convenient ways to mitigate added stress from the car ride or veterinary hospital is to use a calming pheromone product. Cat- and dog-specific travel spray can be easily purchased from a pet store or online retailer, kept on hand, and used on bedding prior to any travel, whether planned or unplanned. Pheromone products work best before arriving at the vet or immediately upon arrival, before stress has had a chance to escalate.

TRAINING FOR THE VET WITH A PET TRAVEL MAT

Pets may benefit from having familiar bedding from home or a nonslip travel mat for vet visits. Memory foam bath mats are easy to transport and provide a non-slip surface that can be placed on a weight scale, floor, or exam table. Some dogs benefit from a simple yoga mat, cut to size, or a familiar bed. Create a positive association with a travel mat or carrier at home. Here are some helpful tips to condition the travel mat:

1. Speak to your pet in a friendly, soothing tone
2. Give your pet a high-value snack (e.g., freeze-dried or soft training treats) or lickmat smeared with natural peanut butter or canned food
3. Repeat steps one and two every time they are on the mat. If you only do this when it’s time for a vet visit, they’ll catch on. But by forming the habit at home, they’ll have a safe, familiar place on the go

PET TREATS CAN BE A REAL COMFORT FOOD

Distraction with small, high-value food treats may sometimes be used to reduce stress at vet visits, especially for planned care, such as vaccines or ear infections. Food should not be offered to pets that are vomiting, having seizures or altered consciousness, or when sedation or anesthesia is warranted (for instance, if there’s a cut that needs stitches). Highly-palatable lickable paste or pet-safe peanut butter can provide a source of distraction.

In some cases when solid food isn’t recommended, frozen broth (avoid onions!) or meat baby food might be used instead. You can keep a jar or two in your freezer for this purpose. Carefully allow the pet to lick the frozen treat while obtaining a weight or during veterinary handling. If your pet is eager to snatch a baby food jar, using a pet lick mat or smearing canned food or flavored spreadable paste (made for pets) around the inside of a dog food bowl can work as well. Practice at home to introduce the pet to this technique and to anticipate how long the food treat will last. Unsure if food is okay to bring to an emergency visit? When in doubt, call and speak to our veterinary team!

DON’T HESITATE TO SEDATE – IT CAN BENEFIT YOUR PET IN AN EMERGENCY

It can be helpful to understand when medication can relieve pain, fear, and stress. Short-acting injectable or oral medications can be used to facilitate emergency veterinary care for anxious or fearful pets. Reducing stress through sedation can improve diagnostic results (labwork, x-rays) and help to keep everyone safe. The use of excessive restraint or force with any pet, particularly when sick or injured, can exacerbate symptoms, lead to injury of pets and people, and cause long-lasting negative behavioral effects and is therefore never recommended.

There are many medication options that can be tailored to the specific needs of your pet when other methods aren’t enough to make a pet feel safe and relaxed. Each type of medication can have a different duration, effects, and possible side effects. Your vet may prescribe multimodal treatment, combining lower dosages of a few different synergistic medications, rather than a high dose of a single medication. Some medications can relieve both pain and anxiety, or a specific pain medication might be added.

FIND A CERTIFIED PROFESSIONAL TO MANAGE YOUR PET’S STRESS

Finally, you can search for a vet or pet professional who is well-versed in a variety of ways to reduce pet fear, anxiety, and stress, including many of the techniques described above. Fear Free™, Low Stress Handling®, and Cat Friendly® each have searchable online directories. This can be especially helpful for very fearful pets or those needing additional behavioral support (although any pet can benefit!).

VEG hospitals are designed around ways to reduce the unnecessary stress of being in an ER.  We keep you and your pet together throughout treatment because we’ve found this helps to involve you more in their care and be comforting for everyone. Knowing that you’re by their side is a comfort for your pet through every step of care. Remember, as a pet owner, you play a vital role in reducing your pet’s stress during veterinary visits. After all, you know your pet’s behavior best! Utilize calming products and familiar items and know when to seek help from professionals trained in techniques to reduce fear, anxiety, and stress. By taking these steps, you can make vet visits a more positive experience for your pet and ensure they receive the best possible care.

*Elite Fear Free Certified Professional (Veterinary)

^Low Stress Handling Certified – Silver