How to Create a Better Vet Experience For Your Dog
It’s time to go to the V-E-T!
Let the chaos and inevitable stress for both the hound and human begin. You’ve packed the treats, you’ve discussed where you’re going all week and you made a game plan in your head, so why does a vet visit have to be so stressful? New places, spaces and people can be a bit scary or overwhelming for some dogs, so it’s no surprise that going to the vet can be a stressful situation - people touching, sticking you with needles and feeling all over your body can be quite the anxiety inducing event. Creating a better vet experience for your dog can be tricky, but Going Mutts Pet Services wants to help! Check out five ways you can help your dog prepare for their vet visit.
Say ‘Hello!’: New places can be anxiety inducing for some dogs, making trips to the vet a tricky situation to overcome. To help ease that anxiety and fear, try doing some random ‘drop ins’ at your vets office just to say hello. Make this visit more of a fun visit where you can let your dog sniff around, say hi to the receptionist or any vet technicians that are available, maybe have them stand on the scale to get weighed and then leave. Make sure you talk with your vet to find good times to drop in so you’re not dealing with an overwhelming amount of animals (or people). Don’t forget to bring some of your dog's favorite treats! This will make the experience that much sweeter that they will want to come back.
Your dog needs to be used to being touched: Sounds a bit odd, but one of the best ways to help prepare your dog for their vet visit is to get them used to being touched all over their body. During a routine exam, your vet may look at your dog’s eyes, ears and mouth, listen to their heart and lungs, touch and probe the belly area, manipulate their joints and take their temperature. All of this can be very invasive for a dog if they are not used to being touched all over. Dogs that are handled, touched and petted on a daily basis will be less likely to feel the vets check-up as invasive and will (hopefully) be able to relax while the check-up takes place. Spending time to touch and pet your dog on a daily basis will also help with noticing any changes that may be happening on your dog, such as lumps, bumps, swelling and tenderness that can be health related issues. Remember, don’t try to rush or push touching, petting and handling - the goal is to help your dog learn to accept being touched in order to have a better vet experience.
Your dog should be used to someone leaning, holding or picking them up: During routine vet visits, your dog may experience the vet (or technician) lifting them up, leaning over them to look at different parts of their body or being held during a vaccine. These can be actions that cause anxiety or fear, adding to the stressfulness of the whole vet visit so this is something that can be worked on at home to help. To ease their emotions and to help allow your dog to accept these different positions, try to incorporate some of these techniques into your playtime. This can look like reaching over their back to scratch their belly, or reaching over their belly (while lying on their back) to scratch an ear or lifting them into the car for a car ride (maybe to the vet to say hello!).
Teach your dog some basic commands and behaviors: Teaching your dog some basic behaviors and commands can help to ease the tension when going into a check-up, especially if your commands can help your dog move their own body instead of having someone else do it for them. Some basic behaviors and commands to work on include:
Sit and down: teaching your dog these two commands can help when your dog wants to slink away or hide when entering the vet.
Relax aka roll on your side: this is a great trick to teach your dog for when the vet needs to see just one side of your dog during the check-up.
Stand: this command helps when you need to lift your dog onto a table so you don’t have to pick them up from the floor if they are lying down.
Turn: teaching your dog this can help things be a little more hands off since the vet will usually need to face your dog in different directions throughout the check-up.
Shake aka give paw: if your dog needs a foot exam, this is a great way to turn it into a more fun activity.
Watch me: teaching your dog any type of eye contact exercise can be a huge asset when you need your dog to turn their head during an exam, but it can also be a great way to distract your dog while they are being examined.
Vet days can be ‘fun days’: After every vet visit, go do a fun activity that your dog will enjoy! Go for a walk in the park, play fetch at a local dog park or go get some ice cream. If your dog knows that there is a fun time that will follow the vet, this can help make ‘vet day’ a little less stressful.
Knowing how to help your dog before a vet visit can be a real game changer, so we want to make sure that everyone involved in the vet visit can have a decent experience. Keep these tips in mind (along with some tasty treats) to help your dog feel less anxious and more relaxed when seeing the veterinarian. It won’t always be easy, but baby steps can do wonders for everyone.
Know what doesn’t have a bad experience? A daily dog walk! If you combine outside time plus your dog plus while you’re away at work, it all adds up to a great time. Going Mutts Pet Services wants to keep the good times rolling with getting your canine friend exercise and fresh air during the week while stuck at home, so check out our website and contact us today to discuss our services more!
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