Providing good health care, especially preventive health care, can allow your cats to have longer, more comfortable lives. However, this cannot happen unless they see the veterinarian for needed care. Many cats dislike going to the veterinarian, and that starts with the difficulty of getting the cat into the carrier. If we can make this step easier, the entire veterinary visit is usually less stressful.

The following tips will help make veterinary visits easier for you and your cat.

Understanding your Cat’s Behavior

• Cats are most comfortable with the familiar, and need time to adjust to the unfamiliar. The visit to the veterinarian is often difficult because the carrier, car, and the veterinary hospital are usually unfamiliar. Respect your cat’s need for time to become familiar with new situations, people and places.
• Stay calm. Cats can sense our anxiety or frustrations, which may cause them to become fearful or anxious.
• Cats do not learn from punishment or force. Give rewards to encourage positive behavior. For example, if your cat is sitting calmly in or near a carrier, give a treat. Likewise, rewards can be given to help your cat become familiar with the type of handling that may be encountered at the veterinarian (e.g., handling paws, ears and mouth). A treat is what is highly desirable to your
  cat, which may be in the form of food, play or affection. Be persistent and reward every time.

Helping Your Cat Become Comfortable with the Carrie

The goal is for your cat to learn to associate the carrier with positive experiences
and routinely enter voluntarily.

• Make the carrier a familiar place at home by leaving it in a room where your cat spends a lot of time.
• Place familiar soft bedding inside the carrier. Bedding or clothing with your scent can make them feel more secure.
• Place treats, catnip or toys inside the carrier to encourage the cat to enter at home. Often, you will first see that treats are removed from the carrier during the night.
• It may take days or weeks before your cat starts to trust the carrier. Remain calm, patient and reward desired behaviors.
• If you still have trouble, you may need to assess the carrier itself.

Getting an Unwilling Cat into the Carrier
If your cat needs to go to the veterinarian right away, and is not yet accustomed to the carrier, the following may help:

• Start by putting the carrier in a small room with few hiding places. Bring the cat into the room and close the door. Move slowly and calmly. Do not chase the cat to get it into the carrier.
  Encourage the cat with treats or toys to walk into the carrier.
• If your cat will not walk into the carrier, and your carrier has an opening on the top, gently cradle your cat and lower it into the carrier. Another option is to remove the top half of your carrier while getting the cat to go into the bottom half, and then calmly replace the top as pictured above.
• Use familiar bedding inside the carrier. Consider use of synthetic feline facial pheromone (Feliway® ) analog spray in the carrier at least 30 minutes prior to transport to help calm the cat.

Coming Home – Keeping the Peace in a Multi-cat Household
Cats are very sensitive to smells, and unfamiliar smells can result in one cat no  longer recognizing another. Aggressive behavior can occur when one cat senses another as a stranger. These suggestions can help avoid problems between cats following a veterinary visit:

• Leave the returning cat in the carrier for a few minutes to see how all of your cats react.
• If all cats appear calm and peaceful, let the returning cat out of the carrier.
• If you sense tension between the cats, or if previous home-comings have resulted in conflict, keep the cat in the carrier and take it to a separate room to avoid potential injury from an upset cat. Provide food, water and litter box for a minimum of 24 hours while it regains the more familiar smell of home.
• If there is still stress after this time, contact your veterinarian for more advice on slower introduction or medication to help the process.
• A synthetic feline pheromone (Feliway®) can help provide the sense of familiarity.
• For future visits:
  • Use familiar bedding or clothing with your scent, as it retains the smell of home and helps with reintroduction.
  •  Use a synthetic feline pheromone (Feliway®).
  •  Bring both cats to the veterinary practice together. This can prevent future conflict as both cats will carry the scent of the clinic.

What Type of Carriers are Best?

The best carriers are inexpensive hard sided carriers that open from the top and the front, and can also be taken apart in the middle. An easily removable top allows a cat which is fearful, anxious or in pain to stay in the bottom half of the carrier for exams. Your veterinarian can often do the exam in the bottom of a well-designed carrier.

Avoid carriers that require a cat to be pulled from or dumped out for an exam. Choose carriers that are sturdy, secure and stable for the cat, as well as easy for you to carry. The Center for Pet Safety recommends that the carrier be belted into the backseat only if they have been crash tested. All others should be placed on the floor of the backseat.

Some cats like to see out, whereas others are less anxious when the carrier is covered with a blanket or towel to prevent seeing the unfamiliar.

We wish to thank CEVA Animal Health Inc. for sponsoring this document.
To access the full guidelines document, please visit www.catvets.com and www.icatcare.org.

Blog source: https://catvets.com/guidelines/client-brochures#cattovet

When in the unfamiliar and often scary place known as “the veterinary practice” your cat needs your confidence and reassurance, especially if it is sick. Your behavior greatly influences your cat’s sense of security and its behavior at the practice. Your nursing skills at home also play a major role in the success of the treatments that your veterinarian has prescribed to help your cat recover from illness or injury.

Your Role in Preparing for the Veterinary Visit
If your cat is stressed when going to the veterinary practice, ask your veterinarian for tips on how to acclimate your cat to the carrier or about anti-anxiety medication that you can administer before the visit. Withhold food from your cat for several hours before the appointment to avoid motion sickness. Take your cat’s favorite treats with you so that you or a veterinary team member can give them as a reward or distraction. Consider the use of synthetic feline facial pheromone spray (e.g., Feliway® or Comfort Zone® ) in the carrier and car at
least 30 minutes prior to help calm your cat. Place a favorite toy and familiar smelling clothing or bedding in the carrier as well. The AAFP and ISFM have created a practical brochure called “Getting Your Cat to the Veterinarian” to provide tips to make the visit easier for you and your cat. This brochure can be found online at http://catvets.com/GetCatToVet

Your Role at the Veterinary Practice
Cats can sense your stress, anxiety and apprehension, all of which can increase their own stress. Here are some tips to help create a more positive veterinary visit:

• If your cat is very anxious in the waiting area, or if dogs are present, ask the receptionist if you can go immediately to an exam room. Alternatively, cover your cat’s cage with a towel or your coat to block the view and muffle the sounds. Once you are in the exam room with your cat, talk to it soothingly in a low pitched voice.
• Avoid behaviors that while intended to comfort your cat, may actually increase anxiety. These can include clutching your cat, talking or staring in its face, and disturbing or invading its personal space. Human sounds intended to soothe or quiet (like ‘shhhh’) may mimic another cat hissing and should be avoided.
• Physical correction such as tapping your cat’s head and verbal reprimands should be avoided because they may startle your cat and provoke the fight-or-flight response. Remember, cats are not human and react differently to discipline.
• Do not handle or remove your cat from its carrier until requested by a member of the veterinary team.
• Reinforce your cat’s positive behavior with petting or treats and ignore negative behavior rather than trying to correct it.
• If your cat must stay in the hospital, bring along familiar toys and bedding from home. Provide the name of the cat litter and food that your cat is routinely given. Also mention anything that your cat enjoys (e.g., t reats, brushing, or play-time activities). The veterinary staff can use this information to help make your cat’s stay more pleasant.

The Role of the Veterinary Practice

• To offer suggestions about treatment options that best match your cat’s personality and your ability to administer.
• To educate you on how to administer medications and demonstrate techniques if needed.
• To communicate with you about treatment, follow-up and behavior signs of wellbeing that signal recovery. Cats that feel good tend to sleep most often in a curled position. They groom themselves, follow a normal routine, interact with their owner, and eat and eliminate regularly.

Your Role in Nursing Care for Your Cat
The following nursing care tips will help you become an extension of the veterinary team after your cat returns home. Ask your veterinary practice to provide as much information as possible in writing, as well as references to online resources, such as videos. Do not be reluctant to approach the veterinary team if you have any questions during or after the visit.

Nursing care tips:

• Identify a quiet, familiar, and private space such as a small enclosure or alcove with good lighting where you can easily access your cat. A small space allows for close monitoring of your cat and provides it with a sense of security.
• Establish a routine for administering oral medication to your cat. A bathroom sink lined with a soft towel or fleece provides an enclosed, secure place for administering medication.
• Give your cat positive reinforcement (e.g., treats, brushing, petting) for accepting medication.
• Unless your veterinarian says that medication must be administered with food, do not use food as an aid to giving medications, as it may cause aversion and reduce your cat’s food intake.
• Flat food dishes, such as small paper plates, and shallow water bowls may improve intake by making food and water more accessible.
• Warm canned food to your cat’s body temperature by gently heating in the microwave or adding warm water and stirring well. Additions of chicken broth or tuna juice may enhance taste.
• Food should always be fresh, provided in small portions, and replenished as needed.
• Forcing your cat to accept medication is stressful for both you and your cat. Do not forcibly remove your cat from a hiding place or interrupt eating, grooming or elimination for purposes of administering medication. Ask your veterinarian for a demonstration of how to administer the medication prescribed for your cat.
• Stay calm. Cats can sense our anxiety or frustrations, which may cause them to become fearful or anxious.
• Attend all follow up appointments with your veterinary practice. Alert the veterinary practice if you observe any signs of sickness or changes in your cat’s behavior, as well as changes
  in food or fluid intake, or if you experience difficulty administering medications.

Providing nursing care at home for your cat may seem overwhelming at first,  but be patient and remember that even small improvements will contribute to your cat’s recovery. Remember that your veterinarian is there to help, so always ask any questions that may contribute to successful nursing care at home. You are an important member of your cat’s healthcare team.

You can be instrumental in helping with the success of treatments and improved healthcare. 

Blog source: https://catvets.com/guidelines/client-brochures#cattovet

Addressing your cat’s physical and emotional needs enhances its health and quality of life.
Behavior problems are a leading cause of pets being surrendered or euthanized. These problems often occur in cats because their needs have not been fully met. Cats need  resources to perform their natural behaviors and have control over their social interactions. As owners, we can enhance our cats’ health and wellbeing by ensuring all their needs are met in the home environment. You might ask: “What can be stressful for a beloved cat with food, water, and a roof over its head?” Read on to find out.

WHAT ARE ENVIRONMENTAL NEEDS?
Environmental needs include a cat’s physical surroundings – indoors, outdoors, or both as well as their social interactions with humans and other pets. Cats often do not express obvious signs of stress, pain, or sickness that we can easily recognize. If we are proactive and meet appropriate environmental needs throughout a cat’s life, we can potentially avoid environmental stressors that can cause unwanted behaviors and even impact medical health.

UNDERSTANDING THE NEEDS OF YOUR CAT AND THEIR BEHAVIOR
The needs of today’s cats have changed little from those of their wild ancestor, Felislybica, the African wildcat.

• Cats are solitary hunters, spending much of their day searching the environment for hunting opportunities. They need to protect themselves from perceived dangers, which include unfamiliar individuals or environment.
• Cats are territorial animals. They feel threatened when their territory is disturbed, either by another animal or physically.
• Cats use scent, posturing, and vocalizations to communicate their unhappiness if they feel threatened.
• Cats have a superior sense of smell and hearing. Stress can occur due to strong or strange smells or sounds, which are undetectable or insignificant to us.
• Cats are social animals, but their social structure differs from ours. Cats may be content as a single cat or living with other cats, preferably related cats such as siblings.

MEETING THE NEEDS OF YOUR CAT

Provide a safe place. Every cat needs a safe and secure place  where it can retreat to so that it feels protected or which can be used as a resting area. The cat should have the ability to exit and enter the space from at least two sides if it feels threatened. Most cats prefer that the safe space is big enough to fit only themselves, has sides around it, and is raised off the ground.
Good examples of safe places are a cardboard box, a cat carrier, and a raised cat perch. There should be at least as many safe places, sized to hold a single cat, as there are cats in a household. Safe places should be located away from each other, so that cats can choose to be on their own.

Provide multiple and separated key environmental
resources. Key resources include food, water, toileting areas,  scratching areas, play areas, and resting or sleeping areas. These resources should be separated from each other so that cats have free access without  being challenged by other cats or other potential threats. Separation of resources not only reduces the risk of competition (which may result in one cat being physically prevented access to resources by another cat), stress, and stress-associated diseases.

Provide opportunity for play and predatory behavior. Play and predatory behaviors allow cats to fulfill their natural need to hunt. Play can be stimulated with the use of interactive toys that mimic prey, such as a toy mouse that is pulled across a floor or feathers on a wand that is waved through the air. Cats need to be able to capture the “prey”, at least intermittently, to prevent frustration. Early in a cat’s life introduce interactive play so they learn to avoid going after your hands and feet for play. Using food puzzles or food balls can mimic the action of hunting for prey, and provides more natural eating behavior. You can encourage your cat’s interactive play by rotating your cat’s toys so they do not get bored and rewarding with treats to provide positive reinforcement for appropriate play. If you have more than one cat, remember to play with them individually.

Provide positive, consistent, and predictable human–cat social interaction.
Cats’ individual preferences determine how much they like human interactions such as petting, grooming, being played with or talked to, being picked up, and sitting or lying on a person’s lap. To a large extent this depends on whether, as kittens, they were introduced to and socialized with humans during their period of socialization from 2–7 weeks of age. It is important to remember that every cat interacts differently and to respect the cat’s individual preferences. Remember to remind guests and all household members not to force interaction and instead let the cat initiate, choose, and control the type of human contact.

Provide an environment that respects the importance of the cat’s sense of smell.
Unlike humans, cats use their sense of smell to evaluate their surroundings. Cats mark their scent by rubbing their face and body, which deposits natural pheromones to establish boundaries within which they feel safe and secure. Avoid cleaning their scent off these areas, especially when a new cat is introduced into the home or there are other changes with pets, people, or the environment of the home. The use of synthetic facial pheromones, such as Feliway® , can mimic a cat’s natural pheromones and provide a calming effect in a stressful or unfamiliar situation. Some smells can be threatening to cats, such as the scent of unfamiliar animals or the use of scented products, cleaners, or detergents. Threatening smells and the inability to rub their scent can sometimes lead to problematic behaviors such as passing urine or stools outside the litter box, spraying, and scratching in undesirable areas. In some cases, stress-related illness may develop. If any of these problems occur, contact your veterinarian right away.

Addressing environmental needs is essential for the optimum wellbeing of your cat. Most behavior  concerns, such as inappropriate elimination, aggression, scratching, and others, can be caused
by one of the following:

• not providing cats with the resources they need
• not understanding the cat’s social relationships with other cats or people
• an underlying medical problem

Discuss the specific environmental needs of your cat with your veterinarian at each routine check-up. If you think your cat may have a behavior problem, schedule an appointment with your veterinarian to speak about possible solutions or potential underlying medical issues that cause certain behavior changes. Your veterinarian will be able to provide you with additional information or an appropriate referral. By understanding and providing for your cat’s environmental needs, you can help your cat to live a long and happy life.

Blog source: https://catvets.com/guidelines/client-brochures#cattovet

Feline arthritis, more correctly termed degenerative joint disease (DJD),  is very common in cats. Cartilage within the joint is worn away, causing chronic pain, which can be debilitating, and can lead to poor quality of life. Pain in cats with DJD occurs most commonly in the lower back, elbows, knees, hips, shoulders, and hocks (the equivalent of our ankles). Studies indicate that as many as 92% of cats may have DJD. Even young cats can get DJD, but it may not be as noticeable until it worsens with age.

SUBTLE SIGNS OF DJD
Pain often goes unnoticed in cats because the signs are subtle. This is because cats are solitary hunters – who must remain healthy and strong in order to hunt successfully, and to protect themselves from predators and perceived threats. Therefore, cats hide or mask signs of pain or weakness. You might think your cat does not need to worry about hunting or threats, but this protective instinct still occurs in all cats. Cats with DJD rarely limp because the disease usually impacts the same joint on both sides (e.g. both knees).

This differs greatly from arthritis in dogs, who may exhibit more pain in one leg so there is a noticeable limp. Discomfort with walking is also easier to recognize in dogs because they are usually taken on walks outdoors.

HOW CAN I TELL IF MY CAT HAS DJD?
You play a very important role in identifying the signs of DJD in your cat because you know better than anyone their normal temperament, routines, and activities. Any change in your cat’s normal behavior can be a sign of pain. To identify changes, compare your cat’s daily behaviors and reactions in various situations to when they were young adults. Any changes in your cat’s normal behavior can mean that your cat is either in pain, sick, or stressed – all reasons to seek veterinary care. 

If your cat displays any of the following changes, contact your veterinarian
immediately.

• Decreased jumping up or down, or not jumping as high as before
• Difficulty or hesitancy going up or down stairs; slower on stairs
• Stiffness
• Less active and playful
• Withdrawn, hiding, or increased “clinginess”
• Decreased grooming or over-grooming a painful area
• Aggressive when handled or towards another pet
• House-soiling (not using the litter box for urine and/or stool)

MANAGING THE PAIN OF DJD
There are excellent treatments for this condition, so do not delay in contacting your  veterinary practice if you notice any signs. NEVER give your cat any medication without direction from your veterinarian, including over-the-counter drugs such as ibuprofen (i.e. Advil or Motrin), acetaminophen (i.e. Tylenol), or aspirin. Many of these drugs can be deadly to cats. Once a diagnosis is made, your veterinarian will help you develop a treatment plan for your cat. Treatment includes both medication and simple changes in the home to allow your cat to maintain their normal behaviors

For more information on degenerative joint disease and pain management, visit www.catfriendly.com/djd

Blog source: https://catvets.com/guidelines/client-brochures#cattovet