What’s New for Cats at the Vet in 2019

Veterinarians throughout the United States have been hard at work to make the veterinary experience new, different and better for you and your cats.  We all want domesticated cats to be happy and healthy, but your cats can not get good medical care if you don’t take them for a vet visit. Veterinarians recognized that cat parents have been less likely than dog parents to bring their pet for a visit, and we wanted to know why.

We found that many cat parents believe their cat is self-sufficient and does not need routine medical care.  Nothing could be further from the truth. Your cat needs annual veterinary visits for both routine exams and to address latent health issues before they become serious.  

Cats are masters at hiding their physical and behavioral needs.  We humans make the mistake of interpreting this as a sign that everything is ok and that they don’t need veterinary care.  Quite the opposite is true. Cats need the trained eyes, ears and hands of a veterinarian to detect pain and illness, so that we can provide care and relief for conditions like dental disease, arthritis, kidney disease and heart disease long before our stoic cats are showing obvious signs of disease.

Additionally, cat parents find visiting the vet stressful for both them and their cat.  

We heard you. Getting your cat into the carrier and the car ride to the vet is very stressful.  To ease this stress, veterinarians have developed a whole new way of incorporating your cat’s carrier into her daily life through a carrier training protocol. With a few simple steps, your cat will think of her carrier as a home away from home, and not the trigger of fear, anxiety and stress.  Check out our blog on carrier training here.

Veterinarians are learning more about your cat’s behavioral needs.  We now know that how we set up the waiting room and the exam room along with the techniques that we use to examine your cat can make a huge difference in your cat’s veterinary experience.  Many veterinarians are going above and beyond these steps to get special training and certifications through programs such as Cat Friendly Practice and Fear Free to understand and meet these needs.