VISITING YOUR VET

Taking your cat to the veterinary
clinic: a guide for cat carers
Visits to the veterinary clinic are an important partof caring for your cat. However, putting your cat
in a carrier and transporting them to and fromthe clinic can be stressful for you and your cat.
Fortunately, there are many ways to make theexperience more pleasant for you both.

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Introduction
As carers, keeping our cats healthy is a toppriority. The earlier an illness is diagnosed,
the easier it is to treat, so regular check-ups
and examinations with the veterinary teamwill help your cat have a long and healthy life.
Trying to avoid upsetting your cat, or causing
them stress associated with a trip to the vet(Figure 1) is understandable, but could harm
your cat’s health. This guide describes how to
prepare for a veterinary clinic visit, including
the choice of cat carrier, travel considerations
and tips for settling your cat back in at homeafterwards.

If possible, always choose a clinic
accredited as a Cat Friendly Clinic
for your veterinary care. For further
information on how this will benefit
your cat, see International Cat
Care’s ‘Cat Carer Guide to cat
friendly veterinary care’ (available
at icatcare.org/advice-cat-carerguides) and catfriendlyclinic.org.

Figure 1: ‘Stressors’ are things that upset a cat. There are many reasons a cat may be stressedby visiting a veterinary clinic and these can ‘stack up’, resulting in the cat experiencing fear.
Source: International Cat Care2Positive carrier experiences
Helping your cat associate the carrier with positive
experiences will help them to feel comfortable withgoing to the vet.
• Put something warm, soft and familiar in the carrier
for the cat to cuddle up in, such as a blanket they havebeen sleeping on.
• Synthetic feline pheromones can be sprayed into thecarrier 15 minutes before travel.
• Drape a familiar-smelling towel or blanket over thecarrier to help your cat feel safe and secure.
• If possible, provide a small and tasty food treat orsome toys in the carrier.
• When moving the carrier, do not hold by the handle
alone, as this could make the cat feel unsteady.
Support the carrier underneath to keep it level andminimise movement (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Support the cat carrier
from underneath to reduce
movement and keep it level.
Source: Lucy Daniels

Preparation for a veterinary visit
It is very important to get your cat used tovisiting the clinic and make it a positive
experience. Ideally, this preparation is started
at an early age. However, adult and older cats
can still benefit and become comfortablebeing transported in their carrier (see box).

Choosing the right cat carrier

It is important to choose a carrier that issafe and secure to avoid your cat escaping.
However, there are other considerations
too. Try to avoid soft
fabric carriers, asthese can collapse
and are hard to
keep clean, while‘backpack’ stylecarriers can cause excessive movement(Figure 3). Carriers without removabletops or top openings make it moredifficult for the veterinary team to
examine the cat at the clinic.
A sturdy plastic carrier is preferred(Figure 4) and can be easily cleaned.
The top half of the carrier can beremoved, allowing your cat to be
examined while remaining in theFigure 3: Some waysof transporting catsto the vet should
be avoided.
Source: Lili Chinwith InternationalCat Care3

Figure 4: The rightcarrier choice canreduce the stressof travel andexamination
at the clinic.
Source: InternationalCat Care

Open structured
lockable door
Roof entry/exit
Slats onthe side

Choose a cat carrier

Removable
top halfthat allows easy accessfor you to feed your cat

Use their cat

but doesn’t leave themblanket
Made of sturdy

over exposed and isplasticeasy to clean.
Put favourite
toys insidebottom half, feeling safe. Ensure
you have enough carriers to haveone per cat, as even cats that get on wellshould be transported in separate carriers(when stressed and confined they may
behave differently).

Putting your cat into
the cat carrier

Ideally, your cat enters the carrier voluntarily,perhaps encouraged by a treat or a toy,or having been trained to enter (see below).
However, where a cat needs to be put intoa carrier, this should always be done gently
and calmly as shown in this video fromab

International Cat Care: youtube.com/watch?v=Yhz3V4i3wH4&t=5s.

Getting your cat used tothe carrier

All too often a carrier is stored away in
a garage, basement or shed until needed.
However, it is much better to incorporate
the carrier into a part of the house the cat
likes to spend time in, and sleep in, andencourage them to use it as a resting
place (Figure 5). This means the carrierhas familiar smells and feels comfortablefor your cat. It also means the carrier isimmediately available in the event of anc

Figure 5: (a) A carrier in quiet safe position in the home; (b) comfortable blankets and treats
and toys to encourage the cat to use the carrier; and (c) a cat resting comfortably in their carrier
at home. Source: (a) Sam Taylor, (b) Laura Watson and (c) Nathalie Dowgray

4emergency. Add a comfortable blanket andoffer the cat treats regularly in the carrier sothat it feels a pleasant place to be.

Training your cat to use
the cat carrier

We often think that cats can’t be ‘trained’
in the same way we might train a dog.
However, cats are clever and able to learn
to enter their carrier if we teach them thatit can be a positive experience. Training
can take time and patience, but it is worth
it as your cat will need to visit the vet, or
possibly travel to other places, manytimes during their lifetime. The steps
involved in this process are illustrated
in Figure 6 and in a series of videos
available at catfriendlyclinic.org/
cat-owners/getting-your-cat-tothe-vet.
Figure 6: A guideto training your cat
to feel relaxedin their carrier.
Allow time foryour cat to be
comfortablewith each step
before moving
on to the next.
Source InternationalCat Care5When medication canbe helpful

For some cats, travelling to the vet
is extremely stressful despite efforts
to improve their experience. This might
be due to previous negative experiencesor the individual cat’s temperament. In
such situations it can be very helpful togive the cat some medication prescribedby your veterinarian prior to the clinic visit.
Gabapentin is the most commonly used
medication for this purpose, and has beenshown to be effective in reducing a cat’s
anxiety and helping them feel calm during
travel and at the clinic. Your veterinarian
can advise you accordingly, so do discuss
this if your cat remains very anxious andscared travelling to the clinic. It is also
a good idea to trial the medication before
the actual appointment to ensure it iseffective and has no side effects.
Just like us, cats canexperience travel sickness,and may be sick (vomit) intheir carrier, or may drool andswallow a lot without actually
being sick. If you suspect yourcat does feel unwell travelling,discuss suitable anti-sickness
medication with yourveterinarian for use prior
to travel.

Travelling with your cat
to the veterinary clinic
Travelling to the veterinary clinic –whether in a car, on a train or bus, or on
foot – will likely be unsettling for your cat.
The motion, and new and strange noises,
sights and smells, may frighten them.
Some simple strategies can help,
including:• Covering the cat carrier with a blanket
or towel (which could also be sprayed
15 minutes before travel with synthetic
feline pheromones);• Making sure the carrier is secure in thecar, ideally in the footwell behind the front
seats (Figure 7);• Using a buggy or trolley for the carrier,to reduce ‘swinging’ motion while walking;• Placing the carrier on plastic sheets/bags in case of soiling, and carrying spareblankets and absorbent tissues if taking alonger journey. Discuss with yourveterinary team if your cat urinates ordefecates in the carrier, as it may indicatethat your cat is feeling sick or frightened;• Ensuring the car is well ventilated and at
an appropriate temperature for your cat.
Never be tempted to open a cat’s carrier,whatever the type of transport, even if
they are meowing, as this is not safe foryou or your cat. Use a quiet, calm voice

Figure 7: How totransport your cat
in their carrier sothey are safe andfeel secure.
Source: Lili Chinwith InternationalCat Care6

to reassure them and consider carrier training,as discussed above, before future journeys;
if your cat is very distressed travelling,
discuss appropriate medication withyour veterinarian.

Returning home

On returning home – in particular afteran overnight or longer stay in the veterinary
clinic – your cat will smell very different toother cats at home. Additionally, they may
have a bandage, clipped hair or a collar, allof which will make them look different. This
may result in cats that previously got alongwell, hissing or swiping at, or avoiding eachother. Therefore, it is always best toreintroduce the returning cat considerately:• Try not to overwhelm the returning cat withattention from humans or animals at home;• Keep the returning cat in a separate roomwith all they need to be comfortable (food,water, litter tray and comfy bed), particularly
if they have had an operation and could be
still feeling the effects of the anaesthetic
medication;• The returning cat will begin to smell familiar
again through grooming themselves andcontact with the home environment. Placing
bedding from areas where the cats rest, in theirseparate rooms, will help to re-establish
familiar ‘home’ smells;• After a few hours, or possibly a day following
a longer hospital stay, gradually allow
supervised contact;• Watch the cats’ responses. If there is anyaggression or running away from each otherthey may need more time separately
before trying again;• Use of synthetic feline pheromone
plug-ins and sprays where the catsspend most of their time can be helpful.

Further informationand tips
We all want our cats to be healthy andhappy, and efforts to make trips to thevet easier will benefit both you and yourcat. Discuss any concerns with yourveterinary team and refer toInternational Cat Care’s ‘Cat Friendly
Clinic’ resources at catfriendlyclinic.org
for further information and tips.

Support our work
We hope that you found this free Cat
Carer Guide from International Cat Careuseful. If you would like to show yourgratitude, a donation would be greatly
appreciated. Every gift goes to support
our work towards a world in which eachcat’s life experience will be as good as
it can be. To find out more, or to makea donation, please go to:
icatcare.org/support-us/donate
Thank you from all of us at International
Cat Care and on behalf of cats.

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