Caturday Blogging: Who Wants to Go to the Vet?

This Caturday, we talk about taking your cat to the vet and ask why, despite our loving intentions, cats are never thrilled about making the trip.

Okay, we’re going to open today up with an anecdote:

I met our local veterinarian within an hour of bringing my kitten home on her very first day. Not because I scheduled an appointment ahead of time like all the forums told me to, but because I brought home a stray with fleas. For anyone who owns a pet that goes outside fairly regularly, fleas happen. But as a bit of a germophobe and a new pet owner, I legitimately freaked out. I confined my poor baby kitten to a box and called the vet in hysterics to ask if there was some sort of chemical bath he could subject the kitten to.

Obviously, even if a safe chemical bath existed, kittens are too young to be exposed to anything. I mean, I’m talking like a month old kitten. What she really needed was her mom. (Ask me about my adoption story some other time because it was sudden.) The only thing I learned from the experience is the importance of finding a vet you can trust.

Never fear, we have some helpful tips to help you choose a vet:

For some handy guidelines on choosing the right vet, PetMD recommends asking around, finding a place that’s close to you, and more importantly, asking about their emergency policies.

Likewise, the Humane Society offers a few tips as to determining which is the right vet for you.

Unfortunately, my local vet didn’t do perform the spay procedure himself anymore, so I had to determine which location I felt most comfortable with to go the Big Deed. The one I ended up choosing turned out to be holistic and was an experience in and of itself. But I chose them due to the overall cleanliness of the place and how big their staff was.

Of course, consider your cat, too:

Obviously, cats aren’t particularly fond of jumping in a box and letting a stranger poke them. When you find a new vet, take into consideration how your cat behaves. If you notice a behavior that’s more out of character than usual, you may want to consider continuing your search.

In Simon’s Cat: Off to the Vet, the new video gives us a good idea just how much cats dread that special visit. Watch below:

Simon’s Cat’s full video is now available on iTunes and Amazon.

Got any neat vet stories or helpful tips for choosing the right veterinarian for you and your cat? Let us know in the comments below. And as always, have a happy Caturday!

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