To say that Noah was a nervous cat doesn't begin to describe it. If a stranger entered the house he'd hide in the basement for hours so in-home visits just wouldn't work. Over a year ago we had to go to a memorial service that I could not weasel my way out of. We are on good terms with two clinics, one of them is set up to board special needs animals. Lucky us.
I learned the hard way to make sure the vet and techs clearly understood what I wanted. If I had said "You're not writing this down, have you even heard a word I've said?" Andrew might still be here today. This is borderline arrogant and condescending but here's what I did.
>Show me his crate. It has to be ground level, no barking dogs next door, dim light during the day and lights off at night.
>Pick him up like this and keep it quick. He hated being picked up even by me.
>At home I laid out his meter, syringe etc. in front of him so he'd know what was coming. Please do the same so it's over with quick.
>A few days before we left I brought him in at shot time to demonstrate how his various meds should be applied. His transdermal BUPE, although simple, was something they had never dealt with before. A little blob on the inner ear and an ear rub was the easiest part of his day.
>I sterilized his blankets, basket and bowls to make him feel at least a little more at home.
>It's not the vet that does the shots, it's the tech. She knew I wasn't an arrogant ass and I baked her cookies. In return she was the one and only person who went anywhere near Noah.
>Because Noah had so many preexisting conditions I gave the vet an "End of life" document. He hated the car and would not have survived an hour long trip to an emergency clinic. The agreement was basically to keep him pain free and not to experiment on him with some unproven miracle treatment.
Noah came back to us as happy as a cranky old cat could be and even gained some weight.
Obviously this is an
extreme example but in a busy clinic animals are just a number. There's no floral print sofa and scented candles and it's not a charity. I'm not doing this to scare the crap out of you, these are things every pet owner should know.
I'd wish you luck but you won't need it, it's all common sense.
