Okay, kitties and humans, this is serious business. We know the vet is probably not either one of your favorite places to go. So why are we talking about Take Your Cat to the Vet Day today?
The truth is that cats don’t get the kind of veterinary care that dogs do. Vets report seeing five dogs for every cat who comes through their door for care, even though there are 85.8 million pet cats and only 77.8 million pet dogs.
Cats overall aren’t getting seen by vets as often as they should, especially older cats who are more likely to be hiding chronic illnesses. A recent survey found that the older cats are, the less likely they are to go to the vet unless they show signs of illness. This is an alarming trend, since cats are really good at hiding illness in its early stages. Less frequent vet visits as a cat reaches an age where ailments are actually more likely mean those issues will go undiscovered and untreated longer.
You may not notice that your cat doesn’t jump up onto your counters as frequently, or maybe she has stopped entirely. You might even be glad she stopped. But what if the reason she stopped is that she has painful arthritis? Vets can help diagnose ailments during a wellness visit that are easy for even sharp-eyed humans to miss, so an annual exam is an important part of your cat’s preventative care.
Making Carriers Less Frightening
Does your carrier only show up from storage when it’s time to go to the vet? Of course kitty gets suspicious and hides under the sofa when she catches sight of it! She has already learned that thing is a sure signal that she is headed to the vet.
A lot of people avoid taking their cats to the vet because it’s hard to even get kitty into her carrier, but it doesn’t have to be that way. A carrier that only shows up when it’s time to go to the vet is frightening, but a carrier that is part of the usual living room landscape and serves as a place to nap on a regular basis isn’t scary at all. Any carrier can tuck under an end table and have a cozy blanket to make an everyday retreat for a cat so that it’s a familiar place when it’s time to go to the vet or anywhere else.
Cat Friendly Vets
Just thinking about going to the vet is stressful, isn’t it? Would it be less stressful if you thought your vet was a “cat person”? It turns out among surveyed vets, 48% prefer dogs and only 17% prefer cats. Many vets said that dogs were easier to work with during exams, and that they found cats more challenging to diagnose than dogs. If you have noticed your vet obviously prefers dogs, there really are vets out there who are more cat oriented, and not just at cat-only practices!
More veterinarians are realizing they need to meet the needs of their cat clients and are becoming cat friendly. Cat friendly practices understand cat behavior and have more cat-friendly handling guidelines. The American Association of Feline Practitioners certifies cat-friendly practices, and their web site can help you can find one near you if you decide your vet has “gone to the dogs.”
Whether your vet is officially a feline friendly practitioner or just a great veterinarian, let Take Your Cat To the Vet day be a great reminder that it’s time to think about a wellness exam, especially if your cat is a senior.
References and further reading
Banfield 2016 State of Pet Health Report
American Pet Products Association 2015-2016 National Pet Owners Survey
Royal Canin Survey of Dog and Cat Owners
Bayer Veterinary Usage Study III: Feline Findings
Photo credits
depositphotos/eAlisa
depositphotos/photo-deti
I’m going to the vet this week! It’s only for my wellness checkup as a therapy cat and my rabies booster, so I’m pretty relieved about that.
Unless there is a problem with one of us we only go to our vet once a year to be stabbed and checked over.
Going to the vet is important. We get there every now and again. It is a little harder to get a cat to the vet than a dog.
Cat-only doesn’t always mean cat-friendly, as we found out last year. That was a complicated situation, but it ended up being a blessing because we found a vet who really seems to care about my babies and likes working with them. They are SO MUCH better with Lita than our old vet was, and this is less stressful on her. They do not put out the vibe that she is a “bad cat.” Rather, they understand how stressed she is and do everything they can to make her comfortable.
Thank you for the important reminder. It saddens me that not every kitty gets regular vet care, and I hope your post inspires more kitty parents to get regular wellness exams for their babies.
Good one! Ours is a little different this year since Merlin is the host.
Ohhh no worries here Mom is a stickler about vet appt. In fact now I go for a senior mini visit in January on pokies except to draw a wee bit of kitty blood. In July I go for my annual wellness exam.
Hugs madi your bfff
I’ve been to the vet too many times recently because of my allergies…okay it’s only been twice, but still. ~Ernie
I wish we had a cat-only clinic here. I like our current vet, but they deal with large farm animals as well as small animals, so the perspective is a bit different.
Nicki goes every three months for his anal glands and whatever blood work he needs (last week was the ionized calcium test, next time will the regular senior panel). I take Derry less frequently, once a year unless there’s an issue.
I agree that it’s important for them to have regular vet care, but to play devil’s advocate, the more tests you run on your pet (or have done on yourself) the more the likelihood you’ll find something wrong. Of course you want to treat anything in its early stages, I mean over-testing, over-worrying, etc. (I’m notorious for almost always being in a panic and having the boys at death’s door.)
The bottom line is quality of life, IMO, not quantity. We all die, it’s just a matter of when. Best to live each day as fully as we can!
I’ve tried leaving the carrier out all the time and Bear IS NOT interested in using it for anything. I do get it out of the closet a week ahead of time though … and when I pull it out, he disappears for a good couple hours 🙂 We need a better carrier too. I’d love a Sleepy Pod if they weren’t so expensive – but I’m thinking any carrier would be easier than the one we have now.
ummm….some of us are due for the annual visit (uh oh)
Great post, it is important to bring cats for exams because they are so good at hiding illness.
we due knot go two de vet round heer ….but we due go two a
place oh eeeeeeeeeeevil ~~~~~~ anda free sack oh fish on de way
out…and a ride in a leather trimmed…
faux fur…. fridge inn clooded ….carrier….still will knot change
R mindz bout goin two… de place oh eeeeeeeeeeeeeevil ~~~ ☺☺☺♥♥♥
Great write up. Emma went a few weeks ago. Clean bill of health. Thank cod!
This is a great topic and one that needs addressing! Our Mom said that. We don’t like going to the v-e-t though some of us will admit, it’s being in the carrier and the car that bothers us more than getting the attentions at the v-e-t place. Of course, we’re CHOOSING not to say a peep about some of the v-e-t procedures *shudders* But we do like all the doctors there! Plus, they have cheese treats now!
None of us mind the Vet at all, but we sure don’t like the car ride.
Mom leaves a carrier out all the time and, very often, one of us is sleeping in it!!! Good info!
The Florida Furkids
Minchie is going tomorrow for a checkup.
Mom says she doesn’t get us to the vet as often as she should and that it will become even more important as we get older.
Mudpie needs to have her annual check-up next month. It’s sad that cats don’t get the care that dogs do.
We go regularly. We can never talk Mommy out of it!
I’ve been to the vet twice this year already and that’s enough. One of my PTUs is always out. I’ll go in and out as I please but when vet day comes, I can sense the peeps’ nervousness and won’t go near it. I like my vet cos her husband loves my blog and shares my FB posts.
Great post!!! I actually go to the Vet TOO much if you ask me! Love, Cody
We visit our vet once a year, we don’t like it, but we know it’s important. Purrs
This is such a great, significant post! You make so many wonderful points. Two out of my three kitties went in for their annuals this month (the other is due in December). They’re certainly not huge fans of the trip, and although the carrier stays out in plain sight (and even with toys and all sorts of enticing things inside) year round, they really don’t like it. But, as you said, it’s so very important that they get their exams just like a dog or a human. Thank you for bringing attention to this very important topic!
What good info. We go to an official feline friendly practice, and although we’ve never been subjected to bad handling or care, our mom’s seen it. Apparently a cat of Mom’s who came way way before us was treated so badly by a vet who obviously did not like cats that Mom stopped the whole thing, got Sophie back in her box and walked out!
We go twice a year for blood test and wellness. We also go to acupuncture and the osteopath. The kitties are senior kitties and we do the usual with a mixture of alternative care.
I went to the vet just a couple days ago. It’s not my favorite place but nothing too terrible has ever happened there so I guess it’s for the best.
I think my current vet was surprised when we ended up showing up as frequently as we do.. it is sad cats don’t get the care that dogs do
After a trip to the Vet because my cat was throwing up for several days . i found out she has cancer. It was not what i expected to hear. She is still eating a little n using the litter box. I am finding it very hard to make the final decision. Please pray for me n Gracie.
We’re so sorry to hear this! Our thoughts are with you while you spend quality time with Gracie.