Veterinary trips

[Amanda (mad4moggies)]

Also in this little mans case he wouldn`t be able to have any sedation due to the possible heart problems. Have you checked his heart rate when he is at rest so that you can compare it when he is on his way to the vets as the possible hyperthyroidism can cause the ehart rate to be increased too.

I have an asthmatic cat called Monty that hates travelling to the vets. When he goes into a carrier he gets extremely stressed which makes his breathing worse. I decided to try him on a cat harness and it has worked wonders. He is a lot calmer but obviously you do have to be very careful as although he cannot get out of the harness you have to always make sure you have a tight grip on the lead to avoid escape!

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

I asked a bout a kinda sedation/relaxant type thing for Kocka but my vet said he would never recommend these for cats travelling as in their fear they fight against the drug and that makes them worse.

[Sue P (Paddysmum)]

Heh heh heh - nice one Beanie! 

[Ela]

I think you can get Valerian from Holland and Barratt and those types of shop. You can get it in a liquid form and just put it on a cat toy, it smells very yeasty.

It is good if you have a timid cat and want to get you hands near it as you can just sprinkle some on them.

[Beanie]

Thanks Milly's Mum.

How is that administered? Is it a liquid to put on the bedding or to be taken orally? Is it a relaxation pill?

Sue P,

I don't doubt that he would charge in that ballpark area but I like to remind him that, outside of 1/2 rescues, I am his best customer and he knows that I recommend neighbours and friends to his surgery. i suppose you could call it grabbing each other by the....ahem....kegs....and compromising.   

[Millys Mum]

Valerian extract is supposed to calm and relax, VetUk sell it.

Would a sedative from the vet be an option? Its not something i'd use for no reason but if hes really winding himself up then i would consider it. Could get a prescription for it and buy elsewhere.

Best wishes to Tarzan.

[Sue P (Paddysmum)]

Beanie - don't know about your vet, but ours charges £70 for a call out, and that's not including treatment.  And it can't be claimed back on insurance either.

[Beanie]

Thanks guys for taking time out to reply.

Tarzan has a wire basket (top loader).

Like most cats he gets too excited by catnip and with the prospect of Hyperthyroididm in mind, we don't want to overexcite him.

I didn't know Feliway did a travel spray. I'll try some of that.

The blanket bit is tempting. However, he is a little guy (2.6kg) and a real wriggler and is never content when picked up unless his two front paws rest over your arm, which helps him to escape when he wants to.

I tend to drive as I take great care at making it a smooth drive but Maragret would have great problems holding him and I find that thought too risky. She tends to get a bit panicky and this transfers to my little mate.

I have avoided asking the vet up to now as he will try to sell me something which, as much as I like him, is way overpriced. Mind you I could always try to access it elsewhere.

I'm open to any other ideas.

[Sue P (Paddysmum)]

   Cheers Christine!

[Christine (Blip)]

I won't let anyone call you an old boiler, Sue!

Happy New Year Beanie! Hope it's good for you. I tend to agree that a wire see-through carrier seems marginally less stressful and I'm also going to try Furbabystar's catnip idea next time we have to go.

[Sue P (Paddysmum)]

Sadly Paddy's never been attracted to catnip, unlike Flynn, who went wild for it.

We tried Pad in our wire dog cage in the back of the car, and found it made no difference but it might work for Beanie.  Might be a better option if vet visits have to be on a solo basis, or where there's a sufficiently lengthy journey to make it just too chancy to have Tarzan unrestrained in the car.  It's so awful when they get distressed like that.  It's had me shaking and in tears on more than one occasion and I like to think I'm a reasonably robust sort of bird (bit of an old boiler in fact!)

Suppose we're all vulnerable when it comes to our fabulous babies

[saffron]

I found that my cats seem to be much better when travelling when I changed my willow basket to an all wired one where they could see all around them.
Never thought about the cat nip leaves before but that sounds an excellent idea

[Michelle (furbabystar)]

I had a cat like that, I used to put catnip leaves her her carrier.......did the trick for her so might be worth trying ?

[Sue P (Paddysmum)]

Hi Beanie.  Happy New Year.

KNow what you're going through as Paddy gets the same, although he hates the car, full stop.  We devised a similar method to Gill.  I agree, it isn't recommended but if you're desperate.....

One of us drives and the other is nominated chief Carer - usually OH as he's Number One Best Dad.  We sit with Paddy on our knee, and wrap him loosely in a towel or blanket.  We talk to him and hold him all the time, and he seems to prefer this.  He still gets stressed, salivates and cries, but it's much better than when he's in the carrier when he usually vomits, wees and poos himself with fear.  I think he likes the fact he can see out of the window a bit, and he's not confined.  As Gill said though about Kocka - Paddy's also elderly and a bit easier to control, and happily our vet is only a five minute drive away (one reason we chose them)

Hope this helps and sending lots of love to Tarzan

[Desley (booktigger)]

Aww, I do hope you can figure out a solution for him - might be worth asking the vet too, in case they can suggest something. You could try Feliway travel spray, you spray it in the carrier half an hour before going.

[Ela]

Does the vet have the equipment that is portable and  bring it to your home and do it there?

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

I wish I could think of something else you could do but you are already doing all the things I used with Kocka.

The only other thing with Kocka but she was very old and not very fast at moving so easy to control................and it is not really recommended, but she used to sit/lie in the bottom half of her carrier ( top completely removed) on my knee in the car, it was all cushioned with blankets for her and it meant I could stroke and talk to her all the time and she could move around and look out of window and at me or what ever I also had a good quality catnip mouse in there for her too.

She used to be very stressed going to the vet and this really helped cos she loved travelling in the car.

Doubt if theis will help much but cant think of anything else.

Hope Tarzan will be OK

[Beanie]

A belated Happy New Year to one and all.

I'm looking for some advice. I had to take my little 3 legged superstar Tarzan to the vet yesterday for his annual booster and we also think he has developed Hyperthyroidism which the vet is going to test. The vet also wants to check to see if he has congenital heart disease. We are praying that he will be OK as we simply adore and admire him so much. He is our very special boy and absolutely nothing is too good for Tarzan.

The initial problem is that he was hyperventillating during the short journey (1 mile) and during the visit. How can I minimise the stress? His heart rate rose to 200 at the vets. I always use Bachs Rescue Remedy which works to a degree with our other cats. Does anyone have any practical suggestions as to how I can reduce or even eliminate the stress that he suffers? He travels with my wife as I drive and we stroke and calmly talk to him during the journey and at the vets. We have a cover which partly covers the carrier so that he does not have to see the world pass or traffic during the journey. He can see out of one side and know that we are there with him.

Any positive views or ideas would be greatly appreciated.