Rough Vet Visit And Stressed Out Cat

[Pixelated Cat]

Hello everyone! Yesterday I took Pixie to the vet, and they have a couple of new vet assistants there. I took Pixie in after calling for a prescription refill for him. The vet approved the refill and it wasn't required for us to take him in, but I decided to after the vet tech on the phone asked how Pixie's feet and claws were doing. He has had issues with sore feet, brittle claws, and fungal infections. I admitted it has been hard to give Pixie his medicine because he doesn't like pill pockets and is home alone with my husband for half the week. Since I travel for my job, I am away 4 days a week, and home for 3 days a week, so I thought it would be a good idea for his feet to be looked at while I am home. Fast forward to the vet, they called us back and put us into the waiting room. There were two vet assistants waiting for us that I had never met before. As we put Pixie's carrier on the exam table, one of the assistants quickly opened the carrier door and grabbed Pixie by the scruff and quickly pulled him from his carrier. I started to gently say that he is docile and is cooperative. The vet assistant continued as if she couldn't hear me and lifted him into the air without supporting his bottom and back legs, so she is holding my cat while his feet are dangling in the air while the other assistant was getting the scale. By the time Pixie got onto the scale, his pupils were already dilated and his demeanor was anxious. The vet assistant held him down quite tightly by his scruff while taking his vitals. They took his pulse and breathing and said they were both rapid. His weight is 16 pounds even, and I was relieved to hear he has maintained his weight. The vet assistant asked me if he was on a diet, and I responded that he isn't on a diet and that 16 pounds is his average weight and that it does fluctuate a bit. She lifted him off the scale and again did not support his bottom or legs so he was dangling the air again. After the other assistant took the scale away, the vet assistant handling Pixie put him back in his carrier, closed the door, and walked out of the room. The other assistant said he is a beautiful cat and the doctor would be in shortly. We were happy to see Dr. Mac as usual, but Pixie was already stressed from being handled by the vet assistant and resisted when having his feet and claws looked at. I just want to say I am not trying to gossip and talk bad about anyone, but everyone at Dr. Mac's office knows who Pixie is, and everyone has always been super gentle with him. I am a sensitive person and sometimes I take things very personally so I asked hubby if he thought the new assistant was rough with Pixie. He agreed she was rough and that it seemed to stress Pixie out a bit. I love Dr. Mac and the other assistants and techs that have worked with him and I don't want to ruin the good relationship with the doctor and the clinic. Do you think the assistant was too rough? Should I say anything?

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I generally don't do ANYTHING on line on Sundays but clear out my email, but when your post popped up, I had to come to TCS for this. YES, you should say something. Discuss it with the vet himself, do it calmly. Stress how upsetting it was for you, and how panicked Pixie was, especially when being dangled by the scruff of the neck without support, and at his weight! Ask that he have a word about treating cats more gently with his techs. Mention anything that they did right ("While I had these issues, they were very polite with me" or some such). I PROMISE you, your vet does NOT want his pet guardians upset with how their animals are being handled, and a gentle heads-up SHOULD be appreciated.

 

[Furballsmom]

Absolutely you should say something, an adult cat's weight needs to be supported, and a much easier way to get a cat out of a carrier is to tilt the carrier up at the back end (if there's no top door) so the cat is coming out on his own. The vet needs to know, as soon as possible.

 

[MissClouseau]

I also think you should discuss this with the vet. Absolutely!

I started to gently say that he is docile and is cooperative. The vet assistant continued as if she couldn't hear me and lifted him into the air without supporting his bottom and back legs, so she is holding my cat while his feet are dangling in the air while the other assistant was getting the scale.

If I may say I think the biggest annoyance is this part and I hope you mention this to the vet too. Some people are new at the job, some are misinformed on how to handle a cat and all... these are one thing. But it is unacceptable to NOT listen to the human of the pet. Things could have gotten worse and will get worse if this employee acts similar with a dog. Pet's humans know their pet the best, their warnings and comments should always be taken into consideration and respected enough to at least discuss, definitely not to ignore.

 

[denice]

You never support a cat's weight just by the scruff. You don't have to be a vet tech to know that, I would definitely voice my disapproval.

 

[Neko-chan's mama]

I am angry just reading this. You should absolutely day something. There is no excuse for treating a pet this way and the vet needs to know.

 

[Leomc123]

The way you describe your vets assistant she sounded like as if she is one of those people who treat pets as a factory processing plant, with no "bed side maners " dont know what they call it in the vet world. When i took my cat 6.5kg leo in to the vet, the vet will not take the cat out of the cage or carrier , they ask me to take the cat out and to place him on the table and hold the cat. Then while the cat is calm and made his place on the table and myself holding and petting the cat, the vet slowly tries to socialize with the cat, by gently petting and touching the cat while asking me questions. Then if the vet sees that the cat is ok with him then he will start examinations etc . If he notices the cat getting stressed out then he will call a nurse or someone else in the team to help hold the cat.

When they carry the cat, they get a blanket which is placed around the cats paws and carry them like a baby. I never seen a vet yet that grabs the cat by the scruff to carry them at all , then only time my cats scruffed and it was a gentle scruff was when he was being given an injection behind the neck and was sitting on the table.


I would talk to your vet, and let them know that the vet assistant does not have "pet manners" . She obviously stressed the cat out that his heart was racing and eyes openeing wide, i would too be stressed if my doctor came in without saying hello and grabbed me by the hair , dangled me around while walking to the scale, and then tell me your heart rate is pretty fast. like wtf. The poor cat is probably wondering what the hell is going on.

 

[CatLover49]

Hello everyone! Yesterday I took Pixie to the vet, and they have a couple of new vet assistants there. I took Pixie in after calling for a prescription refill for him. The vet approved the refill and it wasn't required for us to take him in, but I decided to after the vet tech on the phone asked how Pixie's feet and claws were doing. He has had issues with sore feet, brittle claws, and fungal infections. I admitted it has been hard to give Pixie his medicine because he doesn't like pill pockets and is home alone with my husband for half the week. Since I travel for my job, I am away 4 days a week, and home for 3 days a week, so I thought it would be a good idea for his feet to be looked at while I am home. Fast forward to the vet, they called us back and put us into the waiting room. There were two vet assistants waiting for us that I had never met before. As we put Pixie's carrier on the exam table, one of the assistants quickly opened the carrier door and grabbed Pixie by the scruff and quickly pulled him from his carrier. I started to gently say that he is docile and is cooperative. The vet assistant continued as if she couldn't hear me and lifted him into the air without supporting his bottom and back legs, so she is holding my cat while his feet are dangling in the air while the other assistant was getting the scale. By the time Pixie got onto the scale, his pupils were already dilated and his demeanor was anxious. The vet assistant held him down quite tightly by his scruff while taking his vitals. They took his pulse and breathing and said they were both rapid. His weight is 16 pounds even, and I was relieved to hear he has maintained his weight. The vet assistant asked me if he was on a diet, and I responded that he isn't on a diet and that 16 pounds is his average weight and that it does fluctuate a bit. She lifted him off the scale and again did not support his bottom or legs so he was dangling the air again. After the other assistant took the scale away, the vet assistant handling Pixie put him back in his carrier, closed the door, and walked out of the room. The other assistant said he is a beautiful cat and the doctor would be in shortly. We were happy to see Dr. Mac as usual, but Pixie was already stressed from being handled by the vet assistant and resisted when having his feet and claws looked at. I just want to say I am not trying to gossip and talk bad about anyone, but everyone at Dr. Mac's office knows who Pixie is, and everyone has always been super gentle with him. I am a sensitive person and sometimes I take things very personally so I asked hubby if he thought the new assistant was rough with Pixie. He agreed she was rough and that it seemed to stress Pixie out a bit. I love Dr. Mac and the other assistants and techs that have worked with him and I don't want to ruin the good relationship with the doctor and the clinic. Do you think the assistant was too rough? Should I say anything?

Yes I definitely think the assistant was rough with ure baby...I wouldn't want NO one handling my boy like that...n at my regular vet of almost 11 yrs I...NEVER HAVE SEEN THEM EVER HANDLED MY BOY THAT WAY....AND BETTER NOT...THATS MY BABY..YES I WOULD MENTION IT TO THE VET...And if u HAVE a good relationship with ure VET...it shudnt ruin anything...If u have been taking ure baby there for awhile or any animals...then the VET is GOING to VERY likely SEE ure concern....And it NOT be a problem FOR relationship with the VET...But even if it was..so WHAT....URE PRECIOUS BABY SHUD NOT BE HANDLED THAT WAY...

 

[FeralHearts]

I'm going to agree with everyone here that has said say something to the vet.

I know it's uncomfortable to say something in situations like this, but if it helps there are three really good reasons to address it.

1. The vet needs to be aware that the tech needs retraining. They can't correct anything if they don't know something is amiss.

2. If that vet tech gets a cat like my Charlie, he would shred her, I mean shred to the point of blooding her up good. Possibly really injuring her. In which case the cat gets into trouble for being a bad /aggressive cat when it's not the cats fault. (Charlie can't handle anyone holding the scruff of his neck, even gently- he reacts violently to it.)

3. And this is probably the most important reason - you can seriously HURT a grown cat carrying them like that.



I'm very sorry that the Vet tech placed you in this position and the poor kitty was manhandled. XOXOXOXOXO

 

[posiepurrs]

YES SAY SOMETHING!!! I would have hit the roof if that happened with my cat, no matter how polite they are to me. You never pick up a cat by the scruff without supporting the rear. We are our cats spokesperson. In my experience, my vet office allows me to take the cat out of the carrier. I do have some cats that are testy with the vet and I remind them when I take the cat out so they are prepared.

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

... We were happy to see Dr. Mac as usual, but Pixie was already stressed from being handled by the vet assistant and resisted when having his feet and claws looked at. I just want to say I am not trying to gossip and talk bad about anyone, but everyone at Dr. Mac's office knows who Pixie is, and everyone has always been super gentle with him. ... so I asked hubby if he thought the new assistant was rough with Pixie. He agreed she was rough and that it seemed to stress Pixie out a bit. I love Dr. Mac and the other assistants and techs that have worked with him and I don't want to ruin the good relationship with the doctor and the clinic. ...

I agree with everyone else, that it would be the best idea to talk to Dr. Mac about this.

Remember, it won't be you that would "ruin the good relationship with the doctor or clinic" by informing the vet, in my opinion it would be the vet tech who would do so if that kind of handling of cats continues. There will be a lot of scared and upset cats cowering from the vet during the vet's valuable time with the animal, as a result of the initial insensitive handling by the vet tech. That's not good for anyone. Maybe that vet tech is more of a dog person and doesn't know how to handle cats well?

 

[Jem]

I don't need to go into detail because everyone else has said what I was thinking. So I'll simply agree that you should say something.

 

[Meowmee]

Hello everyone! Yesterday I took Pixie to the vet, and they have a couple of new vet assistants there. I took Pixie in after calling for a prescription refill for him. The vet approved the refill and it wasn't required for us to take him in, but I decided to after the vet tech on the phone asked how Pixie's feet and claws were doing. He has had issues with sore feet, brittle claws, and fungal infections. I admitted it has been hard to give Pixie his medicine because he doesn't like pill pockets and is home alone with my husband for half the week. Since I travel for my job, I am away 4 days a week, and home for 3 days a week, so I thought it would be a good idea for his feet to be looked at while I am home. Fast forward to the vet, they called us back and put us into the waiting room. There were two vet assistants waiting for us that I had never met before. As we put Pixie's carrier on the exam table, one of the assistants quickly opened the carrier door and grabbed Pixie by the scruff and quickly pulled him from his carrier. I started to gently say that he is docile and is cooperative. The vet assistant continued as if she couldn't hear me and lifted him into the air without supporting his bottom and back legs, so she is holding my cat while his feet are dangling in the air while the other assistant was getting the scale. By the time Pixie got onto the scale, his pupils were already dilated and his demeanor was anxious. The vet assistant held him down quite tightly by his scruff while taking his vitals. They took his pulse and breathing and said they were both rapid. His weight is 16 pounds even, and I was relieved to hear he has maintained his weight. The vet assistant asked me if he was on a diet, and I responded that he isn't on a diet and that 16 pounds is his average weight and that it does fluctuate a bit. She lifted him off the scale and again did not support his bottom or legs so he was dangling the air again. After the other assistant took the scale away, the vet assistant handling Pixie put him back in his carrier, closed the door, and walked out of the room. The other assistant said he is a beautiful cat and the doctor would be in shortly. We were happy to see Dr. Mac as usual, but Pixie was already stressed from being handled by the vet assistant and resisted when having his feet and claws looked at. I just want to say I am not trying to gossip and talk bad about anyone, but everyone at Dr. Mac's office knows who Pixie is, and everyone has always been super gentle with him. I am a sensitive person and sometimes I take things very personally so I asked hubby if he thought the new assistant was rough with Pixie. He agreed she was rough and that it seemed to stress Pixie out a bit. I love Dr. Mac and the other assistants and techs that have worked with him and I don't want to ruin the good relationship with the doctor and the clinic. Do you think the assistant was too rough? Should I say anything?

Yes , you should have stopped her, I would have. Def say something.

I never let anyone handle my cats at dvm unless all seems ok. I have needed help sometimes getting them out of the carrier, but no one ever manhandled my cats etc. terrible behavior imo.

I remember Syb having a bad reaction at one dvm which was a cat only hospital. She went beserk and wouldn't let them get urine etc. she was actually growling, that happened twice there and she was the most gentle cat. They asked me to come in for it and I just told them not to to do it. They wanted to bring her back to sedate for bloodwork. I ended up going back to wizard’s dvm where she had been and never had a problem. I think it may have been the other cats there who ran lose etc. They lived there.