Shaky Vet Visit

[linkworshiper]

Today, I brought Hemingway to the vet. Because of COVID, I wait in my car while the vet takes the carrier inside for the appointment, then they come out to consult. The vet asked me if Hemingway was a bully when I asked why he might be so energetic at night. When I looked at his chart, the vet wrote that he had been too cagey to examine and hissed a lot. I was shocked! That’s not my cat! He was happy as a clam in the car ride there and back, so I’m at a loss. It turns out he has some tooth issues I have to bring him back for, but I don’t know what to do. I’ve been using this vet since I got Hemingway and I like their service. Is it’s one off?

 

[Silver Crazy]

Most likely because you werent in there with the vet, I would call it a one off.
My vet has a notice on my chart cat isnt to be handled unless owner present, the vets can do anything with him as long as I am there but if I leave the room all hell breaks loose.

 

[danteshuman]

Well even Angel cats can morph into cats from hell at the vet. Plus the poor guy didn’t have mom there!!!

My mom had this small declawed cat (that was her bottle baby) that was the sweetest cat ever & loved strangers. Then my stepdad took her to vet without my mom. She needed a hoop thingy on a stick around her neck & back paws. Even with all, that she still managed to bite a technician. This small 9? Pound declawed cat had the red warning label on her vet file! So don’t feel bad about your cat’s behavior.

Can you ask them for a sedative to give to him before you put him in the car to go to the vet & maybe some daily pain meds if his teeth are hurting him? Cats hide their pain & dental surgery may be weeks away.

 

[linkworshiper]

Can you ask them for a sedative to give to him before you put him in the car to go to the vet & maybe some daily pain meds if his teeth are hurting him? Cats hide their pain & dental surgery may be weeks away.

they did give me some gabapentin for next time. He usually loves strangers, so I was stunned. Maybe it all comes back to the teeth.

 

[danteshuman]

Plus your not being there makes a huge difference. If it was just a yearly checkup I would suggest you arrange for a vet to come to your house. Our pets view their humans as a source of safety & security.

Are you vaccinated from Covid? If you fax over proof of your vaccines two weeks or more ago & wear a disposable mask, can you come in with your cat & give him a sedative? Or can you give him gabapentin & have them give him a shot of sedative at the car so they can treat him while he sleeps?

 

[linkworshiper]

Plus your not being there makes a huge difference. If it was just a yearly checkup I would suggest you arrange for a vet to come to your house. Our pets view their humans as a source of safety & security.

Are you vaccinated from Covid? If you fax over proof of your vaccines two weeks or more ago & wear a disposable mask, can you come in with your cat & give him a sedative? Or can you give him gabapentin & have them give him a shot of sedative at the car so they can treat him while he sleeps?

I am vaccinated. Maybe I’ll ask the vet if I can come In, especially if they have to do a blood draw. It’s so out of character for him. The only time I’ve ever heard him hiss is around dogs, and even then, only twice. Maybe there was a dog there

 

[Kieka]

Cats do take social cues from their owners/humans. I saw a study not too long ago that they are doing research and are finding they are similar to dogs in being able to understand and interpret human signals for safety, security, direction, etc. So it's not surprising to have a cat who is completely different with their people and without. My Mom has to take her cat to the vet, the few times I've taken him he is demon child. My boy is confident at the vet with me but without me, not so much. My vet even commented after his last appointment that she was a little worried about him because he wasn't his normal self without me there. He doesn't go demon mode, he just is very nervous.

 

[LTS3]

Most cats get super stressed out in an unfamiliar environment with lots of different smells and people, such as the vet office. They'll instinctively react defensively with claws and hisses and bites. Some cats may need a sedative prior to vet appointments so they're less likely to harm the staff.

I am vaccinated. Maybe I’ll ask the vet if I can come In, especially if they have to do a blood draw. It’s so out of character for him.

Businesses have to keep their employees safe during a pandemic and may implement policies to keep them and customers safe. Vet offices are no different. It stinks to have to wait outside in the parking lot though. Yes the CDC did recently update guidelines for fully vaccinated people but businesses may continue to keep safety polices in place regardless of vaccination status. Anyone can claim being fully vaccinated but there's no way to 100% prove it and it may not be legal to ask for proof and we all know that there are fake vaccination record cards one can buy online.

 

[linkworshiper]

Cats do take social cues from their owners/humans. I saw a study not too long ago that they are doing research and are finding they are similar to dogs in being able to understand and interpret human signals for safety, security, direction, etc. So it's not surprising to have a cat who is completely different with their people and without. My Mom has to take her cat to the vet, the few times I've taken him he is demon child. My boy is confident at the vet with me but without me, not so much. My vet even commented after his last appointment that she was a little worried about him because he wasn't his normal self without me there. He doesn't go demon mode, he just is very nervous.

Yeah,Hemingway isdegi a dog stuck in a cat body. He gets squirmy if I hold him too long but he lets my girlfriend carry him everywhere in her arms. She is coming with me next time. The last times I brought Hemingway alone, he at least acted how he does at home, which is curious. I’m just very worried about his mental state in general because I think he has separation anxiety even when we go to bed. Which fits with the visit.

Anyone can claim being fully vaccinated but there's no way to 100% prove it and it may not be legal to ask for proof and we all know that there are fake vaccination record cards one can buy online.

except we don’t all know that? I have my card and if they really want to dig, there are records of me having an appointment and checking in. I think I’ll still ask.

 

[Kieka]

Here is the study, DEFINE_ME

 

[fionasmom]

Lots of good suggestions here. I get the feeling that you are taking this too personally and you should not be. Let me see, if I sit her long enough I might be able to recall one cat I owned lo these many years who did not overreact at the vet. Yes, the COVID rules make it worse and I can see right now that my cat vet is not about to change any restrictions no matter what the CDC just said. They did let me in for a euthanasia a few months ago however, so it does not hurt to ask if you might accompany your cat.

Personally, I think that calling Hemingway a bully might have been a little over the top. He sounds like a very sweet cat with lots of toes? My cat vet has carte blanche to sedate Jamie, my current sick boy, for procedures as I know he hates it there and becomes very defensive. I am not saying that you need to go that far, but this is way more common than you think. I mean, like what, every other cat that went in that day jumped into the vet's arms and licked his face?

 

[danteshuman]

Fionasmom I’m so sorry for your loss!

I agree with you though about sedation. In this case full sedation might be the best possible solution until this pandemic ends. I know I’m going to put off my cat’s annual vaccine by a few months in hopes that his next annual I can be there with him ;after I’m fully vaccinated.) The curbside vaccines last year was difficult enough.

 

[John Perram]

My new vet let me in the office with a mask. She also was kind and took time to show me xrays etc.

 

[JulietteTruong]

T

Today, I brought Hemingway to the vet. Because of COVID, I wait in my car while the vet takes the carrier inside for the appointment, then they come out to consult. The vet asked me if Hemingway was a bully when I asked why he might be so energetic at night. When I looked at his chart, the vet wrote that he had been too cagey to examine and hissed a lot. I was shocked! That’s not my cat! He was happy as a clam in the car ride there and back, so I’m at a loss. It turns out he has some tooth issues I have to bring him back for, but I don’t know what to do. I’ve been using this vet since I got Hemingway and I like their service. Is it’s one off?

To me that sounds like normal cat behavior to react like that at a vet clinic. I mean, when I was a child I was said to be horrible at the doctor’s. Screaming, kicking, crying etc. but any other time I was a well behaved child.

 

[John Perram]

Cats go by smell and perhaps the vet could wipe himself with a cat scented towel used by your cat.