How to Take Your Cat to the Vet Stress-Free

I hated going to the doctor to get checked up.

Now, it’s a tolerable experience that I can live with.

But I still get the willies knowing that I have to go every year to get checked up to make sure I’m in good health.

As humans, going to the doctor to find out if anything is wrong with us health-wise can be a nerve-wracking experience.

If going to the doctor is enough to make us humans go weak in the knees with dread, then I’m willing to bet that it’s probably a similar experience for cats too.

That’s what it was like for Spunky, my beloved cat.

Like me, he hated going to the veterinarian. 

Taking him to the veterinarian was always a chore that I took no pleasure in doing.

He hated it.

I hated that I had to do it.

But I knew that if I wanted to keep him in good health, taking him to the vet was part of it. 

And that’s what I want to get into today.

So without further ado, let’s get into how to take your cat to the veterinarian stress-free.

Read on below!

7 Steps to Taking Your Cat to the Vet without Stress

1. Pick an appropriate carrier.

You need to pick out something that will help your cat feel secure and at ease.

A good suggestion is to use a wired cage that exposes to your cat to the world and draping a blanket over it to cover the sides.

That will help your cat feel more comfortable. 

This is my favorite cat carrier, available on Amazon.com.

2. Feed your cat in their carrier.

Cats love food! Reward your cat for its cooperation by giving it food.

This will not only encourage your cat to be well-behaved, but it will also keep it calm enough until it’s time to have it checked up by the veterinarian.

You can’t go wrong with food especially if you’re taking your cat to get checked up. 

3. Use Feliway pheromone spray.

This is a spray that helps a cat recognize familiar territory. When a cat is in familiar territory, chances are it will be calmer.

If it’s in unfamiliar territory, it’s more likely to panic. Spraying this inside your cat’s carrier is one effective way to get it to calm down and make it feel at ease. 

4. Get them used to car journeys.

Cats need to be calm from the time you leave the house to the time you arrive at the veterinarian’s clinic. The time spent in between aka driving to the clinic should be as peaceful and tranquil for your cat as possible.

It’s real easy for your cat to get antsy just sitting inside its carrier not knowing where you’re going to take it.

Keeping them calm during car journeys is also a key to making a visit to the veterinarian as smooth and painless as possible.

5. Be on time.

You don’t want to be late getting to the veterinarian’s clinic. What usually happens when you’re late for something?

You start rushing as fast as you can and you get anxious about the situation. Instead of being cool, calm, and collected, you’re a neurotic mess.

Your cat will take your cues from you. If you’re anxious about something, your cat will start getting anxious too. If you’re cool, calm and collected, your cat will be too.  

6. Stay away from dogs.

Ever watch Tom and Jerry as a kid? I certainly did.

I knew that on top of Tom the Cat having Jerry the Mouse as his mortal enemy, he also had another much more physically intimidating adversary: Spike the Bulldog.

Spike knew how to strike fear into Tom’s heart whenever he came around just by his mere presence alone. Tom wanted no part of Spike and Spike knew it.

Well, just like in Tom and Jerry, there are situations where cats need to be kept away from dogs and being taken to the veterinarian is one of them. Dogs just know how to make cats panic in ways that us humans can’t.

7. Consider medication.

Sometimes cats can’t be calmed down and you may have to resort to using medication to get them to do so.

Using medication will not only make things easier for your cat, but it will also make things easier for you as an owner and the veterinarian too. 

See this article on how to get your cat to take its medicine.

Video: 7 Tips to Reduce Vet Visit Stress

If you’re still struggling to keep your cat’s nerves under control, don’t worry! I got you covered. Just check on the video link below and you should be good to go! 

Final Thoughts On How To Take Your Cat To The Vet Stress-Free

Going to the veterinarian doesn’t have to be a painful process. It just requires a little time and effort.

It took me some time to get my cat adjusted to going to the veterinarian, but eventually, we got it done. You can get your cat to cooperate with you. It’s entirely possible.

Just follow the steps provided above and you should be good to go.