While a trip to the veterinarian’s office will make your pet feel better in the long run, it’s impossible to communicate that fact with your furry family member. For particularly skittish pets, a trip to the vet can be an anxiety-inducing experience. Your dog or cat still needs to receive exams, vaccinations, and other crucial services to stay healthy, so there are a few things you can do to calm their nerves before and during an appointment with the vet.

What Causes Anxiety in Pets?

Before you can help ease your pet’s anxiety, you need to understand why they’re anxious. Animals can react fearfully for any number of reasons. Maybe your adopted pet has had previous bad experiences at the vet, or maybe your animal just doesn’t feel in control of what’s happening to them. Some pets are also simply nervous in any new or unfamiliar environment, or being around other animals can lead to anxiousness. Signs of fear can include cowering, shaking, excessive panting, or even aggressive behavior.

What Can You Do to Curb Your Pet’s Anxiety?

Take It Slow

Owners and vet staff can work together to make the veterinarian experience less stressful for pets. For one, taking the appointment slowly can diffuse the situation and make your animal less anxious. Be sure to arrive early to give your pet plenty of time to sniff the building’s grounds if they’re brought in on a leash instead of a carrier.

Practice At Home or With a Trainer

If your pet seems anxious about being touched, you can carry out practice “exams” at home: Inspect their ears, teeth, and feet to get them desensitized to the experience. If other animals or people seem to be the source of anxiety, consider behavioral counseling with a professional trainer who can work on addressing aggression or other bad behaviors with strangers.

Give Positive Reinforcement

A final but practical way to ease anxiety is to reward your pet with positive reinforcement in the form of treats. Even if you don’t use food training at home, the special circumstances of undergoing an exam and maybe even vaccinations might call for a small food reward. If there’s any irresistible treat your pet loves, bring these to the appointment and dole them out accordingly.

If your pet is fearful of the veterinarian’s office, allow the caring team from Covedale Pet Hospital to put them at ease. Serving the Cincinnati, OH, area for over 25 years, these animal care experts provide top-notch pet care to local pets. Their experienced staff knows how to approach nervous pets and welcomes reptiles and birds in addition to cats, dogs, rabbits, and pocket pets. Explore the office’s list of services online or call (513) 251-4666 to schedule an appointment for your pet.