Why Cats Do Better With a Mobile Vet | Home Visit Vet for Cats Australia

The Mobile Vet Advantage for Cats

For many cat owners, the most difficult part of a veterinary appointment is not the examination of the cat by the veterinarian. It is what comes before the cat’s arrival at the clinic. The carrier will have to come out to the cat’s home, the cat will have to hide in their carriers, become stressed during their journey to the clinic, and show overwhelming emotions when they finally arrive.

This is one of the many reasons that many cats do better with a mobile veterinarian.

A home visit vet for cats can significantly reduce the stress that a cat may feel during their journey to the clinic, while also during the visit. For cats that find visits to the clinic to be stressful, the ability for a veterinarian to visit the cat at home is a much more comfortable and accurate way of examining the animal.

At Pawssum Mobile Vets, one of the most common inquiries from cat owners is regarding the possibility of scheduling a visit from a mobile veterinarian to examine the cat who hates to leave the home.

Why cats often find vet visits so stressful?

Cats are extremely sensitive to change in their environment. This sensitivity is also a consideration for veterinarians who must assess the stressed out cat during their visit.

Stress for the cat can come from being placed into a carrier, leaving their territory, being transported in a moving car, being exposed to loud noises, other animals, and being handled once they are already stressed out.

This is the reason why many cat owners search for a veterinarian for their anxious cat. It is not the cat, nor is it the owner who is stressing the cat out, but the fact that the cat does not handle transport very well.

A mobile veterinarian visit can eliminate these stressors for the cat.

Why cats do better with a mobile vet?

There are several reasons why cats do better with a mobile veterinarian visit to their homes.

One of the main reasons is that the cats will avoid the entire stressful cycle of being placed in the carrier, being transported in the car, and entering the clinic.

Each of the stressed out cats who come into the clinics feel better when the veterinarian visits them at home.

The veterinarian will be able to see the cat while they are in their natural environment.

For anxious cats, a visit from a mobile veterinarian can be the solution to a problem that many cat owners have.

Older cats also often find it easier to be examined at home by a veterinarian.

The benefit of a visit from a mobile veterinarian for older cats is that the veterinarian can assess issues related to their mobility and health in their environment.

These visits may be requested for cats who are experiencing:

• Stiffness
• Difficulty in moving
• Poor appetite
• Weight loss
• Difficulty in using the litter tray
• Declining vision

A key benefit of the mobile veterinarian is that many cat owners delay scheduling visits to the veterinarian.

They are afraid of how their cats will react to being placed in the carrier, the car ride to the clinic, and the stress of the visit.

The veterinarian must be seen sooner to address the cat’s health.

The cat will be less stressed out when the veterinarian visits at the home.

The cat that disappears when the carrier comes out of the cupboard

Some cats will disappear into the shadows as soon as the carrier is taken out of the cupboard.

Others may be screaming in the car as soon as they are transported.

The senior cat who has started to show signs of slowing down

It is not uncommon for older cats to show a loss in mobility. They may no longer jump on the bed, or they may sleep more than before.

The same is true for their litter tray use.

The cat with a litter tray problem

There are numerous reasons for a litter tray problem. It may be that the cat is in pain from arthritis. They may be stressed between other cats in the house.

The nervous indoor cat

A cat who does not like to travel or leave the house may find the experience of visiting the clinic to be overwhelming. A visit from a home visit vet for cats may be the better option for such a feline.

How a vet thinks about this problem?

When a veterinarian is approached by a cat owner stating that their cat hates the vet, there are two questions that the veterinarian is usually thinking about:

• Are they sick?
• Is their mobility okay?
• are there any toileting changes

The veterinarian may ask these questions when the visit is made to the home of the owner.

A mobile veterinarian for cats is not just about the convenience of the owner.

It is also about the ability of the veterinarian to assess the cat in a way that is more helpful to obtain an accurate diagnosis.

For example, if a cat is not grooming themselves properly, the veterinarian may be considering issues with:

• Arthritis
• Obesity
• Dental problems
• Chronic illness
• Stress
• Competition between the cat and other pets at home
• Inability to lie in their favourite spots due to pain

A mobile veterinarian can assess these issues at the home.

What can sometimes be managed at home by a mobile veterinarian?

A mobile veterinarian can be tasked with conducting visits for issues such as:

• Health checks
• Assessments of senior cats
• Skin and coat problems
• Vomiting
• Appetite changes
• Behaviours
• Litter tray problems
• Arthritis
• Mobility
• Quality of life
• Palliative care
• End of life

These are all issues that may benefit from being assessed at the home by a veterinarian.

When it is best to visit the clinic

There are instances where a cat visit to the veterinarian at home is not appropriate.

For example, if the cat requires diagnostics, procedures, or surgery, the clinic is the better location for the visit.

A referral to a clinic veterinarian is the best option for cats who may need surgery or who may require X-rays.

Signs that mean call a vet now

In certain critical instances, a cat’s owner should contact a veterinarian immediately.

• difficulty breathing
• open-mouth breathing
• repeated vomiting
• collapse or sudden weakness
• straining to urinate
• inability to pass urine
• major trauma
• seizures
• sudden back leg paralysis
• severe pain
• toxin exposure
• not eaten for more than 24 hours, especially with lethargy

While a mobile veterinarian may be able to assist in these instances, in some cases, the clinic visit is the best option for the pet.

Why this matters for cat owners across Australia

For cat owners across Australia, the stress of taking their pets to the veterinarian is a challenge that is faced by many. Especially for those with cats who do not travel well or who do not like the carriers.

Pawssum has already started to provide mobile veterinary services as a means of lessening the stress that cats and owners experience. Their website also makes clear that one of the benefits of a mobile veterinarian is that they are helpful for anxious pets, cats, and the elderly.

Therefore, while it is true that a mobile veterinarian for cats will save time and money for the owners, it is even more important to understand that the cats themselves do better when assessed in their homes and in their environments of comfort.

The takeaway

Therefore, why do cats do better with a mobile vet?

Because they do not often deal well with the carrier, travel, the waiting areas of the clinics, or the holding of the carriers by the veterinarians.

The mobile veterinarian removes these stressors and allows for a more accurate assessment of the feline population.

For cats who are anxious, indoor cats, the elderly, or who dread visiting the clinics for their health checks, a home visit vet for cats may be the better route.

However, not every medical issue can be treated at home by a mobile veterinarian.

Therefore, while a home visit vet for cats is beneficial in many instances, it is not a “one size fits all” solution for every sick cat owner in Australia.

Nevertheless, the ability to assess cats while they are in their natural environment, in their homes, and in their comfort may very well be the best solution to the stress that is caused by visits to the clinic.