Left Hand Animal Hospital takes cat care to the next level

If you or your cat has ever been anxious about a trip to the veterinarian, Left Hand Animal Hospital is one veterinary practice that has gone the extra mile to provide veterinary care that is less stressful for both cats and their caregivers.

The hospital, which is also a certified fear-free practice, recently announced that they are now a certified Cat Friendly Practice® (CFP). This program, established by the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) and the International Society for Feline Medicine (ISFM), is a global initiative designed to elevate care for cats by reducing the stress for the cat, caregiver, and the entire veterinary team.

For the last eight months, the hospital staff members have worked to implement changes to make the hospital more "cat friendly." As a result, cats and their caregivers will have a less stressful visit thanks to the unique spaces and specialized care tailored to fit your felines' specific needs.

Nancy Bureau, DVM and co-owner of Left Hand Animal Hospital, said many of the changes centered around creating a cat-friendly space. The hospital now has a separate cat-only waiting room as well as cat-friendly cubbies for their feline patients. Their dedicated feline exam rooms are in a quieter part of the hospital and do not allow any dogs. Additionally, the staff uses a lot of warmed towels and even have cat-specific music, all to ensure that their feline patients have a comforting and warm place to hang out during their visit.

"We want to provide a space where kitty cats are safe and comfortable. A lot of pet parents don't want to bring their cat to the vet because it's stressful for the cat and the pet parent," said Bureau.

According to the AAFP, a few things you can expect from a CFP include a cat-friendly attitude from the veterinary team, gentle handling, feline-specific advice, feline-tailored waiting area, feline-focused hospitalization and boarding areas, feline-sized equipment and facilities, and cat-specific resources.

Depending on their age and health status, most cats should get a yearly check-up with their veterinarian. Kittens or older cats may need additional visits. Bureau said that the very first step in making this a stress-free process starts with giving your veterinarian a call and putting a plan in place for your cat's visit.

"We try to work with pet parents and come up with a plan that's going to work with them before they leave the house. We ask pet parents to fill out a pre-visit questionnaire asking what their cat likes and what their cat does not like so that we make sure we only do the things that the cat likes," she said.

This process includes things such as having your cat's preferred treats or snacks on hand or making sure they have catnip if that's one of your cat's favorite things.

"I think of it like if I showed up at my doctor's office, and they said, 'Hey you can have a chocolate chip cookie while you're waiting.' I would like my doctor a whole lot more," said Bureau.

You can start at home by getting your cat more accustomed to their carrier to make sure that they associate it with good things and not just leaving the house. Bureau recommends putting snacks or warm towels in the carrier to help reassure your cat that it is a safe and comfortable place to be. She also recommends making sure the carrier is set up for maximum comfort. You can use towels or blankets to make it cozy for your cat. And consider investing in a soft-sided carrier which may be more comfortable than a traditional hard-sided carrier.

"Some cats do prefer carriers that fold around them rather than typical hard plastic carriers where they are in an open space and not as comfy," she said.

From there, Bureau said you will want to try to make the drive as comfortable as possible. If you have calming cat music, play that in the car. And if your cat gets particularly anxious while on the road, Bureau recommends purchasing a cat calming pheromone spray, such as Feliway, which you can spray on the towels in the carrier. This pheromone is released by a mother cat to help kittens calm down and helps soothe your cat in stressful situations.

Additionally, you can talk to your veterinarian about additional anxiety medication or supplements if needed. "Some of our kitty cats take anti-anxiety medications or supplements before they leave the house so that the car ride is not worrisome for them," said Bureau.

Once at the hospital, you can put your cat in the cat-friendly hands of the hospital staff. About 30% of the hospital's patients are cats, which is above average, as most general vet practices across the U.S. see about 15-20% cats.

Bureau said that as part of their new Cat Friendly Practice certification, the entire staff is trained to handle cats kindly and gently. And while all team members have base knowledge about how to work with cats, the hospital also has multiple team members who have been designated as "cat advocates'' and have gone through additional continuing education to ensure purrrr-fect cat care.

"We want to make sure that the kitty cat's experience, from the time they get here, come into the reception area, get into their exam rooms, work with their medical team, and then get back to their pet parent, is calm and relaxing for them," said Bureau.