• Use a hard plastic carrier with a removable top. This allows for safe transport and easy cleaning. In the clinic the top can be removed, allowing your pet to stay inside the familiar base and not have to be pulled around.
• Try to avoid: fabric carriers (unstable and hard to clean), backpack carriers (small, unsteady and exposed) and harnesses (not secure and nowhere to hide).
• Make the carrier cat friendly. Use a familiar blanket inside the carrier – some cats even like to hide under a blanket to feel safe.

Where possible have the carrier out in the house at all times. Encourage your cat to sleep in the carrier or leave treats inside and it will soon become a familiar, safe place. If it cannot be out all of the time, consider having it out for a few days prior to your appointment.

It’s not just dogs who can learn! Try to train your cat to be comfortable in the carrier. Start by encouraging them on to a blanket (with treats, toys or affection). Next, place the blanket in the bottom half of the carrier. Once they have learned to sit in the base, start adding the lid, followed by the door and finally start closing the door with them settled inside. This will be useful not only for trips to the vets, but also for transporting them to the cattery, moving home or going on holiday!

• Make sure to hold the carrier from the base, keeping it steady.
• Consider covering the carrier with a blanket so your cat feels more secure and less exposed.
• Pheromone sprays such as Pet Remedy or Feliway can also help your cat relax in the carrier – make sure to spray the blanket 15 minutes before use.
• Ensure that the carrier is secured within the car e.g. within the footwell behind the front seats or on the back seat with a seatbelt.
• Consider using plastic sheets below the carrier in case of soiling and take a spare blanket just in case.

After a stay in the vets or a procedure at the clinic your cat may smell and behave differently, which can cause conflict with other cats in the house. Keep your returning cat in a separate room initially with everything they need, swap bedding between different areas of the house so that they regain their normal smell then gradually reintroduce them to the others in a supervised way.

For some cats the experience will still be stressful, even when all of the above are carried out. If you are concerned this will be the case for your cat, we may be able to provide medication to help. Please contact reception and talk to one of our Vets to work out the best approach for you and your cat.