How Parents Can De-Stress Their Fur Babies After a Vet Appointment
No matter how talented, compassionate, and calm vets are, our fur babies still need comfort from their fur parents after a visit.
Since fur babies are more perceptive to things than their fur parents are, the constantly changing environments and people can be stressful for them. Some fur babies like dogs may be fond of novelty but, cats hate it. However, bringing them to the vet — especially for preventive measures — is part of being a proper fur parent, no matter how stressful it is for both. And fur parents can comfort their fur babies after their ordeal with the vet by doing the following.

1. Stay with your fur babies in one room
Once you arrive home from the vet, release your fur babies in the room they usually sleep with you in and stay with them for the next few hours. It’ll help restore the order and routine that the visit to the vet disrupted. Most especially if they’ve come from a surgery like dental prophylaxis (which requires anesthesia), they’ll be disoriented and “high” (like they’re on drugs!) which will take time to wear off.
2. Feed them wet food for the next 24 hours
The sedation may make eating a struggle so, we’ll have to defer the kibble or the “hard food” for a while. Especially after a dental process, fur babies may lose their appetite, but they still need to eat. Brands like Royal Canin and Sheba sell easy-to-serve wet food for pets. But if not, some pet owners soak the kibble in water to make it easier to eat.
But this may not apply to all post-operations, so best consult the vet before you leave.
3. Bring a piece of home to welcome them in the car
Unless the vet clinic is within walking distance from the house, it’ll be a car ride most of the time for your fur babies, which is also stressful. In their pet carrier, always leave their favorite toy inside so it’s something familiar in a place that has so many strange unfamiliar scents.
4. Drive slow
Driving slowly will make it less stressful for them. Your goal is to make sure the pet carrier doesn’t bounce in any way since your fur babies are already disoriented. If you need to be extra slow, turn on your emergency flashers. Cars have them for situations like these.
5. Don’t play immediately. Let them reacquaint themselves with their surroundings.
You’ll notice your fur baby walking funny or swooning a little but, that’s the anesthesia still working its way through their system. Sometimes, the room may need a bit of extra padding because as famous as cats are for constantly landing on their feet, they won’t when they’re still under sedation.
6. Make sure you’re the one who receives your fur babies from the vet
We may have a busy schedule, but our fur babies will get even more stressed if some stranger is the one who brings them home from the vet. Fur babies are not like children who bond with multiple people; some of them only choose one person to bond with and passing them to someone else is like abandoning them. It’s an extra thing on the to-do list, but if our fur babies can always be there for us, we can do the same for them.

Vets may be compassionate but we need to be too for our fur babies!
Although vets are trained to make things less stressful for our fur babies, we’re the ones our fur babies feel most comfortable with. Some of the procedures already sound scary to us so, imagine how our fur babies feel when we’re not with them at the end of the tunnel. But most importantly, always stay in contact with the vet. Some vet clinics have a Viber that you can message and ask for updates on how things are going.
More about furbabies?
Is Your Kid Asking For A Pet? These Are The Best Pets To Start With
Here’s How To Move Your Furbaby To Your New Home
The Heartwarming Story of Jodi Sta. Maria’s New Kitten: Naia