Using an in-home veterinary service can provide both you and your pet with a number of emotional benefits that you won’t get when traveling to a veterinary hospital.
Dogs and cats benefit from in-home veterinary care because it reduces or eliminates much of the fear and anxiety that is often associated with being transported to and seen in a veterinary clinic. For some pets anxiety, fear and motion sickness begins as soon as they are put in the carrier or the car. Dogs and cats can be very sensitive to the smells, sounds and sights of other animals in a veterinary clinic. In-home care eliminates these external stress factors, making for a much calmer, more relaxed experience.
Veterinary visits can be stressful and a bad experience for some pets that anticipate bad things and become difficult to handle. A less anxious and more assured pet is much easier to examine and evaluate for medical conditions. Stress and anxiety can exacerbate many health problems and make some symptoms worse, or anxiety can even hide symptoms making it difficult to make a diagnosis. By eliminating much of the stress, veterinarians that travel to your home may be able to conduct a more accurate exam leading to optimum results.
Some stress signals in a dog may include behavior changes (ex. a panting dog suddenly stops, stays still, or freezes), growling, snapping, biting, lip licking, looking sideways, stepping away, ears back and the tail either tucked or up and stiff, and stretching to take a treat instead of moving readily forward.
Some stress signals in a cat may include panting, ears back, crouching, stillness, keeping their tail close to their body, eyes wide open with dilated pupils, yowling or growling.
It can also be physically painful for some geriatric pets to be transported making for a physically and emotionally strenuous time for the pet owners and pet. In-home veterinary care allows for pain management and quality of life evaluations without moving ill or senior pets from the comforts of their own homes.
Additionally, it can be overwhelming and time-consuming to haul your pets into the car or wait in a busy lobby full of sick or injured animals. In-home veterinary services allow you to plan veterinary care around your schedule reducing a lot of stress on pet owners schedules as well! The veterinarian comes right to you, offering much more freedom and flexibility.
Finally, in my opinion, the most humane way to euthanize a pet is in the comfort of their own home. Having your loving companion humanely euthanized at home, under their favorite tree, in their own bed or wherever they are most comfortable and peaceful, makes the heart breaking process a little more humane for the pet owners who can securely grieve after their loss and the pets who don’t have to endure the stress of travel to a vet during their last moments of life.
By Dr. Jessica Melman Bhatia, Bespoke Veterinary Services