Taking my cat to the vet for the first time...any advice?

Hi guys, I'm sorry if this has been asked before! I adopted a cat about a year and a half ago. She was 6 months old when we got her from the shelter, where she had been examined by a vet and is spayed and everything. We were supposed to take her to the vet a few months ago for a booster shot (I forget which, but I have her medical file at home). She's very skittish though and afraid of new things--even standing next to the window facing the street scares her if a truck or bus passes by. How should I take her to the vet? I called the shelter and they suggested a soft-sided carrier, so we got her one and have left it out for her to explore for a few months now. I'm also worried that she will hate us for taking her to the vet for the first time, or that she'll feel we betrayed her trust. Has anyone had such an experience? Thank you!

Hi,

Your cat won't hate you for taking her to the vet but she may learn to associate the carrier, with the vet. Has she shown any interest in the carrier? I put a few treats in mine for encouragement and positive experience

Cats react in different ways to the cat carrier and generally it isn't a cats best experience but don't let that put you off taking kitty to the vet. She won't hate or distrust you for it and she will soon forget the experience, until the next time.......

Mine is reluctant to go in his carrier and once in, he does meow a bit in the car, sometimes loudly. When we get home, it's like he's just so happy to be home that he quickly forgets! Other times he might show his displeasure by ignoring me for an hour, or until he's hungry :lol3:

Mine always gives me a little nudge once home and settled, it's like he's thanking me for looking after him.

Good luck

Thank you! That definitely makes me feel a lot better. She's a shelter cat, so I don't know what her experience was like before we adopted her, but she's always afraid of new people. She's slept in the carrier once or twice--she likes to rotate her nap locations every once in a while haha. Hopefully she won't be too much trouble when we take her to the vet!

I got my kitty when he was six months old and from a shelter, bless him. Mine had cat flu and I was medicating him as soon as I got him and I was little worried that he would hate me but he doesn't [emoji]128571[/emoji]

My cat is used to just having me and my boyfriend around so he can be quite shy with other people. I just have high up places that he can go to to get out of the way when he wants some space. He gets used to people after a while, in his own time.

The vet is used to cats being a bit stressed at the vet so don't worry, it's great that she has slept in it

I agree that it is an excellent sign that your fur baby has slept in her carrier...she views it as a place that is safe. You may want to try putting a t-shirt that you have worn but have yet to wash in the carrier-it will smell like you, her favorite person [emoji]128571[/emoji] Which will put her at ease. Also, it may help to cover your carrier with a towel (again smells of home to comfort). I promise she will not associate you with the vet and dislike you for it....my girl is very stressed by vet trips but acts like nothing happened the minute she is home (versus the Tasmanian Devil she morphed into at the vet!)
Try not to be too worried or stressed when you take her (easier said than done, I know [emoji]128540[/emoji]) as kitties soak up our energy.

Good Luck!!!

Thank you guys for all your support. It makes me feel much more at ease with the whole situation!! Who knows, maybe this experience will make her more outgoing!

I know it's been a while, but I just wanted to post a little update. So we took her to the vet a few months ago and, thank God, everything went well. She was scared since the environment was new, but she didn't act crazy or anything. The vet recommended we give her a kind of treat that supposedly calms cats down a few hours before we left, but she didn't even eat it. Other than her being scared, she was a champ about the whole thing. She ate a LOT after coming back though, perhaps it was the stress haha. After initially acting skittish for a few hours after she came back, she was back to her normal self. All in all, it's not that bad! Only thing I would recommend is the hard plastic carriers instead of the soft duffel-bag-like carriers. I think it would have been better if she had more room inside the carrier.