Alfred has always been awful about going to the vet but I've never had another cat so I was wondering if he's normal or not (I highly suspect he's not). When he was a kitten he didn't mind at all, the vet once expressed surprise that he was purring while she examined him! He'd cry in his carrier the whole way there but that was about it. After several yearly trips to the vet though he started getting extremely worked up about it. Getting him into the carrier started getting difficult as well, as he wouldn't fall for any bribery tricks anymore. I found the best way was to stand it up so that the door was on top and drop him in, then I have to push him down so I can close the door without any paws in the way. The way he struggled you'd think there was hot lava in the bottom or something! The moment he entered the car he would start crying and would throw up and start drooling. Then the next year he would pee as well, and then he started providing fecal samples which while convenient for the vet, was rather smelly and messy.
Anyway, you combine the vomiting, peeing, pooping, and drooling, and you've got one messed up cat (and carrier) when he finally arrives. The vet says that cats are often happy to return to their carrier afterwards since they know they're going home, but with Alfred it's a total repeat of the trip there! I have to force him back into the cage and then he repeats everything on the way home. I usually let him loose in the bathroom for a while afterwads to let him clean himself up. He has also moved several times in his old age and I feel awful knowing he'll have to go through all that on the way to his new home.
Is this normal?? I've heard that cats fear going to the vet more than anything but these seems a little extreme to me.
So, a few years ago I decided that I wasn't going to do this to him anymore. He's an indoor cat and never goes outdoors so it doesn't seem to make much sense to go through all that just to give him a couple shots for diseases he'll never catch. Besides, two years ago he was diagnosed with a heart murmur and I was honestly worried he'd be more likely to die from the trauma of the vet journey than anything else.
Sadly last week I realized that he was truly sick and needed to go to the vet if he was to have any chance. He had been slowly eating less and less for a couple weeks and had clearly lost some weight, so I knew it must be done. He didn't cry as much this time but everything else was the same, though this time he even vomited in the vets office. I feel so horrible for doing that to him, but I didn't see any other choice. The vet prescribed some antibiotics and apetitie pills to get him to eat, but sadly they didn't work and without food he couldn't keep down the antibiotics. I scheduled an appointment to help him cross over while he still wasn't in any pain, though how to get him there was really worrying me. I really didn't want him spending his last moments like that.
My mom suggested that I don't use the carrier and she could drive me while I hold him. Really I don't know why I didn't think of that sooner. Anyway, we wrapped him in a towel from his cage (long story) and I brought along his groomer (lap + groomer = purr) and I carried him out to the car. Since he's never been outside except for rare excursions, his eyes opened wide for the first time in days as he watched all the leaves blowing by. I was worried his attitude would change the moment the car started though. We had the seat covered and my lap toweled with the carrier in the back seat, just in case. Thankfully he made the entire trip without a single complaint and didn't seem at all distressed. Next we worried that the vet office would upset him so we brought him to a special room with a sofa instead of a table. He seemed perfectly content to stay nestled in my lap, and though I can't say what he did while the doctor took him away to prepare him, when he returned he seemed content to leave us leaning sprawled out on the back of the sofa between the two people he cared about most.
Now I know I've gone horribly off topic, but writing really helps and we were both thrilled that our plan worked. I don't know if he was too far gone to care or if it really made any difference, but all I know is that it worked perfectly. It got me wondering though, would this have worked if I tried it sooner? He was getting worse with each and every trip in his carrier so anything would be better than that. If it would work though, I worry that I would have used up my once chance with it and his final day would not have gone nearly so well. I suspect I'm hardly the first person to ever have trouble bringing their cat to the vet, so would anyone care to share their thoughts or experiences?
Anyway, you combine the vomiting, peeing, pooping, and drooling, and you've got one messed up cat (and carrier) when he finally arrives. The vet says that cats are often happy to return to their carrier afterwards since they know they're going home, but with Alfred it's a total repeat of the trip there! I have to force him back into the cage and then he repeats everything on the way home. I usually let him loose in the bathroom for a while afterwads to let him clean himself up. He has also moved several times in his old age and I feel awful knowing he'll have to go through all that on the way to his new home.
Is this normal?? I've heard that cats fear going to the vet more than anything but these seems a little extreme to me.
So, a few years ago I decided that I wasn't going to do this to him anymore. He's an indoor cat and never goes outdoors so it doesn't seem to make much sense to go through all that just to give him a couple shots for diseases he'll never catch. Besides, two years ago he was diagnosed with a heart murmur and I was honestly worried he'd be more likely to die from the trauma of the vet journey than anything else.
Sadly last week I realized that he was truly sick and needed to go to the vet if he was to have any chance. He had been slowly eating less and less for a couple weeks and had clearly lost some weight, so I knew it must be done. He didn't cry as much this time but everything else was the same, though this time he even vomited in the vets office. I feel so horrible for doing that to him, but I didn't see any other choice. The vet prescribed some antibiotics and apetitie pills to get him to eat, but sadly they didn't work and without food he couldn't keep down the antibiotics. I scheduled an appointment to help him cross over while he still wasn't in any pain, though how to get him there was really worrying me. I really didn't want him spending his last moments like that.
My mom suggested that I don't use the carrier and she could drive me while I hold him. Really I don't know why I didn't think of that sooner. Anyway, we wrapped him in a towel from his cage (long story) and I brought along his groomer (lap + groomer = purr) and I carried him out to the car. Since he's never been outside except for rare excursions, his eyes opened wide for the first time in days as he watched all the leaves blowing by. I was worried his attitude would change the moment the car started though. We had the seat covered and my lap toweled with the carrier in the back seat, just in case. Thankfully he made the entire trip without a single complaint and didn't seem at all distressed. Next we worried that the vet office would upset him so we brought him to a special room with a sofa instead of a table. He seemed perfectly content to stay nestled in my lap, and though I can't say what he did while the doctor took him away to prepare him, when he returned he seemed content to leave us leaning sprawled out on the back of the sofa between the two people he cared about most.
Now I know I've gone horribly off topic, but writing really helps and we were both thrilled that our plan worked. I don't know if he was too far gone to care or if it really made any difference, but all I know is that it worked perfectly. It got me wondering though, would this have worked if I tried it sooner? He was getting worse with each and every trip in his carrier so anything would be better than that. If it would work though, I worry that I would have used up my once chance with it and his final day would not have gone nearly so well. I suspect I'm hardly the first person to ever have trouble bringing their cat to the vet, so would anyone care to share their thoughts or experiences?
