Veterinary visits can be stressful for everyone. Low-Stress Handling® Principles of Handling provide an opportunity for you to help your veterinarian to perform a safer and more thorough physical exam.

Although you may have been told your new adult dog is house trained, that may not be the case in your home.

Q: My vet told me my dog needs to lose weight so now I can’t use treats for training. What do I do?

Animal behavior is a crucial aspect of veterinary care.  Whether your pet has pain or just “ain’t doing right,”  the pet’s behavior, body language, and overall demeanor is part of obtaining a thorough and precise physical examination.  Without this type of examination, symptoms and diagnoses may be missed that could make or break the treatment plans.  Without the ability to communicate, the pet may panic causing increased fear, stress, aggression, and anxiety that is associated with handling and restraint. When the veterinary staff is unable to successfully examine or handle a patient, it becomes a quality-of-life concern as the veterinary

Many cat owners never learned to trim their kitten’s nails and struggle with nail trims for their adult cat. To prevent scratches to people and furniture, as well as to decrease the potential of too long nails causing pain, difficulty walking, and other medical issues your cat’s nails will need to be trimmed from time to time. To make trimming your cat’s nails easy for you and acceptable for your cat will take time, patience, and rewards. There are several low stress handling methods that can be used to make it easier for you to trim nails, such as a

Technique for Kittens If you have a kitten, your work starts now! Between three and nine weeks, kittens are at an important age for socialization. Now is the time to expose your kitten to other people, animals, and situations such as nail trims. Treats are the best rewards to use with your kitten. This will help them associate nail trims with a positive experience.      Kitten on back Photo Courtesy of CattleDog Publishing      First, figure out what position your kitten prefers. Choose a position that will keep your kitten at ease and that will allow you to