These medications are used to decrease fear, anxiety, and stress, allowing your pet to be more relaxed and comfortable during their visits, allowing us provide the best physical and emotional care. 

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Giving your pet these medications helps to make it easier for you to bring your pet into the vet. It will make it easier to get accurate vital signs, and diagnostic results. 

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We can prescribe pre-visit pharmaceuticals in advance of your visit. You give them to your pet a few hours before their appointment. The goal is decrease your pet building fearful or stressful memories of the vet.

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Pre-visit pharmaceuticals are prescription medications, that we can prescribe to your pet based on their specific needs, previous experiences. Even if your pet has a veterinary appointment for a routine wellness examination, we can prescribe a sedative or anti-anxiety medication to help manage their anxiety and stress. 

• Separate cat and dog areas including separate rooms with ambient, and 5 x per min rotation for our ventilation systems

• Feliway and Adaptil diffusers throughout the clinic to increase feelings of security and familiarity

• Reduced slip flooring

• Separate cat and dog areas in our treatment rooms

• Natural, calming colour scheme throughout the hospital

• Noise reducing insulation

• Cat "Carrier Carport"

• Recessed scales with non-slip pads

• Raised kennels in all clinic areas to reduce the stress of other pets walking past, and custom Catswall climbing gym

• Minimizing restraint techniques that are gentle and accommodate your pet’s comfort level

• Safe, effective pre-visit medications designed to help your pet feel less stress and anxiety

• Leading pets and their owners into exam rooms shortly after they arrive by one of our client ambassadors

• A variety of treats for positive association and distraction during their visit

• Examining pets either on the floor, their owner’s lap, or in their carrier where they’re more comfortable

• We have safe sedation options available if necessary to provide essential care to your pet

Low Stress Handling was  created by Dr. Sophia Yin. Low Stress Handling allows us to give medical treatments and do exams without additional stress from excessive restraint such as scruffing cats. We read a patient's body language and anticipate their needs allowing us to perform exams and procedures with a minimum of fear and anxiety. Your pet won't dread the vet!

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The goal of low-stress veterinary handling is to make pets feel more comfortable and safe throughout all stages of their visit to our hospital. This is done by using quiet voices, slow movements and minimal restraint.

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Low-stress methods involve an understanding of animal behaviours, skilled handling techniques, and the ability to create a calm relaxing environment for our patients. Another important aspect is providing adequate traction on examination tables and floors through the use of strategically placed non-slip mats that can provide more stable footing for your pets.

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We understand that trimming your pets nails can be very stressful for them. To help make nail trims less stressful we watch for signs of stress such as:

• Pulling the paw away

• Moving away/off the nail-care area

• Panting, tensing of the lips, or holding ears back (dogs)

• Pulling whiskers far forward or back (cats)

• Folding ears to the side or back (cats)

• Twitching tail (cats)

• Exhibiting dilated pupils

• Leaning and looking away

• Hesitating to approach when you're holding nail care items

• Becoming tense, frozen, or still

• Trembling

• Vocalizing (whine, growl, bark, hiss)

• Attempting to escape

• Snarling, growling, snapping, swatting, biting)

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We use our low stress environment and low stress handling to help make your pet feel less stress and anxiety. Our care teams are specially trained in minimal handling techniques, and treat distraction maneuvers to help make nail trims seem like no big deal. 

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If your pet experiences intense anxiety, or displays high levels of stress when having their nails trimmed, we have pre-visit pharmaceuticals, and safe sedation options that we can recommend. 

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