Is car travel torture or adventure for your animal companion?…is your dog keen to jump in and get going, nose out the window, with a “don’t leave me behind” attitude or a quivering, nervous wreck, hiding when the car keys appear?
There are many reasons why dogs might not like the car – travel sickness, a bad experience at the vets, separation anxiety… and cats?!?! Do any of them enjoy car travel?
Apart from your pets anxiety in the car, there may be your stress levels to consider:
- Driving solo with an anxious animal is not a great experience.
- How stressful is it to have an unhappy cat restrained in her carry basket, vocalising her displeasure all the way to the clinic!
- If your pet has had recent surgery, it’s not great to be getting in and out of cars, not good for the patient, not good for the owners back, especially if trying to manoeuvre a large or restless dog.
- You may have dependents..children, elderly folk, other animals at home, and don’t want to leave them unattended.
- No car! you have to hire a car or ring for an Uber -you are unwell or elderly
If car travel is not ideal, home visits might be the answer. Practitioners can visit and treat your animal in the comfort and safety of your home.
Many animals are more relaxed at home, so the treatment may be more efficient, or at least there is less time taken to calm the patient before examination and treatment.
It is actually preferable to treat cats in their home environment, as they are more relaxed, it is easier to design a rehab programme and exercises for them in their own space, by observing movements, surroundings, using what’s available. Dogs are generally more manageable, either inside the home, at a clinic, or in the park…sorry if that is stating the obvious.
Is there a downside to home visits? Maybe:
- If your house is chaotic with children, other animals, all way too interested in what is happening with the patient, and they can’t be encouraged to stay in another part of the house or go for a walk;
- If you are in a unit or very small place with no room to move;
- Some owners and dogs love to get out and socialise, go somewhere different
- Home visits cost a bit more – usually there is a callout fee plus kilometres calculated..each practitioner is slightly different with her calculations. Usually we try to have several clients in the same area for a particular day, to keep the travel costs to a minimum.
So, good to know that home visits are available – they save you heaps of time, and weekends and after hours are usually available.