Can a scared cat risk a doctor visit?

Pet lovers are kind and empathic folks. This is good for more than just our cats and dogs. We are healthier humans for bringing out the best in others – of any species.

A recent article on this newspaper’s opinion page (below) recounted the overwhelming panic of a cat who was chased around the confines of its home, finally trapped in a corner, and then pushed into a carrier. After arriving at the veterinary clinic she became defensive aggressive. Every bit of this was unnecessary.

I usually inject a bit of humor into my columns because it keeps them interesting but on the subject of making sport of anybody’s misery, I just can’t muster the levity. This kitty feared for her life. She could have coped just fine if she’d only been set up to succeed.

I’m a well-trained veterinarian in all organ systems of non-human animals. My post-doctoral residency focused on the research underpinning our knowledge of their brain function, healthy and otherwise.

Fear is nobody’s friend. Sustained, intense panic triggers the release of neurotransmitters and stress hormones that scream: self-preservation at any cost. Multiple internal systems can suffer dangerous consequences. Affection and a trusting relationship, on the other hand, are the reasons we bring these sometimes confused creatures into our lives. Kindness matters. Nothing kills a friendship like betrayal.

Cats are natural predators but they are also a prey species. In the wild, when a much bigger beast hunts to kill and eat them, they innately know how to escape, hunker down, and get small. But if trapped by indoor walls and furniture, their innate survival choices evaporate.

Sadly, there are lots of cats who fear the veterinary hospital but they need medical attention as much as anybody. If you’ve postponed your kitty’s treatment or vaccinations, go to fearfreepets.com to find a clinic staff that’s trained in low stress pet handling. They can even counsel you on enticing your nervous kitty into its carrier. Your veterinarian can make this easier by prescribing a quick acting oral liquid antianxiety medication called Bonqat. Kindness matters.

For help with behavior problems, you can sign-up for a Zoom Group Conference on my website, drjeffnichol.com.

Dr. Jeff Nichol is a residency-trained veterinary behaviorist. He provides consultations in-person and in groups by Zoom (drjeffnichol.com). Each week he shares a blog and a video to help bring out the best in pets and their people. Sign up at no charge at drjeffnichol.com. Post pet questions through my website, drjeffnichol.com/contact/ or by US Post to 4000 Montgomery Blvd. NE, Albuq, NM 87109.

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Opinion piece in the Albuquerque Journal

You want to grow cabbage. So, you till the soil in your backyard a little, you plant the little cabbage seeds and gently tamp the soil down over them. You water, and you wait for them to grow. Simple.

Now, instead you want to take the cat to the vet. You take out your cat-carrier — the first time was easy, she sniffed around the carrier mildly curious. Not this time, this time the cat’s eyes pop open, she jumps off the cat bed on top of the shelves in the den and races for the cat door in the kitchen. You try to get there first.

Not a chance. The cat escapes through that cat door and into the yard faster than you can say pass the beans. The hunt is on. “There she is, by the trash cans.” You circle around, your wife blocks the cat’s escape route.

Want to bet?

The cat is by your wife faster than your kids can race to the ice cream truck. “She’s headed for the gate, cut her off.” You do, and she shoots back through the cat door. Now you have her inside. You close the cat door; you won’t make that rookie mistake again.

But the hunt is still on, but the house is dead silent. You listen — nothing. A room-to-room search commences. You listen, you search, all while you close the door to each searched room and go on to the next room.

The search culminates in the master bedroom. As you look and listen, she makes her first mistake. A desperate little whine comes from under the bed. You quickly close the bedroom door. “We got you now.”

Not really, you own a Sleep Number bed and it’s low to the ground. You can see her, but you can’t reach her.

A yardstick doesn’t work, it’s too light and you have no leverage, and she won’t budge. However, a broom works. You push her to the other side of the bed where your wife is waiting. She grabs the cat.

The cat grabs onto her. Many scratches, violent twists, and unhappy cries later, she’s finally in the cat-carrier. Your wife will need six bandages.

She whines all the way — the cat, not your wife.

The vet takes her into a room. You can hear screeches all the way out in the waiting room. She’s scratched the assistant. She’s climbed the walls. She’s knocked over the medical tray. She’s bitten the vet.

After 20 minutes the vet comes out and says this cat’s uncooperative and can’t be treated. He says you need to find another vet — that’ll be $100 please.

And that’s why growing cabbage is better than taking the cat to the vet.