Waiting at the Vets

Summary

Sandi Parsons shares her experience of her dog Rotto's anxiety during vet visits, detailing his past traumatic experiences and the strategies she uses to comfort him.

Abstract

Sandi Parsons, an award-winning school librarian and pet owner, describes the emotional challenges her dog Rotto faces when visiting the vet. Rotto, like many dogs, dislikes the vet due to unpleasant experiences such as surgery and injury treatment. Despite initial compliance, Rotto's anxiety escalates during visits, prompting Sandi to use distraction techniques like the 'leave it' game with treats to ease his stress. However, the effectiveness of these methods wanes over time, as indicated by Rotto's body language. Sandi's narrative highlights the depth of a pet's emotional response to medical care and the lengths pet owners go to comfort their animals.

Opinions

Dogs, including Rotto, exhibit a strong dislike for vet visits, similar to human reluctance to see the doctor.
Past vet experiences, such as neutering and injury treatment, contribute significantly to Rotto's anxiety.
Distraction with treats can alleviate some anxiety during vet visits, but its effectiveness is limited.
Rotto's body language, particularly his ears and facial expression, clearly conveys his distress and desire to leave the vet's office.
The author, Sandi Parsons, empathizes with her pet's discomfort and actively seeks ways to comfort him during stressful situations.

“I don’t want to LEAVE it!”

Dogs are sensitive souls. Very much like the human reluctance to visit the doctor, Rotto dislikes visiting the vet. Nothing ever good happens when vets poke and prod him.

At first, Rotto was compliant, standing on command as Dr. James looked him over and placed a cool stethoscope near his armpit. But everything changed the following year.

First, there was a distressing incident where he entered as an ‘entire dog’ and came home with ‘bits’ missing. Next, Rotto cut the webbing near his toes, and Dr. James glued it back together. By the way he squealed, that stuff must have stung! Then, Dr. Marcus removed a suspicious-looking lump from his leg.

All of this creates a smidgeon of anxiety during regular vet visits for vaccination.

So, I distracted Rotto by placing dried kangaroo treats on the floor and playing the ‘leave it’ game. But eventually, even the promise of treats wears thin when you’re waiting for the vet, and, as you can see by Rotto’s ears and expression, he was over it.

Wasn’t it time to go already?!!

Thanks for reading, Sandi xx

Sandi Parsons is an award-winning school librarian with over 20 years experience working in educational libraries. She lives with her favorite husband and two problem puppies. She dabbles in the art of photography.

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