One of the most common reasons people have called me for a veterinary housecall is because their pet cats become very stressed out from the car ride, or worse, gets sick to their stomach or has explosive diarrhea on the way.

This is of course, if they manage to catch their feline friend at all, because most cats, even if deeply asleep, know the sound of their owner reaching for the cat carrier.

Having been a veterinarian for thirteen years within the four walls of a hospital, and only very infrequently making housecalls, learning the ins-and-outs of what to expect when visiting my feline friends at home has been a welcome amusement among the many other more serious aspects of my job.

If you decide to go the route of using a vet who makes housecalls, here are some lessons learned that may help you prepare:

The first thing that I did—and prompted by eager owners so happy to have a less stressful vet visit for their fearful feline, was to try to weigh, examine and draw blood on the kitchen counter. This replicates the exam table situation of the animal hospital, so it seemed like a natural place to set up.  

Well, cats know a little bit about escaping, and most kitchens in the Northern Westchester region are wide open and spacious. When you place a cat on a high spot within the comfort and security of his own home, his natural instinct is to jump right off (especially since he’s usually shooed off the counter) and since he’s not closed in to an exam room, he’s bound to go for it.  

And since he knows the nooks and crannies of his own home much better than any visitor could ever imagine, he has certainly gained an advantage if he can just squirm away even once. 

Lesson number one: examine the cat on the floor or a bed, use arms, legs and towels to give him a sense of security, and most importantly, find a room that can be closed off.  The smaller the better. The bathroom makes a great spot, as you can then use a corner of it to “reassure” the cat that he can not escape!

Lesson number two: Have the owner find and confine kitty before the vet arrives. There are two kinds of cats: those that run and hide no matter who comes, and there are those who come out to meet and greet.  When the latter goes through the experience of being poked and prodded even for a second, she then transforms into the first kind, during the initial visit—and on all subsequent visits. An exception to this for me was a household of four Somalia cats that I visited for routine wellness checks, vaccines and bloodwork on the older ones. Amazingly enough, three of the four continued to want to engage with me after the door was open and they were free to go.  While I sat on the stairs computerizing their exam reports and doing the bill, they sniffed at my feet, rubbed against me, and were fascinated by the portable printer spitting out pieces of paper.  The fourth did run and hide. However, when he was last at the traditional hospital, he had turned into such a fierce creature that he was given the color code of “purple” which is the scariest of all, and it had taken several people with thick gloves to do even the most minimal amount of work with him.  On a bed in the guestroom of his home (with the door closed), he was almost relaxed, not fierce at all, and easy to examine thoroughly.  I drew blood from him without a meow.

Lesson number three: If the children are home, do not allow them to help find the cat unless they are calm and composed adult children. Having a group of kids run around calling for the cat and chasing him out of his safe zone  guarantees that the cat is going to have a heart rate of 270. 

Lesson number four: I learned to know exactly what the animal needs before I examine and vaccinate and then release the really skittish outdoor cat. It was a bummer for everyone involved when I leared after the fact that a hard-to-catch cat was overdue for everything, not just its Rabies vaccine.

Lesson number five:  Prepare yourself ahead of time for the vet to be drawing blood, cleaning ears and clipping really long nails within the spotlessly clean environment of your home. A vet will ask if a workspace can be cleaned, and should protect it with a proper covering. We really do want to make it more convenient for owners. 

I am sure there are many more lessons for me as I try to stay calm and fool little Miss Kitty into thinking that I have come to her house just to say hello.