# Cat Aggression at Vets



## Dgm (Dec 30, 2011)

Afternoon all.

I have just returned from my annual trip to the vets for my oldest cat's vaccination. She is a 5yr old Tortie.

At home she is totally loving, behaves well with other cats, plays and acts normally and is not aggressive towards people/cats or anything.

When she was two she fell out of a window down four stories, but luckily did not break any bones. I think she slid down the side of the wall as all she suffered with was a grazed chin and a torn pad on her rear paw. She forced herself out of an upstairs window and came down off the ledge. She was understandably upset and we took her to the vets and they cleaned her up and confirmed nothing was broken.

Since then, every vet visit is an absolute trauma. She is fine getting in the box, on the journey itself, however when we step through the door her personality flips.

She starts growling, hissing and spitting. Lashing out if you put your face near the cage to see her and is just generally full of fear.

My previous vets used a crusher cage on her once as they would not indulge trying to manage her, I was not so much a fan and have since changed vets.

When she comes out of her basket she will grumble and hiss, but when you go near her to pick her up she starts to lash out and spit at you. I am able to take hold of her with a towel and lift her to the bench for the injections, however I need to keep tight hold of her to ensure she does not wriggle out or move when the needle is near her. I then usually have an ordeal trying to get her back into the cage, which she will then sit in and hiss until we leave.

Once we have left the vet she will calm down and as soon as we get home she comes out of the cage and is perfectly happy. 

Today we tried her with 2MG of Diazepam an hour before the visit, however this seemed to have very little effect.

Has anybody else had experience with cat behaviour like this and can offer any suggestions of other things to try? My concern is that is she was to fall ill and I had to take her in then we would have all manner of fun and games that would do neither of us any good! 

All tips greatly received!


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## Ianthi (Oct 21, 2008)

Did they actually admit her when she was injured? Definitely sounds as if this very traumatic experience has been etched in her memory ever since, most probably evoked by the smells of the practice once she's inside the door! Such a pity as well if each visit culminates in a painful experience ie an injection! Poor girl must be terrified! 

Not sure how effective it will be given the circumstances, but have you tried Feliway? Some owners have reported good results with otherwise very fractious cats. Other than that I wonder if a behaviourist might be able to advise?

Mind you though, even though I too possess a very placid Tortie they do have a bit of a reputation in terms of being more diffciult to handle at some vets! I've known one who's said this on more than one occasion!


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

As Ianthi has said, your poor cat is now associating the vet with unpleasant painful experiences. I have often noticed what incredibly long memories cats have when it comes to unpleasant experiences. 

Your cat has developed what in humans would be described as "white coat syndrome" ! If you are to break the association for her it is going to need patience and commitment.

First, I would follow Ianthi's suggestion and get some Feliway. You need the concentrated spray that is specifically to be used in carriers before the cat travels. You spray it in on the bedding in the carrier about 10 mins or so before putting the cat in. You can buy it online from places like Amazon. Don't ever spray it with the cat already in the carrier as it contains alcohol which is poisonous to cats.

Then I would speak to the vet practice and ask if you can bring the cat in to see one of the veterinary nurses for a *check-up*. The check-up would in fact be simply that you calmly take kitty out of the carrier, the nurse talks gently to her and strokes her, then after a minute or two you put kitty back in her carrier again and leave.

However, one such visit is unlikely to achieve a change of heart from your cat and it may be necessary to make several of these *check-up* visits. Naturally there will be a fee charged, but as you would be seeing a nurse and not the vet, the cost would be quite low. With any luck you should see a slight improvement in kitty's behaviour each time.

However, if the time comes when she needs any painful treatment at the vets she may exhibit her previous affronted angry behaviour, as that may be how she deals with stressful situations. (she is a tortie after all, and they can be volatile!) For that reason I would certainly choose a vet who has an excellent calming "bedside manner" with cats, and preferably a practice which has enough nurses available to hold your cat for you if the vet is giving an injection etc. A cat often responds better to being restrained by a nurse, than by its owner, and vet nurses are usually very experienced at restraining difficult cats in a firm but gentle way, and the cat senses this and stops fighting and calms down.

I definitely would not give your cat a sedative like diazepam again, as in some cats it can actually make them even more agitated than they would otherwise be.

I'd be interested to hear how you get on


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## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

I haven't had behaviour like that, but I do have a method for dealing with fear behaviour in cats. What i would suggest is that you take her to the vets routinely, when she doesn't need treatment. While there, sit calmly, offer her treats of a treat cat food, tuna for example. Give her a few minutes to settle, then just get up and walk out again. This will help her begin to associate the vet with good things rather than always getting hurt when she goes there. Over time, I would build this up to having a vet nurse give her a stroke while she's in the carrier, then gradually progress until your vet can do this. Then you start working on taking her out, giving her loads of treats each time, and making sure to put her back in again without giving any treatment. It will take a long time and an understanding vet, but it should work.

You could also practice putting her on a table at home, looking in her eyes, ears and mouth, feeling all over her, right into her tummy etc, then giving her loads of praise and fuss for not lashing out. I teach my kittens to sit still to have their eyes cleaned by giving them loads of treats and cuddles when they do it, even if they struggle the first time. Those particular treats are only given for eye cleaning sessions, so they remain high reward.

It may be the white coats that are frightening her, so you could also invest in one of those and wear it when examining her. Sounds crazy I know, but I do this when teaching cats to handle well at cat shows.


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