Vet victory visits: from timid to triumphant!
It’s not uncommon for animals to develop uncertainty about visiting the veterinary clinic. After all, many visits result in body handling that can be unfamiliar (or even uncomfortable), needle pokes, or or worse….the dreaded thermometer.
However, veterinary care is unavoidable as a dog guardian, and something that needs to happen routinely to ensure our dogs life long, healthy lives. So how do we navigate these vet visits with a dog who would rather be anywhere else in the world?
Part of dealing with a dog who is afraid of the vet is addressing their underlying emotions. We are unable to teach our dog to behave differently unless we address their fear, anxiety, and stress first. Which is where victory visits come into play.
What is a victory visit?
A victory visit is where you go to the vet clinic with the intention of making this visit positive and fun; no poking or prodding involved! The goal of this visit is to create positive associations with the vet clinic, staff, exam rooms, and even the equipment in the clinic.
When working on desensitizing a dog (exposing them to stimuli at a level they are comfortable with), we need to ensure that we follow the dog’s lead at all times. The dog should be allowed to tell you when they are comfortable, when they are ready to progress (or not), and it’s up to us as their guardian to learn how to hear these conversations and honor our dog’s boundaries.
Victory visits are only beneficial to our dog if we ensure they are confident and comfortable throughout, and are not feeling pressured to interact or be handled in a way that makes them nervous.
Why are victory visits important?
Dogs learn via associations. “If I sit, my human gives me a cookie (a good consequence). I am going to perform this behavior more frequently, in order to earn more cookies!”
Or, “when I go to the vet, I get poked with a needle and it hurts! I don’t want to go to the vet anymore so I can avoid this negative consequence.”
If every time we take our dog to the vet clinic something scary or painful happens, our dogs are going to learn pretty quickly that the vet is a bad place. They might then start to display stressed and anxious body language, even escalating as far as behaving defensively (growling, barking, lunging, snapping.)
Our goal with victory visits is to teach our dog that the vet can be a fun place, and can yield positive outcomes too. We want to “good” visits to outweigh the “bad” visits for our dog, so that they don’t start to develop a negative emotional response to the vet clinic and the people or handling that occur in it.
Think of your dog’s feelings about the vet as a bank account.
Every time that dog goes to the vet and something good happens (cookies, visits from staff members - if they’re into that sort of thing - or training), we are making a deposit into their vet bank account.
Every time they have a negative visit (vaccination, blood collection, ear cleaning, etc.) we are making a withdrawal. Victory visits are a way to “pad” our dog’s bank account so that, even after a less than fun visit, our dog’s emotional balance never goes below zero.
Ideally, we want 95% of our dog’s vet visits to be happy, fun trips, and only 5% of their visits to be neutral or negative.
Who would benefit from a victory visit?
In my ideal world, as a certified dog trainer, every dog would participate in regular victory visits to their vet clinic, regardless of how they currently feel or behave at the vet. These visits are most critical for dogs who have had recent painful or scary visits, or who are showing signs of apprehension or fear at the vet.
Fear is a finicky emotion. It is one that is readily learned (and can become deeply ingrained in our dog’s brains), but a tricky emotion to counter-condition, or “undo.” Because of this, it is in our dog’s best interest for us to be proactive and do our best to prevent them from becoming worried about the vet, versus reacting to fear and stress when it’s already a problem.
We never know when our dog might need to be rushed to the vet because they are ill or injured, and these visits can involve a lot of poking, prodding, and handling of painful body parts, that can quickly change how your dog feels about their vet.
Isn’t it better to have a bank account that is overflowing with funds, with no fear of that bank account every running dry, than to have your books “in the green” but vulnerable to depletion by one or two traumatic events?
Proactivity vs. reactivity is a something I preach to my clients on a daily basis. I speak from experience when I say that working with a dog who suddenly shifts from being “easy going, no problem” at the vet to one who struggles and is fearful, is a big problem, and not an easy one to resolve through training.
Getting your veterinary clinic on board.
Having your veterinary clinic on board with victory visits is going to be important prior to trying these out. Most clinics are thrilled to have their client’s come in to help improve their dog’s comfortability at the vet, but getting permission for this visits is still important to do.
Here are a few things I recommend discussing with your vet clinic before coming for a victory visit:
Discussing my goals of the visit. Take some time to explain to the veterinary team where/how your dog is struggling and how you are planning to help them in these areas, can help the staff understand your objectives during this visit.
Asking what day and time is best for me to come. You don’t want to plan your visit for the busiest time of the day, when staff are running around discharging patients or seeing appointments. The staff can give you a better idea of when it would be most convenient to have you and your dog working in the clinic, without contributing to the chaos!
Discussing whether or not interactions should occur. If your dog is comfortable greeting strangers, you might ask the staff to come out from behind the desk to offer him treats. On the flip side, if your dog is nervous about strangers, you may ask the staff in advance to ignore your dog when you arrive.
Notifying them if your dog is reactive to other dogs. This is important to share with the staff so that they can let you know if other dogs are in the waiting area, or keep an eye on the door when you am inside to ensure we do not get trapped by another dog accidentally.
Open communication will be important to the success of your visit, and can allow the staff to better understand the purpose of your visit (and potentially assist with the visit to further your efforts.)
How to start with victory visits.
What your victory visit involve is really going to depend on your dog and their level of comfort. Its worth reiterating that in order for this training to be successful, we need to be moving at our dog’s pace and never pushing them to do something they are not comfortable or ready to do.
Your dog might be quite content to enter the vet clinic and perform tricks in the waiting room. They may even be happy to go into the examination room with a staff member, so long as body handling isn’t involved.
Other dogs may require a more conservative approach, building confidence and comfortability outside in the parking lot, or even from inside the car to start.
If your dog is showing signs of stress or fear at the vet, I would recommend seeking out a certified dog trainer who has experience working with fearful dogs (bonus if they have experience with dogs who are fearful or reactive at the vet). so that they can develop an appropriate training plan, guide, and support you through the training process.
No training is “one size fits all,” and this is particularly true for fearful dogs. We need to meet our dog where they are at, and move at a speed they are comfortable with and are able to succeed at.
Fear of the vet is not an uncommon problem with dogs, but it is one that can have a major impact on your life, and your dog’s access to health care. Addressing any signs of issues at the vet early and proactively will offer your dog the best chance when it comes to solving this problem.
Stay awesome,
Vanessa
Vanessa Charbonneau, is the author of Dog Care for Puppies: A guide to Feeding, Playing, Grooming and Behavior. She owns Sit Pretty Behavior & Training, employing force-free training techniques to work with companion dogs and their owners. Charbonneau lives in Prince George, BC with her husband, two daughters, and one dog.
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