Force-Free Veterinary Clinics: A Dog Trainer’s Plea

Force-free veterinary clinics are a new movement–so new that the veterinary field is unable to keep up with the change. The rise of fear-free veterinary clinics are evident by the number of programs that are being developed for launch by middle to late 2016. You’re probably wondering where you can find a force-free veterinary clinic right now and I can tell you research is key. Below, I explain how you can find the right force-free veterinary clinic for you and your dog.

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How to Find Force-Free Veterinary Clinics Now

Until organizations and associations are formed and list veterinary clinics promising to abide to low-stress handling of pets, the task of finding a force-free clinic falls on us. Honestly, they’re not hard to find. It takes a bit of research and polling of friends.

Identify a Force-Free Veterinary Clinic

This is an important step because marketing savvy places can lure you in with false promises. Gone are the days of pinning dogs to the ground and compelling them to obey during veterinary visits. Remember when veterinary exams were followed by your veterinarian tossing your exhausted dog a treat in hopes of making friends again? Yeah, most dogs refused to eat them. They were still terrified. Now, dogs are rewarded with lots of treats for participating in exams and procedures. It’s a new day! 

Minimal Handling

Fear-free veterinary clinics keep handling to a minimum. Handling means taking hold of a dog by using hands. Force-free clinics may hold your dog’s collar lightly with the goal of keeping him next to the veterinarian during examinations. Forcibly holding the collar to keep a dog in place, using tight leashes or wrapping her arms around your dog’s neck is not what should happen. Instead, veterinary technicians entice dogs to participate in the exam by holding a food stuffed toy to keep them standing still.

Also, veterinary staff will treat your dog for standing still, allowing the veterinarian to touch him and look into his eyes, ears and mouth. If a dog becomes startled and shrinks back from the vet’s touch or equipment, the veterinary staff gives the dog a break. Then, they should show your dog that veterinary equipment is actually fun by pairing yummy food treats when your dog looks, sniffs and finally allows equipment to touch him.

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Taking Your Dog “In The Back”

If you’re like me, I cringe when vet techs ask if they can take my dogs “in the back.” Your dog isn’t too happy either, as you watch him put on the brakes the moment the back room door opens. He knows what happens back there. My brain runs wild with images of my dog being held tightly and forced to comply. Fortunately, my veterinarian has monitors, which show the veterinary staff working with dogs in the back. I could watch techs complete blood draws, take X-rays and peel off bandages as needed.

Standing still for blood draws should be voluntary. I watched vet techs feeding Sobek and Stella treats while the other tech drew blood from a back leg. All three vet techs were sitting on the ground with one tech in front feeding several treats as the other tech prepared, desensitized the area by tapping the vein, drew blood and joined the other tech in rewarding Sobek.

The results were amazing. Now, Sobek and Stella willingly and happily walk into the back room, as they’ve had such great experiences back there.

X-Rays

More and more veterinary clinics have stopped sedating dogs when taking X-ray films, so you’re probably wondering what’s happening back there. Again, force-free veterinary staff work in teams: one person holds the treats or a food stuffed toy by your dog’s head and another person is moving your dog’s body into position. It’s important to understand dogs should be rewarded while being handled. This keeps them interested and pairs good things with handling.

As the X-ray is taken, food treats stop for a millisecond (keeping the tech out of the picture) and resume immediately until either all films have been taken or the session is over.

Locate a Force-Free Veterinary Clinic

Usually, there are two ways to locate a force-free veterinary clinic. I recommend asking dog savvy friends or doing your own research. I’m happy to share my vet’s information!

Ask Dog Savvy Friends

Asking dog savvy friends is probably the easiest way to find a force-free clinic and polling friends is even easier due to social media. Now that you have an understanding of what a fear-free clinic looks like, ask specific questions to ensure you’ve chosen the best place. Ask what happens during a typical visit, how blood draws are handled and so forth.

Research

Locate veterinary clinics within your area. If you find the right one, make the drive. It will pay back tenfold. I remember driving 54 miles round trip to a force-free vet clinic, as I passed dozens of vet clinics along the way. My dogs were treated with kindness, which resulted in easy, fun and quick veterinary visits. My dogs learned how to respond to scary things.

Look Up Websites

Most businesses have websites and vet clinics are among them. Force-free veterinary clinics will usually explain their low-stress handling techniques on their homepage (first page seen). If not, click on their About Us or Mission Statements page to check for any indication of low-stress handling techniques. If you’re having a hard time finding such a clinic, widen your search to 25 miles, which will undoubtedly increase your chances of finding one.

Make Calls

If nothing is listed on websites, call veterinary clinics and ask if they use low-stress handling and force-free methods. Usually, you’ll hear “Of course,” but ask about the process of a typical veterinary visit, blood draw procedure and sedation use for X-rays. Force-free veterinary clinics will happily explain details, as the receptionists are fully educated in explaining handling methods.

If you hear “We do hold patients still,” “A vet tech will hold your dog in place,” “We muzzle most dogs,” “We give treats afterwards (it should happen as your dog is examined),” “We sedate dogs because it’s easier” or general traditional handling methods, I would continue looking. That isn’t the right place.

Go With a Friend

Going with a friend is an excellent way to discover if a veterinary clinic is truly force-free. Ask to tag along when your friend brings her dog in for a checkup. Observe handling of dogs and ask veterinary staff questions if needed.

Change Your Vet’s Perspective

Many of you adore your current veterinarian and I totally understand. However, ask your vet if she would use low-stress handling during your dog’s visits. Print out this chart, which explains how a stress-free vet exam should be conducted from a veterinary point of view. Bring a plastic bag full of yummy treats and food stuffed toys to each visit and ask veterinary staff to reward your dog while being examined. If your dog must go in the back, ask if procedures can be done with you present. Explain that you want your dog to have an awesome veterinary experience, so it’ll be easier on everyone.

Not only are veterinarians passionate about pets, but they’re also business savvy. If more clients request force-free veterinary visits, you’ll probably see a change. Shoot, I remember when acupuncture and chiropractor veterinary care was laughed at about 20 years ago and now it’s mainstream because pet owners asked for it.

Don’t be afraid. Ask for force-free veterinary care. It’s the best thing for your dog!

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