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Cat Friendly Clinic


What is a Cat Friendly Clinic?

The International Society for Feline Medicine (ISFM) scheme means that accredited clinics have reached a higher standard of cat care in that they;

  • Understand the needs of cats and have made visits more cat-friendly
  • Understand how to approach and handle cats gently and with care
  • Have good knowledge and equipment to manage the care of cats


Achieving the Cat Friendly Clinic accreditation involved all our staff at Drove and we have 'Cat Advocates' on site who will ensure the Cat Friendly standards are adhered to and are happy to talk to you if required. We are also fortunate enough to have Kiri Brown, Veterinary Surgeon, who has recently gained an additional qualification in Feline Care and, with the help of our Stratton team, has established new Cat Only Clinic times at the Stratton Branch. Every Wednesday, between 11am - 12.30pm, there will be no dogs or other non-feline pets at the branch. This, along with their “cat parking” area in the waiting room which features partitions, blankets and the use of pet friendly aromatherapy products, we can limit what the patient can see, smell and hear, reducing their exposure to the external factors that might increase stress levels. For more information about these clinics, or to book an appointment at one, please contact our Stratton Branch on 01793 821821.

The below details the standards Drove Veterinary Hospital have maintained to ensure our continuing accreditation with the ISFM:

Cat Waiting Area

Our Cat friendly waiting area is divided so that cats can wait separately to dogs. It also has plenty of raised surfaces to place your cat carrier on while waiting for your appointment and afterwards while waiting at reception. We provide blankets to cover cat carriers so that your cat cannot see other animals while in the building, the blankets also double up as a sneeze barrier to reduce the transmission of infectious diseases between patients.

Hospitalisation in our Cat Friendly Ward

Out in our ward area we have separate wards for dogs, cats and exotics as well as a fully equipped isolation ward for infectious cases. We like to keep cat ward quiet with the lights off most of the day so that the cats can feel secure in their allocated kennel. Cats which are staying overnight have a larger kennel to fit their resources in and to stretch out. We always have a pet remedy diffuser plugged in to spread calming essential oils and we spray the kennel doors regularly also for added stress relief.

Every patient that stays with us will have a feline fort in their kennel (see photo) so that they have the option to either hide under it or perch up high depending on their preference. Additionally, we will cover the kennels doors to provide extra privacy and security, this also means that they can’t see other strange cats or smell them. All of our nurses are specially trained in how to reduce stress in hospitalised cats so you can be sure we are doing everything to make your cats stay with us comfortable.

Consultations

All of our consultation rooms are fully secure with windows which only open a crack so that your cat is safe while being examined. The consultation tables all have non-slip mats on them for your cats’ comfort. We have a range of cat sized equipment to ensure examinations are thorough and accurate, including specific cat weighing scales in every room.

All of our consults are minimum 15 minutes in length to allow your cat time to adjust to its surroundings while being examined.

Operations

In our theatres we have cat specific equipment for anaesthesia and all of our staff are trained in feline anaesthesia and pain management to ensure they are as safe and pain free as possible when undergoing surgery.

Our vets have access to up to date techniques via the International Society of Feline Medicine journals.

Equipment

Drove Veterinary Hospital has extensive additional equipment such as X-ray, CT Scanner and dental facilities on site. During their visit here, the team at Drove will do their utmost to ensure your Feline friend has a smooth visit.

For more information about making your cats journey to and from the vets and the ISFM Accreditation please click on the below links.

S. Amos - Client


Reasonably priced too...

Looked after our pets for a while now. So caring, knowledgeable and incredibly sympathetic when dealing with sad losses. Reasonably priced too. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend.