About
Fear Free Visits
One of the most important initiatives that have come about in veterinary medicine in the last few years is Fear Free® – a move to prevent or reduce the fear, anxiety, and stress experienced by companion animals in veterinary hospital settings. Fear Free® methods and practices have been designed by a wide range of veterinary and pet experts around the world and are grounded in scientific research. It’s hard to imagine any other way of delivering or receiving veterinary care. At SOVH, you don’t have to.
We are officially a Fear Free Certified Practice! Fear Free Certified Practices take Fear Free implementation to the next level—a joint effort that requires the entire practice team to work together to achieve certification. Additionally, every member of our veterinary team is Fear Free® certified and well-versed in all aspects of promoting the kind of stress-free visit that we’d want for our own pets. Fear Free Certified Professionals are a cut above the rest when it comes to caring for your best friend, and now we have successfully implemented Fear Free into all aspects of our hospital. This designation means that we excel in all aspects of the veterinary experience for fearful, anxious, or stressed-out pets. To meet this level of commitment and implementation, our hospital received an inspection from a Fear Free Practice Certification Veterinarian who ensured that we truly measured up to Fear Free standards.
Read more below to understand the details that make your pet’s experience with us Fear Free:
A big, beautiful welcome!
Ours is a bright, warm, and inviting facility where we hope you’ll feel welcome. Our friendly staff will see that you do! We look forward to meeting and getting to know you and your furry family.
A room of your own
The usual traffic in a reception area can overstimulate pets and set them to barking, yowling, defecating, and/or urinating from stress. We bring you straight into a comfortable, quiet exam room for your appointment to avoid that commotion and stress. With few exceptions, we’ll take care of everything (including billing) in that exam room. That helps keep down the traffic and noise level in hospital, avoids stressing you and your pet, and allows us to attend to both of you more efficiently.
Separating cats and dogs
Cats can find dogs a bit much. The very sight, smell, or sound of them can put a cat on edge. Especially if it’s a dog they don’t know. And especially if a cat is unwell and feeling vulnerable. We have separate exam rooms and treatment wards for cats and dogs so they’re not having to share the same physical space. In this case, “out of sight, out of mind” is a good thing.
Exam rooms optimized for comfort
We know cats love to perch and that they need an escape route when they’re feeling the need for some space. They also like a room with a view, happily sunning themselves near a window and watching the world go by (when they’re not napping, that is). So, with a view to helping cats find their happy place when they visit, our cat rooms are on the “ocean view” side of our facility, and each room is equipped with a perch. Dogs enjoy large, interior rooms that give them plenty of space to stretch their legs, wag their tails, and sniff about doing their thing without being distracted by what’s going on outside.
Our cat rooms are also equipped with scales so we can weigh them right in the room instead of in a separate area in the hospital. Less fuss and bother. (Dogs are weighed on a scale built into the floor – no climbing or hoisting involved.)
And finally, both our cat and dog exam rooms are equipped with diffusers that infuse each room with species-specific pheromones (natural calming chemicals) — Adaptil for dogs, Feliway for cats. These pheromones go a long way to helping many pets relax. We also use cosy, Feliway-infused towels in our cat rooms for the full spa experience.
Enclosures designed for comfort and well-being
Our patients can enjoy a stay in Fear Free® approved enclosures when they’re in for tests or recovering from a procedure. Those enclosures are made of tempered glass instead of noisy, cold stainless steel used in many hospital settings. They meet International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM) standards and provide controllable heating, privacy lighting, and a better means of cleaning up for the next patient. It’s impressive technology – and easier to show you than to try to explain:
Soundproofing for noise control
The hum of conversation, the sound of equipment, and the meowing and barking that are inevitable in a veterinary hospital add up to a lot of noise that’s stressful for everyone – you, your pet, our staff. Aside from other Fear Free® initiatives to keep the noise level down our facility is equipped with acoustic wall panels that absorb all that background noise. Quiet is calming. And that’s what we’re going for here.
Odour control
Sense of smell is arguably a cat and dog’s greatest superpower. Hundreds of millions of scent receptors and a lot of brain power are devoted to helping them interpret and navigate their worlds. Unpleasant odours (smelly disinfectants, another pet’s urine, feces, or anal gland secretions, and so on), unfamiliar scents (including another pet in hospital), and odourless chemicals (like those generated by stress, fear, or anxiety of a human or other animal) can cause fear and anxiety in cats and dogs. Aside from minimizing any exposure your pet has to other pets and people, we take steps to prevent bad smells that trigger bad feelings.
Our enclosures include a ventilation system that reduces any odours from a neighboring enclosure should your pet need to be hospitalized. They also have a harmless UVA lighting system that highlights grime and shows us if we’ve missed a spot while cleaning up after a previous patient.
What’s more, our hospital won’t smell like a hospital that uses traditional smelly disinfectants. That’s because we use an odourless, Fear Free® approved, eco-friendly, safe disinfectant that uses accelerated hydrogen peroxide with proven cleaning & disinfectant power against dirt and germs. Our sophisticated air exchange system also helps keep the hospital’s air clean and fresh.
Fear Free® handling all the way
There’s a long list of techniques we use to do what we need to do while avoiding or minimizing a patient’s stress. No sudden movements. No loud noises. No rushing to get the job done. Our team will let your pet dictate what is and isn’t possible and where he/she prefers to be. If that’s in your lap or up on a perch, we’re good with that.
“Chill pills” and snacks provided
The use of safe, mild anti-anxiety medications or supplements (a ‘chill pill’ of sorts) prior to a visit to the vet has been a game changer in veterinary medicine. It takes a pet’s anxiety down a notch or two and makes the experience easier on both you and your pet. It also means your veterinary team can do a better job of assessing and treating your pet because he/she is more amenable to being in their hands. Not every pet needs the help, but many do. Your veterinarian will discuss the options available based on individual needs and medical history. He or she may also prescribe anti-nausea medication if your pet suffers from car sickness on the ride over.
For food-motivated pets, snacks help make a positive association with visiting our hospital, so if you haven’t brought any treats with you and your pet has no dietary restrictions, we’re happy to provide our own.
Social visits are welcome
For dogs that are uneasy at the vet’s, we encourage pre-arranged social visits – no poking or prodding or examining this or that – just a friendly ‘meet and greet’ complete with treats. It’s a great way to build a positive association with our facility and our team.
