08/12/2020
"Results suggested that, when practical, owners should be encouraged to remain with their dog during routine veterinary examinations."
Published just a few weeks ago, this new paper (reference below) found that overall dogs were less stressed when their owners were present with them during a veterinary examination than without.
This is pretty interesting stuff and I would always have said the same preCovid. However over the last 6 months, many vet practices, certainly in the UK, have been carrying out examinations without the owners present in order to limit the number of people in the indoor environment. Having carried out possibly hundreds of examinations myself during that time, I have actually noticed somewhere between the same level of stress or even less stress in the dogs I have examined without the owners present.
I personally think there are three main reasons for this:
1/ The dog has waited in the car with the owner until I go get them for the examination. NO stressful waiting room scenario.
2/ The owner is often stressed during the consultation! Worrying about their pet, about their pet's behaviour, about being late for the rest of the day, the cost etc etc etc Totally understandable, but dogs pick up on our stress. So if the owner is anxious, with an increased breathing rate heart rate, production of stress pheromones, tense body language, the dog will react to that.
3/ I bring the dogs in and let them explore the room by themselves before I do anything else. I use this time to type up the notes that the owner has already given me in my conversation with them before I got the dog. I observe the dog as I type and and chat quietly to them. Then when I m ready to examine, I examine them on the floor! Yep, even Chihauhaus. I sit down and see if they want to come to me, and I d say >80% do, and then examine quietly with both of us on the floor. When the owner is present I still try to do this, but its a bit more crowded with myself, 2 adults and 3 children present in the room! Also many owners seem keen to crack on and get the dog on the table so the dog has already been handled, lifted etc before I ve had the chance to explain why I start off on the floor.
Now we are returning to being able to have people present in the consult room, I definitely want that to happen. BUT I would like the dog not to have waited in the waiting room. I would like only one adult in the consult room if possible. I would like the owner to know in advance that we are going to leave the dog on the floor for most of the consult and to let the dog have time to explore before we start any interactions. I would like the owner to know that dogs pick up on our stress and if they themselves are likely to be very distressed, it may be better to chat out in the carpark first and let me see the dog by myself first. I would like owners to know the dog doesnt need to perform or behave themselves! Dogs get scared at the vets and its my job as the vet to help that dog feel better - not the dog's job to behave differently. I would like owners to know that its ok to reassure a dog, even when (particularly when) they are fearful but to do so in a calm, gentle manner, ideally with the dog on the floor and not picked up.
Let's help dogs "fear less" at the vets!
Stellato, A.C., Dewey, C.E., Widowski, T.M. and Niel, L., 2020. Evaluation of associations between owner presence and indicators of fear in dogs during routine veterinary examinations. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 257(10), pp.1031-1040.
