Welcome to a new style of veterinary care

We understand that veterinary visits can be scary for our fur patients and we’re dedicated to making their experience with us as comfortable and high quality as possible. So, we have decided to take some really positive steps towards reducing the fear, anxiety and stress of your pets when they visit us.

All of our vets and nurses have undergone extra study to make them Fear Free certified, which means we’re better positioned to understand your pet’s physical health and emotional well-being. We treat each pet as an individual and look forward to working with you to help us set the new standard in veterinary care.

Separate Consulting Rooms

We have separate dedicated dog and cat consult rooms so with extra room for the dogs and lots of climbing fun for cats.

Extended Consult Times

Our standard consult times are 30 minutes, which gives your pet more time to feel comfortable as we get to know them.w your pup!

Gentle Handling

We don’t believe in scruffing cats or muzzling dogs. Instead, we use gentle handling, patience and calming medications to help everyone feel at ease.

Dogs in park at behaviour training
Cat boarding in North Ryde

Preparing for Your Fear Free Visit

Helping your pet have a Fear Free vet visit begins at home. When you book your appointment, our team will ask whether you feel your pet would benefit from advice on how to reduce the pending stress, anxiety of fear of the visit. We can then tailor advice to you and your fur child.

Some great Fear Free tips before for your trip to the clinic with your dog include:

  • Smaller dogs often feel more secure in crates, making sure they have a non-slip surface on the bottom and with a familiar towel or bedding in them;
  • For larger dogs harnesses are absolutely fine but again make sure they are secure and that your dog is used to them prior to the trip;
  • Prepare the car for transport by playing quiet, calm or familiar music, avoiding loud startling noises;
  • Consider using DAP relaxing pheromone sprays in the car;
  • Giving food stuffed toys like Kongs during the car trip to keep your dog occupied and relaxed during the ride.

Some great Fear Free tips before for your trip to the clinic with your cat include:

  • Choose a carrier big enough to allow them to stand and turn around in, but small enough that they feel safe and secure. Choose a carrier with at least two openings or can easily be taken apart;
  • Take the carrier out ideally permanently but at least several days before the visit and encourage them to get used to it – feed them from it, play around it, allow them to sleep in it;
  • During the trip pop a towel over the carrier to help reduce the chance of overwhelming them with visual stimulation;
  • Prepare the car for transport by playing quiet, calm or familiar music, avoiding loud startling noises;
  • Consider using Feliway relaxing pheromone sprays in the car;
  • Carry the carrier with two hands like a gift rather than like a suitcase so it is a more stable ride for them.

We routinely use a number of very safe medications, known as Pre Visit Pharmaceuticals, that help reduce the wind up of adrenaline and cortisol when your pet comes into the clinic.These are not sedatives and are not aimed at making your pet drowsy, they are simply designed to help reduce the stress of the visit and allow for a less stressful experience from your pet’s point of view.

When You Arrive at the Clinic

Once you arrive at the clinic we aim to avoid or reduce the stress of getting your pet into the consult room. Where possible we will take you directly into the consult room, or alternatively will offer you the option of waiting in the car or carpark with your pet before calling you directly into be seen by our vet team.

We know that waiting rooms can be busy places with lots of other animals, owners, sounds and smells. Many pets are stressed by this experience and so we aim to reduce that stress by reducing or preventing any time spent in the waiting room.

Upon arrival we will give you the options of:

  • waiting in the car or carpark with your pet and the vet will call you directly from there into consult
  • waiting in the consult room (where available) to have more time to acclimatise and relax in the room before the vet arrives
  • waiting in the waiting room – for cats we place them up on a higher surface and cover the cage with a towel and for dogs we can give them treats to help calm them.

We welcome you to bring items from home that might help your dog or cat relax during their visit. This may be a blanket with familiar smells, a certain toy they particularly love to play with, or their absolute favourite treats!

If either you or our vets feel your pet is showing any signs of fear, anxiety or stress during the consultation, then we will ask you to fill out an emotional health card for your pet. This involves answering some questions about how you feel your dog or cat may feel more comfortable, for example:

  • Would they prefer to wait in the consult room, waiting room or car prior to the consultation?
  • what is their favourite treat?
  • Would they preferred to be examined in the carrier, on the table or floor?
  • Would they benefit from medication to help reduce the stress?

We then discuss and record your preferences so we can look to reduce stress for that day and all future visits.

In the Consult Room

Our vets will take the time to allow your pet to relax into the consult before examining them. Our approach is calm, gentle and mindful of your pet’s reaction to examination. If it’s helpful, we can explain to you any signs of fear, anxiety or stress that your pet may be showing and discuss how we can help them.

We know that dogs and cats are very different in their physical and emotional care needs. So, we have customised our consult rooms to reflect this.

Our cat consultation room has a cat scratching post and climbing tower, perches for sitting on, a litter tray and Feliway (a pheromone to help relax them) constantly diffusing throughout the room. Where possible, we perform as many procedures as practicable in these rooms, like taking blood pressure readings or blood for any tests we require.

Our dog consultation room has a snuffle mat, an array of treats to suit all tastes and DAP (a pheromone to help relax them) constantly diffusing throughout the room. We happily exam each dog wherever they feel more comfortable, whether that’s on the table, floor or your lap.

It’s all about the treats! We know that as soon as our pets start eating a treat they will begin to relax and develop a more positive association with our team, clinic and treatment. The more they then relax the more we can get out of a nose-to-tail examination and the healthier we can help your pets be!

We encourage you to help us find and then follow your pet’s preferences to help make their visit as calm as possible. This includes:

  • where they prefer to wait before the consult – e.g. in the car or in the actual consultation room
  • their favourite treat
  • where they prefer to be examined, e.g. on the floor, table or in your lap
  • anything else that would help make the experience more positive for them

Your Arrival Back Home

We want the introduction of your pet back into the household to be as smooth as possible. Having already reduced the stress of their visit will help, but we have a few more handy hints that we think will benefit you both.

If your cdog has had a procedure or seemed anxious during the visit then allow them time and room to acclimatise back into their environment and consider separating them into a separate ‘sanctuary room’ away from other dogs or animals in the house to allow this to happen slowly.

A few additional tips include:

  • Use a DAP pheromone diffuser to help all of the dogs in the household;
  • Consider taking all of the dogs for a walk together for socialisation and help reduce built up energy levels

Remember to call our team on 9888 1833 if you ever need any additional advice.

If your cat has had a procedure or seemed anxious during the visit then allow them time and room to acclimatise back into their environment and consider separating them into a separate ‘sanctuary room’ away from other cats or animals in the house to allow this to happen slowly.

A few additional tips include:

  • Use a Feliway pheromone diffuser to help all of the cats in the household;
  • Consider rubbing all cats in the household with the towel from the carrier to provide a common scent amongst them

Remember to call our team on 9888 1833 if you ever need any additional advice.

Gap Only Payments Available!

We work directly with most insurance companies so that you only have to pay the gap for any hospital treatment or surgery. Sorted!

Gap only treatment available at Macquarie Veterinary Hospital in North Ryde

Proudly Supporting Our Community

We’re passionate about our work with animal charities, helping locally with Greyhound Rescue and internationally with yearly visits to Animals Fiji.