Things to bring to every visit

Whether you're going in for a consultation (first visit with a new doctor) or you're going for a routine recheck there are some important things to bring to every appointment.

What to bring to every appointment

ALL medications your pet is on:

• Include all over the counter supplements, flea and tick medications, and prescriptions.
• Ideally, bring the prescription bottles (or a photo) with you so the staff can verify the drug and how the medication is being given. You'd be surprised how many differences we catch just by looking at the bottles.
• Some human medications are toxic to dogs and cats so it is important to check with your veterinarian about any supplements or medications before giving them to your pet.

Keeping a diary or a log of what your pet does:

• Vomiting including how often and what is in it.
  • For cats include hairballs. Vomiting is not a normal behavior, please speak to your vet about this. A hairball every few months can be acceptable, but more frequently can be an indication of a serious health concern.
• Regurgitation.
  • Wait, what's the difference between vomiting and regurgitation you ask? Vomiting is a whole body experience and usually includes heaving motions. Regurgitation is when stuff just comes up. (Think of a vurp.)
  • Regurgitation can be silent meaning you don't notice when your pet has it, mild and result in lip smacking, or severe causing sneezing or coughing and either liquid or stomach contents to come out of their mouths or nose.
  • Check out this article on the difference between vomiting and regurgitation.
• Changes in stool (bowel movements) like diarrhea or constipation.
  • Include frequency and appearance. You can use a fecal score such as the one from Royal Canin to describe it to your vet.
  • Photos also work, believe me, we won't be offended if you show us poop pictures. 
• Any coughing or sneezing?
  • Take a video and bring it with you if you're able to catch your pet in the act. 
  • For cats a cough can look like they are trying to bring up a hairball. Check out this video of a cat coughing.
  • An occasional sneeze after sniffing something is okay, but frequent sneezes, or sneezes with discharge, are not normal. Let your vet know what the discharge looks like.
• Changes in energy level.
  • Is your pet sleeping more?
  • Are they hyperactive?
• Changes in appetite or water intake.
  • Are they eating or drinking any more or less than 'normal'? This can be from a wide variety of reasons, so being aware of changes is huge.

What food is your pet eating and how much?

Some diseases require a prescription diet, and know exactly what your pet is eating is crucial.

• What flavors? What about treats? 
• Any human foods?

Anything new in the environment?

Changes in the environment at home can cause coughing, sneezing, or other issues. It's a good idea to keep track of these things in case the coordinate with changes in your pet.

What else could you possibly bring?

The best thing to bring with you is your willingness to work hand in hand with the veterinary team to help ensure your pet is well taken care of. 
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Please ask your veterinarian or the veterinary technician helping you your pressing questions. Either can answer them for you. (Don't be afraid to ask the vet tech to interpret the doctor. We're totally used to it!)

Want to keep everything in one place? Check out our Pet Health Journal or the One Month Pet Health Journal and bring it along on your next vet visit and have everything all in one place.

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I hope this list helps. I'd love to hear your feedback, is there anything else you thing is important to bring to the vet visit? Join the conversation on Facebook here: ​https://www.facebook.com/internalmedicineforpetparents/

Updated 5-22-19

Author

Yvonne Brandenburg, RVT, VTS (SAIM) is a Registered Veterinary Technician practicing in California and obtained her Veterinary Technician Specialty in Small Animal Internal Medicine in 2016. She is the founder of InternalMedicineForPetParents.com. For more about Yvonne visit her author page here.

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