Keep you dogs out of the cat waiting area

[Toddlerteaplease]

I admit I'm a bit PFB about my cats. But they are very nervous, especially at the vet. My vet has a separate waiting are for cats and dogs. It drives me nuts when people bring their dogs into the cats area. I do not want your yappy dog scaring my poor cat. The staff are lovely but they don't seem to enforce the separate areas.

I wish our vet had separate waiting areas. Our cats are already shit scared due to the car journey and general strangeness, and then they have to sit in their carriers with dogs looming over them - by the time the vet sees them they're pretty much hyperventilating. And having cats around would probably also freak out a nervous dog, I'd imagine - separate areas sounds great, if people stuck to them.

Our vet doesn't have separate waiting areas so this is new to me.

Then again I have not seen many vets as although we had pets when I was a child, our vet came home (Fancy way of saying my dad is a vet.)

In all seriousness we do have a cat who we suspect thinks he's a dog. He tried to make friends with a dog once. I have photos of Biggie in other posts I've written. He's lovely but a bit thick.

All joking aside, there is a rating system for how cat-friendly vets are, and a separate area for cats and dogs is part of that. Ours has had separate areas for ages, and it's enforced. (We are a cat family).

Other small animal owners are welcome to sit anywhere (but most seem to choose the cat area!)

Our vets not only have a separate waiting area for cats and dogs, but separate entrances too, which is IMMENSE and cuts down stress considerably (particularly with regard to the House Tiger, who seems to think that every dog he sees is a personal target to be nuked. He is not a Naice Cat).

I'd drop them a wee email or PM on FB and ask nicely if the policy could be enforced.

The only place I’ve seen that is the vet’s school and I’d been taking my cat into the dog waiting area for ages before I realised, she lived with dogs and gave no fucks tbh though...

Glasgow vet school has little walls round each seat so you can hide your dog, that’s a nice design.

Yanbu, it’s very annoying and not fair on your poor cats.

Where do you go if you have one of each?

I have both, and their vaccinations fall due at the same time so they sometimes go together. There aren't separate areas in my vet clinic, but if there were I'd use the dog area and keep the cat box up on my knee away from strange dogs.

I don't think you would take your dog and cat to the vet at the same time would you?

I stand corrected.

Oh I wish my vets had this! Completely agree OP, I hate it when barky dogs come in and my poor cats, already terrified, have to listen to it. Even worse is when they are allowed to come up and sniff the box

I wish our vets had this, my dog hates cats so much I have to wait in the car with him until they come out and get us.

Having said that he's also fairly unfriendly to other dogs, sigh. I think to wait in the waiting room with him he'd have to be wheeled in like a canine Hannibal Lecter.

Where do rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters go. I agree with a dog only area and strictly to be kept on a lead or secure if badly injured.

Not like the cat owner in my vets who was 'showing' her cat to the barky dog by shoving the carrier in its face, the poor cat was hissing at the dog, such a stupid thing to do.

My vet doesn't have a separate area, (too small) and I often have to put a blanket over the carrier as I've got some scaredy cat ex-ferals.

I chose a cat friendly vet, the cat waiting area was nearest to the door so people going to the reception with dogs naturally took the dog with them, so right by the cat area.

The dog area was at the other end and there was a garden outside for them to wait, shame they didn't go it.

I stopped going there in the end because they treated the new vets badly, made them to all the phone calls for emergencies and tell everyone to wait until the next day, and treated pets roughly, staff were very snotty too. Chose it because of the shiny state of the art equipment and the so-called first class care.

Much better treatment at the scruffy surgery we moved to, and so kind and gentle.

go it - go in it

Where do rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters go.
My old one used to have a seperate area for that, a seperate little building actually! My current one hamsters etc go on laps in cages in the dog section.

My vets has it. I know because when it's empty that's where I take my dog because he's a stupid mutt who thinks people are for life and all other dogs are for breakfast (rescue dog and we were not given this information before we took him but he's ten so if we had returned him I suspect he would have been toast). Anyway I would never go in there if there were any cats in there - although mutt does not detest cats I suspect they wouldn't like him.

When I was a vet receptionist we enforced it; we were a Feline Friendly practice and registered with ISFM Cat Friendly Clinic programme.
Unfortunately a lot of people don't read signs though!
I'd check if your practice has a separate cat ward too, in case your pet ever has to be admitted.

We have a cat area at the vets I go to.
My cat was astounded when a Bengal got loose from its lead and jumped up to say hello. He spat at it

I used to go to a vet with separate area for cats and dogs. Quite a few people either didn't see the signs or just ignored them.

Many years ago I was referred by my small vet's practice to a very up market cat only clinic in Belsize Park - a very nice part of London for those who don't know.

The place was beautifully furnished and very elegant, even the vet was very beautiful.

My lovely ginger boy, who was then 5 years old and in his prime, walked out of his carry case onto the lovely shiny treatment table, tucked his paws under his chest and sat down with, I swear to god, a satisfied sigh and looked up at the beautiful vet, with an 'I'm in love' look on his face while she stroked his chin and I just know he was thinking 'this is the life I was born for'.

Cost me an arm and leg for the treatment too.

If my cats are ever admitted they go to the local hospital which has a beautiful cat ward. As my everyday vet doesn't have staff on site 24/7. That vet doesn't have a separate waiting room but as it's much smaller there are less dogs. So quieter.

My vet also has separate waiting areas. It's great .

We went to the Willows in Solihull with one of my cats last year. Omg it was unbelievably posh. They gave me a cover to put over the basket. Brilliant idea. They even had free hot drinks! @Ollivander84 I can just imagine Ollie doing that!

My vet surgery also has separate areas, with very big, clear signs. Despite that, when I visited once with my exceptionally nervous cat, a woman was sat in the (small) cat area with three dogs. There was no-one in the (large) dog area. I mentioned it to the receptionist when I booked in, and she nicely asked the woman to move to the appropriate area.

The woman was clearly unimpressed, and marched off in a huff with her three dogs, muttering "you can tell when you're not wanted." I was tempted to answer.