What Does It Mean To Be A Fear Free Certified Vet Professional?

When looking for a new vet clinic for your pet, you may have come across the phrase “fear free.” Even though this sounds really good to pet owners and has many benefits to both animals and veterinary workers, it can be difficult to understand what this term means.

Well, a fear free vet professional is basically what it sounds like. These vet clinics and hospitals put some extra things in place that calm animals down and make them feel more comfortable when they are in their care. This does not only make our pets more calm and compliant for the vet, but it can also make veterinary exams and procedures safer for those who carry them out.

In this article we will be explaining everything that pet owners need to know about fear free vet practices. This includes what they are, what is good about them, and how to find a fear free vet near you. In addition to this, we will also be listing some other fear free pet services. Let’s jump right into it!

What Is A Fear Free Certified Vet Professional?

Fear free is an education service for people who work with animals, and this includes veterinarians and other professional vet workers. This service teaches vet staff how to keep animals calm and ease anxiety during their care. Here are some things that a certified fear free vet clinic or hospital may do to reduce anxiety in their animal patients.

• Play soothing music
• Have established quiet rooms or areas
• Have treats and toys on hand for distraction
• Using pheromones and scents to reduce anxiety
• Keeping note of what your pet likes and does not like while in their care
• Providing dark hiding spaces for fearful pets
• Using non slip exam tables

Many of these things can help immensely when it comes to reducing a pet’s fear and anxiety level when at the vet. In addition to the measures taken above, many fear free vet facilities will also have separate dog and cat entrances. This will prevent dogs from trying to do things like chase cats, which will make the cats in their care feel much more at ease.

A fear free certified vet must have completed the fear free vet practice certification course. This course does not only promote practices that feel better in a vet setting, but they are also proved through scientific research to benefit everyone involved. This includes pet owners, vet workers, and the pets themselves.

How Do Vet Practices Get Fear Free Certified?

Fear free vet practices get certified by completing the fear free educational course provided by the fear free website. This course educates professionals working with animals about the importance of the emotional health of our pets.

These courses are available online so that vet practices and other pet related services can get involved no matter where they are located. Once the course has been completed, the vet clinic or hospital will become fear free certified.

How Are Fear Free Certified Vets Good For Our Pets?

Fear free vets are good for our pets because they take into account their emotional well being along with their physical health. This will make them more likely to allow vets and vet techs to give physical exams and procedures that are needed without the risk of hurting themselves or needing to be put under anesthesia.

Plus, it makes the process of going to the vet a more enjoyable and tolerable experience for them. In addition to this, a calmer pet may allow for a vet to find something out about their health that is important that they may not have otherwise. This is because very anxious or stressed pets will often not allow for an easy physical examination from a vet.

How Are Fear Free Certified Vets Good For Veterinary Workers?

Fear free vet professionals are not only good for the patients, but it’s good for the staff as well. When animals are put under less stress and are less anxious, then they are also less likely to lash out at the people who are trying to take care of them.

This means that vet techs and veterinarians are at less risk of being scratched or bitten by an animal. Plus, promoting a calm and peaceful work environment tends to also make the people working there feel happier and less anxious as well.

How Do We Know That Fear Free Certified Professionals Are So Great?

You do not need to just take our word for it when it comes to the benefits of fear free vet practices though. There is actually a lot of past and ongoing research that shows the direct benefits of fear free vet practices for both veterinary workers and our pets.

Most of this research can be viewed on the fear free website directly. This includes many research studies performed by a variety of universities and colleges.

How To Find A Fear Free Certified Vet Near You

Luckily, it is pretty easy for pet owners to search for a fear free certified vet practice near them. This is because fear free offers a search service directly through their website. Through this function all that pet owners need to do is search by putting their zip code, city, or state to look for fear free certified practices or individual professionals. You can even filter for how close you would like the practice or professional to be.

Are There Other Fear Free Certified Pet Services?

Yes there are! In addition to fear free vet practices, the fear free website offers a variety of other fear free certification courses for other pet related services. This includes courses for animal shelters, animal trainers, pet groomers, and even pet owners. This means that anyone working with or even owning an animal could potentially benefit from a fear free education course.

You can also learn more about fear free professionals and other general pet info by visiting the Fear Free Happy Homes website!