Doc-- whose new name will be Der Spartacus-- visited the vet last week to get his flight certificate. He is the only pup that will need to fly to his new home. This is him in the exam room, with his toy.
As I noted in another post, I always come prepared to the vet's office. I want it to be a good experience for the puppy and so I make sure they are a little hungry and bring plenty of treats. Doc weighed 16.6 lbs when we arrived, and I think he added another 2 lbs in treats during the visit!! I led him into the scale with treats, asked him to sit and he sat very nicely while we got the weight. Naturally, everyone thought he was very adorable!
We use Continental and their "PetSafe" program so that the puppy flies in a temperature controlled area. If a puppy is familiar with traveling in a crate, airline travel should not be an issue. It is simply another ride, another journey...but with new people on the other end! You are required to include a airline approved food and water container and for long trips it is best to freeze water in the tray so that it is available longer, and without spilling. Unfortunately, for fear of choking, they do not allow toys in the crate. He will fly out of Chicago tomorrow and be with his new family by Tuesday evening.
Locally, we use Countryside Veterinary Service. Dr. Jay Peters is a personal favorite, but I have found that they hire vets consistent with their own attitudes and vision, and have not found one that I did not enjoy meeting. I am a very controlling client and I do not allow any procedure not requiring anesthetic to be done outside of my view. They trust me to know my dogs and to properly restrain them, but you will remember that my agreement with my dogs is that I will keep them safe. That means that I do not hand them over to people I don't know, no matter what their title is. I do understand that this can be an issue if a pet is aggressive in the presence of a handler who cannot control them; often a dog is better behaved apart from such an owner. I feed, feed, feed as the puppy is being examined and make the whole procedure a fun adventure, not an ordeal. Build this and you will not dread trips to the vet.
Do remember that a vet office is a place for sick animals. Don't let them interact with other animals there and expose them as little as possible. You might even consider wiping their feet with an antibacterial wipe afterwards, because they have walked their little paws over the place where dogs with worms and illness have possibly been and will soon lick their feet, as dogs do. By insisting that your puppy is examined in your presence, in an exam room this also controls some of that exposure, since they will clean the room in between clients.
This is the lovely vet tech, who was quite taken by the handsome Doc! Sorry, but the fluorescent lights made for some ugly indoor pictures, but I had to document it, just the same!
And this is the vet and assistant, being very cooperative in my photo session! I should have brought treats for them, too! The vet confirmed the presence of the two tiny testicles that I had felt, and that he has no heart murmur and a correct bite. Doc didn't care, he had food and his tug toy! He will soon be off on his new journey and have plenty of tales to tell himself!
