GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Often, our furry friends don't react well when visiting the veterinarian. A new West Michigan Veterinarian Clinic is placing focus on "reactive wellness care," for our most loved animals.
We all have fears, especially when visiting the doctor. But our pets also have those same fears. One wonders, how can a vet visit be more approachable for our pets?
"We tailor and control our environment before they even get in the car at their house," said Tracy Paukette, Owner and Veterinarian at Reactive Wellness Referral Center, (RRC).
To control that environment, workers at RRC ensure that no other appointment is scheduled when you come in with your pet. "We use our lobby a lot. We have exam rooms too, but we make sure we're controlling every aspect of the environment as much as we can," said Dr. Paukette.
All that controlling is an effort to calm animals that are known to be reactive. A reactive animal is a pet that has "big emotions to those everyday occurrences," explained Paukette. Everyday occurrences such as a thunderstorm, walking by another dog, or even interacting with strangers can bring big emotions to some animals.
Meaning, they may need unique methods. Take Frank for example, a 14-year-old Labrador retriever.
Frank has severe spondylosis in his spine, which causes his brain to have trouble communicating with his back legs. "About a year ago, we were getting to the point where his quality of life was really suffering. And we were talking about maybe having humane euthanasia," said Rachel VanDyke, Frank's owner and a veterinarian tech at RWRC.
It wasn't until Dr. Paukette referred Frank to acupuncture that change was seen in his mood. "That has made the biggest difference in him of anything we offered," said VanDyke.
Frank is now a happy camper during his vet visits but, Dr. Paukette always emphasizes...
“I have a lot of people crying before they even walk in the door because they have felt like they have a bad animal. And we walk through, there's no such thing. They're misunderstood.”
Reactive Referral Center will be having an open house on June, 22nd to show off its new facility. To set an appointment with the Reactive Referral Center or even to ask questions about what the offer, click here.
Follow FOX 17: Facebook - X (formerly Twitter) - Instagram - YouTube
