CATalyst Council Press Conference

Cat Experts Offer Tips on Making Trips to the Veterinarian Pleasant for Cat Owners

LONG BEACH, Calif., March 17 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Want to know how to get your cat to the veterinarian without being clawed?  The CATalyst Council and American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) are holding a press conference on Friday, March 19, offering advice on how to make veterinary visits for feline patients pain free for cats and their owners.

"Even more than dog owners, cat owners commonly report that it's difficult to get their pet to the veterinarian. With a little planning and training, cats can learn how to travel comfortably and safely in a carrier," explains Dr. Diane Eigner, a veterinarian and CATalyst Council Chair, who will speak at the press conference.

Dr. Tony Buffington, a professor at The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine and a cat behavior expert, will also speak at the press conference, as will noted pet journalist and pet expert Steve Dale.

CATalyst was founded about two years ago, in part to help raise awareness among cat owners that cats need regular veterinary care.  According to the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) 2007 U.S. Pet Ownership & Demographics Sourcebook, cats (81.7 million) outnumber dogs (72 million) by nearly 10 million, but dog owners take their animals to the veterinarian twice as often as cat owners, and it's getting worse.  The AVMA reported cat visits to the veterinarian fell some 11 percent between 2001 and 2006.

The Catalyst press conference will be held from 12:30 to 1:15 p.m. Friday, March 19, at the Long Beach Conference Center, 300 Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, Calif., during the annual conference of AAHA.

The tips that will be discussed at the press conference include making cats travel-savvy. Many cats never see the inside of a car unless they are on the way to see the veterinarian, so just getting inside a car can be upsetting.  Cat owners will be encouraged to get their cats better accustomed to traveling.

"If we're advising people to get their cats into their veterinarian more often, then we should be able to tell them how to do that properly," Dr. Buffington says.

The CATalyst Council will announce five easy tips for pet owners to use to make visits to the veterinarian easier, as well as five tips for veterinarians to help make the experience as pleasant as possible for clients and their cats.

For more information about the CATalyst Council, please visit http://www.catalystcouncil.org/. For more information about veterinary medicine, please visit www.avma.org. For information on accreditation of companion animal practices and AAHA, visit www.aahanet.org.

The CATalyst Council is a national initiative comprised of animal health and welfare organizations and corporations to champion the cat in light of troubling statistics released by the American Veterinary Medical Association that show an increase in the cat population coupled with a decline in veterinary visits for cats. For more information, visit www.catalystcouncil.org.

SOURCE American Veterinary Medical Association