What to Take to a Vet Appointment

Take a concise summary of the reason for the visit, your pet's current medication and supplements, relevant veterinary records, vaccination or microchip details where needed, photographs or videos of intermittent symptoms, and a written list of questions. Use a secure carrier or lead and follow any instructions from the practice about food, water, samples or arrival time.

Prepare before the appointment

Confirm the date, time, location and whether the appointment is routine, urgent or with a particular clinician. Ask the practice whether your pet should eat normally, whether they need a urine or faecal sample, and whether any existing medication should be given as usual. Do not withhold food, water or prescribed medicine unless the veterinary team has told you to do so. If your pet becomes significantly worse before the appointment, contact the practice again rather than waiting.

Bring the right records

If this is a new veterinary practice, a referral or an emergency visit away from home, bring or arrange access to previous clinical records. Useful information can include vaccination history, allergies or previous adverse reactions, long-term conditions, operations, laboratory results, imaging reports, microchip number, insurance details and the contact information for your usual practice. RCVS guidance confirms that veterinary practices keep clinical and client records, and clients can ask their practice about access or transfer arrangements.

List every medicine and supplement

Write down the exact name, strength, dose, frequency and last time given for every prescription medicine. Include non-prescription products, flea and worm treatments, supplements, special diets and anything bought online or from another supplier. Photographing the packaging and dispensing label can prevent mistakes. Never change a prescribed dose, combine medicines or give a human medicine unless a veterinary professional has specifically instructed you to do so.

Record what has changed

Describe observations rather than trying to diagnose the problem. Record appetite, drinking, urination, bowel movements, breathing, coughing, vomiting, mobility, sleep, behaviour, pain signs, weight changes and energy levels where relevant. Note the first date noticed, frequency, duration and progression. A video can be particularly useful for intermittent coughing, limping, unusual movement, seizures or behaviour that may not happen in the consulting room, provided recording does not delay urgent care.

Prepare useful questions

Prioritise the questions that affect the next decision. Ask what the veterinary team thinks may be happening, what tests are being considered, what each treatment is intended to achieve, possible side effects, what improvement should look like, when to seek urgent help and when follow-up is due. Ask for clarification when instructions are unclear. It is reasonable to discuss likely costs, insurance paperwork and written estimates before non-emergency treatment.

Pack practical items

Use a secure, suitable carrier for cats and smaller animals, and a properly fitted lead or harness for dogs. Bring absorbent bedding, waste bags, treats if permitted, and any sample requested by the practice in the container and timeframe they specify. Tell reception in advance if your pet is frightened, reactive, infectious, difficult to handle or has accessibility needs. The practice may be able to suggest a quieter waiting arrangement.

Make clear notes during the visit

Write down the diagnosis or working assessment, medicine instructions, test plans, warning signs, activity or feeding restrictions and follow-up date. Repeat important instructions back in your own words to check understanding. Request written information where available. Keep invoices, consent forms, laboratory reports and discharge instructions connected to the same visit record.

Organise the follow-up

Update your pet record as soon as possible. Record medication changes, tests performed, results awaited, next steps and any monitoring requested at home. Set reminders for doses, rechecks, repeat prescriptions or vaccinations. If symptoms change, contact the practice and explain what has happened since the appointment rather than relying on memory.

Do not wait for a routine appointment

Breathing difficulty, collapse, uncontrolled bleeding, severe trauma, suspected poisoning, repeated seizures, inability to urinate, marked distress or rapid deterioration may require urgent veterinary attention. Call a veterinary practice immediately. PDSA and Blue Cross both advise contacting a vet in an emergency, including out of hours, rather than relying on online information.

Make the record useful to the veterinary team

Record observable facts: appetite, drinking, toileting, mobility, breathing, sleep, behaviour, visible changes and the timing of each event. Use comparison with the pet’s normal behaviour and include photographs or short videos only when they can be captured without distress or delay.

For medicines, copy the exact product name, strength, dose, route and frequency from the label or veterinary instruction. Record when it was actually given, any missed or delayed dose and any reaction. Contact the veterinary practice before changing the plan.

Prepare a concise summary for appointments and keep the longer history available. Include the questions you need answered and write down the agreed next steps, monitoring period and circumstances in which you should seek further help.

Common pet-record mistakes

Avoid interpreting every change as a diagnosis. A note such as “would not climb the stairs at 7 pm” is more useful than “arthritis worse” unless a veterinary professional has made that assessment.

Do not combine records for several pets without clearly identifying which animal each entry concerns. Do not rely on colour, breed or nickname alone where microchip, date of birth or other identifiers are available.

Never delay contacting a veterinary practice to finish a checklist or search old records. Do not give human medicines or another animal’s medicine unless a veterinary professional specifically instructs you to do so.

Review records at natural care points

Update the summary after each veterinary visit, vaccination, procedure, medication change, insurance change or new diagnosis. Check that microchip registration and emergency contact information remain current.

For an ongoing symptom or medicine, review the entries at the interval suggested by the veterinary team. Look for patterns, missed entries and clear changes from normal rather than trying to diagnose the cause yourself.

Archive resolved episodes without losing them. A short dated conclusion—what the vet found, what treatment was given and whether the issue resolved—makes the history easier to understand later.