Doesn’t it just seem like life moves too quickly sometimes? Aren’t we all looking for a way to save time throughout our day? Since there isn’t a way to add more hours in the day (yet), below are six, easy ways to save time on your next vet visit.

How many times do you mean to call and make an appointment for you or your family, but life ends up getting in your way because you were stuck at work later than expected, a family emergency occurred, or by the end of the day you just want to take five minutes for yourself? We’ve all been there before when it comes to taking care of ourselves. Taking care of our pets is no different. Even though we at The Cat Hospital of Media work our hardest to fit even the busiest lifestyles, sometimes the only time you have availability to call and schedule your cat’s appointment is after hours, which we are happy to accommodate.

At any time of day, any day of the week you can request an appointment through our website or app (available for both Apple and Android devices). It’s as easy as filling out the reason for the visit, a few days and times that you prefer, and which doctor you favor. Our staff will contact you when we receive the request to finalize the appointment. No more waiting weeks for your schedule to align with our office hours. By scheduling online or through our app you can contact us to schedule at a time that’s convenient for you.

Whether you’re a new client, it’s been a while since your cat’s last been here, or your cat is having a procedure done there will be paperwork to fill out. For new patients, new clients, and returning clients the required paperwork is available on our website under the contact us tab. You can fill this paperwork out on any device that connects to the internet and send it right back to us upon completion. No printing or further steps have to be made on your part!

If your cat is coming in for a procedure there will be an estimate for you to sign when you drop him or her off. If you’re in a time crunch, mention that you’d like us to fax or email the paperwork to you. This way, you can either bring the signed copy with you when you drop your cat off, or you can fax or email it back to us. Regardless the reasoning behind the paperwork, having this done before you visit us can save upwards of ten minutes of your time.

We’ll send you an email or text a few days before your cat’s scheduled appointment. You have the option to confirm this appointment ahead of time so you don’t have to confirm over the phone. If something comes up and you’re not able to make the appointment you have the option to reschedule then, again, doing it completely on your time.

No matter how many times you rehearse the questions you have for the vet, once you’re actually in the exam room chances are you’ll forget to bring something up. By making a list of any questions or concerns and bringing that with you to your cat’s exam you’ll make sure that everything is addressed all at once. This helps to save time after your cat’s exam too. There will be no need to call and/or email the same or next day with questions for the doctor. Plus, having these questions at the ready during your cat’s exam will assure they’re answered immediately. The 30 minute appointment slot is uninterrupted time you have with your cat’s doctor. While we work our hardest to answer your questions after your cat’s exam as soon as we can, emergencies, doctors being out of the office and regular day-to-day work can sometimes prevent this from happening. Making a list can assure questions will be answered right away.

We get that work and personal schedules don’t always allow for a lot of freedom to bring your cat to the vet. Sometimes an appointment first thing in the morning or late at night are the only times you’re available. One way we try our best to work around minor speed bumps like these are by offering drop-off appointments starting at 8 a.m. We’ll have a doctor and technician exam him/her during the day and write up exam findings for you to go home with. Mondays and Fridays you can pick up by 5 p.m. and Tuesdays-Thursdays you can pick up by 8 p.m. Not only does this save you time throughout the day, it also assures your kitty love by our technicians throughout the day they visit with us.

This blog is all about saving you time, right? Why not save yourself time 6 months or a year from now by scheduling your cat’s next appointment while already here? We know that it’s impossible to say what you’ll be doing next week let alone months from now, but by scheduling something in advance you don’t have to worry about remembering when they’re due for what. We’ll do the hard part of remembering all of that for you and send reminders leading up to your cat’s next exam. If something comes up and you can’t make the appointment don’t worry about it. Just reach out in a way that’s most convenient for you and we can reschedule for a time and/or date that works better for you. Scheduling in advance is also a great way to assure your cat will be seen by your preferred doctor at a time and date that works best for you—for example a Saturday appointment or one of our 6:30 p.m. appointment slots.