Calm Clinics - keeping animals calm during treatment session

Name: Calm Clinics - keeping animals calm during treatment session
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How to provide a calm work space for dogs, cats and rabbits - Enhancing the patient compliance and therapy success

Created byDonna Wills

Last updated 4/2025

English

What you'll learn

Preparing the environment for the patients arrival
Basic behaviour to help with achieving a calm patient rapport
Understand why each element of the calm space is important
Understand how to help the caregiver/owner be calm in the space, as this in turn helps the patient
See a working example of a calm clinic
Understand that a calm environment will help get the most out of the session for the patient
How food can effect the energy in the environment
Flooring
Using smell
Dogs, cats and Rabbits are specifically considered in the lectures
Using music
The benefit of multiple room with different rules
Cleaning conciderations
The importance of self care

Course content

4 sections • 14 lectures • 57m total length

Introduction and objectives3:33
Here you will be introduced to my background and the course ahead. You will find out what you will learn from doing this course. Enjoy!
Room Ready5:07
Here you will learn how to prepare the room and working space to make it calm and ready for your patient and client
Meet and Greet5:30
Here you will learn how to meet and greet the patient and client in the calmest way to ensure the energy is calm right from the start of the arrival.
You also have access to downloadable student notes to cover the take home messages from this section
Section 1 quiz

Communication with the patients0:57
Here I introduce the thoughts about communicating with your patients
Communication with Dogs3:55
Here I talk about basic behaviour and the aspects you need to know to help make the energy calm with dogs
Communication with Cats9:03
Here I talk about basic behaviour and the aspects you need to know to help make the energy calm with cats.
Communication with Rabbits2:56
Here I talk about basic behaviour and the aspects you need to know to help make the energy calm with rabbits.
You can also now download the delegate notes
Section 2 quiz - Communication

Food2:39
Here we see the impact food can have on the energy in the room. We also look at how to use this as a successful tool for creating the required mood for the patient
Lick walls2:58
I share with you how i have introduced lick walls to aid my patients mood and use it to distract them where appropriate
Flooring4:01
Here we look at the various flooring. Whist there are practicalities to be explored, we must understand the full impact the choices have on our patients energy.
Sniff stations and scent5:07
Here we look at how I have implemented sniff stations and how scent is used in the work space to create calm.
Quiz for section 3

The Therapy Room2:35
Here you can see how I have my Therapy Room laid out, with my interventions to create my calm space
The Rehabilitation Gym2:35
Here you can see how I have my rehabilitation gym laid out. You can see how the interventions are very different in this space compared to the calm therapy room, as there is a different purpose for this space.
Clean up, self-care and take home7:03
Here you will learn some thoughts that need consideration when planning your cleaning strategy.
You will also learn some very basic self-care as a stressed practitioner will find it very difficult to get a stress free patient.
I also share my final thoughts and you can download the last of the documents for your easy access notes.
Section 4 Quiz

Requirements

There is no prerequisites for this course.
It is aimed at any practitioner who treats animals in any way.
It is written by an animal physiotherapist and veterinary nurse. With that in mind it largely relates to treating in an animal physiotherapy clinic or veterinary practice.
It would also be suited to anyone working as a hydrotherapist, chiropractor, osteopath, dog groomer, dog trainer etc.
It is expected that you may use some or all of the suggestions, that suit your place of work. Some suggestions would also work for those doing home visits.
This course would also be great knowledge for any animal caregiver/owner

Description

Learn how to provide a calm, stress free space for your patients. Doing this will mean the patient will be as calm as possible. Each session they return they will benefit from consistently knowing the space is safe and they will continue to grow confidence and be calm. They will be happy to arrive at each session.

In turn, you will have more success with your treatments as the patients trust and compliance will be greater. This will also help the caregivers trust and compliance grow, ending in the successful management of the patients needs.

This course is aimed at fellow animal MSK practitioners, like physiotherapists, osteopaths and chiropractors but it can be extrapolated to help in many other animal environments and help put our animals it ease. This might be the groomers, veterinary practice or dog training classes.

As a veterinary nurse and animal physiotherapist with over 20years experience, Donna has a huge respect for behaviour and knows we must make the adaptions to make the space calm for them rather than expecting them to do as they are told when they are often nervous or anxious or confused. She makes no claim to be a behaviourist, but this has come from many years of experience and a lot of CPD and training she has undertaken to understand her patients better.

In her time as an animal physiotherapist she was head hunted by the Pet Spa at Harrods. Here; calm, peace and tranquility were keen goals for their patients/clients and this was also where she was able to really begin her journey of setting these interventions to create the calmest space.

This course also explains why each intervention is done as this helps your mind to understand why it is important and also to evolve the knowledge and adapt it you your needs.

Donna has become known for her ability to work with more worried patients. She has even had vets collaborate with her, with "difficult" patients as its in the best interest of the patient to work in a way that suits them. As a result she was asked to provide this course and is proud to have done so.

She is sure there will be further brilliant ideas that will grow as time and science moves forward. This is an excellent start on your journey in providing a calm space for your patients.

Who this course is for:

Animal Physiotherapists
Veterinary practitioners
Animal Chiropractors
Animal Osteopaths
Animal Massage Therapists
Anyone keen to learn how to make their work space calmer for their animal patients/clients

Calm Clinics - keeping animals calm during treatment session

What you'll learn

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Course content

Introduction - Preparing the space and meting the patient and clients3 lectures • 14min

Communication4 lectures • 17min

Section 3 - food, flooring and scent4 lectures • 15min

Section 4 - The rooms, clean up and self-care3 lectures • 12min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: