Scoring Charts

 

FAS Scoring (Fear, Anxiety, Stress)

How does your pet react to a visit to the veterinarian’s office?

Does your dog wag her tail, solicit pats from the staff, lick the faces of the associates and otherwise generally exhibit “smiling” behavior? Or does she cower behind your legs, avoid eye contact, tuck her tail and avoid interacting with the associates?

Does your cat raise his tail and rub up against the legs of the veterinary associates, eagerly accept treats and curiously explore the exam room? Or does he loudly vocalize his fear, exhibit “crazy cat eyes,” and hunker down in the corner of the room or his cat carrier?

All of these signs of your pet’s comfort level are indicators of their relative fear, anxiety, and stress (FAS). Using the FAS scale, your veterinary team can assess and assign a score of 0-5 based upon obvious and subtle signs of your pet’s emotional health. The team can track the pet’s comfort level before, during, and after the exam to adjust the treatment plan if necessary. A pet experiencing particularly high FAS may require a slower approach or even a follow-up exam with anxiety medication.

A pet’s FAS score may vary during their veterinary exam. Some pets may exhibit fear of the weight scale but otherwise enjoy the office visit. Many pets tolerate exam handling but not blood collection. Even examining particular body parts (face or paws) can elicit FAS responses from a pet.

Let’s take a look at the FAS scale and where pet behavior falls.

Level 0-1:
Pet is relaxed and readily accepts treats, attention, and/or toys. The veterinary team can easily continue procedures with a level 0-1 patient.

Level 2-3:
Pet is fidgeting and not readily accepting treats or attention. May interact with staff. At this point, the staff can assess the situation and try to find ways to comfort the patient. They may use a different treat, form of handling, or take a break. If the pet continues to struggle, sedation may be recommended, or the exam may be rescheduled for a later date with pre-visit pharmaceuticals (PVP).

*PVP is a term used to describe anti-anxiety medications that are prescribed to help ease the FAS a pet experiences with vet visits or other stressful events.

Level 4:
Pet is not willing to participate in procedures and may attempt to get away or escape. Pet may exhibit fight, flight, or freeze response. Pet does not accept treats or attention. Sedation may be recommended or rescheduling with PVP.

Level 5:
The patient shows signs of aggression such as growling, snapping, barking, hissing, or lunging. Pet will not tolerate procedures and most likely needs sedation for handling or procedures. PVP will likely be prescribed before future visits.

Every patient has different needs, and we aim to address those needs with Fear Free techniques.

Pet owners who would like more information about FAS and how it affects their pet’s emotional well-being can speak to one of ourVeterinarian about this.

Commonly used PVP’s at OVVC:

  • Trazodone

  • Gabapentin

  • Clonidine

For high level FAS 4-5 dog patients we may ask that your dog wear a muzzle in the clinic for staff safety. It is extremely important that everyone involved in your pets care feels safe including your pet.

Link to handouts: Fear Free handouts

 

Body Condition Score (BCS)

A BCS is a quantitative tool used widely by veterinarian’s to evaluate an animal’s body condition, fat accumulation, and nutritional status. We examine your pets BCS at every veterinary examination, and if your pet is over or under we will make tailored plans for you and your pet. 

The BCS scale ranges from 1 (emaciated and extremely underweight)  to 9 (dangerously obese with an extreme amount of body fat).

An ideal body score is typically a 4 or 5 with a healthy amount of muscle and body fat.

  • Ribs, spine and hip bones are easily felt and may be visible (coat may interfere with visibility).

  • A waist and abdominal tuck are seen when viewed from above and side.

  • Fat can be felt around ribs, spine and hip bones

Here is a link to the BCS chart we use at OVVC: BCS Chart

Fecal Score

Does your pet have diarrhea? If so, how soft is it? There is a score for this as well. It is important to document your pets stool consistency for their medical record and to document if their diarrhea is improving or worsening. We will often refer to this chart if your pet has diarrhea. Diarrhea can be the result of many conditions (not limited to non specific gastroenteritis, dietary indiscretion, toxins, food allergies, IBD, etc)

Here is a link to the scoring chart: Fecal Scoring Chart

Itch Scale

Is your pet itchy? Veterinary dermatologists have developed a scale for both owners and veterinarians to use in order to determine the level of itchiness in an objective way. This is useful for determination of improvement or worsening of signs and in order for the veterinarians and clients to all be on the same page when speaking about itchy pets. The most common cause of an itch pet is allergies, but other things can cause itchy skin as well (parasites, infections, etc).

This scale is designed to measure the severity of itching in dogs. Itching can include scratching, biting, licking, chewing, nibbling, and rubbing.

Please read all the descriptions below, starting at the bottom. Then use a marker to place a mark anywhere on the chart below to indicate the value that most reflects your pets’ level of itchiness.

Here is a link to the Dog & Cat Itch Scale

BOAS Scoring

Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome (BOAS) can affect flat faced (brachycepahlic) breeds such as pugs, bulldogs, french bulldogs, persian cats, etc

It is extremely important if you have a brachycephalic breed that you have it assessed by your veterinarian in order to help prevent BOAS. BOAS is graded on a 1-4 scale with patients over 2 being at marked risk for breathing difficulty and respiratory distress, or even death.

Here is a link for more information: OFA - Respiratory Function