We are delighted to report that New Malden Vets is an accredited small animal general practice. The scheme is currently a voluntary one, but indicates a standard which all practices are encouraged to achieve.

The scheme is described by the RCVS as follows:

“Pets are often treated as members of the family and owners rightly want to be sure they receive excellent medical treatment. But how can you be sure?

The RCVS Practice Standards Scheme (PSS) is a voluntary initiative to accredit veterinary practices in the UK. Through setting standards and carrying out regular inspections, the Scheme aims to promote and maintain the highest standards of veterinary care.

It offers peace of mind to clients of accredited practices and a more informed choice to the animal-owning public.

To become accredited, practices volunteer for rigorous inspection every four years and will have met a range of minimum standards including hygiene, 24-hour emergency cover, staff training, certain types of equipment and cost estimation procedures”

For more information see RCVS: About the Practice Standards Scheme

"Most animals feel anxious visiting a vet but my two cats are so much less stressed now that they are separated from the dogs in the waiting room. The atmosphere of calm is quite noticeable and very beneficial for both cats and owners. A very welcome, and imaginative, improvement."
Christine Fecci

Feline specialists have long recognized that a trip to the vets can be more stressful for cats than it is for most dogs, who are much more familiar with going on car journeys and meeting other people and animals.

With this in mind, we at New Malden Vets we have been actively working to improve our facilities for our feline patients, and we try to keep the experience as calm and stress free as possible. We have already had a separate ward for cats for several years, where every hospitalized cat has a warm comfortable bed.

As a result of our recent refurbishment we are delighted to have been able to provide a dog free zone in our waiting room, so cats are safe from doggy faces peering into their carriers. This has been proving very popular with our cat owning clients, and we have noticed a significant decrease in the stress levels of the cats when they come into the consulting rooms.

Our vets attend courses on specialist feline topics, and our vets and nurses have been to seminars on cat friendly handling. We have a range of cat friendly equipment, including fluid drip sets capable of accurately administering the small volumes critical to cats, paediatric stethoscopes suitable for small chests and hearts, and rapid response thermometers to keep the indignity of temperature taking as brief as possible.

As a result of this, we have been awarded the Gold Standard for Cat Friendly Clinics by the ISFM (International Society for Feline Medicine). This means we have the following:

• Staff who have a gentle, caring and empathetic approach to handling cats
• Staff who are knowledgeable about and understand cats
• A cat friendly waiting room
• Premises of a good clinical standard with appropriate equipment
• Ability to hospitalise cats, with comfortable bedding
• A hospital ward dedicated to cats
• Larger cat friendly cages for hospitalised cats
• A ‘Cat Advocate’ to answer any questions you have
• Additional features in the cat friendly waiting room
• Additional facilities and other special equipment

We were the first Gold Standard cat friendly clinic in Surrey!