"Even their ways of being scared are unique." Each of my cats had a drastically different reaction at the vet.

For cats, the vet clinic must be the number one place they don't want to be taken. In our home, on days we have to go to the vet, our beloved cats show their rebellion in three different ways.

Kotaro, who hates the vet so much he trembles

The one who hates the vet the most in our house is Kotaro, a tabby cat. The first time we took him to the vet, he didn't know where he was going, so he got into the carrier case quite easily. But ever since his canine tooth extraction surgery, his attitude has changed.

He must have been really scared. Now, just seeing the carrier case makes him think, "That's a trap!", and he runs around the room trying to escape.

As all cat lovers know, the speed of a cat when they're serious is insane, right? He dashes around the room so fast that a human can't possibly keep up, so every time I chase him, I say, "I can only see a blur!"

Even after I somehow catch him and get him into the carrier, it's still a struggle. Kotaro keeps meowing all the way in the car.

The meows that echo at this time are all ones I've never heard in the house. I drive the car, surprised by his ability to make such sounds, saying things like, "Yeah, yeah, I know," "That happens sometimes," and "When it's like this, how about we think about treats?"

One time, I was talking to Kotaro on the way to the vet, completely forgetting that the windows were wide open. At a red light, the driver next to me looked at me suspiciously, as if wondering, "Who is she talking to?" I'm sorry if I scared that driver. It was a cat I was talking to...

Anyway, we somehow arrived at the vet, and once inside, Kotaro's demeanor changed again. He stopped talking completely and started trembling inside the carrier. He must have been thinking, "It's finally happened..."

However, Kotaro has a strong build and is quite large, so other owners often comment, "He's so big, but he's trembling? How cute!" He doesn't realize it, but he becomes quite popular every time he goes to the vet.

Once in the examination room, Kotaro's tension reaches its peak. After we somehow manage to coax him out of the carrier with the help of the veterinary nurse and place him on the examination table, his trembling intensifies.

Kotaro, whose emotions are easy to read, changes his meow after the vet examination. For some reason, he can only let out a tiny "meow."

That voice can only be heard when we're going home from the vet. That's why I always end up bombarding him with questions like, "How do you make that sound?" and "It's so cute like a kitten, can you make it at home too?" Kota, you're always working so hard.

Leon, the ginger cat, takes his frustrations out on his servant

Leon, the ginger cat, expresses his fear in a cool way. It doesn't take much time to put him in the carrier case when we take him to the vet, and he doesn't meow much in the car. He's probably like a primary school boy who tries to act tough, saying, "I'm not scared of this!"

Unlike Kotaro, Leon remains calm even when we arrive at the vet. He doesn't tremble and observes the animals passing by through the carrier. He seems to think of himself as human, so he's probably thinking, "That's a cat... and that's a dog, I see. Very interesting..."

In the waiting room, he often gets praised by other owners, saying, "What a beautiful cat!" Leon also charms repairmen when they come to our house, so he must be a born people-pleaser.

After captivating everyone around him, he calmly enters the examination room. He sits still on the examination table, and during the examination, he's charming to the veterinary nurses and veterinarians, getting praised for being a "good boy" and showing great willingness to please.

Every time I see him like that, I think if Leon were human, he'd be an extrovert and belong to a different social group than me.

After the examination, he saunters back into his carrier as if to say, "Alright, I'm going home now." It's so typical of Leon to saunter back rather than slink back.

It's amazing how well he behaves at the vet, despite it being a stressful experience. Many of you who have read this far probably think so too, but Leon's revenge starts now.

As soon as we get home, Leon transforms from a sparkling idol. He bites my legs and arms, expressing his anger as if to say, "How dare you take me there?"

What's more, for the entire day, he ambushes me whenever he gets a chance. He attacks from behind, pounces after a litterbox zoomie, and uses every trick in the book to vent his frustration about having to go to the vet.

"The truly scary ones when angered are usually the kind ones" might be a true statement.

Jiji the calico cat is in "outing mode" and feeling cheerful!

In contrast to the other two, Jiji the calico cat eagerly wants to get into her carrier case. Jiji seems to think of going to the vet as "our special outing time." When I bring out the carrier, she rushes over and looks at me as if to say, "Are we going today?"

When I take Leon or Kotaro, it's cute how she's a little surprised and thinks, "It's not me..."

In the car on the way to the vet, she always purrs happily. When she rides in the back seat with me, she rubs against my hand or licks it much more affectionately than she does at home.

However, when we arrive at the vet, her demeanor clearly changes. She becomes visibly disheartened, as if asking, "Oh, is this where we're going today...?"

In the waiting room, her attitude changes completely from how it was in the car, becoming "blank." Even if I put my hand in the carrier, she doesn't rub against it, perhaps thinking, "You tricked me."

While waiting for the examination, she sometimes makes unique sounds like "kyuwan" or "hoo-hoo," which often draws the attention of other pet owners. They're probably wondering, "What kind of animal did this person bring?" She's a cat, by the way. A gray area cat.

Generally mild-mannered, Jiji is relatively quiet during examinations and friendly to everyone except for the "fateful veterinarian" I mentioned in a previous article. The veterinary nurses also laugh and say, "Hehe... his face..."

When we get in the car after the examination, the "purring music" that played on the way there is gone. She's probably mad that the outing was to the vet. I've never taken her anywhere else, though...

動物病院に連れて行かれて、不本意だった猫。 pic.twitter.com/PetffxQkzN

— ゆあ ｜ ライター🖊 (@yunc24291) July 28, 2023

Jiji has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, so she goes to the vet more often than any other cat in our house. Yet, for some reason, the equation "outing = vet clinic" doesn't seem to click for her, and she always gets excited when I show her the carrier.

That's what's so cute about you. I hope you stay that pure at heart.

While it's best not to go, there are times when a trip to the vet is unavoidable. I'm sure other households are also having their own intense battles and coming up with creative solutions based on their cats' personalities.