Initial appointment
Your first appointment with the physical therapist will be for a comprehensive rehabilitation evaluation and planning. This appointment will last approximately 1 hour, dependent on your pet’s needs and tolerance. The therapist will take measurements, discuss her findings and your goals for your pet, and make recommendations for the rehabilitation plan. In order to facilitate owner education and home program instructions, we ask that you either remain with your pet during this visit, or plan to meet with the therapist when you return to pick up your pet.

If your primary Veterinarian referred your pet to GCARF, please bring your pet’s medical records, including any radiographs, surgical reports, and lab results, to your first visit. If you were referred to GCARF by a Veterinarian at GCVS, your records will be accessible for the therapist. In either case, you will need to arrive 10 minutes prior to your appointment time to complete paperwork.

Follow up Appointments and Drop Offs
The frequency of your pet’s treatments will be discussed after an evaluation of your pet has been completed. The therapist sees patients Monday through Friday by appointment as well as through day boarding. Patients may be dropped off for the day between 7:15 and 9:00am and picked up 4:30-5:30pm. We are happy to accommodate alternative times for drop offs and pick ups; please provide the receptionists with your time preferences when the appointment is scheduled.

Therapist Call-Back Schedule
The therapist receives many phone calls each day. She will take as many calls as possible between appointments and treatment sessions. However, in order to provide the best care possible to each client, she must often return calls after completing patient care or at the end of the day. Please be sure to give day and night numbers as well as pager and mobile phone numbers. The rehabilitation assistants have also been trained to return some of the calls in order to speed up call backs. You may also communicate with the therapist via e-mail, which she frequently checks: nancyd@gcvs.com

As your pet’s condition changes during the course of therapy, his/her home program and activities will also change. You will periodically receive updates on your home program when you pick up your pet.

Grooming/hygiene
GCARF does not provide grooming services. However, in order to maintain water quality in our underwater treadmill chamber, your pet’s coat must be clean and free of debris/matting. If we must bathe and/or clip your dog prior to treatment, a fee will be assessed.

Any questions?
All of your questions are encouraged! We want you to be well informed about your pet’s condition, recommended treatment, and prognosis. Your pet is receiving the finest care in a state-of-the-art specialty hospital. We are proud of our facility and staff and want you to be comfortable in all aspects of your pet’s care while in our facility. Comments, compliments, concerns and constructive criticisms are always welcome.