The breeder already gave me a completed health record: is the visit still needed?

Yes, for two reasons. The record certifies what was done, not the current state of health: congenital heart defects, umbilical hernias, retained testicles and intestinal parasites are only found by examining the animal. The second reason is that many transfers set a short window in which a condition present at handover can be raised, and without a dated examination that window closes without evidence.

Can I bring yesterday's stool sample?

Yes, if it stayed in the fridge between 2 and 8 degrees in a sealed container. The practical limit is twelve hours for the standard test: beyond that some parasite stages degrade and giardia screening loses sensitivity. Never freeze the sample, because freezing destroys the structures the laboratory needs to recognise. If the sample is older, say so at reception instead of letting it be processed as fresh.

Do I need a check up even if the animal came from a careful breeder?

The quality of the source changes the probability of problems, not the need for a check. A careful breeder hands over animals already examined and wormed, but the arrival visit also establishes the starting point of your own data: weight, temperature, body condition and clinical findings on day one are the yardstick for every later change. Without that zero point, future values have no context.

How long does the first visit take and how much time should I set aside?

The examination itself usually takes fifteen to thirty minutes, but allow at least an hour including waiting, reception, any blood sampling and payment. Book a slot with nothing scheduled immediately after: a first visit cut short because you have to run is a visit that will be repeated. If the animal is very frightened, ask to split the assessment across two close appointments rather than forcing handling.

The microchip is still registered to the breeder: is that a problem?

Yes, and it needs fixing straight away. While the registry lists another keeper, a found animal leads to a phone number that is not yours, and late transfers of ownership need the cooperation of the previous keeper, who is not always reachable. Ask the vet to check the registration during the visit and to start the transfer, bringing the transfer document and your identity document with you.

The first months45 minLevel: BeginnerUpdated on July 30, 2026

Preparing a puppy or kitten first veterinary visit

What to bring, how to collect a usable stool sample, which questions to ask and which data to write down before leaving the consulting room.

Audience: Pet owners
Species: Dog, Cat
Scope: Valid everywhere

What you need before you start

Il documento di cessione e il libretto sanitario consegnati da allevatore, canile o precedente proprietario
Il numero di microchip a quindici cifre, se già applicato, con la data di applicazione
Un campione di feci raccolto nelle dodici ore precedenti e tenuto in frigorifero
Un trasportino per il gatto, o pettorina e guinzaglio per il cane, mai il solo collare

The first visit decides how all the others will go. Three things are settled in twenty minutes: whether the animal is healthy, what the schedule of boosters and parasite treatments will be, and whether the clinic stays a neutral place or becomes a frightening one. People who turn up with no documents, no stool sample and no written questions get a generic consultation and pay for a second appointment to obtain the same answers. People who turn up prepared leave with a dated plan covering the months ahead. This guide lists what to bring, how to collect the material, in what order to run the visit, and which information to write down before leaving the room, while it is still fresh and can be checked with the vet.

When to book the first visit

The right moment is within the first seventy two hours after arrival, even if the animal looks perfectly healthy and even if it already has a completed health record. In many transfers the health guarantee from the breeder or shelter is tied to a check up within a set number of days, often five to ten: missing that deadline can forfeit your right to raise a condition that was already present at handover.

Within 72 hours of arrival for the general examination and the microchip check.
Immediately, without waiting, if diarrhoea, repeated vomiting, coughing, eye or nasal discharge, or refusal to eat for more than twelve hours appears.
Before any contact with unknown animals, if the vaccination course is not complete.
When booking, ask whether the clinic has a slot dedicated to young animals or a separate waiting area for cats.

What to bring to the clinic

Material to prepare the night before
Item	Why it matters	Practical note
Transfer or adoption document	Establishes handover date and health responsibilities	Bring the original, not a photo
Completed health record	Lists vaccinations and treatments already given	Check that every entry has a date and a signature
Microchip number	Lets the reading and the registry entry be verified	Fifteen digits, ISO 11784 and 11785 standard
Stool sample	Screening for intestinal parasites and giardia	Fresh, within 12 hours, kept refrigerated
Photo of the food label	Allows the ration and the transition to be assessed	Photograph the nutritional table as well
Log of stools and meals from recent days	Turns impressions into data	Time, type and consistency are enough
Written list of questions	Stops you remembering them in the lift	No more than six, in order of importance

Collecting a stool sample that can actually be used

A faecal test is worth exactly as much as the sample it was run on. Most false negatives come from samples that are too old, too small or dried out, not from the sensitivity of the method. Intestinal parasites shed eggs intermittently, so a single sample can come back negative even in an infested animal.

Useful amount: a volume at least the size of a walnut, not a smear picked up on a stick.
Freshness: collected within twelve hours of the appointment, kept refrigerated between 2 and 8 degrees, never frozen.
Container: a clean sealed jar, with no soil, sand or litter mixed in.
Better sensitivity: a pooled sample from three consecutive days, kept in the same refrigerated container.
Label: the animal's name and the date and time of each collection written on the container.
If watery or bloody diarrhoea appears, do not wait for the appointment date and take the sample in straight away.

The eight step procedure

Weigh the animal at home and write the value down
A weight measured at home the day before gives you a comparison with the clinic figure and exposes differences caused by different scales. Record the clinic value too: it becomes the first point of the growth curve and the reference for parasite treatment dosing.
Fill in the animal record before you leave the house
Name, presumed date of birth, breed or type, sex, microchip, origin, current food and daily amount. Having it ready avoids answering history questions from memory, and history taking is the part of the visit where most information is lost.
Get the animal used to travel two days earlier
Leave the carrier open at home with a blanket and a few treats inside, and make two or three short car trips that end at home rather than at the clinic. An animal that walks into the consulting room already in panic makes an accurate examination impossible and pays for it for years.
Hand over documents and sample at reception
Give the health record, transfer document and stool sample to reception rather than to the vet in the room: the sample leaves for the laboratory earlier and the result may arrive while you are still there. Ask how long it will take and through which channel it will reach you.
Have the microchip read in front of you
Reading it confirms that the transponder works and that the number matches the paperwork. A migrated or unreadable chip has to be flagged immediately, because it makes the registry entry useless. Ask for confirmation that the registration is in your name and not still in the previous keeper's.
Follow the examination and watch the sequence
A complete examination covers weight, temperature, heart and lung auscultation, abdominal palpation, eyes, ears, mouth and deciduous teeth, umbilicus and testicles, and a skin inspection. If a part is skipped because the animal is struggling, ask for it to be repeated at the next booster and note it down.
Ask your written questions before the vaccination
Ask while the animal is still calm. After the injection everyone's attention shifts and answers become rushed. If the vet uses terms you do not know, ask for them to be written in the health record instead of nodding along.
Transcribe the plan before leaving the room
Date of the next booster, parasite product and interval, recommended food and amount, weight, temperature and any abnormal findings. Do it in front of the vet, so a transcription error is corrected on the spot instead of becoming a wrong reminder for months.

The questions that shape the following months

Six questions is the maximum a twenty minute consultation can take without becoming superficial. Choose the ones that produce dates and numbers rather than general opinions, and write the answer next to the question as it is given.

What is the date of the next booster and up to what age does the course continue?
Which internal and external parasite product, at what interval, and from what body weight?
How many grams a day of this food, split into how many meals, and until when?
Which social contacts are already safe now and which should wait, and for how many weeks?
At what weight and in which age window will we discuss neutering?
Which signs mean I call the clinic straight away instead of waiting for the next appointment?

Data to transcribe before leaving the clinic
Item	Useful format	What it is for later
Weight	Grams, not rounded kilograms	First point of the growth curve
Temperature	Degrees with one decimal	Comparison during a future illness
Vaccine given	Type, batch and date	Rebuilding the course if you change clinic
Next booster	Exact date, not an interval	A reminder that cannot be misread
Parasite treatment	Active substance and interval	Treatment calendar
Recommended ration	Grams per day and number of meals	Weight control over the following weeks
Abnormal findings	Description and location	Comparison at the next visit

Mistakes that waste the visit

Mistake, effect and correction
Mistake	Effect	Correction
Yesterday's stool sample left out of the fridge	Unreliable result and a repeated test	Refrigerate between 2 and 8 degrees, never freeze
Health record left at home because it was photographed	The vet cannot sign off the new entries	Always bring the original, the photo is only a backup
Questions asked at the desk while paying	Short answers that nobody writes down	Ask in the room, before the vaccination
Animal put on the waiting room floor	Exposure to pathogens before vaccine cover	In your arms or in the carrier until called
Next booster noted as in a month	Dates drift further every time	Write the exact date and set the reminder at once

Frequently asked questions

The breeder already gave me a completed health record: is the visit still needed?: Yes, for two reasons. The record certifies what was done, not the current state of health: congenital heart defects, umbilical hernias, retained testicles and intestinal parasites are only found by examining the animal. The second reason is that many transfers set a short window in which a condition present at handover can be raised, and without a dated examination that window closes without evidence.
Can I bring yesterday's stool sample?: Yes, if it stayed in the fridge between 2 and 8 degrees in a sealed container. The practical limit is twelve hours for the standard test: beyond that some parasite stages degrade and giardia screening loses sensitivity. Never freeze the sample, because freezing destroys the structures the laboratory needs to recognise. If the sample is older, say so at reception instead of letting it be processed as fresh.
Do I need a check up even if the animal came from a careful breeder?: The quality of the source changes the probability of problems, not the need for a check. A careful breeder hands over animals already examined and wormed, but the arrival visit also establishes the starting point of your own data: weight, temperature, body condition and clinical findings on day one are the yardstick for every later change. Without that zero point, future values have no context.
How long does the first visit take and how much time should I set aside?: The examination itself usually takes fifteen to thirty minutes, but allow at least an hour including waiting, reception, any blood sampling and payment. Book a slot with nothing scheduled immediately after: a first visit cut short because you have to run is a visit that will be repeated. If the animal is very frightened, ask to split the assessment across two close appointments rather than forcing handling.
The microchip is still registered to the breeder: is that a problem?: Yes, and it needs fixing straight away. While the registry lists another keeper, a found animal leads to a phone number that is not yours, and late transfers of ownership need the cooperation of the previous keeper, who is not always reachable. Ask the vet to check the registration during the visit and to start the transfer, bringing the transfer document and your identity document with you.

What to do next

Book within seventy two hours of arrival and prepare, the night before, the transfer document, the original health record, a fresh refrigerated stool sample and six written questions. Have the microchip read in front of you and transcribe weight, temperature, the exact booster date and the parasite treatment interval before leaving the room. Set the booster reminder before you get in the car.