Whisker & Woof has been accredited as a Dog Friendly Clinic by Dogs Trust and the British Veterinary Behaviour Association — the latest step in our commitment to calm, low-stress, welfare-led care.

We’re delighted to share some news we’re really proud of: Whisker & Woof is now an accredited Dog Friendly Clinic, recognised under the scheme run by Dogs Trust — the UK’s largest dog welfare charity — and the British Veterinary Behaviour Association (BVBA).

If you already know us as an ISFM Silver Cat Friendly Clinic, you’ll understand straight away why this means so much to us. For a while now, we’ve felt our feline patients had something our dogs didn’t: an accreditation built entirely around understanding their behaviour and making every visit as calm as it can be. Now our dogs have exactly the same.

Why a dog-friendly clinic matters

There is most times an element of stress for dogs when visiting a veterinary practice, particularly if they are sick or in pain. A worried dog is harder to examine thoroughly, slower to recover, and understandably less keen to come back next time.

The Dog Friendly Clinic scheme exists to change that. It helps veterinary teams embed the principles of canine behavioural medicine into everyday clinic life — learning to read the subtle, early signs of anxiety, handling dogs in ways that reduce fear rather than add to it, and shaping the whole clinic experience around how dogs actually perceive it.

The link between behaviour and pain

One part of the scheme sits especially close to our heart. It recognises that a dog’s behaviour and its physical health are deeply connected — that pain and underlying health conditions are often hidden drivers of how a dog behaves, reacts and copes.

That’s a principle we’ve built our entire practice around. As London’s first Zero Pain Philosophy accredited practice, we already treat pain as the “fourth vital sign”, assessed at every single consultation. Becoming a Dog Friendly Clinic is the natural companion to that work: comfort and calm, medicine and behaviour, understood as parts of one picture rather than separate concerns. A dog who is comfortable is a dog who copes better — and a dog whose stress we take seriously is one whose pain we’re far more likely to catch.

What it means for your dog

Earning the accreditation meant our whole team demonstrating their knowledge of canine behaviour and low-stress handling, led by our dedicated dog advocate, RVN Amy McHale. Amy keeps us up to date with the latest guidance and shares it with the rest of the team, so the benefit reaches every dog who walks through our door.

In practical terms, you can expect: 

• Recognition of behavioural and emotional needs of dogs visiting the practice
• A calmer, personalised approach to canine behaviour management in the practice, in the waiting area and in the examination room.
• Low-stress handling techniques
• Use of pre-appointment calming medication where appropriate

Small things, done consistently, add up to a dog who finds coming to see us just a little bit easier each time — which is better for their health, and far nicer for you.

Part of a bigger commitment

This accreditation joins our ISFM Silver Cat Friendly Clinic status, our RCVS Accredited Practice status, and our Zero Pain Philosophy accreditation — each one independently assessed, and each renewed regularly. Together they reflect the kind of practice we set out to be: independent, welfare-led, and genuinely built around the animals in our care, not around anyone else’s template.

If your dog finds vet visits stressful, we’d genuinely love to help. Do mention it when you book, and our team will talk you through simple ways to make the next appointment calmer — or you can register with us and let us look after your dog, and their comfort, from their very first visit.

https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/