Appointments
What happens when you come in
The first consultation is typically around an hour. Here is how it works, and the three ways we can see you.
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Before the appointment
We review your pet's full history and any previous test results, imaging and lab work from your vet. You will also be asked to complete a short questionnaire about how pain is affecting daily life. Your observations matter enormously, and they often shape the appointment more than the notes do.
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The consultation
Typically around an hour. We watch how your pet moves, examine them gently and carefully, review what has and hasn't helped so far, and think through everything that might be contributing to their discomfort. Examinations happen on a mat on the floor rather than on a table.
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The plan
We go through the options together, including the ones we don't think are worth doing, and agree what to try first. Some patients leave with a plan for the next 12 to 24 months and no need to come back unless something changes.
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Afterwards
A written report follows the appointment, and your regular vet gets a copy. After an in-person consultation we take on clinical responsibility for your pet and can prescribe and dispense medication for up to three months, in line with RCVS guidance. After that, prescribing returns to your own vet unless we see your pet again.
Appointments are spaced so there is rarely more than one patient in the building. It gives the animal time to settle, and it gives you time to say what you actually came to say.
In clinic
An in-person appointment gives us the chance to examine your pet directly: watching how they move, feeling for areas of tension or sensitivity, and testing what does and doesn't provoke a response.
Our clinic is at 41 High Street, Dulverton, on the Somerset and Devon border. We also hold clinics at Umberleigh and Barnstaple. Clients travel to us from across the West Country, and some come from a good deal further.
Book a clinic appointmentOnline, anywhere in the UK
A video consultation of around an hour, with your pet's clinical history, imaging reports and lab results reviewed beforehand, alongside video and photos of how they move at home.
It suits a second opinion, a patient whose arthritis is poorly controlled on current treatment, a case where medication has caused a reaction, or a situation where travelling is simply too much for the animal.
Online consultations can also be booked through PainVets, a small group of vets with a special interest in pain who share a booking system. When you book with us there, the consultation and the invoice are with Pet Pain Relief.
What is included
- A video consultation lasting around an hour
- Review of the full clinical history and previous test results
- Assessment of the videos and photos you send in advance
- A detailed written report of the discussion and recommendations
- A copy of that report to your own vet, with your permission
No prescribing takes place during an online consultation, and clinical responsibility stays with your own practice. Where a condition needs hands-on examination or imaging, we will say so and point you to the right next step.
Book an online consultation
At home
Home visits for pets who cannot travel comfortably, following the same structure as a clinic consultation. Seeing an animal in its own house also shows things a consulting room cannot: the flooring, the stairs, the height of the sofa, where they choose to sleep.
Home visits start from £525. Get in touch to check availability for your area.
Ask about a home visitNot sure whether a pain consultation is the right next step?
Call and ask. If another specialist or referral centre is better placed to help, we will say so.
Clinic
41 High Street
Dulverton
Somerset TA22 9DW
Appointments
By appointment, generally Wednesday to Friday.