Use ClayPaws Kits post-death to support grieving clients, empower veterinary teams, structure time and client exits after euthanasia and ensure client retention for veterinary teams.
Euthanizing a beloved pet is never easy.
It’s even harder when the pet’s grieving family is present during the procedure.
Yet, family-present euthanasia can be one of the most powerful client retention techniques veterinary teams can us. Especially when they pay close attention to how their client’s final goodbyes are facilitated. After a pet has died, a client’s exit from the veterinary clinic (or the removal of a pet’s body after home euthanasia) presents one of the most vulnerable times in a veterinarian-client relationship. If clients leave feeling cared about and supported, they’re likely to maintain a positive view of the clinic and the veterinary team. If, on the other hand, they leave feeling empty-hearted and empty-handed, they may never want to see that clinic again.
So, how can veterinarians create a positive final goodbye experience for clients?
One of the most popular best practices is to use the ClayPaws Print-Making Process as a clinical grief support tool. Making ClayPaws prints with clients creates a lasting memory of the “good” part of goodbye. This is because it achieves the top four best practice goals for providing effective grief support. And, it benefits the veterinary team and bottom line of the practice, as well.
The top four best practice goals for providing effective grief support according to research and clinical experience are:
- seeing and spending time with a loved one’s body. This means providing time to say a final goodbye and reassurance that death has actually occurred.
- opportunities for and support during emotional catharsis. Or, feeling they have been encouraged to cry and reminisce about their pet with others who empathize, acknowledge their loss and validate their feelings.
- structure and guidance. It’s important to provide enough time to “finish business” and draw closure, but not so much time that doubts and anxieties begin to arise.
- meaningful linking objects. Clients benefit from something they can hold on to and keep close as a way to maintain a loving connection with their pets.
Making ClayPaws prints with clients provides veterinary teams with non-verbal ways to achieve these goals. The process also helps team members feel confident about helping clients cope and, ultimately, separate from their pets with a positive impression of the practice and the caring practice staff.
How can the ClayPaws Print-Making Process be used to achieve the top four best practice goals for providing effective grief support?
- Preparing the clay and making the print. This is a way for the veterinary team to offer gentle permission to the pet parent to spend time with and touch their pet’s body.
- Making and decorating the print. During this step, teams can ask the pet parent questions about their pet. Or, they can offer up favorite memories of their own. For example, “I’ll always remember Fluffy’s beautiful eyes.” Even something simple like, “I will miss Buddy very much,” can be very comforting. This lets the pet parent know they are not alone in their grief and validates their feelings.
- Allowing the pet parent to stay while their print bakes. This transition offers a natural way to comfortably end a potentially emotional conversation so the print can be baked or sent home. The pet parent may now need to finish up paperwork, pay, or just spend time with their pet’s body while their print bakes. Alternatively, if the pet parent would like to leave and not wait for their print to be baked onsite, ClayPaws prints can be sent home with baking instructions. All instructions are included on the send-home packaging or veterinary teams can use Take & Bake Containers.
- A ClayPaws print is a forever keepsake that will not deteriorate over time. Once baked, they are meant to be touched, held, and can be kept close for as long as the pet parent needs.
Most importantly, sending ClayPaws prints home the same day ensures that pet parents do not leave a veterinary clinic empty-handed. This way they leave with positive feelings about the care and compassion that was shown to them rather than only feelings of loss and grief. This makes them more likely to return to the veterinary hospital in the future for the care of another pet.