FAQs

For a dog, if you can walk your dog on a leash it will make finding a fresh sample easier. If you must let your dog out in a fenced yard, make sure to watch from the window to see where he goes so you can retrieve the sample immediately.

(We cannot process a frozen sample, and the longer it sits on the ground, the more likely it will become contaminated).

You only need a sample the size of a quarter, so don’t stress if he or she doesn’t leave you very much. Pick up the sample with a plastic disposable spoon, through a clean plastic bag, or while wearing a disposable glove. Drop the sample into a clean plastic baggie and bring it in to us within 24 hours. You may need to refrigerate the sample if it is warm outside and you can’t bring it in right way.

For a cat, you only need a sample the size of a quarter. You will need to sift through the litter box to find a specimen. Please make sure the sample is stool, and not a urine clump. If you prefer, you can pick up a piece of the stool using a disposable plastic spoon or use a disposable glove. Drop the stool sample into a plastic baggie to transport to us for examination within 24 hours. It is okay if the stool has litter on it.

REMEMBER: We will be looking for parasite EGGS under the microscope. Your pet can still have worms, even when you can’t see them with the naked eye!

If you need a urine sample from your dog

1. Find a shallow container or dish that you will not mind throwing away after using, such as a clean butter dish. Attach the container to the end of a yard stick or broom handle with strong tape such as packing tape or duct tape.
2. Secure your dog to a leash and walk your dog at your side so he or she can’t get away from you when he or she is ready to urinate. When your dog starts to lift his leg or squat, slide the container under your dog to collect a partial stream.  You only need to get about an eye-dropper-full, so if you can’t get much, don’t worry about it.
3. After walking your dog, you can transfer the urine to a clean, spill-proof container for safe traveling, but please do not use a pill vial. The urine needs to be less than 24 hours old, and if you collect the sample in the evening, you may put the sample in the refrigerator until you are able to bring it in to us.
   

If you need a urine sample from your cat

If you need to get a urine sample from your cat, there are different methods that have been effective:

1. It is always best to confine your cat to a small room; a bathroom is preferable because it is easiest to clean. Pick up all rugs and towels from the floors and counters. You may place water and food bowls in the room.
2. You will need to put a litter box in the room but you need to modify the box in one of the following ways:
   1. Use an empty, clean litter box (no litter or litter dust)
   2. Use an empty, clean litter box with only a litter box liner (no litter)
   3. Use a clean litter box and sprinkle a thin layer of packing peanuts in the bottom of the box (Styrofoam peanuts only, starch peanuts will dissolve in urine);
   4. Use a clean litter box containing only clean aquarium stones (this gives your cat something to scratch at but won’t absorb the urine)
   5. Use a regular litter box with litter in the box, then place the litter box inside a large trash bag and tuck the edges down into the litter underneath so that your cat can feel the litter through the bag but the urine won’t come in contact with the litter.
      
3. All of the above methods (a-e) will allow you to pour the urine off into a clean container that is more convenient for transport to us.  Warning: Your cat may find the new litter box offensive and refuse to use it, in which case he or she may urinate on the floor, counter top, or bathtub instead, which is why it is important to pick up towels and rugs that may absorb urine. If this happens, draw up some of the urine puddle with an eyedropper, or ask us for a syringe and place the whole thing in a zip-lock bag for transport.
4. Remember to refrigerate the sample overnight if you get the sample in the evening. The sample should be less than 24 hours old, so don’t start this project on a Saturday morning because we can’t check a sample for you on a Sunday!
5. Once your cat has given you a sample you can let him or her out of solitary confinement!