[AuntieDale]

Originally Posted by vetgroomer

There are two ways to do a blood pressure check on dogs and cats; internal and external. The internal is more accurate in some ways. But the stress of having the leg shaved and inserting the probe can cause a significant rise in BP, so while the actual reading is more accurate at the time, it may not accurately indicate if the pet has high BP or not, especially if the reading is borderline or only slightly elevated. There is a minimal risk of infection.

With the external monitor you normally don't shave the area, but you do need to take several readings, 3-5, sometimes more if the pet is moving around a lot. The cuff can be placed either on a leg or on the tail. It can still be stressful, and you can get an inaccurate reading for that reason. But there's no risk of infection.

Wow, that answers that! Thanks for clearing that up Vetgroomer - I was wondering why my vet mentioned the internal method and others knew of the external...

No, they haven't done it on my pup and I can't recall them doing it with my lab that I had years ago either.