20 Exam Room & Restraint Practice Questions & Answers

1. 1. A veterinarian is ready to collect blood from the cephalic vein of a calm 20 kg dog on the exam table. Which restraint should the assistant provide?

   • A.Standing free, with both arms around the abdomen and the head left unrestrained
   • B.Lateral recumbency, holding both down-side limbs and the head against the table
   • C.Dorsal recumbency, with both forelimbs drawn caudally along the chest wall
   • D.Sitting or sternal, one arm under the neck, the other extending the foreleg at the elbow✓ Answer

   Sternal or sitting restraint lets one arm control the head and body while the other extends the elbow and rolls the vein laterally with the thumb, presenting the cephalic vein on the front of the forearm. It is also the least restrictive hold that still keeps the person drawing blood safe, which is the guiding principle of restraint.

   Source: NAVTA Essential Skills for the Veterinary Assistant, Examination Room Procedures (restraint positions)Report a problem with this question

2. 2. A veterinarian will draw blood from the jugular vein of a cooperative cat. How should the assistant position the patient?

   • A.Lateral recumbency, with the down forelimb pulled forward past the chin
   • B.Standing on the floor, with the chin tucked down against the sternum
   • C.Dorsal recumbency, with the head turned sharply toward one shoulder
   • D.Sternal at the table edge, nose tipped up, forelegs over the edge✓ Answer

   Elevating the nose and holding the forelegs over the table edge straightens the neck and opens the jugular groove so the vessel can be raised and seen. Tucking the chin or twisting the head buries the vein, and a loose towel wrap adds control for a fractious cat without adding force.

   Source: AAFP/ISFM Cat Friendly Veterinary Interaction Guidelines (handling for procedures)Report a problem with this question

3. 3. A dog must be placed in lateral recumbency for a lateral saphenous blood draw. How should the assistant hold the dog?

   • A.Reach under the chest, grasp the two up-side limbs, and lean onto the abdomen
   • B.Kneel against the shoulder and pull both hind limbs straight out behind the dog
   • C.Reach over the back, grasp the two down-side limbs, forearms over the neck and hips✓ Answer
   • D.Hold the collar in one hand and the tail base in the other, leaving the body free

   Reaching over the patient and grasping the two limbs nearest the table lets the restrainer lower the dog smoothly and keep it down, while one forearm across the neck and one across the hindquarters stop it from rising. Pressing on the abdomen or on the chest restricts breathing and is never used to keep a patient down.

   Source: McCurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses (restraint of dogs and cats)Report a problem with this question

4. 4. Which patient should make the assistant stop and speak to the veterinarian before placing it in dorsal recumbency?

   • A.A cat that flattens its ears each time its hind feet are touched
   • B.A dog standing with its neck extended and elbows turned out that will not lie down✓ Answer
   • C.A dog carrying about two kilograms more than its ideal body weight
   • D.A dog that shakes its head and scratches at one itchy ear

   An extended neck with abducted elbows and refusal to lie down is the classic posture of respiratory distress, and dorsal recumbency lets the abdominal contents press on the diaphragm and can push such a patient into crisis. Dorsal is the most physiologically compromising position, so the correct action is to stop and notify the veterinarian rather than complete the restraint.

   Source: Merck Veterinary Manual (recognition of respiratory distress and patient handling)Report a problem with this question

5. 5. A cat on the exam table struggles harder each time the assistant tightens the hold. What is the best next step?

   • A.Ease the hold, pause, and let the cat reposition itself✓ Answer
   • B.Scruff the cat and stretch it along the table until it stops moving
   • C.Have a second person pin all four limbs so the exam can be finished
   • D.Tighten into a full-body hold so the cat cannot get its feet under it

   Restraint should be the least amount that keeps everyone safe: increasing force on a frightened animal increases fear and struggling, and the fight it provokes makes every later visit harder. Current behavior and cat-friendly guidance also discourages scruffing and stretching because they measurably raise fear responses.

   Source: AAHA Canine and Feline Behavior Management Guidelines (least-restraint handling)Report a problem with this question

6. 6. Which patient should NOT have a closed nylon sleeve muzzle applied?

   • A.A dog that pulls its head away when its torn ear is touched
   • B.A dog that vomited twice in the lobby and is still retching✓ Answer
   • C.A dog that growled once when the thermometer was inserted
   • D.A dog that snapped at the clippers during its last nail trim

   A sleeve muzzle holds the mouth closed, so a vomiting or regurgitating patient cannot clear the material and may aspirate it. The same device is contraindicated in brachycephalic, dyspneic, hyperthermic or heavily panting patients and in any sedated or unconscious animal, and a muzzled patient is never left unattended.

   Source: McCurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses (muzzles and restraint devices)Report a problem with this question

7. 7. A heavily panting dog needs a bite-safe aid for a twenty-minute wound treatment on a hot day. Which aid is most appropriate?

   • A.A closed nylon muzzle pulled snug and tied behind the ears
   • B.A basket muzzle, which still allows panting, drinking, and treats✓ Answer
   • C.A gauze tie muzzle knotted under the chin and behind the head
   • D.An Elizabethan collar sized to reach just past the tip of the nose

   Panting is how a dog loses heat, so any muzzle that holds the mouth shut risks hyperthermia during a long procedure; a basket muzzle blocks the bite while leaving the mouth free to open. An Elizabethan collar is designed to stop self-trauma to a healing site and is not a reliable barrier against a determined bite.

   Source: AAHA Canine and Feline Behavior Management Guidelines (selection of restraint devices)Report a problem with this question

8. 8. A cat will not come out of its carrier for the exam. What does current cat-friendly handling guidance recommend?

   • A.Take the carrier's top half off and examine the cat in the bottom✓ Answer
   • B.Tip the carrier onto its end until the cat slides out onto the table
   • C.Grasp the scruff and lift the cat out through the front opening
   • D.Reach in with a towel and draw the cat out by its forelimbs

   Removing the top of the carrier lets the cat stay on its own familiar bedding, keeps all four feet on a solid surface, and lets it choose its position, which lowers fear and gives a more accurate exam. Current feline handling guidance specifically discourages scruffing, stretching, and tipping the cat out, because those methods increase measurable fear and make later visits worse.

   Source: AAFP/ISFM Cat Friendly Veterinary Interaction Guidelines (carrier handling)Report a problem with this question

9. 9. Which combination of signs in a cat most strongly warns that a bite or scratch is imminent?

   • A.Crouched tense body, ears flat, dilated pupils, thrashing tail✓ Answer
   • B.Loose sternal posture, ears forward, half-closed eyes, audible purring
   • C.Slow blinking, cheeks rubbed on the cage door, tail carried upright
   • D.Rolling onto one side, relaxed whiskers, kneading with the front paws

   A crouched, tense body with laterally rotated flat ears, dilated pupils and a thrashing tail is defensive fear escalating toward striking, and the cat has already given the warnings it has. Slow blinking, cheek rubbing, an upright tail and kneading are affiliative or relaxed signals, not threats.

   Source: AAFP/ISFM Cat Friendly Veterinary Interaction Guidelines (feline body language)Report a problem with this question

10. 10. A dog growls when the assistant reaches toward its sore ear. What should the assistant do?

    • A.Work faster so that the painful part of the exam ends sooner
    • B.Correct the dog verbally so that the growling is not rewarded
    • C.Take the scruff and press the head down until the dog is quiet
    • D.Stop, step back, and tell the veterinarian before handling✓ Answer

    A growl is a warning that gives everyone time to change the plan, and punishing it teaches the dog to skip the warning and bite without one. Stopping, backing off and reporting the pain response lets the veterinarian decide on analgesia, sedation or a different approach.

    Source: AAHA Canine and Feline Behavior Management Guidelines (responding to warning signals)Report a problem with this question

11. 11. The assistant needs nail clippers from the cabinet while a cat sits on the exam table. What should the assistant do?

    • A.Keep a hand on the cat and ask a coworker to bring the clippers✓ Answer
    • B.Set the cat on the floor of the room while fetching the clippers
    • C.Step away for a moment, since the cat is calm and the door is shut
    • D.Wrap the cat firmly in a towel and leave it on the table meanwhile

    A patient on an exam table is never left unattended and a hand stays on it at all times, because a cat can leap or fall from table height in a fraction of a second. A towel wrap does not prevent a fall, and putting the patient on the floor of an unsecured room invites an escape when the door opens.

    Source: NAVTA Essential Skills for the Veterinary Assistant, Examination Room Procedures (patient safety on the table)Report a problem with this question

12. 12. An assistant alone in the room cannot safely hold a 60 kg dog that is lunging and snapping. What is the correct action?

    • A.Use a control pole to lift the dog up onto the exam table quickly
    • B.Put on leather gauntlets and finish the hold without stopping
    • C.Stop, secure the dog, and ask for help and direction✓ Answer
    • D.Draw up a sedative from the ward stock and give it before continuing

    An assistant never restrains beyond their own safe capacity; the safe move is to stop and get more hands or a different plan. Chemical restraint is a veterinary decision because it changes the patient's physiologic state, and a control pole is a last-resort tool for an unhandleable animal that is never used to lift or suspend a patient.

    Source: NAVTA Essential Skills for the Veterinary Assistant (restraint safety and task delegation)Report a problem with this question

13. 13. An assistant is carrying a pet rabbit from its enclosure to the exam table. Which handling method is correct?

    • A.Hold the rabbit on its back until it goes still, then carry it over
    • B.Lift the rabbit by the scruff alone and let the body hang below
    • C.Lift with one hand under the chest and the other holding the ears
    • D.Support the hindquarters so the rabbit cannot kick free✓ Answer

    A rabbit's hind limb muscles are powerful relative to its light skeleton, so an unsupported kick can fracture the lumbar spine and paralyze the animal. Ears are never used as a handle, and rolling a rabbit onto its back produces tonic immobility, a fear response rather than a safe form of restraint.

    Source: Merck Veterinary Manual (rabbit handling and restraint)Report a problem with this question

14. 14. A quiet dog that feels cool to the touch has a digital rectal temperature of 96.8°F (36.0°C); the practice's canine reference is 99.5-102.5°F (37.5-39.2°C). What should the assistant do?

    • A.Record the reading and report the low temperature to the veterinarian✓ Answer
    • B.Take an ear temperature instead and record that number as the true value
    • C.Wait an hour for the dog to warm and record only the second reading
    • D.Treat it as a probe error and enter a normal temperature in the record

    A temperature below the reference range can signal shock, hypothermia or circulatory collapse and is as urgent as a fever, so both high and low readings are reported rather than filtered. The assistant measures, records and reports; deciding what the value means and what to do about it belongs to the veterinarian, and aural readings run lower and are less accurate than rectal.

    Source: Merck Veterinary Manual (canine vital sign reference values and temperature measurement)Report a problem with this question

15. 15. When is the most accurate time for the assistant to count a dog's respiratory rate?

    • A.Before handling, watching chest movements while the dog rests quietly✓ Answer
    • B.While auscultating the chest, counting inhalation and exhalation separately
    • C.During the rectal temperature, so that both values are taken together
    • D.Right after the exam, using the panting rate over fifteen seconds

    Restraint, a thermometer or an exam all raise the rate, and panting is not respiration, so a count taken during or after handling overstates the true resting value. One inhalation plus the following exhalation counts as a single breath, and effort, rhythm and any abdominal component are noted along with the number.

    Source: McCurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses (physical examination and vital signs)Report a problem with this question

16. 16. The assistant palpates a femoral pulse of 80 beats per minute while the veterinarian auscultates a heart rate of 120 in the same dog. What does this finding represent?

    • A.A pulse deficit, which should be reported to the veterinarian at once✓ Answer
    • B.A counting error caused by using the femoral instead of the pedal artery
    • C.A normal difference, since the pulse always runs below the heart rate
    • D.A normal respiratory variation that settles once the dog relaxes

    A heart rate higher than the palpable pulse rate means some contractions are too weak or too early to produce a pulse wave, which is a pulse deficit and usually indicates an arrhythmia. This is exactly why the pulse is palpated at the same time the heart is auscultated, and it is reported immediately rather than recorded and left.

    Source: Merck Veterinary Manual (cardiovascular examination, pulse deficit)Report a problem with this question

17. 17. A dog is weighed on a towel. The scale reads 35.2 lb with the towel, and the towel alone reads 2.2 lb. Using lb divided by 2.2, what weight should be recorded?

    • A.72.6 kg
    • B.33 kg
    • C.15 kg✓ Answer
    • D.16 kg

    The towel must be subtracted or tared out first: 35.2 - 2.2 = 33 lb, and 33 divided by 2.2 gives 15 kg. Weight is recorded in kilograms because drug and fluid doses are calculated per kilogram, so failing to tare or converting in the wrong direction carries the error straight into every dose.

    Source: McCurnin's Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses (body weight measurement and unit conversion)Report a problem with this question

18. 18. A cat presented for open-mouth breathing has blue-grey gums. What is the assistant's correct response?

    • A.Record it as normal pigmentation for the breed and carry on with the vitals
    • B.Report it at once as possible poor oxygenation, handling the cat minimally✓ Answer
    • C.Assume it is bruising from the carrier and switch to a different restraint
    • D.Note it as a yellow icteric change and mention it later in the appointment

    Blue-grey (cyanotic) membranes mean the blood reaching the tissues is poorly oxygenated, and open-mouth breathing in a cat is always abnormal, so the two together are an emergency in which further restraint can cause collapse. The assistant reports the observation at once and minimizes handling; where the gums are naturally pigmented, the inner ear flap, conjunctiva or prepuce and vulva are used instead.

    Source: Merck Veterinary Manual (mucous membrane assessment and cyanosis)Report a problem with this question

19. 19. The exam table is left with dried blood and hair after a laceration repair. What is the correct turnover procedure?

    • A.Wipe the table with alcohol, which lifts the debris and disinfects in one pass
    • B.Spray disinfectant onto the debris and wipe the table dry straight away
    • C.Add bleach to the usual cleaner so that one application handles blood and viruses
    • D.Remove the debris and clean the surface first, then disinfect for the full contact time✓ Answer

    Organic material such as blood, hair and saliva inactivates most disinfectants, so cleaning must come before disinfection, and the surface then has to stay wet for the contact time on the product label. Wiping it dry immediately is the most common real-world failure, alcohol is not a surface disinfectant of choice, and bleach is never mixed with other cleaners because of the toxic gas produced.

    Source: AAHA Infection Control, Prevention, and Biosecurity Guidelines (cleaning and disinfection of surfaces)Report a problem with this question

20. 20. An owner says, 'She's been throwing up since Friday and won't touch her food.' How should the assistant handle this?

    • A.Enter it in the chart as gastroenteritis with a three-day clinical history
    • B.Tell the owner it is probably a hairball and to withhold food overnight
    • C.Write the entry as vomiting caused by a diet change and note the likely source
    • D.Record the owner's own words with the duration and report it to the veterinarian✓ Answer

    The chief complaint is the owner's stated reason for the visit and belongs in the record in the owner's own words as subjective information, with the assistant adding only observed, objective findings. Naming a disease, offering a cause or advising treatment is diagnosing and prescribing, which only the veterinarian may do, and it also puts an unsupported conclusion into a legal document.

    Source: NAVTA Essential Skills for the Veterinary Assistant (patient history and chief complaint)Report a problem with this question

Practice questions based on the NAVTA veterinary assistant skill categories and standard veterinary assisting practice. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by NAVTA. Note that the Approved Veterinary Assistant credential requires completing a NAVTA-approved training program before you may sit the exam — this bank is study material, not a substitute for that program, and it cannot cover the hands-on skills your program assesses in a clinic. What an assistant is permitted to do is set by your state's veterinary practice act and by what the supervising veterinarian delegates, so nothing here should be read as authorising a task where you work. About the AVA credential →