secret #17- Practice Makes Perfect

The ongoing parsing of Reader's Digests article "50 Secrets Your Vet Won't Tell You" continues....

"New staff or training students sometimes practice injections or catheter placement on your pet. If you'd rather not allow your pet to be used this way, make sure you say something beforehand."

I am having trouble even starting to address this one.

Here's the fact- each state has a set of laws that lays out rules for who can do what. This is as true in veterinary medicine as it is on the human side. So I'm not sure to what this person is referring. Yes, there may be newly graduated vet techs in the practice. Just like the vet might be "new."

But you have to remember that these are highly trained professionals, not random people off the street. They have already completed training, and by law are allowed to perform tasks within their job descriptions.  Is there some on the job training? Sure. there's a first (and second) time for everything. Even for me.

Seems to me that if you trust your vet to have hired competent staff, and to oversee them properly, this should not be a concern.

Enjoy your pets!

Secret #12- show me your liscense and registration, please

"At a veterinary meeting I attended, it came out that more than half the vets there had not licensed their dogs, which is required by local law."

Well, this may be a case of  "do as I say, not as I do." Or perhaps "shoemakers wives go barefoot and doctor's wives die young."

My dogs are licensed. It is the right thing to do, and the legal one. I encourage my puppy owners to get their licenses. Vets should do the same. I hate to think that the lack of licesnsure is deliberate- we are all busy, and it's easy to overlook some things.

So, vets, let's be sure we "practice what we preach" and take all the right steps to keep our pets safe.

Enjoy your pets!

#7- where's my tricorder?

"Here's a pet peeve: owners who don't want to pay for diagnostic tests but then cop an attitude because you don't know what's wrong with the animal. Since you won't let me do the blood work or x-rays, how the heck do you expect me to know?"

Yep, I think we've all been there. Look, gentle readers, we vets are good at what we do, but we are not psychic, we do not have magic 8 balls with all the answers. What we have is years of training, years of experience, and great testing (diagnostic) options available to us.

Many of us would love to provide the diagnostics (and our time, and our technician's time, and our receptionist's time, and the light and the heat, etc) to you for free, but we can't, any more than you provide your services or time for free at your place of employment.

Here's the thing- excellent veterinary medical care is expensive. We can't get past it.

Step back- actually, excellent veterinary care is a really good bargain. Like I have said in a previous post, each of my c-sections cost over $15,000. The last c-section/spay I performed cost the owner $800. Cheap.

But here's the point the vet in the above quote is making- unlike human medicine, where it is between the doc and the insurance company which tests will be performed, in my office you are the responsible party. You say yes or no to the testing. You are faced with the budgeting.

Most of us vets understand living on a budget. We have it down. We will not berate you for not being able to afford something. Just don't act like it's our fault you can't afford it.

And don't get mad when we give you options for finding out what the issue at hand is, but cannot give you a definite answer when you can't agree to the diagnostics. It would be like calling my car repair place complaining of a noise in the engine, but not allowing them to open the hood or use a diagnostic tool. How can I expect them to know what's going on, let alone fix it, without all the information?

So until that great day when I get my tricorder, diagnostic testing like radiography, blood work and ultrasound will have to do. At a price.

Enjoy your pets!

Secret #1: Big Dog/Small Dog

The quote:

"People always ask: 'How do you handle pit bulls and rottweilers and big german shepherds?' The truth is, the dogs that scare me most are the little chihuahuas. They're much more likely to bite."

I have jokingly said for years- ever since my stint as "kennel crew" that I am more worried about the small breed dogs that are aggressive than the bigger ones. The small dogs seem like they are more likely to bite without warning. They lunge fast. Sometimes they insist on biting my shoes even when we are all done with the doctor stuff.



But...big dogs that are aggressive tend to cause worse injuries. I have the scars to prove it. They can be much harder to restrain- imagine a 100 lb vet tech trying to hold a 150 lb dog, who does not want to be held, for a blood draw. Or a nail trim. It can get hairy.

I think the larger point is this- we all prefer to see the well-mannered, well trained dog come into the practice. Sure, we can deal with the nasty ones. We have muzzles and medication. But there is very little reason to joke- a bite from any pet can be terrible. And yes, this includes cats, ferrets, iguanas and birds.

Enjoy your pets!

Darn Reader's Digest!

I don't know whether you, my audience of three or so, have read the recent Reader's Digest article, 50 Secrets Your Vet Won't Tell You. I don;t know whether you recall a Consumer Reports article on saving money on your vet bills a few years ago, or the one about pet foods before that.

Look, I know these magazines need to sell copy and ads. "List" articles seem to be ever popular (Top 10 hairstyles for 2013!). And I realize that some magazines, papers, websites and blogs look for shock content to publish. It drives sales through readership. Yes, I know. And maybe I'm old fashioned in thinking that a well-thought-out article is not too much to ask. Sigh. I'm just tired of feeling my choice of profession- usually considered widely well-regarded- is being targeted and picked on. Sigh again.

So, here we go. Reader's Digest compiled a list of 50 things your vet won't tell you. They are quotes from vets and vet techs (vet nurses). I think some have some merit, others are funny, some are just plain wrong. I have spoken to colleagues who feel the gist of the article is demeaning. Others who find it inflammatory. One who thinks that any vet or tech who makes degrading comments about our profession cannot be right in the head.

I am going to parse this out. Over the next few weeks, I plan to take these points individually and consider them. Please remember- these comments are mine and mine alone, based on my education and experience. My blog is intended to be educational to some degree, but also fun (and at times heavy on the sarcasm).



Enjoy your pets!