Bad day at work. Is it just me or what???

I figured I'd better post this in the 'Dog House' as it would probably end up here anyways. BTW most of these are my personal thoughts/feelings, NOT those of the hospital I work for!

*begining of rant*

Is it just me or does it bother anyone else that people come on this board with a medical question about their pet rather than calling the pet medical experts first (namely the vet)?????? :confused:

I work as a vet assistant and I see every day at work people who waited too long to come in and the once was treatable problem is now a serious, sometimes untreatable problem.

Upon asking the clients, alot of them say things like;
I thought it was just the food,
I figured maybe he just needed a bath,
thought it had to have been fleas/earmites,
neighbor said her dog did same thing and it healed by itself,
my breeder/neighbor/family said.....,
well my other dogs/cats never had a problem with this,
(and the granddaddy of them all) I thought it would go away on it's own'. GRRRRRRRRR :mad: :mad: :mad:

I have worked in the field for 6 years, and have seen countless animals that have been suffering needlessly because their owners waited, stalled, or tried home remedies (which usually made the situation worse) before they finally decided to call the people that could actually help. If your pet is not acting normally in anyway, don't wait till next month when it's due for vaccinations to bring it to the vets attention. Besides most vets won't vaccinate when a pet is sick anyways. When people are sick with the flu or something I'm sure their first thought isn't of 'gee, now is a good time to get that tetnus shot updated'!!! Same applies for pets!!!

First and formost, there are NO LAWS stating you MUST own a pet in the first place!!

Taking on a pet means a responsibility not only to provide good food, shelter and care for the dog, but also medical help as well!! Most states have laws regarding this, and why do they have laws? Because alot of people out there took on the great responsibility of getting a pet but could not or would not provide the basic needs for it, including medical attention!!!!

If a person can't afford the basic care of a pet (food, shelter, preventative and emergency medical care), then they should consider giving the pet over to someone who can. I wouldn't expect someone to just have $1,000 or more laying around for emergencies, however it is good sense to either have a credit card with the ability to charge a couple hundred for emergencies, or have a savings account set up for this purpose. Emergencies don't wait to happen until you have the money or time. If a person can barely make ends meet just providing food and a home, then they really can't afford the pet in my opinion.

If a person can afford to throw away $100 on flea/earmite/worm treatments from the pet store that don't work, or cause more problems, then why gripe at the vet because the products that DO work "cost so much" and they've 'already spent $100 on the pet'. Helloooo?? If they'd called the vet in the first place they'd have saved $100 and alot of hassles!!

Bringing up my next gripe.... HOW MUCH CAN A LOUSY PHONE CALL TO THE VET POSSIBLY COST???? :confused: People will do alot of things, and spend alot of money needlessly, and possibly cause the animal great suffering because they didn't simiply just CALL THE VET in the first place!!!!

And on that topic, the vet can't always help you over the phone. Some problems need to be seen and sometimes tested to know what the problem is your pet has and what the best treatment is. If people don't want to make 'that long trip in for an appointment' or you 'can't afford an appointment', then maybe they should reconsider why they became pet owners if they aren't willing to take the pet to the vet. They certainly wouldn't consider not taking their children to the doctor, why should the dog/cat be any different?? I mean they are, after all, our furkids!!!

I can't ever say these two at work often enough.....
ALL ITCHING IS NOT CAUSED BY FLEAS!!!!!
ALL EAR PROBLEMS ARE NOT EARMITES!!!!!!!

If the pet is not eating, don't wait 3,4,5 days, or longer to see a vet. Going that long without food starts causing organ damage!!

Arthritis is a TREATABLE thing. I get just sick everytime I see someone bring in a pet (mostly dogs for this) and the poor animal is limping something terrible, and the owner either gripes about the cost of arthritis meds that work, or they say 'gee I didn't know they made anything for that'. :mad: Agggghhhhh Calling the vet or bringing it up when they had their last 4 appointments could have saved the pet ALOT of pain and misery!!!!

NEOSPORIN IS NOT A CURE ALL FOR ALL THINGS. I can't count the number of times owners have been treating all manner of things with this product, and in some cases of certain skin problems, the salve sealed in moisture and actually made the problem MUCH WORSE!!!!

Unless your breeder is a licensed vet, they do NOT know more than your vet does! Vets go to school for years and earn a degree, and pass a board certification test, and pass the licensing board tests, and are trained specifically about how to medically care for pets, and they often attend numberous seminars to keep up with the most current information. How many years of vet school did your breeder attend or board certification tests passed, or licensing board tests has your breeder passed?

I can't tell you how many times we've told clients to do A,B,C with their dog, and they respond with 'well my breeder said..." We spend more of our time with clients rebuking MISinformation, than actually treating the animal!!!! Unless your breeder is a licensed vet, leave the medical diagnosis and treatment to your vet! If you don't trust your vet, find one you do trust.


PEOPLE FOOD CAN KILL PETS!!! As a treat now an then, in very small amounts, it's probably not all that bad. People food (especially in large amounts, or really greasy foods) can cause all sorts of problems from diabetes (from being overweight), to pancreatitis. I could tell you all horror tales of the dogs that died from being fed pizzas and cheeseburgers. When the owner sits there in either shock or tears wondering why fido isn't going to make it, and you KNOW that it was TOTALLY PREVENTABLE just makes me want to scream!!!! :mad: :mad:

Overweight pets are not cute, they are a waddling risk for all sorts of diseases; diabetes, kidney and liver failure, heart problems, pancreatitis, joint problems and many more!! People control the food for animals and the only way an animal is overweight is if people feed it too much or the wrong stuff. Love does NOT equal lots of food and treats. Brushing, petting, walks, or playtime say more to the animal about love than feeding it to death!! Yes fido loves that burger, yes fluffy loves that tuna, but feeding them so many treats, or food is the same as giving your toddler a whole cake with icing for breakfast every morning. Just because they like it doesn't mean it's good for them.

*end of rant......for now*

I think I feel better now getting that out of my system. I had a particularly bad day at work today, and just had to vent somewhere.

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Is it just me or does it bother anyone else that people come on this board with a medical question about their pet rather than calling the pet medical experts first (namely the vet)??????

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Carefully raising my hand.

I have this same question about people and their medical problems. I'm a nurse, and I can't believe how folks will go to a message board, any board, to ask a medical question. And they expect an answer from complete strangers who know from nothing about medical matters.

I am sory you had a bad day at work. Sending you hugs, and a reminder that there are good pet owners in this world, even if none of them visited your workplace today.

What breaks my heart is when someone finds my email address from some faraway corner of the world and ask my advice for an urgent problem with their pet, just because Paul and I own PetoftheDay.com. The most recent is a man with a bird in India, and there are no bird vets near him. He's obviously grasping at straws in emailing me. I sent his email on to a good avian vet a Pet Talker recommended, but have no idea if they replied to him. He emailed again, and I told him to take it to a dog and cat vet - the only kind near him - because they'd at least have had some basic bird courses as part of vet school.

Bottom line is, those kinds of people are too cheap to get the medical attention they or their pets need. So they figure the cheapest way is to ask someone who is in the business (i.e., nurse, doctor, Physicians Assistant, vet tech, etc.). I totally agree with you when you say that having a pet is a lifelong commitment. Anyone who cannot afford it, has no business owning a pet.

At certain times, asking on here is not illogical. For instance, if something were to happen in the middle of the night and there is no emergency vet around.

I have to agree, though. Any time I have a question, whether it's something I'm super concerned about or not, I call my vet and they can usually provide some helpful advice. It has saved quite a few (unnecessary) vet visits! :eek:

What an excellently written post! I couldn't agree with you more. That would make excellent reading posted in any vet's waiting room. Of course you would have to shorten it and maybe list the points (A, B, C, etc.) It might serve to enlighten those people who only visit their vet when their animal develops a medical problem. As much as I love animals and would love to be around them 8 hrs. a day, I think some of the things that you see on a daily basis would probably be too hard for me to be a good fit for such a job. Bless you for caring. :)

Catlady, I'm sorry you're having a bad day!! this is a good thread and it needed to be made.
I agree with the points you have made.
However it is not wise to always believe everything vets say about diet, since so many of them reccommend dog food only. There are a lot of irresponsible pet owners, that is for sure. People do make mistakes, including doctors and i'm sure that a lot of times they are madder at themselves than you are, at them. Gosh, it must be heartbreaking for you to see the carelessness of people, for their animals. :( Thank you for your perspective.**hugs**

Oh gods, is this what I have to look forward to when I graduate and start working as a vet tech? :( I have such a hard time with irresponsible owners while I'm out walking Jasper.

Excellently written post though, and it's something that needs to be said more often and in more places.

Well written post and to my mind the best and most often repeated advice given out on here has always been "please take your baby to the vet"

I agree. It's one thing to have your pet properly diagnosed, then ask if anyone else has a pet with that condition so you can compare notes and maybe ask your vet some questions that didn't occur to you. Also for support (learning to do sub-Qs, diabetes management, etc.) this site is fine. But in the words of OTC products "Not intended to diagnose, cure or treat any disease!"

Thank you guys for all the hugs and support!! Here I was venting and honestly expecting flaming in return and I log on to see all these supportive posts, just makes my day!! Thank you again. :D :D :D :D :D

BTW today was a MUCH better day at work!! ;)

I guess we will all have good days and bad days at work, but I suspect that your bad days are worse than most of ours, and I certainly sympathize with that.

Laziness or financial issues are probably the reason that some people turn to forums for easy answers. I do know that the vet techs and my vet tell me constantly that they don't dread seeing me come through the door, even though I felt that they probably did. They said they LIKE too see people who give a darn and watch their pets, closely. That's what they are there for. I have had the most loving, supportive folks surrounding me at my vet's office for years, through ear infections, hot spots, hair loss, infections, hip dysplasia and of course cancer. I hope you feel appreciated because those of us who do care are helped by loving people in our vet's office. I'm sure you are one of those. :)

Logan

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Originally Posted by Logan

I hope you feel appreciated because those of us who do care are helped by loving people in our vet's office. I'm sure you are one of those. :)

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Yes, deifinitely, I hope you have some clients who let you know how much they appreciate you! I absolutely adore the staff at my vet's office, and I don't know what I'd do withoug them...especially the folks who answer the phone there at 2am, which is of course when anything tends to go wrong woth my pets. :)

It's just those days when we seem to have more bad pet owners than good ones just sorta gets to me sometimes since I can't change things. It's often hard in those situations to remember all the times I did make a difference.

I am fortunate in that we do have some very good, long time clients that show their appreciation to me. We even have one client that insists I be the only one that handles her dogs since they act better for me than anyone else. I've had some clients tell me I have a 'way with animals'. So I do get some pats on the back and reassasurance at work at times. :) I just have to remember those times when things get to me.

Thank you again for your hugs and support, it really, really helps!! :) :) :D :D

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Originally Posted by Logan

I do know that the vet techs and my vet tell me constantly that they don't dread seeing me come through the door, even though I felt that they probably did. They said they LIKE too see people who give a darn and watch their pets, closely. That's what they are there for.

Logan

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That is sooooo true. On any given day we'd rather see clients coming in for even the littlest things to have us check it out 'just in case'. Most times the clients say things like "I know you probably think I'm silly for worrying about this." We never think they are silly, we always appreciate that they are watching their animal close enough to detect something different, and it's always better to be safe than sorry!

Some people might think that 'sure the vet wants you to come in just to make more money'. Well that's partly true in that without income we couldn't stay in business, but our primary business is helping pets and seeing them healthy and happy. It's just that you can't stay in business if you don't charge for the visits and medicine, and if we aren't in business, that's one less convienent place someone can take their ailing pet to, and sometimes a place close to home can make all the difference in an emergency.

You're vet is fortunate with a client like you that pays attention and brings your pets in at the first sign of anything 'off' about them. And your pets are very fortunate to to have an owner that worries and cares for them! :)

I don't ever begrudge my vet or his office the charges I pay. He is so generous and cuts me breaks at every opportunity, since so many of mine come through his door and we have been seeing him for a long, long time.

I think you and I would get along just fine! I have gotten quite close to one of the ladies who works for my vet. She babysat my Mack (Bulldog puppy) while we were on vacation this summer. She kept him at her home and took him to work with her every day. I was able to help her when she went on vacation and go to her home every morning and check on her babies and feed them and someone else was there at night. I also was able to talk with a good friend to help this girl's daughter get admitted to a school that she was not zoned for. You just never know where these relationships will go. I help her, she helps me. I'm sure you have clients like that, too.

Logan