Thanks, Genia for the letter. I agree with Sammi that asking your vet what they would do in a situation like this before choosing is a good one. I think it's really sad that they should refuse an injured animal. I'm sure the owners would have come and paid the bills. The vet for my childhood dog Misty was so great. He did know all the animals and was so kind. You can really tell a lot about a vet by how he interacts with the animals. I had a really bad situation while living in Cincinnati for a short period of time with a vet. Since I was new, I took my cat to a vet that was really close to where I lived. She was the most horrible person! I had seen my cat straining to go to the bathroom, so I brought him in immediately. Now, my Scooter isn't so pleasant when he's out of his environment(but he's perfectly fine at home!). He seems like a wild cat when he's brought to the vet, but most have handled it ok. Usually when a vet and a pet first meet, the vet talks to the animal and trys to get it comfortable. This lady didn't do that, and she didn't seem very sympathetic. AND, she made me hold my 'wild' acting cat while she tried to muzzle him! She was more concerned for herself than for my pet!!! I was so angry and at the verge of tears how she was behaving. After traumatizing my poor cat for awhile, she gave up and said she could call another vet. I listened while she made the call, and I heard her say that she had a lady with a really mean cat and asked if they would take him! That was pretty unprofessional. Also, I should have had an incling when I first walked in and saw how unsanitary the place looked. It was small, and there were 2 huge collies laying around on the floor (must have been the vet's 2 dogs) and there was just piles of hair on the floor. Disgusting. Well, I took my cat (both he and I trembling all the way) to the new vet, and he was great. He couldn't believe that this previous one made me try to hold a scared animal like she did. They said that some cats just get really scared out of their element and transform into these almost wild acting creatures. They said what they do is 'net them' and give them a sedative to relax them.

Anyhow, it really is a big decision anymore on where to bring your pet. I know I would want someone who cares. I like the fact that there are a lot of low cost locations in the San Jose area and even traveling vets that come to your home if you can't get to one. All of it is low cost. I have been working with a cat rescue shelter and one of the local vets (turns out it's the same one I decided to bring my 2 cats to) is on the stray/feral program. If you find a stray or feral cat, they will give shots and spay or neuter it for only $10. Now, I know they aren't making much of a profit on this, but it's out of the compassion for all the thousands of strays and ferals out there that they do this. They really want to help bring that population down.

Wow, I really rambled! Sorry about that Just thought I would share my experience, and thanks for the article!

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"In a cat's eye, all things belong to cats." - English proverb