Hospital Stays and Raw

[raintyger]

Are there any problems with animal hospitals accepting pets that are fed raw? I know some have signs out that say they won't take pets that haven't had vaccines and deworming. Does the fear of salmonella in the feces cause some hospitals to refuse raw fed pets unless their recent meals are regular pet food?

 

[ldg]

I've never heard of it, but doesn't mean it can't happen, I guess. :dk:

Some of us have discussed the issue of how to have our cats fed if in the hospital though. If they won't rehydrate an FD food like Stella & Chewy's, we were thinking they could feed the kitties rehydrated freeze dried meats, which are typically cooked (like the Whole Life product). Those aren't balanced, but for a week or two, it won't hurt kitty.

 

[ritz]

Luckily my niece took care of Ritz when I was in Greece for ten days so haven't come across this issue yet.

However, I have seen in animal boarding facilities a sign that says, you must provide any special food (and they will throw away any excess).  I would of course try to make it as easy for the facility as possible, i.e., individually portioned amounts in baggie.  Hopefully the facility would have enough room in their freezer--and remember to defrost the food when appropriate.

 

[mewlittle]

that's a good one makes me wonder if someone ever walked in the vets saying dropping off my pet and here is his food feed this only and the vets turned around and threw the raw away and tried to feed there so called >speciel food science diet< and got sick and blamed the owners hmmm

this one time i took my cat to the vet she had to stay there for a week and i asked them what food are you going to feed they said science diet and then i asked can i bring my own brand they said yes i whent back 2 days later to drop off her food they gave me weird looks and said we dont take food that dont come from science diet then i asked is she puking by any chance they said yah she started that yesterday night and then i said YAH BECAUSE YOU GAVE HER SCIENCE DIET<i yelled it then they took my food they knew i was going to explode i don't go there anymore

sorry had to say my story

 

[duckdodgers]

that's a good one makes me wonder if someone ever walked in the vets saying dropping off my pet and here is his food feed this only and the vets turned around and threw the raw away and tried to feed there so called >speciel food science diet< and got sick and blamed the owners hmmm

this one time i took my cat to the vet she had to stay there for a week and i asked them what food are you going to feed they said science diet and then i asked can i bring my own brand they said yes i whent back 2 days later to drop off her food they gave me weird looks and said we dont take food that dont come from science diet then i asked is she puking by any chance they said yah she started that yesterday night and then i said YAH BECAUSE YOU GAVE HER SCIENCE DIET<i yelled it then they took my food they knew i was going to explode i don't go there anymore

sorry had to say my story

Well, I would be inclined to say that the two days of being fed science diet because you didn't have the food when you brought her in.  Having worked for a vet, I can honestly say that yelling at the staff for something that you could have prevented is almost never the way to ensure that your animal receives the care you desire. 

At the vet I used to work for we often had people bring in their own food, but it usually was just a big ziploc bag full of food or cans.  Sometimes dogs would come in with really specific instructions and individual bags of food for each meal, and stuff like that.  We had a pair of dogs (one of the rescues in undergoing heartworm treatment) who were being fed satin balls to get their weight up.  It was inconvenient but definitely doable, but if there were multiple animals staying for extended periods of time issues like freezer space and time spent preparing the meals could be problematic. 

I would say that if you wish for your cats to be fed raw while boarding, contact the facility beforehand and explain what you want.  Make sure that the receptionist clears it with the folks working in the back- you don't want them saying that they can do it when, for some practical reason that the receptionist is unaware of, they actually cannot.  Portion it out, and try to make it as fool-proof as possible!

 

[mewlittle]

Well, I would be inclined to say that the two days of being fed science diet because you didn't have the food when you brought her in.  Having worked for a vet, I can honestly say that yelling at the staff for something that you could have prevented is almost never the way to ensure that your animal receives the care you desire. 

At the vet I used to work for we often had people bring in their own food, but it usually was just a big ziploc bag full of food or cans.  Sometimes dogs would come in with really specific instructions and individual bags of food for each meal, and stuff like that.  We had a pair of dogs (one of the rescues in undergoing heartworm treatment) who were being fed satin balls to get their weight up.  It was inconvenient but definitely doable, but if there were multiple animals staying for extended periods of time issues like freezer space and time spent preparing the meals could be problematic. 

I would say that if you wish for your cats to be fed raw while boarding, contact the facility beforehand and explain what you want.  Make sure that the receptionist clears it with the folks working in the back- you don't want them saying that they can do it when, for some practical reason that the receptionist is unaware of, they actually cannot.  Portion it out, and try to make it as fool-proof as possible!

that was over a year ago that happened at the vet place i don't go the any more

 

[duckdodgers]

that was over a year ago that happened at the vet place i don't go the any more

I kind of figured that when you said in the original post that you didn't go there anymore. 

 

For the record, not all vets feed science diet.  The one I was at fed purina.

 

[mewlittle]

I kind of figured that when you said in the original post that you didn't go there anymore. 

 

For the record, not all vets feed science diet.  The one I was at fed purina.

I don't like purine either but every one as there own opinion and there is another vet i want to try since they are sopost to be in lower cost and better they feed Fromm pet food isn't that awesome?

 

[duckdodgers]

I don't like purine either but every one as there own opinion and there is another vet i want to try since they are sopost to be in lower cost and better they feed Fromm pet food isn't that awesome?

The point being- don't try and make it sound like every vet has an agenda to shove science diet down their boarders' throats.  It's not as if they gain money from feeding the food they purchased- if someone brings their own pet food then they still generally pay the same price for board, but the vet doesn't have to pay for the food.  Not that it's that much of a difference, but still.

 

[mewlittle]

The point being- don't try and make it sound like every vet has an agenda to shove science diet down their boarders' throats.  It's not as if they gain money from feeding the food they purchased- if someone brings their own pet food then they still generally pay the same price for board, but the vet doesn't have to pay for the food.  Not that it's that much of a difference, but still.

I'm not saying all vets are like that ,and the previous vet i dumbbed a yr ago was also telling me what to feed and what not to feed my pets they was pro science diet i'm not saying every place is like that i'v seen some pretty good ones that are against science diet it depends on who you get i guess but i'm not going back there again for allot of reasons

 

[otto]

Potential for hospitalization (theirs or mine) is one reason why I will probably always keep at least some canned in their diets.

When Queen Eva was hospitalized for a week two+ years ago I brought in her own canned food. At that time she was eating Wellness and Innova canned (I feed neither of these any more). I brought in 3 oz sized, so they didn't have to worry about storage of left overs. I brought in enough for her entire stay and labeled every single can with her name and my phone number.

They are 30%-50% raw now. That may increase as time goes by, but I will always feed some canned, just in case, so if needed, they can go to all canned for a few days without any trouble or shock to their systems.

 

[mewlittle]

Potential for hospitalization (theirs or mine) is one reason why I will probably always keep at least some canned in their diets.

When Queen Eva was hospitalized for a week two+ years ago I brought in her own canned food. At that time she was eating Wellness and Innova canned (I feed neither of these any more). I brought in 3 oz sized, so they didn't have to worry about storage of left overs. I brought in enough for her entire stay and labeled every single can with her name and my phone number.

They are 30%-50% raw now. That may increase as time goes by, but I will always feed some canned, just in case, so if needed, they can go to all canned for a few days without any trouble or shock to their systems.

good idea