How Do You Know You Can Trust Your Vet?

[Kieka]

I didn't realize that VCA specializes in cats. I don't get that impression about the VCA hospitals around here. In fact, this is a troubling observation I've made about the local vets in our area. There are a lot of really great vets, but they mostly see and treat dogs. Just taking a look at their Facebook pages or websites tells me that they cater to dogs more, even though they "see" both cats and dogs. It's hard to have confidence in them when you KNOW this, lol.

The practice where they only saw 1 cat in a day was a VCA hospital. They had a (singular) vet on staff who was certified by one of the cat groups as a cat friendly vet. But that doesn't mean the whole facility is cat friendly.

Find a Veterinarian and Practice | The Cat Community

You can search for a specific cat friendly vet, just keep two things in mind. One is that a specific vet being cat friendly does not mean every vet in the practice is. Two is that being certified as cat friendly just means that vet has enough interest in cats to get certified. It doesn't mean a specialist unless they specifically see only cats or at least 50% cats (IMHO). Some vets may get certified just to be on the list. That is why I looked for a cat only vet and had a real conversation to figure out if the vet actually loves and is active in continued feline medical education.

 

[Yanaka]

My bad. My VCA says "Vet Cat Hospital," which is why I thought all VCA's meant that! My clinic is a cat-only hospital.

 

[kittens mom]

I didn't realize that VCA specializes in cats. I don't get that impression about the VCA hospitals around here. In fact, this is a troubling observation I've made about the local vets in our area. There are a lot of really great vets, but they mostly see and treat dogs. Just taking a look at their Facebook pages or websites tells me that they cater to dogs more, even though they "see" both cats and dogs. It's hard to have confidence in them when you KNOW this, lol.

The VCA does not specialize in cats but mine has a vet on staff that does. It becomes hard for they to give good advice when they are under the thumb or a corporate that may be making decisions based on just profit rather than the animals complete well being. Because of the cost to own and operate a full service clinic we are going to see more and more chain clinics.
This is why laws regarding animals as mere property need to change so not just individual bad veterinarians can be held accountable but that those that profit from our pets care can be dealt with legally when they put profit before health.

 

[Yanaka]

The VCA does not specialize in cats but mine has a vet on staff that does. It becomes hard for they to give good advice when they are under the thumb or a corporate that may be making decisions based on just profit rather than the animals complete well being. Because of the cost to own and operate a full service clinic we are going to see more and more chain clinics.
This is why laws regarding animals as mere property need to change so not just individual bad veterinarians can be held accountable but that those that profit from our pets care can be dealt with legally when they put profit before health.

And VCA is being bought by... Mars... Yes, you read that right

 

[orange&white]

And VCA is being bought by... Mars... Yes, you read that right

Mars also owns Royal Canin. Seems like a conflict of interest, but mega-conglomerations will continue to eat any smaller highly profitable companies they can. Then services/products deteriorate while the price increases for the sake of "shareholder value".

 

[Yanaka]

Mars also owns Royal Canin. Seems like a conflict of interest, but mega-conglomerations will continue to eat any smaller highly profitable companies they can. Then services/products deteriorate while the price increases for the sake of "shareholder value".

Yup.

 

[kittens mom]

And VCA is being bought by... Mars... Yes, you read that right

Yes I know. Good veterinarians will be buried in company policy

 

[Lalka]

I did not read all the comments from other ppl...but vets dont know crap about nutrition. I learned a lot about food for cats from this forum and did my research online. After learning so much and switching to grain free and no chicken because of allergies in one of my cat...my vet suggested Royal Canin food. Told her that i would never put grain or chicken in their diet again and she gave me the name of a cat nutritionist ;P

 

[JamesCalifornia]

~ I think time will tell if your veterinarian is any good . I have had both good and bad experience and find cost is no indication of quality of care .
While caring for a cat in kidney failure I asked about distilled water. The vet said for healthy cats distilled water one day a week could possibly help flush the kidneys . Apparently cats need the minerals in water. I have a lot of male cats and give them distilled every now and then .
Good luck ... ! '´

 

[coffeecat2420]

The first vet clinic I took my cat to for her initial wellness visit was a cat-only clinic. They sell Royal Canin and my cat was put on a food trial for allergies. After continuing to do my own research on feline nutrition and diet, it did not take me too long to start searching for a second opinion and a new doctor. I am so happy that I did because I hooked up with an integrative vet who is fantastic and happens to be less expensive.
Unfortunately, we were referred to a dermatologist who, in my opinion, leaves something to be desired (and also sells Royal Canin!). So I continue to advocate for my cat and do what I think is best foodwise while administering the environmental allergy injections (time will tell).
My best advice: Do tons of research on your own and go with your gut when necessary.

 

[dahli6]

I am going to be really blunt. I don't trust the vet. If a vet is part of chain or network I trust them even less.
I have devoted my life to studying anything that interested me but I have no certificates.
Years ago I took my pets to a well known veterinary chain. Part of their initial exam was a report card.
I got a D on my Golden Retriever's health and an F on the health and well being of my feral cat.
They said my Retriever had untreated Hypothyroidism, she was dirty from sleeping outside, her teeth needed to be cleaned and she had a broken canine tooth that needed to be removed or else she would die.
The cat was not neutered, lived outdoors, hid from the vet, scratched the vet.
That was worth an F. Their biggest issue was a feral cat being permitted to live outside.
I was afraid to return to that vet and my neighbor suggested her vet.
When I took my dog to the recommended vet and at the first appointment I apologized profusely for her poor condition. The vet was confused and asked what was wrong with the dog and so I cited the little bit of dirt, the Hypothyroidism and the teeth. The vet kept petting my dog and hugged her, looked in her mouth and scratched her belly. The teeth were healthy, even the broken tooth wasn't causing a problem. She looked like a normal retriever and she wasn't actually all that dirty.
I had to cancel the first 2 appointments for the cat because he kept not being home. The vet told me to bring him as soon as he came home and they would squeeze him in. When I brought him in the vet had a special area all set up where feral cats always run to automatically. She was able to sit at his level and make him comfortable. He actually seemed happy. They treated all of my animals for 7 years, I even had medical insurance.
That was the only vet I ever trusted.
After I moved to South Carolina we adopted a dog from a shelter and eventually got a cat. I was really surprised at how expensive getting a cat spayed is here. I paid a $150 to get my dog spayed in Oregon in 2005 and I got refunded $60 by my insurance. In 2008 I wanted to get a cat spayed in South Carolina and I was quoted $350. Most recently(2013)I received a written quote for $595.
In 2013 I had to take my cat Bitty to an ER. She was bitten in the face by the family dog and injured her eye. It was an unfortunate incident, the dog was hyper from a lot of activity and upon entering the house saw the cat sniffing around a chew bone she had just gotten. We called the ER immediately and were told that they would see the cat if we paid a deposit of $89. We had the money to bring her in and we did so immediately.
I paid the deposit and filled out the paperwork, they triaged Bitty and noted that her eye was severely infected. But it wasn't infected, the wound was fresh. Less than 40 minutes old.
This post has gotten a bit longer than I wanted so I will spare the filler. The office including the vet determined that my cat had a severe infection when what she had was a fresh trauma. They prescribed Boric Acid and told me that it was ok to use on a fresh abrasion.
They lied to me because they thought I was lying to them and my cat lost vision in that eye because of it. The day after the incident the swelling in her eye was down and i could see the damage was minor, I used the drops because the vet said it was the correct treatment. It caused her severe pain, I treated her 3 times and my husband told me to stop because she was looking worse. I was already suspecting that I was lied to and we couldn't afford to go back to the ER.
I researched and learned that she should have been given lubricating drops for corneal abrasion, absolutely not boric acid.
This is what I got for trusting the vet.

This was 2 months prior to the incident.

This was a year after.

I am sorry, the picture is fuzzy. She doesn't sit still and I think the light hurt a little. This is this morning. The entire pupil is compromised and the iris is discolored. I will admit that the permanent damage could have been from the dog bite, however we will never know for sure because the vet gave me the wrong treatment on purpose; either because they thought I was lying about how old the injury was or because they thought I was ignorant.
Knowing that the majority of vets in my area trust that ER, who am i supposed to trust to treat my animals?
I apologize for the length of this post. As a lot of people who see my posts know I follow the rules and tell people to go to a vet if they don't know what to do but I personally triage and treat my animals unless the condition is something i absolutely cannot and now you know why.
I do have the knowledge to feel confident doing so but I am not a veterinarian and I won't pretend to be one.

 

[Bonita]

For as long as I can remember I've fed my cats Hills Science. My 2 currently have a variety of issues, including Calici, so we give them Hill's dental kibble at the recommendation of our very good vet. Recently however, I heard that someone who briefly worked for Hills was so unhappy after discovering that Hills uses in their food any and all parts of whatever comes their way that she's taken her cats off Hills foods.
So what next. Anyone know of a reliable high quality dental care kibble?

Hi there!

So after reading quite a few things online, I switched my kittens' kibble from Purina to Hill's to Blue Buffalo Wilderness, and now I see that BB is not great either ingredient-wise. So I need to find another replacement.

But my question is more about vets and the difficult relationship we have with their diet recommendations. I've seen two vets for my kittens, both told me the story of how grain-free diets aren't scientifically proven to be good, and how cats need grain because prey contain grain (hum yeah you mean the digested 0.0001 oz that the stomach MIGHT contain at the moment of consumption by the cat?). The first one also told me that high-protein diets could give my male cat--specifically--crystals, and that they're not like their other feline cousins anymore, they're too domesticated.

...

She also recommended I put them on an official kitten diet (i.e. their brands that often have even more carbs than the adult kibble). I just compare ingredients and analyses and choose that way.

Anyway. So my point is: how do you go about disobeying your vet's recommendations? It's pretty awkward and I'm worried she can hold it against me in the future? How do you tell marketing and interest from genuine and scientifically-based facts?

What if I get kittie insurance and the vet uses the fact that I didn't take her up on her diet recommendations, and the insurance refuses to cover my bills? Can that happen?

Thanks guys!

 

[di and bob]

Dahli6, I'm so sorry you had to go through all this, especially what your sweet Bitty went through. If the eye was so infected why didn't they prescribe an antibiotic? I have treated my own cat's eyes with boric acid, very diluted, and really the condition did not clear up until I got some Terramycin eye ointment online. After trying everything, and I mean everything, for literally months, the ointment cleared it up in days. By then my cat was used to me messing with his eyes, so it was easy to pull his lower lid down and applying a ribbon of ointment in the pouch. I didn't want to bring him in because he had a heart condition and vet visits upset him too much. I, too, treat my own cats, my vet sells me OTC antibiotics when I need them, I tell them they are for my feral who has an abscess, which they usually are. One of my oldest ferals, ten years old, has never been caught and neutered, he is really battle scarred. He lost his eye two years ago in a fight, it looks just like your cats, and is still doing good, but I worry he will lose the other one too. His ears are half gone and he has scars everywhere, he should be the poster child for the need for neutering. When you have the same conditions over and over, it becomes routine. Many of my cats are wild or semi wild and can't be brought in. Of course house cats should be brought to a vet, I have a wonderful one now, but I had to change three times before I found this one. Just keep researching vets in your area and study reviews, they tell a lot.
300.00-500.00 dollars to spay a cat?! Are they nuts?!!! Definitely get on the computer and research low cost clinics in your area. It would be worth a drive to save a lot. I thought it was horrible to have to pay 150.00 here in outback Nebraska, but that does include an antibiotic shot and vaccinations. I have had at least ten done now, and it is still worth it in the long run. Now I see in the paper North Platte, about seventy miles away, has a whole month, Oct., That they spay and neuter for 25.00, even ferals. So places like these CAN be found, good luck!

 

[Neo_23]

For as long as I can remember I've fed my cats Hills Science. My 2 currently have a variety of issues, including Calici, so we give them Hill's dental kibble at the recommendation of our very good vet. Recently however, I heard that someone who briefly worked for Hills was so unhappy after discovering that Hills uses in their food any and all parts of whatever comes their way that she's taken her cats off Hills foods.
So what next. Anyone know of a reliable high quality dental care kibble?

Kibble doesn’t clean teeth, it is a myth that it does. You would be better off brushing your cat’s teeth every day or giving him some uncooked bone to chew on a couple times a week.

 

[Yanaka]

Do you think they look too chubby? I think my tabby might be a little, but you say it’s okay for a kitten?

 

[dahli6]

If the eye was so infected why didn't they prescribe an antibiotic?

It wasn't infected. The bite was less than an hour old.

Our county spay and neuter clinic was really bad for a long time. The flat rate was $50. In order to get on the list a person had to call and leave a contact number. When the clinic called, the pets had to be brought in immediately or be put to the back of the list. No surgeries for females that were pregnant or in heat. The voicemail was always full and my cat stayed in heat until she got pregnant.
In February of this year I was personally contacted by Anderson County animal control in Anderson South Carolina. Their PAWS program had been reformed and they opened a free spay and neuter program for owned pets plus instituted a trap and release for ferals and strays. Surgeries are first come first serve, the clinic is open 8am to 6pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. All cats receive a rabies vaccination. All cats have their ears clipped(no acceptions)to show they have had TNR.
The shelter currently is full to capacity and takes surrenders on an appointment only basis. Currently appointments are 2+ months out.

 

[Neo_23]

Do you think they look too chubby? I think my tabby might be a little, but you say it’s okay for a kitten?

I think they both look fine. Run your hand on their sides when they are lying down to see if you can slightly feel their ribs.

Also when they lie on their sides like that they look a little pudgier just because of the positioning.

 

[Yanaka]

I think they both look fine. Run your hand on their sides when they are lying down to see if you can slightly feel their ribs.

Also when they lie on their sides like that they look a little pudgier just because of the positioning.

I know! But he does have a belly haha. I can easily feel their ribs.

 

[lisahe]

They don't look fat to me, Yanaka ! It's the photo from the top that matters the most (well, IMHO) because you can see they have very normal looking waists. (Plus they look ridiculously cute standing together.) Have you seen body condition charts? They can be very helpful. I especially like the one from Royal Canin.

 

[Yanaka]

Thanks lisahe ! They are really cute, I love them so much!