Taking cat to vet is stressful

[maggiemay]

Omg that is a funny story. Yes those old times vets definitely one what they were doing. I agree alot are in it for money. Like I said I'm going to give them another shot as when I was there last time they definitely listened to me I just wasn't happy with the way the sedation worked out. Hopefully now that they have seen her on e before we can make that situation better. I don't think he has a ton of experience with what I'm going in for (fhs possibly) but as long as he is willing to listen and look into it I'm willing to give him another try. If I'm not happy it's on to searching for another vet again(sigh)..Who knew it was so hard to find a good one. If I need to find another one this will be the third(makes me feel.like I'm being difficult) but I just want someone I can trust and who I feel like cares and not just about making money. We shall see how Monday goes(fingers crossed).

Hey, I’m on my third vet in three weeks. Nothing wrong with that. Vet #2 charged me $495.00 and did NO physical exam, just a urinalysis (claimed she had to use ultrasound to diagnose ”slight” UTI), said his urine was dilute - it wasn’t, dilution is determined by specific gravity, which was the same as the week before, NOT dilute - the vet tech did an ear prick test with a glucometer, and the vet prescribed an antibiotic that should not be given to diabetic cats - first side effect is lack of appetite. That is the current state of veterinary medicine, unfortunately. Thank goodness Fritz has pet insurance. If you have the NEXTDOOR app, there are always recommendations for good vets in your neighborhood.

 

[maggiemay]

You're right. If a vet doesn't want to listen to you, they don't deserve your business.

When we first got Casper, we took him to the same vet my family had been using for years...decades, even. It's the same vet my father used to take his hunting dogs to when I was a kid. Well, fifty years later, the guy who started the practice, all those years ago, has retired and eventually passed on. He passed the practice to his son but, later, he also retired and sold the practice.

The place is still a good vet but, after passing through three owners, they aren't the same old place, I grew up with. Every family pet and over a dozen different hunting dogs we had, over the years, went there but, now, they don't seem to listen. They only seem to want the money but don't want to put the time in to talk to their customers.

We took Casper there two times. Once for his first vet checkup and another time to get de-wormed. On his first visit, we also got him a microchip.

When I started asking questions about which type of microchip they were going to use, the vet was dismissive.

FYI: There are a few different types of microchips that can be used on pets and a couple of them are incompatible with one particular type of scanner. If your cat gets lost and is picked up by an organization that uses that type of scanner, it might not pick up the chip and they might think that your cat isn't chipped, even though there IS one.

All I wanted to know was whether the chip they were going to insert into MY CAT was compatible. All I got in return was an apathetic, "Yeah...yeah..."

The same thing happened on the second visit. I wanted to know which medication they were using to de-worm Casper.
Most medications work in one dose and some aren't always effective against all types of parasites. All I wanted to know was the name of the drug they were going to use. Again, it was, "Yeah...yeah..."

That was the last time I went to that vet.

We found Casper a new vet and we think she's great. She's and old fashioned "country doctor" who doesn't sugar coat things. She's often funny to talk to. She knows her business. She's a good cat vet and owns several cats, herself. We like her and, to top it all off, she's less expensive.

If you remember me telling this story, a while back... She's the vet where we overheard the phone conversation coming from the back room: "THAT'S the reason why you're supposed to tie a string to the thermometer and hook it around the cow's tail BEFORE you try to take its temperature!" When she came out of the back office, we were gut laughing! She looked at us and said, "I always wondered why that guy always bought so many thermometers!"

We'll still keep the old vet as our "backup" in case there is an emergency and can't get to the regular one.

This story is like something from “All Creatures Great and Small,” one of my favorite book series ever. You can’t beat an old-time country vet.

 

[misty8723]

Yes I need to remember that and try to be calm, especially when I need to get her in the carrier.

I don't know if this would help, but I've learned a good technic for getting my cats in the carrier without a struggle. I leave the carrier out on a counter for a day or two, make sure the latch is in the open position (these are hard carriers), then the day of I just act calm like nothing is going on. I had to take them both last Monday. I went to Cricket first who will find something to hide under given the opportunity, and she's fast. She was sitting on a throw rug so I petted her, told her she was a good kitty, scooped her up (which she hates) and stuffed her in the carrier. She barely made a fuss. Austin was upstairs. He likes being picked up but he struggled when he saw we were heading for the dreaded carrier. He's easier to manage, so I got him in there okay. So much less stress on all of us. A lot of pitiful meowing in stereo.

My RB kitty Swanie used to be difficult, always had to have gabepentin. One thing that helped a bit with him is that I would bring his brush with me and brush him while we were waiting for the vet.

I was told by a vet that sometimes the cats do better when you aren't in the room with them (no doubt picking up on your stress vibes) but I can't guarantee that one. I think it's always going to be a stressful situation for all cats, some just handle it better. My current two go passive at the vet, which does make the visits easier for all of us.

As for anesthesia, the first time Swanie had to have dental work, he came home manic. His eyes were dialated, he couldn't stay still, he was all over the place, I was freaked out and actually worried he had gotten brain damage. I was up most of the night with him, called the vet the next day and she said perfectly normal.

I hope your kitty is doing okay. Maybe next time suggest a little less anesthesia? Also, some vets can handle difficult cats more easily than other vets.