Head's Up Guys

The AVMA has drafted a model Veterinary Practice Act which would prohibit us
from sharing our knowledge about nutrition and health with one another by
telephone or via the internet. The draft labels anyone who consults with
anyone about even alternative therapies as practicing veterinary medicine
without a license. Their intent is to get each state to legislate this Act
into law.

The draft can be downloaded at
http://www.avma.org/education/mvpa/default.asp.

does that mean people cannot share advice or information on here anymore?

That has got to be one of the most ridiculus things I have ever heard!
With any luck, it will take a long time to get anything done about it. If this is the case, then they need to ban ALL medical discussions. I really don't think they are going to get away with this (I hope).

Whoa. This is NOT a good thing at all. So many animals will continue to be fed horrible food, and not learn about new potentially life saving treatments because pet owners can no longer tell of their experiences?

I think they are directing this law at the WRONG people. None of us, online try to give advice in place of a vet. This law is not going to stop all of the unlicensed "vets" from practicing, which is what they need to be focusing on.
I bet it's just another ploy to help companies like Meow Mix and IAM's, cause so many people are wising up and going holistic these days.
If I hadn't heard of so many new things and suggestions from hundreds of friends on the internet I don't know where I or lots of other animals & pet owners in this world would be! Half the stuff vets don't bother to tell you, that you should know, and then the rest of it, the vet with either be like "Oh yeah, that is a good idea we can try that" or the old fashion vets, will fight you tooth an nail, AGAINST your new finding! So many more cats will be declawed and just "let loose outdoors" because of vets who aren't up to par on what is best for animals.
Having to consult your vet for every tiny little thing will make vet bills even more outragious then they are! And frequent trips will make it harder on the animals who get really stressed out by going to the vet, and in the long run chance the animal growing ILL or iller.

It sounded to me (when I read this) that the Internet threatens the AVMA to such a degree that they felt they needed to draft this? Possibly it has cost them some money out of their vet's pocket because the Internet allows people from all over to share their own personal experiences with cat health and nutrition. And, I don't believe that the cat food companies are behind this silly draft, I think it is all the AVMA acting in synch with some disgruntled veterinarians. Let's hope they don't get away with this nonsense.

mabye some vets complained when some clients challenged them on their diagnoses after finding information thru the net?

I think it's a combination of both. After all vets offices have partnerships with SOME foods, and normally not always the best on the market. The companies and some of these vets know this but they don't want US to know it. Specifically with the mention of nutrition, vets are NOT nutritionist, they actually say very little about an animals diet unless it comes down with a serious illness, and only about half the vet will recognize and work with food allergy problems. Most the vets I know think Wiska's is a great food, and they tell you to feed that! Because it meets the AFFCO standards so it "MUST" be a good food, a lot of vets don't know any better, and some of the food companies LIKE it that way.

Where in this acrobate file does it specifically state this information? I can not get the file to work properly on my computer, I can't get acrobate to work period!

Thanks, once you find it please post the info.

Wait a minute how can this fly anyway - what about the constituation and free speech? And if not that what if some people would carry this to another extrem like not being able to find info. for human deceases, etc. on the internet. I do not think they have a leg to stand on. What are we return to "burning books"?

Hell603: I feel the same. I do think it is a violation of speech. But they are trying to pull it off as anyone who discuss's pet matters other then (oh your cat is so cute) is attempting to play the roll of a vet. And if you happen to discuss such matters without a real license, then it helps the local police meet their quota by fining or arresting you, and it has patients going to vets 10x full!

:tounge2: < - This is my little green greed icon.

I'd also like to know how this absolutely ridiculous suggestion would affect people from overseas. I think it would be impossible to police, I hope I'm right in saying, I highly doubt it will be passed. And as Angelz00 said, look how far things like declawing have come since the internet allowed us to share information?

Julia.

Originally posted by Misha
I'd also like to know how this absolutely ridiculous suggestion would affect people from overseas. I think it would be impossible to police, I hope I'm right in saying, I highly doubt it will be passed. And as Angelz00 said, look how far things like declawing have come since the internet allowed us to share information?

Julia.

Click to expand...

I agree! I got my Socks declawed 8 years ago because the vet told me it was a "routine" procedure and that the cat wouldn't feel an immense amount of pain. Unfortunetly, I didn't have the Internet then. When the time comes that Socks goes to the rainbow bridge, I know now NEVER to declaw my next kitty. If it weren't for the Internet and sites like this, I probably would have put another furbabe through that torture.

I agree, it is a total infringement of free speech.

None of my comments are appropriate to share nor as a lady would I feel right saying them...

This will NEVER happen. No way. They cannot limit speech like this. Besides, it's ok to discuss human ailments, right? Where would you draw the line? You can't tell people you're sick via email for fear of the net police coming after you. I don't think anyone misrepresents there knowledge, here or elsewhere, and I think it's great for people to share what they know. Beyond that, we aren't idiots who take the words on the net for absolute truth. And, yes, more thoughts LOL how convenient for the multiBILLION dollar corporations that make pet food to shut us up about what they really put into it.

I agree with everyone else on how ridiculous this is.....now I sure hope they don't end up going through with it.

yea its ridiculus

I can't even imagine something like that going through... talk about violating our freedom of speech.

And it's really sad too. There has been so much information I've learned about cats from this forum and a previous one I used to belong to. If I didn't do my research via the internet when I brought Spike home, he'd have been declawed and fed a lower quality food than he's on. And honestly, the vet clinic I currently take Spike to has NO clue when it comes to animal nutrition. The only food that's acceptable to them is Science Diet (even though the first ingredient is Chicken by-product meal). And when I pointed this fact out to my vet, the issue was completely ignored and I was told that they only advocate Science Diet, and every other food is garbage.

My point is... if you can't even trust your vet to give you correct information, and you don't have the internet or other ways of getting the information yourself, what's the alternative? Where else do you go to easily get these questions answered? ARGH!

How would anyone even administer this on the internet? It's crazy! Plus, most places that discuss animal care issues preface their forums with a post stating that people should seek advice from a reputable vet first.

These forums are here to spread info that the normal lay pet owner would usually not have access to.

It's better to question and add to your knowledge base, not to ban it and never discuss.

I completely agree Kass. They tried to implement this a few years ago and it failed as well. It would be extremely difficult to police, and the way it reads it looks like listening devices would be used for phone calls? How silly- our tax dollars hard at work...