Extortion by the vet. Come in for a wellness visit OR no more meds.

[mommytobuck]

 
Regarding Vets and trumped up charges and prices, I recommend that you avoid some of the newer franchise Vet services, such as Banfields at Pet Smart. When possible, I choose and use a vet that has been in practice for many years at a private clinic. They are typically much more experienced, much more compassionate, and don't typically run the bill up un-necessarily. I totally agree that medicine, both for people as well as for animals, is becoming a giant money grab with the dollar coming first and the patient coming last.

Thank you!  This clinic is a private clinic and I was happy to  find what I thought was a compassionate vet. And she is but she either believes OR needs to do for the business, that my at has to be seen 1x per year just generally. Of course, I find this with all health providers... they have been brainwashed to feel this. I have no problem with doing it... if I had a cat that wasn't fractious.  Going to the vet is a tremendously bad experience for my cat. He hurts himself struggling... he is terrified... and the stupid vet tries to get the blood without putting him out because.. they think they can... when something goes wrong, who is going to pay for that? Not them.  Why is my cat fractious at the vet... sorry to say, many needless vet trips where they got out the gloves and basically terrified  or (who knows) hurt him. Beyond that... he has to be put out a lot ... that cannot be good for him. Cannot!!     Isn't it, first do no harm?

IF I had any concerns about my cat's health... obviously, we would have to do it. But in a situation where I don't think it is necessary... I don't see the point.  And in the end, it is my cat, and I have to look out for what is best for him. Instead of applauding an owner who really will fight for the best health of her cat... my vet uses threats to "get her cash". I have pet insurance that will pay for this "well ness" visit. Cash is not the issue for me. It is the trauma. In addition, my vet always says... all cats are fractious... well if that is true.. why don't you find a solution?  God.

My appointment is in two weeks.  I am still debating going. I have slowly weened my cat off the medication over the last two months... he is still getting some but only like 1/4 the the dose. There has been no asthma attack... I am hopeful that the cause was a rug in the upstairs bedroom which, I had removed this April, when I installed laminate.

Over the last few months I have decided to take my cats health into my own hands. I need, like me, to ensure my cat remains healthy and only go to the vet for urgent issues.  I think about how my cats have fared over the last few years at the vet, and it has NOT been good. I can honestly say that I have had three cats.. 4 vets. And that all my cats health went downhill after seeing vets. Beyond that... the false diagnosis and the wrong advice. ... I doubt I could do worse.

 

[jmarkitell]

Regarding the annual visit, I typically don't bring my cat to the vet unless I feel there is a problem with one of my cat family. My vet will typically give a rabies shot unless it is one of my strictly indoor senior cats. I have never had to give any of my cats prolonged medications, so I've never had to deal with the mandatory visit to get more meds directly. I deal with an old school vet when possible who actually has a big jar of something called "Common Sense" that he applies liberally when dealing with his patients and their owners. If a cat doesn't need a vaccine or shot, then they don't make you get them. The big box Vet health centers are every bit as bad as the new human health system where the dollar makes the decisions.

   My feelings are that if my cat would need prolonged meds, then I wouldn't have any issues with an annual visit since it would probably be a good idea just to make sure nothing obvious was wrong, although I don't feel that blood and urine tests are warranted unless there is a reason for it, such as kidney or liver disease. Like mechanics, not all vets are created equally. Some mechanics simply change the parts, racking up the bill and maybe fixing the problem if you are lucky...some mechanics find the problem and fix it so that you don't need to fix it repeatedly because it is easier just to change the parts. It is getting a lot harder to find a good private practice vet since most choose the profession nowadays simply for the large paycheck...old school vets are usually a great find with very loyal clients. Good luck and keep your kitties healthy!

Jim

 

[msaimee]

Is there a Humane Society in your area? Most of them have rabies clinics twice a month on Saturdays. You can get either a 1 year or 3 year rabies vaccination for 10 dollars. Also, staff are generally able to handle difficult cats, including ferals.

I once had an asthmatic cat. He got along very well only getting 2-3 steroid shots a year. He did not need daily medication. Can you discuss the possibility of getting the long-lasting injections instead of doing the daily pill dosing?

I would advise that you find a new vet. Not because I think she's doing anything wrong, but because you  have issues with her and don't trust her--so it's not going to be a therapeutic relationship for your pet. Find a vet that is comfortable handling difficult cats--usually the clinics that treat ferals and strays have staff that are skilled enough to get blood work from skittish animals. I will say that you should keep up the rabies vaccines.  It's a law in PA, but beyond that, if your cat ever got out of the house, or if a bat ever got into your house, you're placing your pet and yourself in danger. A few years ago I awoke in the middle of the night and one of my cats had a baby bat in his MOUTH. Well his rabies vaccination had expired a couple months before so I was VERY anxious for him for a whole year after. I will never, ever make that mistake again.

Whenever a cat is on any kind of ongoing medication, an annual vet exam and usually some type of blood work is required. My cat with hyperthyroidism needs blood work every 6 months to determine if it's at a therapeutic level (and it's had to be adjusted a few times) and also to check on the kidneys and  liver, which chronic medication can adversely affect. So I really don't believe your vet is extorting you. However, if you don't trust her, then it's time to find another vet--but be aware that these requirements are standard now.     

 

[micknsnicks2mom]

@Mommytobuck - i can understand some of your frustration. i'd like to share about my experience with my snick, prednisone, and our experience with rabies shots (and shots in general) and a vaccine waiver.

snick is now 15 years old, and has both IBD and chronic kidney disease. snick was diagnosed with 'the beginnings of kidney issues' (based on an ultrasound and urine testing) 4 years ago. our vet had us start snick on sub-q fluids immediately, given twice a week at home by me. while snick didn't enjoy vet appointments, she handled them well enough and i was always there with her comforting her. once the kidney issues were diagnosed, we started going to vet appointments approximately every 8 weeks, for a blood draw so the vet could keep an eye on her bun and creatinine levels. at about the 1 3/4 year point (from the 'beginnings of kidney issues' diagnosis) my girl was started on prednisone due to idiopathic hypercalcemia. snick stayed on a rather large daily dose of prednisone for over one year, while we continued to have blood work done approx. every 8 weeks -- now, to keep an eye on both the kidney values and the calcium level. since long term use (not sure about short term uses) of prednisone leaves a cat immuno suppressed, i supplemented with over-the-counter L-Lysine (approved by our vet, and following vet recommended dose) daily. after that over one year on prednisone, snick's blood work results came back showing her blood sugar level at 'borderline' diabetic. this happened in one 8-week period, from one vet appointment to the next. so our vet had me taper down until snick was completely off the prednisone. i also took snick completely off the very little grain-free kibble she was given each day, giving her freeze dried chicken treats (only made of real chicken, nothing else added) along with her wet food. we were very lucky, snick's blood sugar level dropped to normal range within 2-3 months of being completely off the prednisone.

okay, now this is the point where things pretty much all happened almost at one time. we alternated which vet at our vet practice we saw every 8 weeks, depending on who was scheduled to work that day -- we always made appointments for saturdays. both the vets at our vet practice are very good vets, and i have confidence in and trust them both. i knew that my snick was becoming increasingly more stressed, more upset, and harder to handle during blood draws. and i had discussed my concerns about this and how this could be effecting my girl with our vets. last september snick was due for her annual physical, shots, and blood draw. however, due to snick's CKD (snick's 'beginnings of kidney issues' had progressed to CKD, stage 2 by then) and sub-q's she received on a regular basis, snick had another UTI. so our vet decided to delay snick's shots until we'd effectively treated the UTI, until she was healthy enough for the vaccines -- including the rabies vaccine. at that same appointment, the vet and tech were unable to take a blood sample or urine sample from snick -- she was too agitated and they did not force the issue. instead we were prescribed an antibiotic that our vet was clear that might not be the ideal choice, because we were unable to take a urine sample to test -- which would enable them to choose the best antibiotic to treat the UTI. we went back home, snick took the antibiotic, and she showed no symptoms of a continuing UTI for a few weeks. sometime in october, snick started showing symptoms of the UTI again -- for snick, the symptoms have always been having some dribbling of urine and small amounts of urine (some incontinence). so we went back to our vet's, where it was planned to do a blood draw and take a urine sample (needle aspiration), then the vet would test the urine and a better choice of antibiotic could be made. this appointment we saw our primary vet, who we had not seen in at least 3 months -- possibly longer, remember that we alternated between the two vets. neither either vet nor i knew that my snick had reached her limit as far as tolerating vet appointments. all went as planned as far as the blood draw and needle aspiration urine draw/sample, but when the vet and tech released snick to allow her to come to me for comfort...that's when things went horribly wrong. snick was so extremely stressed and upset (a cumulative effect of stress from having a couple years or so of blood draws) that she came to me, but bit my wrist and gnawed on it briefly. the vet, the tech, and i were all shocked and very surprised. the vet and tech got snick into her carrier, while i washed and cleaned my wound. remember, snick was at least 30 days overdue for her rabies vaccine. our vet had to call the rabies coordinator immediately, that's the law. our vet was very sorry and apologized several times for having to do that. i almost lost my snick that day, right then and there. after discussion between the vet and the rabies coordinator, it was decided that my snick would not be immediately euthanized and her remains sent to be tested for rabies. instead, snick was put on a 10-day quarantine at home, during which the rabies coordinator called me twice to check if i'd seen any symptoms of rabies from snick.  we completed the 10-day quarantine with no signs or symptoms of rabies. the end result was that snick was immediately put on 'hospice' care, at home care by me supervised by our vet because she no longer was able to tolerate vet appointments. snick has been exempt from being required to have any vaccines, our vet has set up/signed a waiver. the vet and i have a plan in place, should there be a situation where snick needed to be seen by the vet -- so there would be as close to no chance as possible that snick could (out of sheer extreme fright) bite anyone.

on hospice care, our vet isn't able to do blood or urine tests or such. it has it's drawbacks. but snick has been doing well, and isn't having the stress and upset from vet appointments now. an important thing i want to mention is that our vet has never charged me for a consultation or anything when i've needed to call and discuss any symptoms snick has experienced, in the coming up on one year that snick has been on hospice care. she calls in prescriptions as snick needs them, again at no charge to me. i've only had the cost of the prescriptions to pay. our vet has called just to check on snick at times too. my younger boy, jaspurr, was originally a foster and we adopted him this may. i just last month brought jaspurr for an appointment at our vet's, to take a look at his teeth. we were only charged for an office visit, though they noticed that jaspurr's records did not show he'd been tested for FIV and drew blood and tested for that.

what i'm wanting to point out (from my personal experience) is that cats can potentially develop diabetes when on prednisone long term, and that their blood sugar level can pretty suddenly shoot up so it's very important to have blood work done while cats are taking prednisone, especially when they're on it long term; that it's very very important to work with a vet you trust, and work on developing a good relationship with your vet; and that if you and/or your vet decide not to give the rabies vaccination, it's then very very important to have a set plan in place should the need arise that the cat absolutely must see the vet/have a vet appointment so there's as minimal as possible of a risk that kitty could bite anyone (out of extreme fear).

 

[mommytobuck]

I am aware of the diabetes risk but mostly once you get off the drug things return to normal. In addition, usually it is for cats that eat a lot of carbs. My cat only eats grain free.  In addition, my vet NEVER EVER said a thing about any of this in the year he was taking the drug. I asked her if I had to worry about the side effects and she said she was giving him the smallest dose.  Obviously there was no concern until it was time for a wellness visit.  If my cat does have diabetes... or did, my vet was completely out to lunch and caused harm to my cat which, cannot be fixed now. 

Here are my vet stories.

My current cat. Age 3. Has a bought of throwing up. My vet tells me he has "kidney failure" because his creatine and BUN was high. I was started on KD food. After researching it, I asked for a urine specific gravity test... and sure enough.. perfect.  But in the process of doing all this, I learned that the "dry" food she recommended since he was a kitten was likely the number one reason cats do have kidney issues. I immediately started mine on wet food.  Though this vet (old vet old city) managed to scare me every time I came in that ONE of the three indicators was a little high... recently I learned that kidney disease should never be diagnosed unless all three are in danger zones. I can't believe how many wasted visits I did because of that.  2014 blood tests... low creatine and BUN.  My cat is now 10. And due to a cat that did have kidney disease I know what a sick cat with kidney disease looks like and this, is not it.

Older cat... I brought my cat in for a visit at age 7.  He was fractious. They got out the gloves and it went into a disastrous 9 vet clawing at my poor cat.  Eventually the vet asked if he could be sedated. I said ok. They did it, with FULL sedation.  Ketamine. Needless to say my cat came home extremely messed up.  I had to put him in a closet for his own safety.  It was at this point they told me he needed his teeth out. I agreed to yet another over sedation and locked in the closet for his own safety. Later my cat developed a large tumor on his hip.  I requested the vet records and learned then, they had given him tons of shots in his hip. Without my authorization. I took him to Tufts animal hospital... the real one... not a satellite one.  Diagnosis... cancer consistent with vaccine induced sarcoma. I wrote a letter to the vet board and they gave me the ... standard line... standard of care.

First cat. Literally we went every year. My cat was always sick. 10 years old.. we show up.. they say, the cat is in the final stages of renal failure. Um... we were shocked. At that time, we thought the vet couldn't have known before that, but obviously they did and if they mentioned it, it was in a way we didn't understand what they were saying.  It was that "VET" attitude like, well sometimes we just can't do anything... cats die early.

So I guess I have given up on trusting ANY vet. Cats should NOT be sick all the time or, sick at 10. 

Finally, I have heard stories of vets that are able to handle difficult pets but, I believe they are a myth. These illusive vets typically turn out to be 4 vets physically holding down a cat while over and over again they try to get something done UNTIL my cat is utterly exhausted. It is amazing my cat doesn't have a heart attack. That is NOT humane.  If you cannot treat an animal with out something like that... than you cannot treat a pet. Spend your days finding a solution to that problem and not blackmailing me for "wellness visits" that are anything but for my cat.