My vet is a monster

[arlee453]

Quote:
I could say the same about some human MDs I know....

There are bad apples in every profession. And the worst get by with it for years because they are very good at hiding their neglect/abuse AND because this culture raises those in the 'helping' professions - ESPECIALLY the medical field - to an almost god-like status. It never ceases to amaze me how many people think Drs (and Vets would fall into that category too) can make no mistakes and can do no wrong, and ALWAYS prescribe/treat with the patient's best outcome as their ONLY consideration.

Knowing people who have worked in Vet's offices, and having a close family member who is a medical practicioner, I can tell you right now that (even with the GOOD ones) the patient's well-being is only one consideration, along with how much they can ethically bill the patient for, and what they should do to ensure the patient can't come back to sue them - defensive medicine.

Do you REALLY think the titre for all those dog shots runs out in only a year? Vets are not about to tell you that the adult shots are usually good for several years in most dogs - shots are what bring the owners back in every year for a checkup - the vet's bread-and-butter. So millions of dogs are over-vaccinated every day. That's just one example...

 

[HennysMom]

OMG - thats horrible! Kinnip I hope you reported that "vet" - oh man, I'm not a violent person but.... I'd like to

the living daylights out of him/her and starve them for a few weeks like they did to that poor horse!

 

[ams3651]

one of the local veterinary offices used to have a kennel. My mom drove 2 hours to come up here to board her dogs because it was close to me if something happened and cheaper than her area. She told the girl her one dog had been abused previously and you can not touch his back end and he doesnt like male dogs. She called me at 11pm that night and told me she wanted them out, he had snapped at her and was fighting other dogs. She then called at 6am to find out if I had found anywhere to take them! Overnight?! Anyhow I did find another place that morning and they loved it there, the people love the dogs and they have stayed there several times since. I found out the first place has kennel next to kennel and she leaves all the dogs out at once, if he bit at her she had to have done something to hurt him. The place is now out of business and before that the vet office pulled its name out, I wonder why.

Some people are just in it for the money.

 

[kinnip]

The horse was in good shape when he was sent to the vet and stayed that way for three years under the guy's care. My friend went to see him every few months. The last time she visited, in August, he mentioned the horse might need to be put down in the winter. She said she understood that was possibility, but wasn't ready to make a decision yet. It took 4 months for that horse to go from fit and cantering in the field to a class 1 body condition. I guess the guy figured he wasn't going to feed an animal on death row. If he didn't want to keep the horse, he should have said so. I think the mitigating factor for him was his pony that my friend agreed to keep while he kept her horse. She's kept this pony UTD on more vaccinations that I can count, hooves are trimmed, he's well fed, he's wormed regularly, etc. I guess he preferred a dead horse walking. The care is so much less labour intensive. From the length of the hooves, I'd say it had been 5-6 months since he'd addressed them. It makes me wonder what happened in this jerk's life that caused him to wake up one day and say "Gee, I don't think I feel like taking care of that horse anymore. I'll just let him get so bad off that his owner can't do anything but put him down. If I'm lucky she'll keep my pony anyway." He also has three feral Nubians. I did ask him about those and what he was doing for their medical care. He said "Nothing, when they die, they die."
I'd love to expose this guy for what he is. My friend asked that I not say anything. I'm not sure what she has planned.

 

[ranchhand]

Quote:
I could say the same about some human MDs I know....

There are bad apples in every profession. And the worst get by with it for years because they are very good at hiding their neglect/abuse AND because this culture raises those in the 'helping' professions - ESPECIALLY the medical field - to an almost god-like status. It never ceases to amaze me how many people think Drs (and Vets would fall into that category too) can make no mistakes and can do no wrong, and ALWAYS prescribe/treat with the patient's best outcome as their ONLY consideration.

Knowing people who have worked in Vet's offices, and having a close family member who is a medical practicioner, I can tell you right now that (even with the GOOD ones) the patient's well-being is only one consideration, along with how much they can ethically bill the patient for, and what they should do to ensure the patient can't come back to sue them - defensive medicine.

Do you REALLY think the titre for all those dog shots runs out in only a year? Vets are not about to tell you that the adult shots are usually good for several years in most dogs - shots are what bring the owners back in every year for a checkup - the vet's bread-and-butter. So millions of dogs are over-vaccinated every day. That's just one example...

AMEN!

 

[PotterWatch]

Quote:
How come they traded the care of the animals? Was the horse sick? How come he had said it might need to be put down? That's an awful thing to happen and I hope your friend gets some justice for the horse.

 

[texasreb]

This sounds like a matter for the authorities.

 

[kinnip]

I'm not sure of all the details of the trade. My friend's horse was unrideable due to a stifle injury. I think she assumed he would be better off as a companion horse at a vet's place. He hurt himself playing with one of her other horses. I think she just wanted to make sure it didn't happen again. I don't know why she took the pony. I guess because he needed a smaller rider than his owners could provide. She's been using him as lesson pony for teeny tinys. She's bound and determined to relocate him now though, so I don't think taking him was her idea.

 

[raffello]

You know, the best way to get revenge for this horse is to report that guy to the police, animal control, and the local media, and make sure he never works as a vet, or even owns horses, again. Did anyone take pictures of the horse? Send them to your local news channel or newspaper. They'll be happy to drag the story around. Just keep in mind: If this jerk is cruel to the point where he can watch that horse, which was in his care for *years*, starve to death, and then let it lay around thrashing in agony, he can do it to other animals. Not speaking up now might cause suffering for others in the future.

 

[Rosalind]

There must be a state board certification office she can complain to.

Most vets are very caring and good and got into the job because they love animals. However, I will say that I have had better experiences with graduates of some vet schools than others. Some schools do a better job at student selection, especially when it comes to large animals. Other schools...not so much. I'm glad to be close to Tufts, where their vets can practically raise animals from the dead.

If you can find a vet who is a Tufts grad, I highly recommend them. Even Cornell and University of Pennsylvania grads aren't as good as a Tufts vet, IMHO.