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Glad everything is going so well. As your vet has always been so kind to you, maybe you can deem him human (as he has been frequently when you couldn't pay the whole bill) and let him off with a VERY BAD, INADEQUATE BEDSIDE MANNER DAY. He has been there for you through thick and thin while having the kindest attitude and maybe, just maybe he might be having hard times now, too. No excuse, I know, but I've been owed money before, and it DEFINITELY affected my attitude and was extremely hard to be upbeat to that person (a friend of mine that has ignored this for a while, let it go on for 8months) when other depressing things were going on at the same time.....it was just overwhelming. I know it isn't a good excuse, but sorry, I'm human. Let him off the hook. If he blows another chance.....you know what to do
I wanted to clarify the owing money part....we made a deal with him on a 1000 dollar bill for our dog's ACL surgery, plus she had heart worms a few months prior to that, so that was what we owed after we'd already made substantial payments as heartworms are not cheap and surgery of this sort is just insanely expensive. She was a stray and she won our hearts and we gave her a home, and have loved her since then. She showed up out of the blue when we were putting Christmas lights out once. We looked for her owners....did what we needed to to report her to the pound as a found dog. They didn't ever come forward so we kept her. He knew this situation and knew we didn't want to turn her over to the pound because with heartworms she didn't have a chance in h3ll. We looked for her owners but we figured they'd dumped her because of this 500 dollar treatment cost of the heartworms. She had bad knees, probably from being on the run, or just luck of the draw....
We pay him every month at the first of the month. We pay for all of our other meds like heartworm preventitive, frontline plus, etc., plus we have paid in full for all of our other animals he put to sleep, etc. This was an exception to the rule. It's not like we haven't been paying him, we do.
I know he's human, but to be so blatantly hateful, rude, and hurtful when he knows full well how much I love that Aussie was wrong, bad day or not. Money shouldn't be an issue, period, not when he IS getting paid per our agreement. We've not missed one payment...not one. He fell in love with the stray as much as we did and was willing to help us for the dog's sake, and for ours because we wanted very much to give her a home. The ACL tear just came at a very bad time....and we can expect the other knee to go out at any time....it's a waiting game. I cringe every single time she runs or jumps, plays, anything that might cause her to tear that other ACL or to mess up the last surgery.
I don't think that our owing him money and paying him on time every month is an excuse to treat me like crap in a time when I feared for my dog's life and when I ALREADY felt guilty for leaving those stupid yogurt raisins out where she could get them. I just forgot. I, TOO, am human and deserved to be treated as such in a time of crisis...not like the bumbling idiot he made me feel like. Money, or not. He's getting paid, so that......should not be an issue.
Being human means that yes, you have bad days, but it does not allow one to treat someone in the state I was in like he did me at that time.
ps...I know I sounded angry at you, personally, but I'm not. I understand where you're coming from. I guess it just set me on a roll because I can't see any excuse for the way he spoke to me. I'm sorry if it seems as if I am jumping on you....I'm not, it's just a mega vent about the vet, and clarification about the money thing...
Last edited by sandyrn0224; 05-12-2010 at 10:35 PM..
Reason: had to add a p.s.
I had a vet once that didn't have the best "bed side manners" when it came to people, but was great with my dogs. At first I was going to switch vets but soon realized that it wasn't about me it was about getting the best care for my dogs, he was so compassionate when it came to the dogs. He just had a great relationship with each one of them and they seemed to all love him. So I stayed with him until I moved. Your vet sounds like a great vet as well. I guess I wouldn't be so hard on him.
I wanted to clarify the owing money part....we made a deal with him on a 1000 dollar bill for our dog's ACL surgery, plus she had heart worms a few months prior to that, so that was what we owed after we'd already made substantial payments as heartworms are not cheap and surgery of this sort is just insanely expensive. She was a stray and she won our hearts and we gave her a home, and have loved her since then. She showed up out of the blue when we were putting Christmas lights out once. We looked for her owners....did what we needed to to report her to the pound as a found dog. They didn't ever come forward so we kept her. He knew this situation and knew we didn't want to turn her over to the pound because with heartworms she didn't have a chance in h3ll. We looked for her owners but we figured they'd dumped her because of this 500 dollar treatment cost of the heartworms. She had bad knees, probably from being on the run, or just luck of the draw....
We pay him every month at the first of the month. We pay for all of our other meds like heartworm preventitive, frontline plus, etc., plus we have paid in full for all of our other animals he put to sleep, etc. This was an exception to the rule. It's not like we haven't been paying him, we do.
I know he's human, but to be so blatantly hateful, rude, and hurtful when he knows full well how much I love that Aussie was wrong, bad day or not. Money shouldn't be an issue, period, not when he IS getting paid per our agreement. We've not missed one payment...not one. He fell in love with the stray as much as we did and was willing to help us for the dog's sake, and for ours because we wanted very much to give her a home. The ACL tear just came at a very bad time....and we can expect the other knee to go out at any time....it's a waiting game. I cringe every single time she runs or jumps, plays, anything that might cause her to tear that other ACL or to mess up the last surgery.
I don't think that our owing him money and paying him on time every month is an excuse to treat me like crap in a time when I feared for my dog's life and when I ALREADY felt guilty for leaving those stupid yogurt raisins out where she could get them. I just forgot. I, TOO, am human and deserved to be treated as such in a time of crisis...not like the bumbling idiot he made me feel like. Money, or not. He's getting paid, so that......should not be an issue.
Being human means that yes, you have bad days, but it does not allow one to treat someone in the state I was in like he did me at that time.
ps...I know I sounded angry at you, personally, but I'm not. I understand where you're coming from. I guess it just set me on a roll because I can't see any excuse for the way he spoke to me. I'm sorry if it seems as if I am jumping on you....I'm not, it's just a mega vent about the vet, and clarification about the money thing...
I'll try not to take it any way but you venting but basically, give him a chance. He was a complete jerk, but it appears it was out of character. I didn't say he deserved to treat you that way because of an outstanding bill, I was trying to say that maybe he is having hard times (family probs, business probs, unsold home for 2 yrs like me ) and usually doesn't act out that way. Maybe write him a letter about your poor treatment and he will realize how poorly he acted and apologize.
I didn't say he deserved to treat you that way because of an outstanding bill, I was trying to say that maybe he is having hard times (family probs, business probs, unsold home for 2 yrs like me ) and usually doesn't act out that way.
Or maybe you were the 5th person he'd talked to that day who inadvertently put their pet at risk. No judgement here, I once nearly killed my cat in the clothes dryer. I'm not saying he should have treated you like that. Of course not. But everyone has their limit.
Maybe you're just done with him, regardless of the leeway he's given you in the past and the compassion he's already shown. Good luck finding a new vet who will be everything you want and/or need.
I don't want a new vet. I read somewhere on this thread where a person realized that it wasn't about them, it was about the animals, and that's how I feel or I would have left this guy a looonnnnng time ago. He's never been as hateful as he was the other day, but he'd obviously prefer to talk to my bf, man to man, and yes, he's said man to man before!
It really is about the animals....it has to be. He loves them and has a rapport with them that I wouldn't want to trade. At the worst of times, when we've had to put an animal down, he's been really, really kind.
After a few days of thinking this over I figure it's just something to forget. It happened, it irritated him for whatever reason and he took it out on me at the wrong time. He's human, I'm human, we all make mistakes.
I can't imagine having another vet.....when I weigh the bad with the good, the good far outweighs the bad. I don't have to like it that he seems to think women are kinda dumb, and I don't have to like it that he jumped down my throat, but in the end my dog is alive because he finally told me what I needed to know.
I know there aren't many vets out there that would float ANY amount of money to a customer, so we ARE very lucky there. He's known us for years and years now, so I guess that helps a little so that he's willing to help us that way.
I appreciate all your comments....sometimes I don't like hearing/reading things that I don't WANT to be the truth, yet they are.....so, as I am in a more rational state today, I thank you all, and apologize again for jumping down anyone's throat. I truly didn't mean it towards anyone....I was mad at the vet.
Zoe is fine today...she tried to eat my protein bar when I turned my head to grab my coffee! She's a sneak....and we're all gonna have to watch her better.
My dog ( a 16 lb schnauzer)ate some raisens, probably 10-15, from a small box. I gave her the peroxide and she threw up some of them within 2 1/2 - 3 hrs after eating them. She also threw up her dinner and a carrot that she had ate before the raisens. Hopefully this means, all the raisens came up too. She actually seemed fine prior to inducing her to vomit, now she is listless and curled up sleeping. Is this from just feeling bad because vomiting was induced? Now I'm worried something more is wrong or I did the wrong thing inducing the vomiting that had been recommended by the vet. How long should it take for her to feel better after vomiting? What is the next signs or symptoms to watch for and her next plan of care? Please advise.
If the dog were mine, I would be on the phone to ASPCA and then would, unless they said it was unnecessary, be leashing my dog and on the way to the nearby 24-veterinary hospital. But you may not have access to a 24-hour veterinary emergency facility.
Sometimes raisin ingestion doesn't affect a dog. Sometimes raisin ingestion will cause a dog's kidney failure and death. Unfortunately, from what the doctors told me, the effects of kidney failure don't always occur before it's too late to save the dog.
Since your dog is listless, I'd get on the phone to the ASPCA now; and then get her to a hospital.
My dog ingested raisins twice in a 10-day period. (haven't had raisins in the house since) Each time, I took him immediately to the hospital and, after hundreds of dollars spent, my dog was fine, his kidney unaffected. I'm glad I took him to the hospital; because I would not want to risk kidney failure.
Good luck with your dog; keep us posted.
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