Dreadful client.

Re: Dreadful client.

Dagmar Steele — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 16:28:39 GMT

Just yesterday client came in with french bulldog recently paralyzed in the back legs due to vertebra malformation at the age of two. No money for more dx or tx but steroids, which fortunately worked (or it were the dogs self-healing powers..). Recently bought a second dog, guess what? It is another french bulldog from the same breeder

Re: Dreadful client.

Dagmar Steele — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 16:25:00 GMT

[quote user="Neil Wheadon"]

[quote user="emma o'connor"]Round here they all seem to be coming in to Private practices like the one I work at! Usually wanting gold star treatment for poundshop prices, then driving off in their brand new cars[/quote]

Disability allowance, our local PDSA is like a car showroom at 0900.

Drat - I try not to post controversial posts but I'm getting dragged in!!

[/quote]

be honest, you did send them all over to Germany - we do get them in bucketloads :-(

Re: Dreadful client.

Neil Wheadon — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 15:22:57 GMT

Disability allowance, our local PDSA is like a car showroom at 0900.

Drat - I try not to post controversial posts but I'm getting dragged in!!

Re: Dreadful client.

emma o'connor — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 15:14:51 GMT

[quote user="Neil Wheadon"]I did ask the RSPCA if there was an increase in cases now as this is the next port of call, but it doesn't seem to have, so I wander where they are all going now, or are they being seen at all?[/quote]

Round here they all seem to be coming in to Private practices like the one I work at! Usually wanting gold star treatment for poundshop prices, then driving off in their brand new cars......

Re: Dreadful client.

Neil Wheadon — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 14:24:07 GMT

[quote user="Clive Ansell"]3 Lhasa Apsos (ages 2,3 and 9 years) euthanased at the same time about 2 months ago; one had had 2 bouts of cystitis in a year, another had had conjunctivitis 3 or 4 times, and the third was elderly and doddery. It was done because she "couldn't cope with their constant illnesses" and couldn't afford "ridiculous vet fees" and the RSPCA/PDSA [/quote]

Just for information folks, the PDSA have recently changed their policy to the one pedigree pet rule. (It was 3 before) In the PDSA I work in this has been interpreted as 'type' which is even better. It was brought about by benefactors being surprised that so much of their hard earned cash was going on Huskey's, Dog de Bordeaux's etc etc

I did ask the RSPCA if there was an increase in cases now as this is the next port of call, but it doesn't seem to have, so I wander where they are all going now, or are they being seen at all?

Re: Dreadful client.

Richard Fox — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 14:16:56 GMT

That's a sickening story!

Re: Dreadful client.

Neil Wheadon — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:57:24 GMT

The view I have is that at least the client brought them to a vet, far too few people do and by having a go does no-one any favours.

We could take all these cases of the clients hands but where do they end up? It's all very well to have the 5 minute glow of I saved the dog/cat but if it ends up in an RSPCA kennel for life, then what kind of life is that.

Conversely I had a client that had 'adopted' an itchy dog where the previous owner had refused to give a history. The vaccination card was tippexed out but using a bright light we found the previous owners vet and the previous history of atopica, steroids, exclusion diets went on and on. The clients bless them, shrugged their shoulders thanked me and decided to keep the dog and all the future associated expense.

If the world was full of owners like this then wouldn't it be easy, reality is a little different though.

Neil

Re: Dreadful client.

Clive Ansell — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:34:07 GMT

[quote user="Robin Grimmer"]

That's all very well, but as vets our primary concern is animal welfare, not the owners' possible mental health problems.

[/quote]

I tend to agree.

In this case, the owner did not seem mad to me (although I have no training in accessing human mental health other than 15 years as a vet), and there is nothing to suggest she is mentally ill even if we do not like what she has done.

As for telling her to FO; what would be the point? what's done is done, and she would just go elsewhere, and at least she brought in her new puppy to be checked and vaccinated. I did point out that we would not be carrying out another convenience PTS though.

I am surprised at the original VS who euthanased all 3 dogs, I would have declined without there being a good clinical or social reason to do so.

I think is somewhat symptomatic of our materialistic and consumeristic society; just throw it away and get another mentality if it is no longer cute, fashionable or needed, be it a handbag or a dog.

Re: Dreadful client.

Malcolm Ness — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:16:30 GMT

I tend to agree with Gerry.

I have acted as prosecution expert in a lot of RSPCA cases and while the crimes are usually pretty unpleasant, they are nearly all misguided errors of omission rather than cruel errors of commission and the defendants are usually obviously mad rather than bad.

"Ne judge point"

Re: Dreadful client.

Gerry Henry — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:09:34 GMT

Our moral duty to human beings as human beings supercedes any professional duty to an animal.

Re: Dreadful client.

Robin Grimmer — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 11:18:12 GMT

[quote user="Gerry Henry"]

At the risk of sounding like an agony aunt, don't be too judgemental about your client. A lot of people out there are borderline nutters, coping - just, on a daily basis. I've seen many people whose selfish/unreasonable behaviour is jusr a symptom of a deeper malaise.

Remember, not everyone who has a pet is mad, but everyone who is mad has a pet.

First words of advice ever imparted to me by the late Geddes Thompson BVMS MRCVS, 'You know boy, we see more lunatics than a psychiatrist'. True, so true.

[/quote]

That's all very well, but as vets our primary concern is animal welfare, not the owners' possible mental health problems.

Re: Dreadful client.

Gerry Henry — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 10:51:05 GMT

Remember, not everyone who has a pet is mad, but everyone who is mad has a pet.

First words of advice ever imparted to me by the late Geddes Thompson BVMS MRCVS, 'You know boy, we see more lunatics than a psychiatrist'. True, so true.

Re: Dreadful client.

Hannah Wynne Richards — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 10:47:54 GMT

Ask the election candidates what they would do ?

It's relevant because the Gto PC won't 9at the moment ) allow you to tell the horrible owner to FO You may,however refuse to re-accept them as clients

PS I would bill these as contract killings-at double euthanasia price-because that's what they were

Re: Dreadful client.

Dagmar Steele — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 10:33:30 GMT

I'm speechless. Not just because of this dreadful client, but also because of the Vet in question who did euthanase two young dogs with minor conditions. Red star me if you like, but I can't do it!

Re the client: I'm afraid a locum may not be in the position to tell him to f... off, but I would just for the sake of my mental wellbeing. I can do it, I'm my own boss, it costs my own money. And as long as I'm not close to being bust I'd happily leave out a restaurants meal for a life without these people!

Re: Dreadful client.

Robin Grimmer — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 10:22:51 GMT

Surely the vet concerned was not obliged to euthanase two young dogs with conjunctivitis and cystitis?!

The eldlerly one maybe (although 9 is not that elderly).

Re: Dreadful client.

Mark Holmes — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 09:32:32 GMT

Please tell me you told her to FO

Re: Dreadful client.

Mark Hedberg — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 09:08:24 GMT

Some people have more money than sense. This takes more money for some people than others.