When a doctor of any kind is trying to make a diagnosis – determine the underlying disease so it can be treated aggressively and correctly –they have to be a detective. Like a detective each piece of evidence is critical to solving the crime or in our case making an accurate diagnosis. One key piece of information that is often overlooked is the medical history. Now when I say medical history I am not talking about invoices. Over the years when asked by the pet owner for the medical history they often hand the receptionist invoices of visits to previous veterinary hospitals. These list things the owner was charged for and give minimal information. When I say medical records I am talking about what was written in the pets chart by the receptionist, technician, and doctors. It would include history given by the owner, vaccination history, all laboratory results, treatments given, physical exam findings, differential diagnosis, treatment sheets during hospitalization , x rays taken etc. Often times the diagnosis is actually made by reading the records and getting a good history rather than the physical exam findings.
It’s sad to say but some veterinary hospitals are reluctant to give out this information. There are multiple reasons for this including illegible records, (can’t read the doctors handwriting), incomplete records, missing records or even doctors who withhold records because the owner is going elsewhere for a second opinion.
I own an emergency hospital in Avon, Ct and we cover when the owners regular vet is closed. In some cases the pet is being treated for cancer with chemotherapy or other serious diseases. When the referring vet is available after hours to give us the medical history we can treat the pet quickly appropriately often saving its life. When medical records and history are not available our ability to treat quickly and correctly drops dramatically even to the loss of the pet. There is hope however and that is with a visionary website. With this website a pet owner can have their pet’s records current and available. When the need arises the veterinarian treating the pet can quickly access the records and have this crucial information. Technology is wonderful when used appropriately and this is one of those times. I applaud the visionaries who started this concept and encourage all pet owners to utilize the service. It could save your pets life!
Sincerely,
Dr. Robb
I had the opportunity to talk about a very urgent issue for us with Animal Radio: Who’s Caring for your Pets After Business Hours? Listen to the interview here, or read about it at Animal Radio. Thank you Judy & Hal!
Labels: animal radio, emergency pet care, pets
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." -- Gandhi
Labels: handicapped pets, pets, special needs pets
I often think of being a plumber and fixing a leaky faucet. What happens if I make a mistake - a flooded cellar? - a ruined chair or warped floor? All these things are replacable, fixable but not when the animal dies. For those of us who are doctors it’s a huge weight on our shoulders. Being a vet is not for everyone.
It’s inevitable that all pets die. Sadly their life span is so much less than ours we will have many come and go in a lifetime. People often respond to their pet’s death with the statement I will never have another one again – it hurts too much. I remember one lady had a toy poodle. She and her husband loved the little guy and he lived 15 years. Eventually he developed kidney failure and we had to put him to sleep. I never liked to say euthanize. It sounds much better to say put them to sleep. Three years went by since I saw this couple. Then one day I was in the supermarket and they came up the aisle. The wife saw me and began to cry and literally left the shopping cart full and walked out of the store. One week later she came to my hospital with a toy poodle. She told me the dog showed up at her door and she was beaming with her new dog. The circle was complete and she finally healed.
We as veterinarians must walk with integrity and do all we can to help the pet. This is why we can never put profits over pets. This is why there must be a Protect the Pets movement. We can’t save them all. Sometimes we too make mistakes. We are human after all. The important thing is our heart must be in the right place. The pets and the owners who love them are depending on us.
- Marcy Hammerle DVM, The Pet Doctor, O'Fallon, MO
- Dr. Freeland Dunker, San Francisco Zoo, San Francisco, CA
- James Gaines DVM, Grantline Veterinary Hospital, Elk Grove, CA
- Cody Alcott DVM, Iowa State University, Boone, IA
Protect the Pets announces its first pioneer veterinary members in DVM, The Newsmagazine of Veterinary Medicine:
NEW FAIRFIELD, CT. — Focused on providing high quality, trustworthy veterinary medicine, Protect the Pets has recruited 32 DVMs nationwide who agree to uphold the group's code of conduct....
Has pollen got your pet itching for relief? Protect the Pets shares important advice about safely treating pet allergies with The Herald News in
How to safely treat pet allergies
May 14, 2007
Just as we suffer the allergic reactions to high pollen counts and increased pollution levels that come from the season's warmer weather, our pets may be feeling a little under the weather too.
In animals, seasonal allergies are typically manifest as a skin reaction, causing chronic itching and scratching. Other symptoms include hair loss, chewing on the feet, ear and eye infections, tearing of the eyes and bacterial and yeast infections of the skin.
Your vet may prescribe a round of cortisone shots to alleviate the itching, but Dr. John Robb, veterinarian and founder of national organization Protect the Pets, urges you to think twice about this common treatment, explaining long-term use can cause Cushing's disease in dogs and diabetes in cats and potentially be fatal.
"Cortisone shots must be used judiciously, not as a first-line defense," Robb warns. "Many times, cortisone treatments only mask the problem and ending up costing the owner more money and the animal more suffering in the long run."
Cortisone shots can be valuable to alleviate severe reactions or to treat certain autoimmune disorders like lupus, but in the treatment of seasonal allergies, they simply offer a quick fix for a lasting problem. For effective treatment, Robb recommends seeking safer alternatives that boost your pet's immunity rather than suppressing his symptoms.
• Consider allergy shots -- Pet owners sometimes avoid allergy shots because they require a greater commitment of time and money. But this remedy should not be overlooked. Allergy shots are made to treat the exact cause of your pet's symptoms and boost his immunity, rather than suppressing the itch.
• Re-examine the diet -- Air-borne allergens like pollen may not be the only cause of your pet's allergies. Dietary changes can make a world of difference in some pets. Elimination diets and hypo-allergenic diets are tried-and-true treatments that can help pet owners identify and eliminate food-based allergens.
• Seek natural remedies -- With its focus on strengthening the body's natural defenses without drugs, naturopathic medicine has been on the rise in recent years for people and their pets. Naturopathic veterinarians treat allergies with herbs, supplements and changes in diet and lifestyle. While you should trust a board-certified naturopathic veterinarian to create a regimen of herbs and supplements, you can try a few simple drug-free remedies at home. Dr. Mark Haimann, of Animal Holistic Care in
Dr. John Robb is a respected doctor of veterinary medicine from Connecticut. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California – Davis in 1981 and his D.V.M from that same institution in 1985. More
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