Dog got into deer fat

[cowboymom]

[QUOTE=blueboo;6021446]
I can appreciate the warning, but there is absolutely nothing I can do to prevent our essentially free roaming Pyrs from getting into ‘leftovers’. I do throw the heads they bring home into the trash, but if they get one or more out in the woods, there’s not a stinking thing I can do about it - except watch them for signs of illness.[/QUOTE]

Oh, I intended no reprimand at all, I have a Pyrenees that does the exact same thing! It’s what they do, totally. I have to send the kids out to clean all the bones out of the yard every couple of days and he’s like Santa to all the other dogs, they can’t wait to get out in the morning to see what he’s brought home for them! :lol:

My friend just didn’t have a clue and let her GP chew on that elk head and he ended up sick. I just mentioned it as a generic “head’s up” shall we say.

[cowboymom]

[QUOTE=Daatje;6021504]
I have yet to experience a small animal vet that will lay out my options and RESPECT me for the decision I make. They absolutely do try to make you feel like a substandard pet owner if you don’t go above and beyond and spend $$$ on treatment options.

I dread going to them because of the attitude they throw at me when I tell them I choose the most economical way to treat any given illness/situation.[/QUOTE]

I have to agree with this-I’ve worked at a clinic like that and you don’t even want to know what they say behind your back.

I have met a couple very practical small animal vets but they almost always work in conjunction with or are also large animal vets.

[SquishTheBunny]

[QUOTE=cowboymom;6021535]
I have to agree with this-I’ve worked at a clinic like that and you don’t even want to know what they say behind your back.

I have met a couple very practical small animal vets but they almost always work in conjunction with or are also large animal vets.[/QUOTE]

Yikes, Hate to work with those vets! Around here, its very competitive as far as good vets go. Clients can make choices as to whom they like/trust and thats how it SHOULD be. I couldnt imagine having a vet disrespect you for your decision. Ultimately its YOUR decision - however good vets WILL recommend gold standard treatment…but not criticize if you cant afford it.

[danceronice]

[QUOTE=JanM;6019472]
On Dr. Pol (National Geographic Wild channel) they had a very sick dog, it apparently ate rancid deer scraps dumped by the side of the road or a roadkill one. Apparently it mostly a concern because of the fact it wasn’t fresh, and the huge quantity.[/QUOTE]

Probably roadside dump. We get that a lot around there. And Puff did almost the same thing–snuck off and ate fat and skin off a carcass. We opted NOT to bother Dr. Pol or Dr. Brenda on a holiday weekend, as Puff just threw it all back up that night. He was fine the next day. The dog on the show, otoh, looked more like he was exhibiting symptoms of food poisoning-carcasses are great ways to get botulism. Puff just spent the evening looking somewhat queasy, throwing up, and drinking lots of water.

[Lifting_Chickk]

[QUOTE=cowboymom;6021535]
I have to agree with this-I’ve worked at a clinic like that and you don’t even want to know what they say behind your back.

I have met a couple very practical small animal vets but they almost always work in conjunction with or are also large animal vets.[/QUOTE]

I miss my old vet! For years our equine vet also treated our cats and dogs. Right on the farm, as part of the barn call. Those were the good ole days for sure!

I think I’ve found another vet who might be a great alternative. He does small animals now but also does large animals (livestock and such). I do tend to like the “large animal vets who also do small animals” better than the vets who exclusively treat small animals.

[RacetrackReject]

@cowboymom;6021535

I have to agree with this-I’ve worked at a clinic like that and you don’t even want to know what they say behind your back.

OH I can. I guess the techs and a few of the doctors at my vet clinic don’t realize how loud they are, but the labs are right behind the exam rooms and I have heard them say horrible things about clients. Once even, I saw a note in my Siberian Husky’s file that said something like “Owner refuses to discipline dog or allow dog to be restrained”. I know for a fact they were not talking about me because my Husky always sat at my foot quietly the whole time we were in the vet’s office and when it was time for examination, I always handed his leash and all over to the techs so they could hold him however necessary. Since I knew the tech that usually handled my dog, I told her what I saw in the file. She said, “That’s ridiculous, I’m the vet tech for you 99% of the time you are here and you always let me handle him for everything.”. We decided that someone stuck the note in the wrong file and my friend thew it away. I was not a happy camper though.

When my JRT had his digestive upset a while back, I later found out that he was fed deer meat. It was fresh, but it was enough to upset his tummy for a little while.

Hope your dog is much better now.

[JanM]

Dancer-I bet it was dumped carcass or else unclaimed road kill, so who knows how much the dog ate, or how old it was. After all we’re talking about an animal that loves to roll in long dead animals when they get a chance.

[Canaqua]

[QUOTE=Daatje;6021857]
I miss my old vet! For years our equine vet also treated our cats and dogs. Right on the farm, as part of the barn call. Those were the good ole days for sure!

I think I’ve found another vet who might be a great alternative. He does small animals now but also does large animals (livestock and such). I do tend to like the “large animal vets who also do small animals” better than the vets who exclusively treat small animals.[/QUOTE]

where are you in NH? I’m in MA, not too far south of Nashua…our vet is large and small animal and they’ve always presented us with alternatives in any given situation and been supportive when we chose a common sense approach over the latest/greatest/most invasive/most expensive. In fact, they usually encourage me to do “less”, especially for my elderly dog, often taking a wait and see approach because she is very stressed by veterinary procedures and they’ll take the extra time/get the extra hands she often needs because she is anxious and fear aggressive. Despite that, they like her and greet her warmly. I’ve worked at vet clinics in the past too and you can certainly tell which ones looooove animals versus which ones are in it to make money.

[mysaygrace]

Update on Maggie

Maggie is doing much better. When I got home from work she had her appetite back & had awful gas but was her bouncy happy self. I have her on a bland diet until her belly goes down and my husband has cleaned up his deer mess - thank god! Life is good! I called the vets when I got home & gave them Maggie’s update & told them I would continue to monitor her closely & if anything changed I would call or take her to the emergency vet. I’m so relieved she’s okay!!! I believe this incident has added several more gray hairs to our heads.

I agree with the other posters who say they like their large/small animal vets better than vets that only practice small animals. I use to have a vet that did both & he was wonderful, very conservative in his approach & really listened to us. When he would come to vaccinate our horses we’d have him do our cats, dogs & goats as well. The vet practice we use now often puts us on guilt trips. We had a stray cat show up that we took in, a few months later he started to become ill, we took him to the vet and had a multitude of tests done but they couldn’t find anything. He began to turn jaundice and they sent us home with an IV bag to give him subcantaneous fluids under his skin to keep him hydrated along with a boat load of meds, the cat declined quickly and we ended up back in the vet’s office and they wanted to do exploratory surgery, the cat was in bad, bad shape. we decided to have him PTS. They were not the most supportive people when we made this hard decision but we felt it was in the cats best interest, enough was enough. It’s hard enough making that call but when you have others judging you it’s an awful feeling. We need to find a more compassionate vet’s office that cares as much about the animals & their human owners as they do their wallets.

[Bluey]

Glad your dog is fine.

I know our small animal vet clinic gets ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas with special large supplies for the dogs that inevitably get too much fat and other and end up very, very sick with all kinds of digestive upsets, a common one pancreatitis.

That is why they always say never to take lightly that a dog got into some very fatty food, because they get to see and treat and try to save the more severe consequences of that overeating.

Good that you are watching her and she is not sick from all that she ate.:yes:

[SMF11]

YAY!!!

Thanks for giving the update. I kept checking back in b/c of my sad history w/pancreatitis. I am so, so glad you are having a MUCH better outcome than I did. Hurray!

[Roxyllsk]

Glad your dog is feeling better !!

I have also had issues with my dog vets wanting to throw every test in the book at a dog, then when I refused they told me it wasn’t in the ‘best interest’ of the dog. I have no problem doing tests to confirm a diagnosis, but I do object to giving every test in the book. I really attribute this to the majority of the vets at the clinic I went to being fresh out school. They were relying on the tests rather than experience for doing all of the diagnosis.

For instance, when my horse had WNV, my horse vet evaluated her and said it was either EPM or WNV. So we did tests to confirm either diagnosis. Same thing when she tore a tendon - vet did an ultrasound to confirm the diagnosis (which it did).

Turns out that my old dog’s thyroid wasn’t working at all - they were quoting me almost $1500 in diagnostic stuff all in one swoop. So, I went to another vet who was recommended by a friend, they did $250 worth of bloodwork, and figured out that it was his thyroid. The vet even said prior to the bloodwork that it was likely to be thyroid, but if it wasn’t then we had a few other tests that we could do (for cushings possibly).

I’m lucky enough to live in an area with a lot of vets to choose from. So far my dogs have seen several of the vets at the new office, and I’m very happy with all of them.

[MunchingonHay]

I am glad to hear that the fat is working its way out. :D:D

I kept checking for an update.

[Lifting_Chickk]

So glad to hear your dog is doing better! That’s what I was hoping for.

Canaqua, I’m in the southeastern part of NH just north of Haverhill, MA. Too far from Nashua to be practical, unfortunately. Your vet sounds wonderful!

[JanM]

When my older dog started getting feeble they diagnosed liver disease, and never did find out the cause or exactly what type. One problem with liver disease can be uncontrolled bleeding with a liver biopsy-and my vet kept trying to guilt me into doing a liver biopsy, not for a definitive diagnosis, but more out of professional curiosity. I did a lot of research and refused to do this test. There was nothing to gain from it, and a lot of possible complications for the dog, and wow was the vet ticked. I only kept going to that practice because of their hours, and the lack of nearby care that would have been better professionally. I only had a good relationship with one staff member there, and most of the others seemed to be rather condescending and snotty when you didn’t do what they wanted you to.

[threedogpack]

I am so very grateful for my vet. First of all he listens to me. Second he has never, ever questioned my choice to pursue or not pursue an avenue of treatment. He offers all possibilities we could do and then supports what I choose without criticism.

and he’s kind to me and my animals.

I lost 2 dogs earlier this year. It was a tremendously painful decision for me and the vet cried right along with me. After, he kindly asked if I would be more comfortable leaving through the back so I didn’t have to walk through the customers in front.

[SquishTheBunny]

[QUOTE=JanM;6023807]
When my older dog started getting feeble they diagnosed liver disease, and never did find out the cause or exactly what type. One problem with liver disease can be uncontrolled bleeding with a liver biopsy-and my vet kept trying to guilt me into doing a liver biopsy, not for a definitive diagnosis, but more out of professional curiosity. I did a lot of research and refused to do this test. There was nothing to gain from it, and a lot of possible complications for the dog, and wow was the vet ticked. I only kept going to that practice because of their hours, and the lack of nearby care that would have been better professionally. I only had a good relationship with one staff member there, and most of the others seemed to be rather condescending and snotty when you didn’t do what they wanted you to.[/QUOTE]

Just wanted to respond to this - since I do about 4 liver biospies a day. If you dont want to do it, your vet shouldnt have guilted you into it. however, they are very diagnostic. Because we are a specialty practice, we see the people who do want to treat their animals. Not everyone wants to treat their pets, and thats a personal choice that no vet should make anyone feel guilty of! However, if a client wants answers, without the biopsy or fine needle aspirates, we cant tell the type of cancer or hepatopathy - with the biopsy results we can figure out the right medicine to potentially treat or CURE the disease. Many liver diseases are surgically curable, others are managable with chemo or steroids and others are benign. We have seen everything from a 14" hepatoma to a massive liver abcess to general nodular lymphoma. Without biopsies (and yes, there is a chance of bleeding - but thats why the vets want to monitor them after) you just dont “know” whats going on. This is ok for some people, but not others. Some people want to know IF their pet is treatable. I have done thousands of liver biopsies and none have died as a result from bleeding out. However, we do monitor them better than most general practices. A good vet should NEVER be ticked at an owner for declining diagnostics - but an owner shouldthen not be ticked for the vet not being able to prescribe an appropriate treatment.