[QUOTE=JSwan;4223260]
This brings up another little nagging problem that can put folks at odds with each other.
One of the solutions proposed and advocated for by animal welfare advocates is to humanely euthanize an unwanted animal (including livestock/horses) rather than auction or the shelter/rescue.
I don’t have any problem with that alternative but it’s made without considering one very important fact. Not all vets are willing to euthanize healthy adoptable animals.
Well, I can’t say I blame them. First, they have their own oath and conscience to wrestle with, and second… .well, you’re taking a life. I hunt and farm and have taken a life and I’m sorry but I don’t find it to be a casual thing to be crossed off like a task on an errand list. I can well imagine vets and staff don’t find it an attractive part of their practice either.
However, this places the owner in a difficult position - again. Being told to do one thing because it’s more humane, and then being told they can’t do it, or scolded or subjected to moralizing. So the owner has to wander around like Diogenes looking for a vet.
Round and round we go.
And for the record - I consider animals property and do not ever compromise on their health care or welfare. You can treat an animal well, as a member of the family and dote on them and still consider them property. In the past 30 days I’ve spent almost 3K on sa and large animal vet bills. None of that was exorbitant and I had no qualms about writing the checks. Maybe the vet who made that statement might want to think on that a little and reconsider the meaning of those stats.
It still seems that vets are almost speaking in absolutes - if you do not do as they wish then you are a bad or uncaring owner. A “good” owner will do x or y or purchase this or that or agree to z treatment and don’t question.
And I still strongly disagree. A good owner is going to do what they believe to be in the best interest of their pet. And we’re going to balance our pets needs against the needs of our family, other animals, and our obligations. That is normal in every other part of our life.
What I don’t care to see are owners who have to shop around so much that they fail to establish a long term relationship with a vet. I think having a vet that you can call, who knows you and your strengths and weaknesses, and who has a complete history - this is important to ensure the animal’s welfare. I think vets who are focusing on high margin/low overhead models may be contributing to that population of pet owners and it’s a lost opportunity to form a lasting relationship with a client. And providing good and consistent care for an animal from birth till death.
Having to shop around, being dismissed and told to just use a low cost clinic, feeling intimidated or bullied, paying exorbitant markups on VERY low cost medication, obvious overcharges on exams that don’t take place - none of that is in the animals interest.
And frankly - it doesn’t do the professions image any favors. As other folks already wrote a new client may be interviewing the vet and if they don’t come back - it may not be because they’re a bad or cheap owner. Assuming nonrepeat business is the customer’s fault is pretty bad business.
I look at the vet client (and farrier/chiro, etc) relationship as a team. The owner is an equal participant in that team. Not by virtue of superior knowledge or expertise, but because the owner is the one ultimately responsible. The decision maker. The one who sees the animal every day, notices the little things that may or may not be a concern, and the one that has the emotional attachment.
I don’t see that emotional attachment as something to be exploited. Some people exploit that attachment and it’s just plain unethical.
The opposite of extreme measures or boutique/spa clinics isn’t bare bones Wal-Mart medicine using expired or melamine tainted meds.
I have a lot of livestock and pets on my land and they don’t see the vet that often. Not because I’m cheap - but because they’re healthy and just usually need their shots and maybe an occasional visit for stitches or a malady. An occasional emergency (like my dog who got into equine ivermectin recently)
(now I’ve just jinxed myself dammit)[/QUOTE]
Since I’m the person that made the comment on people that think animals are property, I’ll respond. It is a statistic, and just a statistic. I does not in any way mean that any one perosn who holds this belief will act in a certain manner. But the stats say that people who consider their pets as family spend 3.4 times more than people that consider their pets property. They also visit the vet 3 times as often, so it’s not just a price per visit thing. There are all kinds of reasons this could be true that have nothing to do with level of care. The data are the data and please don’t take it to mean I think you do not take proper care of your animals. It’s pretty clear you do.
Just to throw out some other fun statistics…(These are all from the AVMA survey, 80,000 people were targeted for the survey and ~47,000 responded, so it is a pretty good sample, although as with any survey, is subject to error… These numbers are 2006, so probably slightly off, but not too far)
The average expenditure per dog per visit was 135 and per year was 200.00
The average expenditure for a cat per visit was 112 and per year 81.00 (the average cat sees the vet less than once a year)
The average dog owner spends 200 per year for their dog. I think this is interesting since the people that are complaining here are quoting much higher costs. Clearly they are the exception and not the rule in veterinary medicine…
22% of people with pets had not visits to the vet, 19% had 1 visit, 20% had 2 , 11% had 3 , 27% had 4 or more. (THis is including all multiple animal households)
Pet owning household veterinary expenditures for the year (including dogs, cats, horses, birds etc…not including any food animal)
24% spent nothing
4% spent less than 50
8% spent 50- 99$
15 % spent 99- 199
27% spent 200- 499
13 % spent 500-999
9 % spent over 1000
As for euthansia, it is an issue. I don’t think it’s fair to ask vets to routinely euthanize healthy animals, but on the other hand who does it? It’s a tough question. If someone is euthanizing an animal because they just don’t want o deal with it anymore, it doesn’t bother me if they have to look around to do it. But I see euthanasia as the role of shelters (of course unless you start getting into no kill shelters). I realize there are many unwanted animals and euthanasia is a better solution than some of the alternatives, but I also think it is sometimes too easy for an owner just to drop an animal off without a thought… It does happen…too often…
I don’t think all vets talk in absolutes, the ones I know do understand that their view is not always the view of the pet owner, but again step into their shoes and think a minute. The life and death decisions we make are highly personal and emotional. Not matter how cold and distant you try to be (and I’m good at that being a Norwegian from Minnesota 
). it is very hard to practice day in and out without your beliefs coming into play, especially if you are often at odds with what the client wants for their animal. Really, try it for a while, you can see how they get burnt out and maybe even a little short… It may have nothing to do with your animal or situation, but more to do with the jerk that came in ahead of you…
I feel for all of you that want quality medicine but don’t feel like going to the boutique kinds of practices, I’ve been there myself…even now, I don’t do all my SA work, so I shop for vets to neuter my dog etc…I have taken him to a vaccine clinic becasue all I wanted was the shots. There is no shame in that, it’s smart shopping… But before you lump all vets into unfeeling and money grubbing categories, or call for government oversight of the entire field, walk in their shoes…
For those of you who have been taken by a vet, I am sorry for you. Yes, there are some bad money grubbing vets, as in all professions, but it is not the norm.
)
Senior moment.