Most recently, five years ago, when my then-vet refused to neuter a 5 1/2 month old Reverend Jim. Even though he was, you know, ?toting a couple of bowling balls.?
It?s not that I don?t admire and appreciate veterinary science. They do absolute wonders.
But we have to remember that our vet might have gone to school one or two or three decades ago? and while they do their best to keep up, some key points might have passed them by.
I am never saying to ignore veterinary advice.
But when I have found compelling, and contrary, medical advice, I will bring it up, and expect to discuss it. I want my medical professionals to be open to the latest research. Don?t we all?
Here are some areas where my own experience is (ahem) at odds with some veterinarians. If these issues affect our cat, feel free to open the subject for discussion:
How soon to get the cat ?fixed.? Pediatric altering is admittedly a cutting edge subject. It was first pioneered in shelter situations, where it was imperative that the kitten go to a home without contributing to the overpopulation problem.
This was admittedly experimental at the time. It was embarked upon with the strictest safeguards, such as keeping the body temperature constant with a heating pad, and carefully calibrating the anesthesia. But it was discovered that such young animals actually bounced back faster from the operation. Then the chances of ?misbehavior? triggered by hormones dropped to very unlikely levels.
In my rescue experience, a stressed kitten was likely to experience an accelerated physical maturation. This made their altering an urgent priority. But it can also work that way for Alpha cats with a strong Oriental background, who tend to mature early.
So I don?t pay any attention to protests that ?they want to see the cat more developed? and ?of course they will alter if there?s problems.? I?d rather alter to avoid the problems.
Cats that are too skinny or too fat. I see scrawny cats and chubby cats as having the same problem: not enough nourishment.
That is why I strongly disagree with the large numbers of vets who blame the cat for eating too much, and their people for feeding too much. If we feed our cat properly, they will self-regulate their own weight!
I recently got a lovely comment on how well my advice worked on a rescue cat, Cupid.
Wound Treatment. Hydrogen peroxide has fallen out of favor for both humans and pets, on the grounds that it ?damages tissue.?
I still use it, on myself and my cats, because the substitutes just don?t work as well. I?ve never noticed any ?damage.? However, I have seen how infection damages tissue, and then requires minor operations and full body treatment with antibiotics.
This is especially pertinent to cats, because their wounds have a tendency to close up very quickly. This is a survival advantage, but if any infectious material is trapped in the wound, it can lead to an abscess. I have yet to find an antiseptic with hydrogen peroxide?s ability to get into the wound and clean it out. Antiseptic gels have their place, but they do not have this penetrating power.
Yet another advantage (for both humans and cats) is that hydrogen peroxide does not sting. This is an huge plus for the human approaching with the cotton ball, and can avoid further injury? on either side.
Being honest about advanced treatment. I?ve been involved in situations where a pessimistic diagnosis is actually what is required, but the vet hates to tell someone that? and the someone is equally reluctant to hear it.
I?ve also been involved in situations where treatment is begun with the highest hopes, but a poor outcome is ignored by both sides; because of the hopes. Then, as reality muscles into the situation, recrimination and spoiled expectations can create a rift. I really feel for veterinarians in such circumstances, because they don?t have a perfect path to follow.
Sometimes, they don?t know whether to use chemotherapy or not, or how a treatment option is going to turn out. Ethics demand that they lay out all the possible options, but their training, and the eager face before them, can undercut their ability to accurately come up with the most helpful ways of thinking about the situation.
In any medical situation, we can feel utterly lost and without the ability or expertise to evaluate the situation. I?ve been in the same sad boat. What I can advise is that the medical professional who is the most honest is usually the one who is the most sympathetic and understanding.
I once had a situation with my dog Herbie, when he required surgical treatment for an advanced illness. I wound up taking him to the specialty surgeon an hour away; so I was the one who fired the specialty surgeon when he made Herbie yelp in pain. He?d been examined twice before without such indifference and carelessness. I was confident that whatever the outcome, Herbie wasn?t going to get his best shot by hiring someone who didn?t care about him.
Whatever our challenge, that is always a good rule to follow.
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Source: http://www.wayofcats.com/blog/dear-pammy-but-my-vet-says/23102
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