question- why the heck..

iwantmypup · 03-26-2008, 01:15 AM

I try to give the people advice, but of course take to the vet.
I think many times they KNOW that they need to go to the vet...but they don't know why, and they go to us in asking why/

-Ali

borzoimom · 03-26-2008, 06:37 AM

I have had situations too but then post what I was told at the vet. Then posters know exactly what the situation is without having to guess. Many symptoms or signs can easily be a half a dozen things. ( like diareah or vomiting etc). Using a situation I had a while ago when Femka cut her paw, and then the trama of the accident itself, she broke her nail. The vet was the first advice I got. Others added things along the lines the vet said so it helped. Or someone giving their own experience how long it took their dog to heal or things to look out for. When femka showed up with what was believed to be CIDD, a poster suggested " have your vet check for infection". Unknown to that person, the vet had already pulled a full blood panel and it did show up to have an elevated white count. It went from CIDD to autoimmune meningitus in diagnosis, but still would have required the blood work to be done.
Forums can help- if nothing else then open something to inquire to the vet about. In that case its rare to have CIDD be meningitus. With Femkas case, now my vet gives antibiotics at the diagnosis of disc disease- just in case. .. However when it boils down to it, I am going to go by real medical advice from my beloved pet seeing the vet. If I am paying for medical advice and treatment, I expect to get it. Only my vets could advise for that..

golden&hovawart · 03-28-2008, 10:16 AM

I do believe that if you know yr dog,you should be able to judge when to take yr animal to the vet and when you can take care of it,yrself!.
Common sense goes a long way!.
How on earth,can people judge, of what's going if they can't see the dog!.
Internet is of great help but a vet is irreplacable!.

SammyDog · 03-28-2008, 10:33 PM

I really haven't seen any post on that forum of serious magnitude where they haven't taken them to the vet. Most are like, say, a scab or something. Not everything is vet required.

briteday · 03-29-2008, 12:51 PM

Sammy,
Stick around a while. Sometimes if we think the post has an educational value or is a health problem mentioned commonly here we will just "close" the post but members can still view it.

However, the vast majority of graphic, emergent (ER), bleeding, almost dead dog posts are "deleted" and members never see the post on the forum.

Durbkat · 03-30-2008, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by golden&hovawart

I do believe that if you know yr dog,you should be able to judge when to take yr animal to the vet and when you can take care of it,yrself!.
Common sense goes a long way!.
How on earth,can people judge, of what's going if they can't see the dog!.
Internet is of great help but a vet is irreplacable!.

The thing is not everyone has common sense. It's sad, but true.

I hate seeing those kinds of topics as well, I sometimes feel like saying "come on, grow a brain and take your dog to the vet."

SammyDog · 03-30-2008, 11:19 AM

I just think its the placebo effect where everyone here wants to be like another and fit in. Once one person with a high post count says " take him to a vet " everyone else races to be the second person to say "take him to a vet ". I saw a post from a lady who asked if her dog may of vomited from the new food they have been feeding him. A legit question, then one person with a high post count came and said take him to a vet. Then it was on, one after another posts of ARE YOU STUPID TAKE HIM TO A VET RIGHT NOW. OMG YOU SHOULDNT OWN A DOG. I thought it was ridiculous over a question like that.

applesmom · 03-30-2008, 04:09 PM

There isn't any way possible that we can diagnose any dog over the Internet. Particularly a dog that is refusing to eat.

I've had dogs that have gone off their feed for a day and knew that for that particular dog it was perfectly normal. I'd fast them for a day and the next day they'd be just fine. No trip to the vet was necessary under those circumstances.

I've also had dogs that the instant they missed their first meal, I was on the phone to the vet's office saying I was on my way. Both of those times my instincts were 100 percent correct.

The first dog was diagnosed with Valley Fever and my quick action most likely saved his life. Waiting a few days and delaying treatment could have given the disease time to spread to his lungs and/or bones.

When I took the other dog in; my vet laughed when I told her he'd actually shown fear of his food. When she tried to give him a treat and she saw that he tucked his tail and cowered backward, she immediately became as concerned as I was.

Turned out he had a blade of grass wrapped around a tonsil and she had to sedate him to find and remove it. Infection was just beginning and my quick response spared him additional pain and suffering.

We all base our responses on our own experiences. If we don't know the dog personally, their normal behavior and eating habits, how could we presume to encourage someone not to take their dog to a vet based on information in a few typed words?

A lump could be an ingrown hair or a fast growing cancer; excessive urination could be a mild bladder infection, diabetes or any of a dozen other things, vaginal discharge could be the beginning of a heat cycle, a mild case of vaginitis or a life threatening case of pyometra.

My reply will always be; "Ask your vet"!

iwantmypup · 03-30-2008, 04:48 PM

I still don't know why people do it.
God knows what would've happened to Pepperoni if I had waited and asked an internet forum.....
But yes, if it is something like a scab, I don't think asking is bad.

Lorina · 03-30-2008, 06:00 PM

It's a lot easier to call your vet or the local emergency vet than it is to google dog forums, register, get your email verification, finish registration, post a question, and wait for an answer.

Phone calls are free.

And really, if other vet clinics are anything like ours, our schedule is quite full most of the time and won't tell you to come in unless it really is necessary. If there's something you can do at home, we'd really much rather you pick up the appropriate supplies (whether it's from the vet's office or otc), than have you come in and end up having to stay late. It's not because we don't care, it's because we have our own families, pets, and lives outside of work and would like to enjoy them a little before bedtime.

If it's something you can take care of at home, it's much safer to find out what you need from your vet, who has your pets' medical history. Even if all your pet needs is something like a dose of Pepto Bismol or Benadryl, your vet will be able to tell you the right amount to give.

borzoimom · 04-11-2008, 09:40 PM

Thank you Lorina- exactly..

Annamarie · 04-12-2008, 11:51 AM

I agree, if my animal is showing even the slightest signs something may be wrong, I'm on the phone to the vet to make an appointment. If they're closed, I'm paging the 24 hour emergency hospital!

That said, the internet literally saved my horse's life a few years ago. After dropping thousands of dollars on vet bills to keep hearing my horse was healthy, but watching her decline to a point where she was convulsing in pain and seriously thinking of putting her to sleep, I tried a horse forum who put me in contact with a vet at a university in the states. That vet saved my horse's life, it turned out she had some newly recognized disease that none of the vets in BC had seen yet.

sheltiemom · 04-13-2008, 12:43 AM

In the past, alot of these posters have been kids who don't actually have any control over whether or not the dog sees a vet. Other than that, my guess is they don't have any money (I can relate right now, but there's always credit) or they want attention.

ChrissyBz · 04-13-2008, 12:48 AM

I've been meaning to post on this thread for a long time.

I don't remember my first post, or whether it was before or after I got through to the vet,
but the night I joined here, was the night my dog swallowed one of my heart pills. Sometimes, there just is nowhere else to go. Of course most of my night was spent walking my dog around the parking lot to keep her heartrate up, and I don't remember whether I even got a reply, but, I really needed a place like this just to voice my worries. I do remember, I was SO scared.