pet connection

I usually don’t recommend veterinarians to my local readers, because I’ve too often found it a head-exploding exercise that raises my blood pressure, and who needs that?

Why is it so annoying? Because too often I find people wanting to choose a veterinarian on two factors alone, with the (dangerously incorrect!) assumption that all other things are equal:

1. Prices
2. Convenience, in terms of hours and location

My gosh, do they evaluate a pediatrician that way? Wouldn’t they rather have a doctor who actually is good — preferably great – at her job? On my way to my “primary care” veterinarian, I bet I pass 20 other practices. Knowledge, skill and great communication are everything to me … and that’s how I judge a veterinarian. (That, and the ability to say, “I don’t know — I’ll find out more” and “I think the specialist needs to be in on this one.”)

This week in her “Your Whole Pet” column for the San Francisco Chronicle’s SFGate.com, Christie waded into these treacherous waters, with a piece on how to tell if your veterinarian knows what he’s doing:

[T]he best veterinarians continue to learn and educate themselves throughout their careers. They belong to professional groups such as regional or national veterinary associations, or the Veterinary Information Network. They take difficult and challenging courses in continuing education instead of just putting in hours at industry-sponsored product propaganda sessions to keep their licenses current. They subscribe to and yes, somehow find the time to read, new research in the veterinary literature.

Although it might seem simplest to just come right out and ask your veterinarian about their involvement in these activities, in my experience doing that usually puts them on the defensive. That’s partly because veterinarians — like physicians but unlike attorneys, real estate agents and nannies — aren’t customarily interviewed, nor do they audition. A better approach is to simply engage your vet in conversation.

Instead of chatting about the weather, tell him you read an article about the use of computers in veterinary medicine, and you’re wondering if he belongs to VIN. Ask if he’s ever been to a veterinary conference, and what it was like.

You can also go online and see if your veterinarian has a blog, and if he does, if he writes about these issues there. I’ve been amazed at the number of veterinarians who have started blogging in the past year or so. You might try doing a Google blog search on your veterinarian’s name and see what comes up.

There’s lots more, here.

The animal-lovers here are pretty serious about good veterinary care. How are YOU evaluating YOUR veterinarian?

Newsweek Online has a good piece on the heated debate between those who see shelters killing instead of placing pets as lacking in community engagement and vision and those who see the killing as the only way to cope with the animals made homeless as a result of human irresponsibility:

[M]any animal lovers don’t realize is that PETA itself may have put down some of those unwanted [pets]. The organization has practiced euthanasia for years. Since 1998 PETA has killed more than 17,000 animals, nearly 85 percent of all those it has rescued. … Shelters around the country kill 4 million animals every year; by some estimates, more than 80 percent of them are healthy. In recent years those grim statistics have split the animal rights community. Ironically, PETA has emerged as a strong proponent of euthanasia. In defense of its policy PETA has insisted that euthanasia is a necessary evil in a world full of unwanted pets. But while the group has some well-known allies, including the Humane Society of the United States, a growing number of animal rights activists claim to have found a better, more humane way.

[...] Bonney Brown, executive director of the Nevada Humane Society, says that in 2007, the first year her group went “no-kill,” her shelters managed to save 90 percent of the 8,000 animals they took in. Among other strategies, the organization ramped up its volunteer force, from 30 to 1,700, expanded its hours so that people could come in after work and engaged in extensive media outreach.

Here’s the rest.

I’ve had pet chickens for a three days now, picking up three young hens on Saturday and three more on Sunday. The girls are all getting along, and all roosted together last night — cramming by choice into one big feathered blob into four cat carriers! The chicken coop and yard won’t be done for a couple of days. Right now everyone is in Clara’s Secret Garden, except Clara, who doesn’t really care for birds as big as she is.

Yesterday, three brown eggs. Just now … one of the Aruacunas produced green egg so lovely I’d paint my bedroom this color. Plus two more browns. Can you believe this? Eggs, fresh and beautiful, from my lively little flock: Agatha (a Delaware), Beatrice (a Rhode Island Red), Charlotte (a Barred Plymouth Rock) and the South American girls, Paloma, Isabella and Viviana (the Aruacunas).

The hens are all friendly and well-socialized, especially the Aruacunas. They’re all so beautiful and fun to watch, and the dogs have taken seriously my request to leave them alone, showing little interest from the other side of the fence. And Velocity The Rabbit seems to be enjoying the extra company while Clara refuses to visit her invaded space.

My column this month is on pets that have overcome disabilities. We all know what great things they’re capable of, but for some people it comes as a surprise. As usual, I gathered more stories than I could use. Cassidy’s story made it into my finished piece but was later cut, so I thought I’d share it here.

Cassidy the Rottweiler hasn’t let a missing leg stop her. She lives with Becky Buffum of Austin, Texas, who adopted her when she realized no one else would want this loving but ‘defective’ dog.

On the adoption application, one of the questions was ‘What will you allow your dog to do?’ Buffum recounts. ‘My response was ‘Anything she wants.’

Since then, Cassidy has gone to dog camp, where she excelled at agility and lure coursing. She recently clocked 19 miles an hour at a ‘fastest dog’ contest and nimbly navigates the 150 steps down to the lake from Buffum’s home. She’s learned to swim and makes frequent visits to retirement homes and schools as a therapy dog. The only thing that’s difficult for Cassidy is walking slow, Buffum says.

Cassidy is probably more agile than either of my two four-legged Rottweilers,” Buffum says. “If you say ‘Try it,’ she says ‘Okay.’

It’s not all sweetness and light living with a pet who has a disability. Younger animals usually recover from surgery and start getting around more quickly than older ones. And if you’re considering adopting an animal with a sensory or bodily deficit, take your home environment into account, says Randi Golub, a veterinary technician who adopted two special-needs cats: Cassidy, who’s missing a leg, and Jimmy, who had both eyes removed.

If we had a bunch of active kids or toddlers around, I don’t think that would be the best thing for the cats because they need a patient, stable household. Because Jimmy’s hearing is so acute, I think being in a noisy house with a lot going on might be a little overstimulating for him. With Cassidy you have to move slow because sometimes he starts to go right and then winds up going left.

Of course, I’ve found that to be true with most cats. And Golub, a serial furniture rearranger, has had to curb her tendencies since adding Jimmy to the household. On the plus side, she’s gained two great new therapy cats.

I always tell people that my biceps were never in better shape than when I was carrying a three-legged greyhound up and down the stairs. What about you? Do you have any stories about the joys and difficulties of living with a special-needs animal?

Gratuitous Cavalier blogging: We’re planning the second annual Darcy FUNDay for Saturday, May 31. We’re planning a mini agility course if we can round up some equipment, a rally course, and best costume and best trick competitions. Cardiologist Michael Lesser will be speaking as will my friend and “pet edutainer” Arden Moore, who’s going to talk about cooking for dogs. I’ve collected lots of great prizes, and we’re planning a raffle and a silent auction.

Harper is on track to become a supermodel and Thornton traveling Cavalier (travelier?). She’s going to be in a cover shoot for a dog magazine and in a couple of weeks she’s flying to Oklahoma with Jerry. In the cabin, natch. As with everything else she does, I’m sure she’ll take to it with gusto.

You know you’ve had a lot of animals on the go over the years when the cargo desk guy at your local airport greets you by your first name.

“Hi Gina! Back so soon?”

“Hi, Fred! ‘Fraid so. Alaska 2527 in yet?”

To be sure, it was an unusual week, with the puppy I’d raised for my friend Mary (hey, Otter, miss ya, girl!) going back to Texas on a Continental red-eye direct on Tuesday night, and Ilario the Siberian kitten coming from Portland a couple days later. At the Sacramento airport, all cargo is handled from the same desk, regardless of the airline. Which means if you’re moving an animal, you’re going to talk to Fred.

Before that, I last talked to Fred when I flew with Woody to Texas back in the fall, on that same red-eye Continental flight I used for Otter last week. I hate red-eye flights (I never can sleep on them), I but I chose it specifically because it’s the best flight for a pet — short, direct, cool and during the off-peak travel hours.

By the way, Woody (pictured), is one well-traveled young dog. (more…)