For the first 10 years of my career, I worked in mixed practice. This is the traditional James Herriot style of vet work, where you had to be prepared for pretty much anything. In a day you could have a surgery to perform on a 1000kg bull, then head back to the clinic and need to diagnose the problem with someones pet mouse. In those 10 years I treated cattle, horses, sheep, goats, rats, mice, ferrets, rabbits, cats, dogs, snakes, lizards, chinchillas, alpacas, llamas, a zebra, kangaroos, deers and various bird species. For many of these species I have been a GP, anaesthetist, dentist, obstetrician, orthopaedic surgeon, general surgeon, oncologist, nutritionist, pediatrician, emergency and intensive care doctor. The amount we are expected to know about so many species is overwhelming, and I eventually had to make the decision to either get much better at fewer species, or continue as jack of all trades, master of none.
There is a lot I used to enjoy about the large animal work. Because you would often spend whole days working on a farm, the farmers became your friends. And when the weather was nice, being out on a farm was a great place to be. Farm work is also much less emotionally draining. when we work with peoples pets over a long period of time, we become quite attached to the pet and the owner. It can really upset you when you lose a patient, where as with farm work that emotional attachment to the animal doesn't create such issues.
Over my 10 years as a mixed practice vet, I felt pet owners and farmers expectations change. They all want to know that the best person possible is looking after their animal. Despite trying my best, I eventually realised that I couldn't match owners expectations, and when I really thought about it I realised I was struggling to meet my own high standards. Something had to go.
I decided to focus on the small animal work as that was my strongest area. It's a decision I am very glad I made. My small animal medicine and surgery skills have improved dramatically. I can now offer my small furry patients a level of treatment I couldn't before, and I now am confident that I am providing a level of treatment I am proud of.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Payment in Cornish Pastys
One of the hardest parts of our job is dealing with the cost of treatments. We are able to offer a huge range of treatment options which allows us to do things that would have been impossible 10 or 20 years ago, but unfortunately these treatments come at a price. As much as we try to keep prices down so as many pets as possible are treated well, we realise we still need to make enough money to keep the doors open. We try to be strict when it comes to making sure everyone pays their share, but occasionally a case comes along where you need to break the rules.
When I was working in a town called Lostwithiel in the southwest of England, an elderly lady, Mary, with a dog called Nikki came in to see me. Nikki had been treated by another vet for a tumour on her back leg. The other vet had removed the tumour but had placed the sutures too tight around her leg. This created a tourniquet around the leg, causing much of the tissue below the sutures to die off.
Then I examined Nikki, I knew this was going to be expensive. There was almost no skin left on the end of her leg, two of her toes needed amputating, and I reallyy wondered if we could even save the leg. I had a chat to Mary about what was needed, what it would cost and what the likely outcome was. Mary was devistated. She was a pensioner, and couldn't really afford even basic treatment. She had spent all she could afford on the initial tumour treatment, so said we would need to put Nikki to sleep.
I don't think anyone could do anything other that feel sorry for this lady. She had tried to do the right thing for her pet, and it had become a disaster. The initial vet denied any responsibility and refused to help fix the situation, so I went cap in hand to my boss. I explained to her that this was a situation that reflected on the whole profession, and as I had never performed a skin graft this was a good opportunity for me to practice a new procedure. She must have been in a good mood that day, and she agreed to let me treat Nikki for free.
I returned to the consult room to give Mary the good news. I explained that Nikki would need bandage changes weekly initially, then a couple of surgeries to perform the skin graft She would be getting around $1500 of treatment for free. Mary wouldn't hear of me treating Nikki for free, as she didn't want to be seen as a charity case. She said that if I could pick up and drop off Nikki on her treatment days (it turns out Mary lived just down the road from me) she would make sure she had some lunch ready for me on those days as payment for my work.
For the next 6 weeks I picked up Nikki every Wednesday morning, and dropped her off when I could get away for lunch. Without fail Mary had two cornish pastys ready for me freshly made that morning, each nearly the size of a dinner plate. As I was single at the time, such a great feed was very much appreciated.
After 6 weeks of treatment, we managed to save Nikki's leg.She always had a bit of a limp, but we were all amazed at how well this little dog battled on. I worked at that clinic for another year after we had finished with Nikki, and Mary still insisted that I popped in every Wednesday at lunchtime to pick up my pastys. We became good friends over that time, and each time I went to Cornwall after that I would drop in and visit Mary and Nikki. I'm guessing Nikki still remembered me even three years after I finished her treamtent, as the last time I visited them Nikki saw me and ran off under the kitchen table and wouldn't come out. Dog's aren't much good at gratitude some times.
When I was working in a town called Lostwithiel in the southwest of England, an elderly lady, Mary, with a dog called Nikki came in to see me. Nikki had been treated by another vet for a tumour on her back leg. The other vet had removed the tumour but had placed the sutures too tight around her leg. This created a tourniquet around the leg, causing much of the tissue below the sutures to die off.
Then I examined Nikki, I knew this was going to be expensive. There was almost no skin left on the end of her leg, two of her toes needed amputating, and I reallyy wondered if we could even save the leg. I had a chat to Mary about what was needed, what it would cost and what the likely outcome was. Mary was devistated. She was a pensioner, and couldn't really afford even basic treatment. She had spent all she could afford on the initial tumour treatment, so said we would need to put Nikki to sleep.
I don't think anyone could do anything other that feel sorry for this lady. She had tried to do the right thing for her pet, and it had become a disaster. The initial vet denied any responsibility and refused to help fix the situation, so I went cap in hand to my boss. I explained to her that this was a situation that reflected on the whole profession, and as I had never performed a skin graft this was a good opportunity for me to practice a new procedure. She must have been in a good mood that day, and she agreed to let me treat Nikki for free.
I returned to the consult room to give Mary the good news. I explained that Nikki would need bandage changes weekly initially, then a couple of surgeries to perform the skin graft She would be getting around $1500 of treatment for free. Mary wouldn't hear of me treating Nikki for free, as she didn't want to be seen as a charity case. She said that if I could pick up and drop off Nikki on her treatment days (it turns out Mary lived just down the road from me) she would make sure she had some lunch ready for me on those days as payment for my work.
For the next 6 weeks I picked up Nikki every Wednesday morning, and dropped her off when I could get away for lunch. Without fail Mary had two cornish pastys ready for me freshly made that morning, each nearly the size of a dinner plate. As I was single at the time, such a great feed was very much appreciated.
After 6 weeks of treatment, we managed to save Nikki's leg.She always had a bit of a limp, but we were all amazed at how well this little dog battled on. I worked at that clinic for another year after we had finished with Nikki, and Mary still insisted that I popped in every Wednesday at lunchtime to pick up my pastys. We became good friends over that time, and each time I went to Cornwall after that I would drop in and visit Mary and Nikki. I'm guessing Nikki still remembered me even three years after I finished her treamtent, as the last time I visited them Nikki saw me and ran off under the kitchen table and wouldn't come out. Dog's aren't much good at gratitude some times.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Cow Stuck in the Mud
If you have been in my consult room in the last couple of weeks, you may have noticed a certificate of merit from the UK RSPCA for helping rescue a jersey cow stuck in deep mud. Many people have asked me about it, (I put it up as a conversation piece) so I thought I'd share the story.
I worked in the UK doing locum work for around 8 years. My last job was in a town called Wadebridge, in north Cornwall. Around lunch time we received a call from the RSPCA requesting assistance for a cow stuck in mud. I thought this sounded like a bit of fun, so volunteered to head out.
I was met at the farm by the RSPCA inspector and 2 fire trucks.....this was going to be a bit harder than I thought. We walked down to the river and saw the cow sunk up to its neck in sticky, smelly mud. Apparently the RSPCA had inspected the farm the week before after someone complained about the lack of water for these cows. Instead of putting in a water trough, the farmer decided to move the fence line to include part of the river. The poor cow went down for a drink and got caught in the sucking mud. Luckily someone walking past had seen the cow struggling and called for help.
The cow was quite distressed, so I gave it a light sedative then we got to work trying to free it. The mud was that horrible sucking sort of mud that made it impossible to just pull her out. Luckily there was a large tree nearby so the fire brigade set up a pulley system overhead, put some planks around her so we had somewhere to stand, and we started digging her out. We had to dig her out by hand so we didn't injure her, which took us over an hour. The fire fighters had their hazardous chemical suits on so they kept pretty clean. I just has a pair of overalls, so I got pretty dirty by the end. We then used the pulley system to pull her out and swing her across to the riverbank.
After so long in the cold water, she was very hypothermic, so we set up the flood lights on her, dried her off and started moving her legs for her. After another hour or so she still wouldn't stand. We organised a large amount of hay to give her some deep bedding and some rugs to keep her warm. Once she looked comfortable and set up for the night, we started to walk off. I think she saw her opportunity and got up, ran past us and carried on down the road. Luckily one of the fire trucks had just left to return t station, so we radioed ahead and got them to chase her back.
The cow made a full recovery, and the farmer was let off with a warning. Unfortunately he didn't learn his lesson, and 4 weeks later one of my colleagues was back out to the farm rescuing another cow stuck in the same place.
I worked in the UK doing locum work for around 8 years. My last job was in a town called Wadebridge, in north Cornwall. Around lunch time we received a call from the RSPCA requesting assistance for a cow stuck in mud. I thought this sounded like a bit of fun, so volunteered to head out.
I was met at the farm by the RSPCA inspector and 2 fire trucks.....this was going to be a bit harder than I thought. We walked down to the river and saw the cow sunk up to its neck in sticky, smelly mud. Apparently the RSPCA had inspected the farm the week before after someone complained about the lack of water for these cows. Instead of putting in a water trough, the farmer decided to move the fence line to include part of the river. The poor cow went down for a drink and got caught in the sucking mud. Luckily someone walking past had seen the cow struggling and called for help.
The cow was quite distressed, so I gave it a light sedative then we got to work trying to free it. The mud was that horrible sucking sort of mud that made it impossible to just pull her out. Luckily there was a large tree nearby so the fire brigade set up a pulley system overhead, put some planks around her so we had somewhere to stand, and we started digging her out. We had to dig her out by hand so we didn't injure her, which took us over an hour. The fire fighters had their hazardous chemical suits on so they kept pretty clean. I just has a pair of overalls, so I got pretty dirty by the end. We then used the pulley system to pull her out and swing her across to the riverbank.
After so long in the cold water, she was very hypothermic, so we set up the flood lights on her, dried her off and started moving her legs for her. After another hour or so she still wouldn't stand. We organised a large amount of hay to give her some deep bedding and some rugs to keep her warm. Once she looked comfortable and set up for the night, we started to walk off. I think she saw her opportunity and got up, ran past us and carried on down the road. Luckily one of the fire trucks had just left to return t station, so we radioed ahead and got them to chase her back.
The cow made a full recovery, and the farmer was let off with a warning. Unfortunately he didn't learn his lesson, and 4 weeks later one of my colleagues was back out to the farm rescuing another cow stuck in the same place.
Monday, July 2, 2012
The Better Business Booster Video
One day to go in the Commonwealth Bank's Better Business Booster Competion. So far we are doing well, so I thought I'd talk a bit about the animals in the competition video.
Marvin's story is already mentined in the video. He was discovered stuffed inside a cat cage on a hot day. He had obviously been subjected to a lifetime of abuse. He only weighed 13kg (a dog of his age and breed should be around 35kg), had lost the skin over his rump which was being eaten away by maggots, was severely anaemic and he was unable to stand.
A decision needed to be made. Could we save Marvin or should we put him to sleep. The big eyes and wagging tail helped convince us that Marvin could pull through. What followed was weeks of intensive care, physiotherapy and good quality nutrition. After 2 weeks, Marvin was strong enough to stand on his own.
I had always warned my wife we were unlikely to ever own a dog with 2 eyes and 4 legs, as I knew I would one day adopt a dog which really needed a home. Luckily Marvin has returned to nearly full health, though he has a couple of minor problems we manage on a regular basis. He is strong enough to chase the ball at the beach or run 10km with me.
The small, dark coloured dog missing a front leg is Buddy. Buddy came to us with a broken raduis and ulna. We tried to repair the leg with metal pins, but unfortunately the fracture wouldn't heal. After 10 weeks of trying, we realised we couldn't save the leg. We made the difficult decision to amputate. As you can see from the video, amputation hasn't slowed Buddy down. He's still a happy ball of energy.
Alfie is the other three-legged dog in the video. Alfie was lucky to survive his accident. The gate at his house blew open, Buddy escaped, and ran in front of a car. The car hit his back end, dislocating his right hip, removing a lot of skin on the right hind leg, and breaking his left back leg in several places exposing the bone in several places. The left leg was beyond saving, but with the right hip dislocated Alfie was going to struggle to function.
We put the hip back into place and Alfie was hospitalised for several days, but unfortunately the hip came back out of joint, so we needed to operate. The surgery took myself and Joc around 2 hours to repair the hip. After several more weeks of bandage changes, Alfie hasnow recovered well from his injuries.
You will also notice in the video other dogs wandering around the clinic. We have a practice policy of the staff being able to bring their dogs in to work. The dogs love coming in and being with the owners for the day, and the other pets in hospital seem to be reassured by these dogs walking around and being so relaxed here.
I would like to congratulate the other Better Business Booster finalists on getting this far. The level of professionalism and enthusiasm shown by these people is inspiring, and I wish them all the best for the future.
Marvin's story is already mentined in the video. He was discovered stuffed inside a cat cage on a hot day. He had obviously been subjected to a lifetime of abuse. He only weighed 13kg (a dog of his age and breed should be around 35kg), had lost the skin over his rump which was being eaten away by maggots, was severely anaemic and he was unable to stand.
A decision needed to be made. Could we save Marvin or should we put him to sleep. The big eyes and wagging tail helped convince us that Marvin could pull through. What followed was weeks of intensive care, physiotherapy and good quality nutrition. After 2 weeks, Marvin was strong enough to stand on his own.
I had always warned my wife we were unlikely to ever own a dog with 2 eyes and 4 legs, as I knew I would one day adopt a dog which really needed a home. Luckily Marvin has returned to nearly full health, though he has a couple of minor problems we manage on a regular basis. He is strong enough to chase the ball at the beach or run 10km with me.
The small, dark coloured dog missing a front leg is Buddy. Buddy came to us with a broken raduis and ulna. We tried to repair the leg with metal pins, but unfortunately the fracture wouldn't heal. After 10 weeks of trying, we realised we couldn't save the leg. We made the difficult decision to amputate. As you can see from the video, amputation hasn't slowed Buddy down. He's still a happy ball of energy.
Alfie is the other three-legged dog in the video. Alfie was lucky to survive his accident. The gate at his house blew open, Buddy escaped, and ran in front of a car. The car hit his back end, dislocating his right hip, removing a lot of skin on the right hind leg, and breaking his left back leg in several places exposing the bone in several places. The left leg was beyond saving, but with the right hip dislocated Alfie was going to struggle to function.
We put the hip back into place and Alfie was hospitalised for several days, but unfortunately the hip came back out of joint, so we needed to operate. The surgery took myself and Joc around 2 hours to repair the hip. After several more weeks of bandage changes, Alfie hasnow recovered well from his injuries.
You will also notice in the video other dogs wandering around the clinic. We have a practice policy of the staff being able to bring their dogs in to work. The dogs love coming in and being with the owners for the day, and the other pets in hospital seem to be reassured by these dogs walking around and being so relaxed here.
I would like to congratulate the other Better Business Booster finalists on getting this far. The level of professionalism and enthusiasm shown by these people is inspiring, and I wish them all the best for the future.
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