Re: My heart is breaking.

Carmie · ‎10-25-2010

@Boomernichols I have no idea. I only had a brief conversation with her. We sat for about five minutes without saying a word.

she only spoke to me after I started to comfort her dog.

J Town Girl · ‎06-13-2011

I am certainly not doubting what the op has said but I am wondering if the lady in the waiting room is having mental issues. What she described doesn't seem to add up.

Her saying that the big dog pushed the little dog off of a second floor balcony just seems a little unbelievable. That action would call for the larger dog to have a sense of reasoning which animals do not have. They act on their instincts. I could see him biting the smaller dog but the rest of the story just doesn't seem credible.

Working for years in a veterinary clinic, I've seen my share of unbalanced people. We once had a client who wasn't operating on all cylinders tell a room full of people that she was going to take her dog ( who had a ruptured cruciate and needed surgery) up to the mountains and break it's legs and leave it for the wolves to eat. She told this story while she was waiting to check the dog in for surgery. The people in the waiting room were horrified. Only after she checked the dog in for surgery and came out smiling and said to the receptionist I'll call you at 4:00 to see how she did in surgery did everyone then realized that this woman wasn't playing with a full deck.

She took good care of the dog and as far as anyone could see she loved the dog and the cruciate injury it received wasn't from neglect. Unfortunately the dog was sitting on the couch and jumped off before she could grab her. This type of injury wasn't unusual to see, particularly in the smaller and medium sized breeds.

Something about this story reminds me of this client. I'm not sure if they like the attention or if there is something truly wrong with them and they just don't see how telling stories such as this cause many people to believe them and become upset.

Many people questioned whether the veterinarian could do something about cases such as this. Sadly animals are considered property and not viewed the same as children. The veterinarian could call animal control but in all honesty unless it is truly animal neglect most times nothing is done. You can't just remove an animal from a home because it has a bad owner. I always thought, just like having children, people should have to pass a test to be allowed to have a pet.

Pet ownership isn't a right, it's a privilege.

Lucylu12 · ‎10-12-2010

So happy you called. At least they are aware. I don't think there is anything else you can do, but at least you had a voice for the poor dog. We all are sensitive to animal abuse, it's truly heartbreaking.

1Snickers · ‎03-19-2016

@Carmie I'm sorry about the dog you lost, but glad your other one is ok with the fish oil. My older dog is 15 1/2 now and I cringe when going to the vet. His appointment yesterday went well, he has a bad back but is doing fine. love him so much!

Thank you for calling the vet about the little dog. Maybe they will be aware more of it now and can help. (That's what I hope)!

Carmie · ‎10-25-2010

@J Town Girl I agree with you that this lady was strange. She said the Lab was spinning around and he knocked the little dog off of a 10 ft high deck. I would think you would need some kind of fencing or railing for a deck that high. The little dog was too big to be able to flip through the slates of a deck railing.

She took great pride in showing me his chewed up ear and told me he had more damage. She never got a chance to go further because the Vet Tech came for the dog.

It was very unsettling. She said the dog got PT two or three times a week and he was getting better. I know his PT included water therapy because the Vet Tech mentioned that there was a delay and he would not be able to get into the water until around 4:00. She told the lady that she should pick up her dog at 4:30. It was around noon time, so the dog was going to be there for a while.

i was also creeped out that she snapped at me when I was talking to the dog calling him a poor doggie. She had no empathy for this suffering little guy, but again she had to spending a big chunk of change for his care.

My dog who is a Miss Alpha and barks at every dog she sees, didn't make a sound. She just sat there quietly watching this poor thing.

True to her nature, she barked at the other dogs we passed on the way back to the exam room and back out to the receptions desk. I think she understood that this dog was not in a good place physically.

I wish I could have done something for the little guy. I hate feeling so helpless and I feel guilty for not being able to help him.