Talking to the vet

[Charley]

Advice please. How did you all tell your vet that you were going against their recommendations? If we had followed the dosage we were given (start at 3 units) Charley would not be with us. His vet is making dosage suggestions on the Bg test at his weekly visit. The exact same test that I can give at home. I am certain the high numbers we get there are due to the stress of the visit. Seems uneducated to me to make a dosage rec at a +10 number at all. Am I off base? He charges us $40 for the office visit, $22.50 for the Bg. Charley is only seen by a tech, then the vet calls us later with the new dose. How do I break it to him that we made the decision not to continue with the prescribed dose?

 

[donnahc]

We have lived this and have moved on to a different vet since our DX last year. Our first vet insisted we use her dose and when I lowered for the safety of the cat she was mad and told me so. She made me cry 3 times and I was done. I couldn’t take it anymore and had to leave her practice after a month of her yelling at me. Now I travel 45 mins to a wonderful vet my Mom uses for her cat. I was careful to interview him first, and he said all the right things. I live in a rural area, and drive to an even more rural area, so good vets are in many places, you just have to look and ask other people with pets about their experiences.

If you like your vet otherwise you can just take the dosing suggestions, nod your head and smile, and then do what you want to do. You do have to strike a balance in that you can get your script for the insulin from them. I think if you show a printout of your spreadsheet, and how good you are doing, maybe you could change their mind. If they insist you do it their way, and you are not comfortable with that, it might be time to look for a new vet.

 

[dmartini4]

In the first year that Shakes was diagnosed
I went through 4 vets to finally find my wonderful vet that I have had for the last year.
In my opinion, your vet should work with you, not tell you what to do
If they are mad or insistant, If it were me I would find another vet

 

[Sue and Oliver (GA)]

You don't have to mention that you are getting advice over the internet (shudder...) You can say you were just starting out and really nervous and decided to start low and go slow with the insulin. "And look at my spreadsheet. I think we are doing really well!"

Regardless, you have the right, as a consumer, to have a vet you can feel comfortable working with. We'll keep fingers and paws crossed that he will be that guy.

 

[Carl & Polly & Bob (GA)]

Does the vet know you are hometesting? If not, tell them. Then explain you will no longer need them to test once a week, and save yourself sixty plus dollars each week. Tell them you will call them weekly with a test number, they can suggest a dose, you can say "ok, thanks!" and then keep doing what you think is the right thing.
Carl

 

[Teresa and Poopy]

A bit off to the side...some vets insist on doing the testing as a source of revenue. Period.

While vets should be paid for their time and expertise, taking Charley for curves is a waste of your money. You are doing the curves already. The vet charging for consultations? Sounds reasonable.

I like the idea of telling your vet you are home testing and see where the conversation goes from there. (I personally had a bad experience but that doesn't mean you will. My second experience was phenomenal- with the new vet.) If the vet blows a gasket...that tells me they are in it for the money or power. I don't have room for either when caring for my fuzzy baby.

If the reaction is anything but sudden negative...you have a starting place to go from - and may very well end up educating your vet.

Good luck! :smile:

 

[Grayson & Lu]

Hopefully you'll be able to resolve the issues w/ your vet. In the event you decide to seek out another, there was a post yesterday (I think) of the questions to ask the prospective vets when you interview them to see how receptive they are to a partnership between you and them. It was a great tool... maybe someone has seen it and can provide the link?

 

[hmjohnston]

Good luck!

My vet, and Sneakers is her only diabetic patient- cat or dog, seems to think raising the insulin will cure all problems. When I first started home testing he wasn't against the idea but said it would be a waste of my time. I didn't listen to that.

When I dropped her dose from 3 (had been 4 and would have been if had not started on a new bottle) to 1 and I took her in he demanded to know why it wasn't 3 units. I showed him my bg sheet and said I found this site, it has vets on it, and they deal with FD all day, all night. I was following their advice to get an accurate measurement.

"Okay, bring her back next month." I think I will just drop off the sheet and have him look at it that way and see if he feels the need to bring her in just for a test.

 

[kse]

When I first started with Kitty, my vet was very conservative. She thought that once a day dosing on Prozinc was adequate for Kitty--- we were going to be in that 5 to 10 percent of cats, that can be dosed once a day! Everyone here told me that was not correct and that Kitty needed twice a day dosing. I questioned the vet and told her I was uncomfortable with the once a day dosing....she assured me it was okay--- sadly, I followed her advice. One month later, Kitty was DKA-- due to insufficient insulin. I continued to work with the vet, but I became much more assertive in our discussions. I printed off material and took her and even took Kitty to a different vet for a second opinion. I took the second vet's recommendations to my vet and shared the information with her. I was very nice, but I made it clear that I would do what was necessary to help Kitty and I hoped she would work with me. You should have seen her reaction, when I told her I was going to start dosing tid!

My vet soon realized that Kitty was much better due to my efforts---and that was her ultimate goal for Kitty also---so, she became very supportive of me and Kitty's treatment. I only go to the vet to get insulin and syringes now. When Kitty boards or goes to the vet for a shot (if I am out of town)-- the vet tests her bg and calls me to ask how much I want to dose. I pay for her services and she does what I ask. My vet has recently referred a couple of people to me to help them start hometesting.

If you are proactive and cordial, your vet should appreciate that---- if not----find another vet!