scare tactics... - Page 1

So, this family that got a pup from me almost two years ago brought their , very greatly loved boy, into the vet to get him fixed, at the recommendation of the vet, after being told by the vet that,;
If not fixed , chances are good he will get testicular cancer ....
ARE YOU KIDDING ME????
Well, they didn 't call to ask me about it, they called to ask about my lifetime guarantee, as the dog died on the table, at almost two years old.
Vet told them the dog either had a heart condition, or...was allergic to the anesthesia.
Needless to say, I was not real warm and fuzzy at the time the call came in.
I told her are you F'ing kidding me....your vet killed your dog and told you some bogus BS to get him neutered and you want me to replace him!
The family was devastated by his death. I did end up apologizing for my rudeness when i could see how horrible they felt and did end up practically giving them a free pup anyway.
It was clear they loved him and thought the vet was giving sound, informed advice. What a bunch of crap for a vet to do that

kitkat, I'm sorry for both you and the people whose dog this was...anesthesia reactions aren't common, but they do happen and it's generally impossible to predict which dogs are going to have the adverse response. My heart goes out to all of you; it's never easy to lose a dog, but I know it's so much worse when it happens like this, during an elective surgery such as neutering, which should be about a 15 minute procedure [assuming both testes were normal and fully descended into the scrotum].

As for the vet telling them the dog had to be neutered, or it was practically a given that he'd develop testicular cancer, that seems a strange thing to tell an owner, and in all honesty I've never encountered a vet who would try to 'sell' an owner on neutering on that basis--less marking behavior, reduce aggression, calm him down, won't chase females in heat, unlikely to develop prostatitis when older, removes all possibility of testicular cancer...all of these are the benefits a vet will cite in support of neutering a dog with two normal testicles that are fully descended. The only time I've heard a vet make reference to a dog having a high probability for developing testicular cancer if not neutered is when one or more of the testicles are retained. Was that the case with this dog, perhaps? Did he have a retained testicle? 

I'm not saying that the dog's owners aren't telling the truth, I just wonder if they really heard what was said to them by the vet, or if they've distilled it down to the scariest part of the discussion and took it to mean that their dog absolutely would get cancer if not neutered when what was actually said was that neutering would ensure that there was zero chance he'd be so affected later in life.

If the vet really did tell the client that without a doubt, this dog was going to develop testicular cancer if not neutered, then they should file a report with the licensing board that regulates veterinarians in their state, because that would be an unethical thing for him to have done. It won't bring their dog back, but it may keep someone else from going through the pain they're living with now. 

 

Absolutely a use of scare tactics! I am sorry for the lost of this dog to the family and breeder. It is another reason this chat room can have a huge positive impact on the breed but also dogs in general. The vet's arguement that the dog will not get cancer of a body part after he/she cuts it off and throws it away is very true. Who spoke the owners of the dog about the chances of a problem with anesthesia? People sometimes hear what they want to hear, so We must be a clear voice of reason and lobby for our beloved dogs. 

    To put a face to this story, this is the boy. 

In all fairness to 'vets', I cannot be certain exactly what this vet told this woman, but what stuck in her head was that she was told testicular cancer was the biggest threat to his life, IF she did not opt to neuter him.

    I hear so many instances where vets DO over do it. Many stories of neuter at 4 months old, dogs being given 7 way vaccines at 12 weeks regardless of living situation/area. I had one woman send me pics of her dogs ears taped at 4 months by the vet (I told her get that crap off that dogs ears), well, she said, they looked like they were blowing in the wind. HALF THE CHARM OF A GERMAN SHEPHERD PUP!!!!

    I do try to educate people that get dogs. It is utterly amazing how , shall I say, nieve (or stupid) people with little dog experience are. Gullable...and truth be told, SOME vets do take advantage.

    I have met people at halfway points to vaccinate their pups they got from me to avoid unnecessary treatments.

    Years ago, my moms Afghan Hound died while being spayed. Our vet flat out told my mother , sorry...bad reaction to anesteia.

    i guess you should never take for granted a simple everyday procedure, is never that easy.

"i guess you should never take for granted a simple everyday procedure, is never that easy.". Look what they did to Joan Rivers.

Hexe, vets do try to convince owners that their male will get testicular cancer if the vet is not allowed to cut the offensive balls off. When people with my pups tell me their vet tells that lie, I know the vet is attempting to put them on the spot. I tell the owners to suggest to the vet, 'cut yours off and let me know how that works for you'. Then maybe the dog owner can consider the mutilation for their dog. If there is an actual Medical need for the surg, do it. But just to cut off a body part to prevent a theoretical disease ( yeah I know, hexe, your going explain to me that test. ca is real...I know it is, but not every dog with his balls is going to develop it) is nothing but PC bs.

I have run into quite a few vets that use those scare tactic. Its greed, plain and simple IMO

OMG Kitkat I am so sorry;  there is nothing worse then to receive that call.  Nan

I heard there was a 'great' new vet in town so I took a 9 week old pup in. She offered to neuter him right then. Needless to say I haven't been back.
This is a terrible tragedy for everyone involved, I'm so sorry.

The injectable anesthetics used by many veterinarians are not safe and need close monitoring and quick action to reverse them if a reaction occurs.  I sat with my dog Viktor after a vet gave him an injectable anesthetic to do an X-ray and then both he and the vet tech left the room..  Viktor did not breathe for over a minute as I timed him breathing .. the vet was out of the room screwing around doing something else.  I called him into the room at 1 1/2 minutes of no breathing and we finally got Viktor to take a breath after about two minutes.  As they took Viktor back to do the X-ray I heard the vet tech ask if she should give Viktor some oxygen or put him on gases .. the vet said no.  My point is that dogs die because they are not attended and monitored by the vet or staff and the injectable anesthetics are not as safe as the closely monitored gas anesthetics.  Of course the vets love the injectable anesthetics because they are cheap (for them) and fast (for them).  Your dog should at a minimum be monitored closely by a human or be on a heart/breathing monitor when under anesthetic.  If someone is not monitoring your dog when injected with an anesthetic the animal can literally choke to death very easily if their tongue is in the wrong position or their head is positioned so as to block their airway.

The problem is that people trust and are taught to trust their vets and doctors...I think people ought to be taught to ask questions to any doctor...but know what questions to ask and what to do about it then...

Whenever I move and go to use a new vet...I actually sorta interview them...I ask questions...and if I don't know what they tell me...then I will take it and go and ask others...

This type of problem is a great expample of what this Web-Site should be and do...It should be a great resource of information for people and their dogs...To be able to ask questions and to discuss what they don't understand...To give help to people who don't have as much experience as some of our posters have...Not to bicker with each other but to help preserve the German Shepherd and to help others not make the same mistakes as we have made...

 

~Bob~