Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with veterinary

Claws to teeth

thatguyryan — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 19:21:53 -0800

Please help me help my cat. I have a male housecat (doesn't go out). He's about 8-ish years old. Not terribly often, but sometimes, he uses his front claws to "pick" at his teeth. He does it in a very emphatic, frantic sort of way. When I started typing this question, one of his claws was actually stuck either in between his teeth, in his gums, or somewhere else in there. I just was able to manage to help him get it loose. He is now laying by the door to the outside -sort of unusual for him (like, leave me alone and all). Not sure what I'm now asking since I managed to get him loose but does anyone have any thoughts here? Thank you so much in advance for all responses!

What can you tell me about raising meat goats?

Kickstart70 — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 12:42:11 -0800

Next year, I will likely purchase some meat goats for raising, breeding and eating. My plan currently is for 4-8 Boer goats, which gain weight quickly and allegedly pretty even-tempered. I'm looking for hints and tips for what I should know. I grew up on a cattle ranch, so I'm not completely foolish on the concepts involved. However, that was nearly 20 years ago, so I've forgotten a lot (perhaps blocked some memories).

In general terms, what advice can you give for food, fencing, safety, diseases, care, butchering (for self and/or for sale), etc.?

If it matters/helps, I am at the 53rd latitude in Western Canada.

Can veterinarians have an animal put down without the owner's permission?

pantheON — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 09:18:00 -0800

In Ontario, can an animal be euthanised without the owner's consent? I was recently told by a veterinarian that the Ontario Veterinarians Act allows three veterinarians to make a decision that an animal ought to be euthanised even if they don’t have the consent of the owner. I've scoured the Act, but can't find anything close to this in it. Is it true? If not, who must consent for an animal to be put down? Sources would be appreciated, if available.

See Spot. See Spot on Spot.

cior — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 13:20:25 -0800

What is this strange growth on my dog's chin? It appeared out of nowhere about a week ago, and has increased in size. It doesn't seem to be hanging on by very much tissue. It doesn't seem to be painful to her, and she's mostly ignoring it. It has a flaky/scale texture, is not moist and does not ooze.

She's a very nervous bitch, so I'd love to avoid traumatizing her with a vet visit if possible. Does anyone know what this is, and whether or not it merits more professional attention?

About her: mostly inside dog, cute JRT/Beagle mix, consistently healthy, up-to-date on all of her shots/meds/etc.

Should my puppy see a dermatologist?

miss lynnster — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 23:24:58 -0800

The skin on my puppy's little pink belly seems to be turning blackish... Over the period of a week I've noticed the skin on both sides of her belly getting gradually darker. Then she was in a kennel for 5 days this week and I noticed the skin changed color quite a bit from when I left her there. She seems to feel fine and I don't want to take her to the vet if I don't have to, but it does concern me. It looks like what I've known Alopecia X to look like, but so far she's not going bald anywhere that I can see. I'm sure she's fine... I just don't want it to end up regretting not taking her to the vet immediately. If I should be giving her some kind of special skin care to get her skin back to the happy puppy pink it once was I'm happy to do so. Should I even be worrying about this? What do you think?

She's a little dachshund/terrier mix pound puppy. She was a runaway so I have no idea of her parent's history or her real age, although it's been estimated at almost 2 1/2 years.

What is it like to be a large animal/rural veterinarian?

internet!Hannah — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 11:26:53 -0800

What is it like to be a large animal/rural veterinarian? I'm currently a freshman in college, working on my undergraduate degree which I have been planning to use as a pre-veterinary course. For a good part of my life to date I've wanted to be large animal/rural veterinarian (the 9-5 nature of a small animal practice sounds stifling to me, while large animal/rural vets get to travel, meet interesting people, and hold varying hours, all of which seem very appealing).

Unfortunately, while it's easy to see what it's like to be a small veterinarian, I don't have a very concrete knowledge of what it's like to be a large animal veterinarian, especially as far as the day-to-day menial activities go--and seeing as how I'm on my way to devoting 8 years and untold amounts of money to this career, I'd like to have a good idea of what I'm getting into. However, I've been having trouble finding materials or media portraying life as a large veterinarian, which is something I'd like to be more familiar with as I continue down this course. Google hasn't been successful in turning up more than articles on the shortage of rural/large animal vets or very cursory info pages aimed at young children.

So, my question is this: does anyone know of any books or other literature about the lifestyle of a large animal/rural veterinarian? Online articles or blogs would be greatly appreciated as well, as well as other suggestions on how to become more acquainted with the large veterinary lifestyle.

Oh, and I have been looking into finding a friendly vet who might let me shadow them, but this is usually done through the college farther into the course (final year of undergraduate degree at the earliest). However, if anyone knows of any summer internship programs or anything like that, I'd be interested. (I'm in Texas, if it helps.)

Thanks in advance for any help.

Dog needs TPLO for $$$. Am I SOL?

evil holiday magic — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 12:31:07 -0800

Dog needs TPLO surgery, but I can't afford it! What do I do?! Our 4-5 year-old pitbull has been walking on three legs of late. He ripped a cranial cruciate ligament according to a trusted vet who performed tests for lateral movement in the knee under sedation and also x-rayed the joint. She recommended a TPLO (tibial plateau leveling) procedure to save the dog from arthritis and lots of pain in the future. She can't do the procedure, and she referred us to ASEC in West L.A., which she estimated could do it for $2.5K. I called them, and it's actually $4.5K!

I'm calling around for less premium surgeons, but I have no idea whether they're any good. I'd much rather go to a place that somebody can vouch for.

Is there any hope of getting this doggie his surgery at a price I can afford?

What's wrong with my cat's ear?

jtron — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 19:45:02 -0800

Why is my cat's ear all messed up? A few months ago, my cat had a scrape on his ear that got infected. The hair fell out, it looked gross, he got antibiotics and an ecollar and all was well. Yesterday, I noticed that the hair was patchy on the other ear, and today there is a cut and more hair loss. Does anyone know what this is and why it would recur? Thanks. Oh, and our other cat is not exhibiting any of these symptoms.

how much to allow for emergency vet costs?

amtho — Sun, 22 Jan 2006 17:55:22 -0800

How much money should we allow for cat veterinary emergencies? This is for our cat sitter or vet to spend to fix up our cat, without contacting us, if we're incommunicado. We're putting together a letter of consent for the cat sitter and vet. We love our cat very much, and really wouldn't want to have any situation come up where the vet can't treat him. We'd also like to put our cat sitter's mind at ease -- this was her idea, and I can completely see why she would want this kind of letter to protect from any misunderstandings.

After doing some internet research, our letter currently says we'll authorize any treatment "the bearer deems necessary" and that would not "cause suffering and discomfort if there is little hope of his continuing to have a good quality of life", but not more than (and this is where we need a good number) $5000.

Is $5000 enough? My partner thinks that surely we'd be reachable before anyone needed to spend more than that; I'm not so sure -- we could be anywhere, and it would give me peace of mind to know that, whatever happens, he'll be taken care of. On the other hand(s), we don't want there to be any potential for abuse of this document, and I want to be reasonable.

In your experience, what do the most expensive cat emergencies cost?

Curing wool-eating cat?

matildaben — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 13:54:23 -0800

Has anyone ever known a cat who liked to eat wool? Was it a medical or a behavioral issue? Was it ever possible to discourage this behavior? My 18-month-old cat has, in the last couple of months, engaged in a serious course of destruction of socks, gloves, scarves, sweaters, anything left out in the open by myself or my guests. All of these items have been wool or wool blend or, in one case, sheepskin (glove lining). He will chew on them to the point of actually eating and swallowing the fibers. He has not done it the whole time I have had him, and the onset may or may not have coincided with a change of food (I can't remember the timing on that). Has anyone ever seen this happen with another cat? Could it be related to some form of nutritional deficiency, is it just teenage rowdiness, or merely an insane feline? Has a cat ever been cured/dissuaded from this behavior? How?

Appreciation gift for a great veterenary clinic

BoscosMom — Sat, 31 Dec 2005 12:36:25 -0800

My dog cut his leg last night and had to have surgery on it. My vet was closing at noon today but he and his staff are staying open late to fix the leg. I'd like to get them something to show my appreciation. Please help me think of something really great. This is the friendliest most caring veterinary clinic I've ever seen. I'm looking for something for the whole office to enjoy. I'd like to stay away from candy and alchohol since so many people are watching their weight. Do people really like fruit baskets? Should I send flowers? Thanks for any ideas.

bad kitty

luriete — Tue, 25 Oct 2005 14:21:47 -0800

Last week my wife put one of those toilet cleaning puck things - 2 discs, one blue and one white (a type of chlorine bleach, I think) in the toilet tank. Apparently one of us or our houseguest left the toilet open and one of our two cats - the stupid one - drank a quantity of the water, even though he had a big bowl of fresh water by his food (yes, we're now being very careful to leave it closed). My questions: 1) did he drink it because it tasted good, the way some animals will eat antifreeze, and 2) is he gonna be OK? He's acting a little odd - staring at his own shadow and attacking invisible things, growling at nothing, but then again he's kind of brain-damaged anyway (flea anemia as a feral kitten). He's 9 yrs old and otherwise in good health.

How do I trick my cat into peeing?

bcwinters — Tue, 03 May 2005 18:20:26 -0800

How do I trick my cat into peeing? One of my (three) cats has a urinary tract infection or some related problem. The vet wants us to get a urine sample from her so they can test it. The problem is that she is a VERY willful little beast and has refused to give us a drop for the last 14 hours or so. We have basically locked her in the bathroom with food, water, & a clean litter pan with the "little black plastic pellets" the vet gives out that I guess are supposed to trick cats into thinking they're litter.

Of course, the vet always gives out about a quarter cup of pellets, which sit forlornly in the empty litter pan and do nothing to fool the cat.

Anyone have any tips or tricks for (gently!) forcing a cat to urinate? Something we could make her eat? Some way of making the litter pan seem more realistic--like something more bulky we could put in it that would make it seem like a full pan, yet wouldn't contaminate the sample?

Normally she would have used her regular litter box two or three times in this time period.

We're trying to avoid the last ditch effort of leaving her at the vet overnight or for an entire day as it seems cruel and she tends to hyperventilate and go nutty when around doctors. (Plus, it's expensive)

Question number 14978

nakedcodemonkey — Thu, 10 Feb 2005 10:40:15 -0800

At what age should a cat's gender be obvious to a vet? {mi}

Question number 13869

longbaugh — Tue, 11 Jan 2005 05:49:07 -0800

Someone at work has just asked me a bizarre question that I can't find an answer to - can horses (and in fact any other animal) actually throw up? (+)

Question number 12570

Mayor Curley — Mon, 06 Dec 2004 13:07:42 -0800

Kitty has diarrhea, and has had it for about four days. It it is now abating, but not completely gone. We (forcibly) gave her bismuth, but not for two days and it seems to be drying up on its own (from great pools of near-liquid to soft stools that probably wouldn't seem suspicious without the forerunners). She's otherwise completely normal and we seem more concerned about it than she.

Getting her to the vet is a PITA. Is there anything else OTC we can give her to speed up the correction before one of us takes time off, schedules an appointment and pays the vet for the priveledge of giving advice that I might get here?

Question number 9993

y2karl — Tue, 07 Sep 2004 21:41:07 -0800

Cats and Cataracts. Does anyone have any experience or expertise in regards to cats with cataracts?

Question number 4237

troutfishing — Mon, 29 Dec 2003 07:23:53 -0800

Yet another dog question. My wife's dog is a shepherd-dobermann cross and so old that she's technically dead - about 16 years old. She's mostly incontinent, and scooping up turds and mopping up pee is a daily and sometimes hourly chore now - I've taken up all the rugs, and she sleeps at night on a foam cushion protected by a vinyl shower curtain. I think her kidneys are failing, but very very slowly. So she drinks a fantastic amount of water and voids it randomly about the house. My wife and I take turns letting her out out night, but she's excessively nocturnal (she's a dog) and this, combined with the incontinence and her tendency to get jammed into odd spots and whine until rescued is degrading our sleep. My wife's very attached to the dog - who otherwise isn't really suffering and is even happy - but our lives are slowly coming to be dominated by the dog. Yet....neither I nor my wife believe in killing pets or other creatures for mere reasons of convenience. Any technical advice on managing this situation until the creature dies a natural death?