When I asked about my cat missing I received some compassionate answers and left with a little hope. Why do people go out of their way to dwell on the worst. When worried we do that anyway, I don't know if my kitty is alive or dead, and I don't know if someone is hurting him, I just know that I love him and need to find him, he has been away almost 13 days, I have him in the newspapers, distributed by hand 250 fliers, combed the neighborhoods and left flyers on poles, at the park, at the vet, at the schools, at the library, but one person who is supposedly a Vet Tech for 12 years decided that my cat is dead or run over. Wouldn't you love to have your animal attended to by this *****?
Thanks to all of you who have tried to help, My kitty Dover is lost, and so am I Tess
2006-09-13 09:21:13 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Cats
Please don't group all Vet Techs in with that insensitive person. I have been a Tech for years and would never give a horrible answer like that to someone. There is always hope. People have found their pets years after they've disappeared. You're doing the right things, keep distributing fliers. The more people who know, the more eyes to help look for her. Good luck.
2006-09-13 09:26:13 · answer #1 · answered by Astro 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Dear Tess,
Years ago I was a vet tech & rather amazed myself as I learned to protect my own feelings by disassociating personally from most of the horrible things we see happen to pets, whether death or disappearance. The vet who owned the hospital did not have the "bedside manner" we like to see, but behind the scenes that man cared more about animals than you could realize.
In spite of my own learning to "accept what I cannot change", once in a while I would get caught up emotionally with an animal and cry... He would kid me about it, but he was just trying to make me strong.
My current vet has seen me at my worst in the almost 20 years I've been going to her. She has seen the tears and the grief when I've lost an animal or had to make the terribly hard decision to put one to sleep. And she HAS the "bedside manner" we all need when our pet is not right.
I'm so sorry that vet tech seemed callous. She probably felt she was giving you practical, statistical advice. I respect honesty. What she needs to learn is compassionate response.
Sometimes you just need some hope - and this is one of those times.
I hope you find your kitty!
2006-09-16 12:04:05 · answer #2 · answered by Ragdoll Kitty 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They are like doctors, they have to learn to block things out and not let it affect them. However, they don't have to act like jerks either.
My niece just opened an after hours emergency vet clinic. I asked her how she could possibly deal with that. She said that as long as it's not her own pet she can disassociate with it. I couldn't. I couldn't stand to see an animal in pain or mangled from being run over etc.
Most vets are very compassionate. I've had my female vet almost cry and keep telling me how sorry she is when she had to give me bad news. When I had to put a cat to sleep, I couldn't stop crying an about had the whole office in tears. Most are very kind they just put on a brave front, but of course there are the few that are total jerks. You'll always find some out there.
Hope you find your kitty. I've had one disappear for a few months and turn up. Don't give up.
2006-09-14 00:41:43 · answer #3 · answered by Karen H 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not all vet techs do this.Unfortunately, I have been rescuing cats long enough to know that odds are not in your favor, and people can get a little jaded. People who work with animals on a regular basis also see alot of stupidity in owners and can unfairly take it out on a responsible owner as well.
You want to hope for the best, but prepare yourself for the worst.
You are doing all you can, you need to stay positive and try to block out the negative. I hope you find you cat.
2006-09-13 17:13:03 · answer #4 · answered by Nikki T 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Tess: Reality check:
That grim fate is exactly what happens to the VAST MAJORITY of missing cats. For all you know your cat is not missing but stolen.
If you don't want your cat to suffer, then you should protect it from being lost or stolen by ensuring that no strangers have access to it. Keep her inside your home and habitually enter your home through a double-door "cat trap" so you close the outside door before you open the interior foyer. If your house isn't set up like this than confine your kitty to one room when you know you're opening an exterior door.
Cats who wind up outside have an AVERAGE lifespan of 2 years because of becoming roadkill or victims of malicious people and other predators. Indoor cats live MORE THAN 20 years.
Only a small minority of missing cats make their way back to their owner. If you're old enough to be responsible for a cat, you are mature enough to face facts and the consequences of your actions.
2006-09-13 16:36:11 · answer #5 · answered by catlady 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Hi
Its been the same for me. I lost my cat a few years ago and told it had been run ova and some one had picked it up. I dont know weather she is still alive today. Some people just dont know what it is like. My cat is my second baby.
When i worked in the vets i always rang people who lost animals to see if they had any luck and gave them advise, as im a cat lover my self. Have you looked in garages or is there many old people around your area? the love to feed them, then they keep going back for more. Good luck with your search hope kitty comes bk soon.
2006-09-13 16:29:58 · answer #6 · answered by amanda s 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Tess - it's hard to loose a cat you care for. Now imagine multiplying that by about...500. That's what vets and vet techs have to do. I know - I was a volunteer tech for a year, and it's HARD. You want to care for all the animals that are in to see you, but so many can't be cured. Or worse, you see horrible owners who want to KILL an animal b/c it peed in the closet or something.
People who are successful vets/vet techs must be able to essentially become immune to this sadness and pain...or they do something else. (Me, I did something else) Doctors are the same. Sounds like person took it to the extreme though...
2006-09-13 16:30:57 · answer #7 · answered by physicsmom04 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Vet Techs aren't unpassionate...I personally get called atleast 5 times a day with someone who has lost or has found a pet. I put up fliers. I give them hope. Honestly, unless you move to a new house, your cat won't get lost. They know right where their home is...the question is if they want to come home. I can understand the frustration, but our job isn't to give love to the pets, it's to give them the medical attention they need.
Doesn't mean we don't like you pet.
2006-09-13 16:46:03 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I understand your reaction to what the vet tech said. Having been a vet tech for 3 years I understand his/her comment. It is likely that something could have happened to your cat. But he could just as easily be hiding out in someones bushes or under their car. I'm not saying don't give up hope, just don't get your hopes up. You have to go on living. Don't be so hard on the tech. They have to deal with the deaths of animals almost daily. It's the same with a coroner for humans. You can't expect them to get emotionally involved with every animal/person. They would end up so depressed they would want to kill themselves.
2006-09-13 16:29:32 · answer #9 · answered by cammi1313 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
they dont get attached to their patients hope you find your cat I had a cat that ran away after having a litter because she was abaned as a kitten and tough it was the right thing to do it does hurt when a pet runs away
2006-09-13 16:24:22 · answer #10 · answered by Caitlyn S 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋