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By your vet! A phone call is free! A lot of us 'answerers' do know what we're talking about, but your vet is close to you, should know you and your pet, and is a licensed practitioner! A lot of these questions are vague and broad, and animals, especially dogs and cats, can have similar symptoms for MANY diseases, life threatening or otherwise! Don't wait for a 'best answer' on here when there may be something seriously wrong with your baby!

2006-12-30 01:40:39 · 4 answers · asked by Jase 3 in Pets Other - Pets

Thanks! Some of these questions I read are heartbreaking when a simple call to the vet could be the difference (sometimes, not always) between life and death!

2006-12-30 01:44:48 · update #1

I realize that alot of people don't take these answers for fact, but I've worked with animals my whole life and have noticed some very bad symptoms. I guess not everyone has a vet like mine, who will tell me to bring him in and won't charge me full price for a checkup, if any cost, if there's nothing wrong (which the Checkup is only $18 anyways) If this were your child, you wouldn't say, "my baby hasn't pooped in 8 days, I don't know what's wrong, what should I do?" If you do, your sick...You would likely call your doctor, wouldn't you? My vet would listen to the symptoms, and tell me what to watch for or say, "we need to see her right away". It's always BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY!

2006-12-30 02:03:00 · update #2

4 answers

Hi Jase...beautifully stated! Anyone who reads all answers related to pet animals should take the answers ONLY into consideration and if it's medically related should only entrust a licenced medical professional. I will even emphasize this as well within many of my own answers because how is one to know someone is not pranking the person asking the question.

Many people who answer may mean well, however they could also cause more harm than good so as you've noted ...why take a chance on believing a stranger.

Sadly, some people cannot afford the veterinary fees which are much higher than what your vet charges, however that doesn't excuse the fact animals are not only are a lifetime responsibility, but also a financial one where we must plan and provide for them as well. People find "free" pets and forget this until something serious occurs.

2006-12-30 01:42:46 · answer #1 · answered by ♪ Seattle ♫ 7 · 3 0

People are afraid that if they call their vet, then instead of being given an explanation by them of what might be wrong with their pet (if anything), that they'll simply be told to bring their pet into the office. A phone call is cheap or costs nothing, but usually an office visit is what you end up with. If there isn't anything really wrong with the pet that time itself won't cure, then you end up spending money you didn't need to, which is what people are trying to avoid by asking questions here. Sure, they shouldn't put their pets at risk because you never know how qualified anyone answering a question is to answer it. As long as they do some follow-up research to the answers given, though, instead of just taking the answers as gospel, then they will be better off than not doing anything at all just to avoid a vet bill.

Edit: I'm not saying people shouldn't call their vet, I'm telling you some of the thinking they do to avoid it. And while I believe people taking care of any living thing should be concerned with its well-being, whether it be animal or person, not all people will look at the lives of their pets in the same manner as they would it were their child. And to some people spending even a little more money on a vet visit might be a hardship they wish to avoid if possible, especially if you have kids. Having kids, pets and a limited low income means sometimes choosing between spending money on a vet visit or saving it to spend on your kid if they get sick. Your "only $18" is quite a lot to some people. So some people will want to have a little more reassurance that they are doing the right thing by taking the pet into the vet and spending that money, and that's what some of them are doing here.

Edit2: There are also a couple of possibilities that you don't consider, probably because people tend not to give sufficient information when posing a question.

The first is that they have already called their vet and have only been informed to bring the pet in, either by the vet or the receptionist. If their income is limited then they might have some idea if the animal is exhibiting normal behaviour that they are unaware of, or maybe that it might be beyond the point of any meaningful recovery, and an answer here might point them in a direction of finding this out without the cost of a vet visit.

The second is that they intend to take the pet into the vet even though they might be hesitant, but want to have some idea of what they might be facing when they get there, or perhaps some questions to pose to the vet or even some information they should have available for the vet. In other words, they want to be prepared for the vet visit.

2006-12-30 01:49:31 · answer #2 · answered by marklemoore 6 · 1 3

I think if you call the vet and post here its ok BUT people MUST realize that they shouldnt take these answers as fact.. some people know what they are talking about and others just make stuff up.. how is the asker to know who is right???

its a LIFE we are talking about - even a vet couldnt make a 100 % sure diagnosis from some of the limited questions here...

2006-12-30 01:53:39 · answer #3 · answered by CF_ 7 · 0 0

thanks for fianlly saying something....... half of these pets are dead cause they wait to get an anwser on here. if u stepped on ur pet and it cant lift its head or u ran it over or it ate something it shouldnt have, why u asking us here? i mean come on, ur pet is dying and ur that dumb not to call or take ur pet to the vet, then u dont belong owning a animal.

2006-12-30 01:51:31 · answer #4 · answered by kooneyedkellie 3 · 0 0

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