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The following is a condensed version of an article I wrote for my site, vetabusenetwork.com, entitled “Going to the Vet? Ten Ways to Protect Your Best Friend.”
These were lessons I learned the hard way – by losing my beloved Suki to a despicable veterinarian who violated my trust in every way possible without a second thought. That completely unnecessary tragedy at the hands of a monster taught me that when it comes to protecting your pet, you must treat your visit to a veterinary facility as you would any other consumer setting. You must never, ever let your guard down, thinking that all vets love animals and would never harm them (you couldn't be more wrong). Or that a vet who does something wrong will do the honorable thing and own up to it (nope - some just love to use the word honorable while lying their sorry asses off in every way possible).
I've narrowed down the ten ways to these top five, but they are by no means a complete list. There are probably 20 more I could list. I learn something new from every victim who contacts me, about how to avoid what I believe are mostly unnecessary tragedies at the vet's office. These are things that if you implement in the total picture of your pet's care, you might have a fighting chance against incompetent, negligent, and abusive veterinarians who take advantage of a trusting, unsuspecting public every day. I hope you find something useful here to keep your beloved companions safe.
1. Get current copies of your pet's records after every visit. You are entitled to copies of your pet's complete medical record (some vets may charge a copying fee). If you are getting the runaround, contact your state board immediately and ask them to intervene.
But why do you need a copy after every visit? Because if something goes wrong, the first place that vet is going to go to (and get his/her staff to help) is to the records – to start rewriting history. If you keep a running file of every visit, the vet's going to have to work a little harder at any tampering efforts and may get caught. The Texas board itself, at a public board meeting, acknowledged that vets do this every day. Altering and destroying records is their first line of defense when they get caught and everybody knows it; they do it with absolutely zero conscience and a willing staff that helps them cover up their atrocities.
Your pet's medical record is also part of what you're paying for. An accurate record tells the story of your pet's medical life in the same way that your own medical records do. The importance of an accurate medical record is reinforced by the fact that every state licensing board has specific laws about what must be on that chart – weight, temperature, diagnoses, names and dosages of prescription drugs, and much more. Check your state board laws for your state's requirements.
A good record will also list the dates of all discussions, recommendations, and treatment decisions by the owner. This cuts down on the “he said/she said” bullshit that vets pull after they've been caught.
To me, sloppy, inaccurate, incomplete and careless record-keeping is a huge red flag. As far as I'm concerned, show me lousy records and I'll show you a lousy vet.
2. Never allow one vet to be in complete control of your pet's treatment – this means ALWAYS having a second opinion on hand before you need one. Be wary of allowing one veterinarian to be in complete control of your pet's medical treatment. The corollary to this rule is: Second opinion, second opinion, second opinion. This is especially crucial if your animal is elderly or has a chronic or complex condition. By getting copies of lab work and patient chart, a guardian can get a second (or third, or fourth) opinion to see if the treatment suggested falls within the law (yes, law) that all vets must adhere to -- the professional standard of humane care in that community.
This
statutes of the Veterinary Practice Act are there to protect you and
your pet from a veterinarian who may be operating as a loose cannon,
doing whatever he wants without regard to the standard of care.
Even
if (and sometimes especially if) the vet is saying "Everything's
fine!" and you suspect that something might be wrong, it doesn't
hurt to run your pet's medical record past another pair of eyes, or
post the information on the Internet in a pet health support forum,
just to double check.
I
can't overstress the importance of having a second vet on hand: After
it's too late, there will be no system in place to protect you if you
have been naive enough to place unconditional trust in one vet. A
second or third opinion will be some of the best money you ever
spent.
3. Make sure your vet uses written consent forms for surgery, anesthesia, lab work and other tests and procedures, and provides Consumer Information Sheets (CIS) for prescription drugs. Many of us have found out the hard way that some vets can and will perform any number of procedures - including surgery under anesthesia --without consent from the guardian. And once your pet is dead, you are up against a vet who can and will lie about getting informed consent.
Here's
how it goes: You: "I never gave consent to surgery." Vet:
"Yes, you did!" "No, I didn't." "Yes, you
did!" And on and on.
Without
a consent form, a vet knows he can blame the client and never be held
accountable.
Trusting
your pets to reputable veterinarians who use written consent forms
that apply specifically to the procedure involved (surgery,
anesthesia, etc.) and who provide you with Consumer Information Sheets (CIS) regarding the drugs administered to your pet can help to
decrease the chances of any vet later putting you in a he said/she
said scenario where he will most likely win because you won't be able
to prove otherwise.
In
these days of constant connectivity by fax, email, cell phones,
voicemail, and texting, there is no reason a veterinarian cannot
contact a client to obtain legitimate and INFORMED consent for
surgery. Deal with one who doesn't use written consent forms at your
pet's risk.
4. Check to make sure the vet has a valid license, and check their history of complaints and disciplinary action. You'd be amazed at how many vets are practicing with a lapsed or expired license, or are practicing in states they don't have licenses to practice in. The worst of these continue to practice happily without licenses every day, breaking the law -- it's a felony in some states -- and figuring what the public doesn't know won't hurt them.
Does
having a valid license mean that you are dealing with an ethical,
competent vet? Not necessarily. Your vet may have a history of
serious professional problems, and still have a valid license.
A
vet may have even had his license revoked by a state board and still
be practicing legitimately if the revocation was "stayed."
It's an odd concept to say the least, but perfectly legal as far as
the board is concerned.
If
you're lucky enough to live in a state that allows the public access
not only to disciplinary action but also a history of complaints and
investigations on a particular vet - even if the cases were dismissed
-- you're way ahead in gathering information to make an informed
choice.
Texas
keeps all dismissed complaints and investigative actions secret - they protect some of the worst offenders imaginable, allowing them to continue to practice while putting the public's pets at risk -- but
they can't stop a complainant from releasing information and evidence
directly to the public. You have the right to tell your pet's story, and no vet -- no matter how rich, how arrogant, or how many lawyers he hires -- can take away your First Amendment rights. I had one of the richest bullies imaginable after me, and Suki's Story will be told forever.
Of course your choice to take your pet to a vet with a
history is entirely up to you, but I believe that it becomes even
more important to monitor your vet's practices and procedures if you
decide to do so.
Never assume...
...that your vet is trustworthy because he seems like a “nice guy” or a “great gal.” Some of these “nice” people have left a trail of bodies a mile long that you will never know about unless it happens to you.
… that
your vet would not perform surgery without your permission (they can
do it in Texas and get away with it). Some especially arrogant vets
might perform any number of procedures without bothering to inform
the client, deciding on their own when a client needs to be contacted
and when they don't. Suki's killer claimed in his deposition that he
doesn't contact the owners for permission to perform a procedure if
it's something “very minor” like what Suki had. Very minor? Suki was in
multiple organ shutdown (his writing), she was dying of renal
failure, dehydrated, with no IV fluids, anemic, hypokalemic. With no presurgical lab work or pre-anesthetic evaluation (she had a history of CNS disorder which is in his handwriting), he put
her in an induction box, put her under halothane and nitrous
oxide (anesthetic), performed dental surgery (and later bragged that
he didn't charge me for it) and left Suki collapsed and dying in a
cage at Crestway Animal Clinic for hours without one word of
notification to me, much less permission. (One of the expert witnesses in the legal case, when Nichols unsuccessfully sued me for defamation, a board certified anesthesiologist from Texas A&M University, found nine violations of the standard of care committed by Nichols on one day alone.)
So
never assume that a vet won't perform an unauthorized procedure, even
a surgery, on your pet. Some of these creeps do whatever they want,
whenever they want, assuming they'll never get caught because how many times have they done this and their clients never knew it? If Suki hadn't lived long enough to be seen by second opinion vets who knew immediately how much wrong had been done, I never would have known what this monster had been doing to her, and for how long.
Never assume...
...that a vet won't overvaccinate your pet, putting your companion at potential risk of deadly disorders. Some vets refuse to change their vaccination protocols no matter how much evidence exists that overvaccination can be fatal. Do your homework.
...that a facility calling itself a "hospital" means there is a 24-hour staff on duty. Always ask who will be checking on your pets overnight. And if a vet says he or she is taking your pet home, make sure they actually do what they say. Some vets have been known to lie to clients about this service, only to leave a sick animal overnight alone, and later take credit for "taking the pet home" to a very grateful (and clueless) client who gushes about what a "great vet" they have.
...that a "cheap" vet is an "honest" one. Sometimes bargain basement prices hide a pitiful lack of competent care. See "Warning! Dr. CheapVet Could Be Hazardous to Your Pet's Health."
...that veterinary technicians have any training at all, or that they carry the title of RVT (Registered Veterinary Technician). In Texas, a vet can take someone off the street, put a set of scrubs on them, and call them a tech. Always ask about the credentials of the technicians dealing with your pet. Just because they call themselves "compassionate" or "caring" doesn't mean a damn thing if they're apathetic, incompetent, lazy, careless, or get their paychecks signed by a vet who is all of the above.
...that information on a business card or web site about professional affiliations means that that vet is a “specialist” of any kind. Some vets join organizations such as American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) and let the public make their own (incorrect) assumptions. I once looked a vet straight in the eye and said I had come to him because I was looking for a “feline specialist.” He stood there like a nail, completely silent, later denying that he had ever called himself a specialist. He hadn't, but by allowing me to refer to him as one without correcting me, it was equally dishonest. But not to his bizarre, self-serving “moral” code – in his mind he hadn't done anything wrong.
Never assume...
...that a vet would not deliberately harm an animal. Some have been doing it for years and getting away with it, repeatedly violating the statutes of the Veterinary Practice Act while enjoying the protection of their colleagues and their state boards who deliberately look the other way, lying to their friends and families, their staff, their clueless clients, and especially themselves.
...on the other hand, never assume that the state board will hold the vet accountable. Their disciplinary rolls prove, year in and year out, how many vets are let go with a slap on the wrist, a mere warning, or absolutely no action at all. In Texas, more than 90 percent of complaints against vets are dismissed, some (like Suki's, among others) with absolutely incontrovertible evidence of egregious wrongdoing.
Bottom line: Never blindly trust your vet. If something--anything--feels or sounds or seems off, if the vet is saying one thing and doing another, if the vet is acting evasive or unavailable, hiding behind staff or family members while your pet is in critical condition, if your questions are not being answered to your satisfaction, if your pet's records are inaccurate or incomplete, if you suspect the vet is lying to you about anything, if a vet has performed surgery or other procedures without permission, get your pet to another veterinarian as soon as safely possible.
And
most important of all: Never assume that the worst can't happen to
you and your pet. It happened to me, it happened to Suki. It has happened to countless others -- some who know and some who don't even realize it -- and it happens every day.
For
the complete, original version of this article, go to "Going to the Vet? Ten Ways to Protect Your Best Friend" at vetabusenetwork.com
