Giving Advice ???
 

I have noticed quite a few posts giving advice about medications, dosages, medical treatments, etc.

And I have noticed some of you questioning your veternarian's advise and coming here to find out if it's correct.

A lot of answers here are probably correct, but if one was wrong, with a wrong dosage for example, it could cause a very serious outcome for your pet. Incorrect advice could be the result of a simple typo....ask me - I have done medical transcription for more than 30 years.

If you don't trust your veternarian - find a different one. You can ask about medical problems here and learn a lot from people who have had similar problems - but don't let a lay person be your dog's doctor.

In the medical offices I have worked in (plus being a hospital supervisor) - if a person was not a doctor or nurse, they were in serious trouble if they ever gave medical advice to a patient...regardless of how much they knew or how sure they were of their advice.

I am not talking about every day bumps and bruises and problems. I think we can all put our two-cent's worth in on those. I am talking more about pets that need medical attention and medications (including over-the-counter medications - which can be just as dangerous as prescription drugs).

Mentioning medications, dosages, etc., may be okay, but we should remember to remind the poster that we are not a doctor and that they should check with their vet before they actually start giving their pet any drugs.

Hope I'm not ruffling any feathers!!! I'm just concerned that some people might follow the advice they get here rather than taking their dog to a qualified veternarian.

Carol Jean

You raise some very good points that needed to be said.

And I would extend it even beyond medical issues to include training issues as well. While for everyday problems it's okay to find out how others are dealing with a certain issue, if you have serious behavioral issues, you really should consult a trainer.

Thank you!!!

Thanks FirstYorkie ---I appreciate your support. I certainly haven't meant to offend anyone.

I honestly think that most vetrenarians are great people. They generally care for animals very much or wouldn't have become vets. And, they are well educated, trained specialists. I'm sure there are a few bad apples in the bunch, but they are few and far between. Certainly most vets know more about our pet's medical needs than we or our friends do.

I have honestly never had any of my vets not willing to discuss anything in detail with me and answer all my questions. I trust my vet completely. She is very good about giving me all the treatment options for any medical condition. I have paid a fortunate in vet bills, but she has helped me save money many times. I especially love her because she cried with me when I had to put one of my dogs to sleep two months ago.

I'm sure a lot of you can come up with horror stories about your vets. But, as I said before -- find a vet that you respect and trust....the same as you would with your own doctor.

Again - don't look for answers to any serious medical problems on the Internet. Information and solutions are two different things. We can all share experiences - what happened and what was done for our pets - but that doesn't always mean that the exact same thing is best for yours.

I find it very interesting to read some of the posts regarding different medical problems and what was done to treat them. I have learned a lot reading all the different posts. If my dog seemed sick, I would certainly ask all of you what you think the problem might be. But I would take my dog to the vet to be sure and to be treated.

A lot of information regarding the health of our pets can be shared without concern - because it's general information that does not pertain to a serious medical condition.

FirstYorkie - mentioned getting professional help for serious behavioral problems. That is probably worth giving some thought to also. Depending on the problem, sometimes not doing the right thing can cause an even worse problem.

But then - can Yorkies ever be a problem???? They are so cute and we spoil them so rotten - right?

***** It's 4:30 am. I am still up and I am having 16 people over for dinner tomorrow - THANKSGIVING!!!! No sense going to bed now. Besides, I have a million things I can do.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Carol Jean

I think I will leave this thread alone.

I AGREE and though I don't think I've offered advise on medications - when something sounds serious - I do post that the first thing is GET TO THE VET or at least CALL the vet - We all try to help but are in no way a substitute for our doctors.....

I totally agree with this post and hope anyone seeking medical advise reads it. We have many breeders etc here with wonderful advise & our members are always very helpful - but the vets are the main place to treat any yorkie - we can offer ideas.... but the vet should be involved no matter what -

I personally love my vet and I think nothing of picking up the phone with a question - but I also have learned a TON on these sites.

advise
 

A good post...thanks for you insight.

Several people here who give advise on medication have the background to do so...rarely do I see members advising about serious meds.
In all the time I have been here I have yet to see a post where a members Yorkie was harmed by advise on simply meds like kaopetate or bendryl...but we have numerous members who have had their Yorkies harmed by incompetent vets. Some have even lost their companion to bad medical care.

As with human medical care, we have to be involved and get advise from many places..but members are quite careful about medication advise I feel...always referring to vet checks.
if a member has a Yorkie with Liver shunt, Legg Perthes, or something simple as as allergies it is wise to compare treatment.

Some vets recommend worming a litter of pups at 2 weeks..as a 30 yr breeder I can tell you NEVER worm under 6 weeks and then only after a stool check.
Many vets refuse to dock tails past 3 to 4 days..well, many pups are so small they are not ready until 7 days etc..that is one reason we as breeders must learn to do many things ourselves..for the well being of our animals. Plus, most vets cut the tail instead of the bloodless twist method.
I can tell you 100% tea tree oil will clear up hot spots faster then perscription cortizone..it is harmless, a steroid is not.

I can go on and on, but you get my point...I love my vet in Md..he told me many times that we were a team. He used to call me and ask Yorkie advise..he said no vet can know what a breeder knows and a vet is being very short sighted not learning all they can from a breeder..in turn the breeder needs the vet and needs to learn from them.

My new vet here in Florida spent 30 minutes just asking me about Yorkies the last time I was there..she wanted to understand how coat colors changed..also what shampoos were best for them..did I find a problem with tinies and open fontanelle's, did I see them living as long etc etc..also what vaccine schedule did I follow? She was not a young vet, but she was a smart one to pick my brain..I am not saying I am smarter then the vet, what I am saying is she can take my experience and add to her medical experience..I can take her medical experience and add to my "hands on" breeding...the best of both worlds.

Good post yorkierose. I like how your vet said you two are a team.

Pat...when YOU post - I know I listen ! I bet you have just as much experience with puppies as any vet ...

vets
 

Once when Dr Pete was out of town my girl, Blanche had a whelping problem. The assistant vet gave her a shot to get the contractions going stronger, finally a leg pops out. The vet calls for the tech to get Blanche really for a c-section..the tech was a long time Yorkie breeder herself, so she showed the vet how to pull out a "legs first" puppy.
The vet said he didn't get many chances to deliver pups in med school..he cut alot out, but natural births were fewer.

Dr. Pete actually did a free surgery on one of my Yorkies because he wanted his assistant to learn how to do an inverted knee cap repair. The day of the surgery it snowed..I couldn't get to the vets office, so Dr. Pete came to my house to get the puppy...this was a congential defect. It was born with a backwards knee cap..surgery was 100% success. Dr. Pete said it was rare and the assistant would never have learned it in vet school.

Sooo, I love vets, but we have to use all the resources available to us.

Well there is a first aid sheet for yorkies that I have given advise from. It has meds like pepto and keopectate on it. I think people should go to the vet also but not everyone goes to the vet every time there dog gets diahrea or a stomach upset. Usually people are advised that if it continues to go to the vet. I really dont see the harm on simple meds like this.

Thank You Pat! Our vets. are wonderful and we together treat my dogs! When it comes to breeding they have learned to come us breeder! If I don't know " and there is alot for me to learn", I pick up the phone and call my mentor in mississippi now! She broke our vet in right , They hold her in high reguard! I love my Vet. lily

I don't know if you are the one that gave me the link to the first aid meds last night or not but when I talked to my vet just an hour ago, he told us to do everything you guys have been telling us so there is some very good advice on here. Most people do always say call your vet, but if your vet is unavailable and you live in the boonies, sometimes you have to rely on others as I did last night with Ceeby. Who, BTW, is a little better today and I think he will live. I was doubtful last night.

Vets are important but theyre only as good as their knowledge and training in toy breed dogs.

I have had numerous problems getting the right and wrong advice from a vet, non response from a vet, wrong diagnoses from a vet, need I go on!

A great example is clavamox, Albon, Advantage, should not be giving to a pregnant bitch amoxicillian is the safest as to not jeapodize the health of the impending offspring, yet vets haphazadly perscribe these.

Another example, client took a pup in for their 72 hour vet check after placement. Vet came into the room with 7-1 shot rip roaring ready to go and inject the kid. My client called me on the cell and said he is trying to use lepto and he said he needed a shot...The Kid left with one shot and needed the next the following week at the soonest not on the vet check. She told the vet he was not there for shots but a well check, he promptly said he needs it NOW and lepto is fine, "we always have these problems with breeders" Thank god she took the dog and walked out of the clinic! Came back to me a week later for his second shot.

Final example, another well check....Kid has wet eyes and was sneezing (first two days in her house and he didnt leave with wet eyes) when she took him in for his check. My kids are raised in a very sterol environment The vet didnt once ask what changed in his environment??? automatically perscribed amoxicillian with out hesitation, just assumed he had a cold. Client called me we talked about his environment! The entire house is carpet (where she vacuums daily and uses carpet fresh on a regular basis) there is a cat and a hedgehog in the house, I told her to give baby bendryl twice a day for a week, hmmmm guess what he no longer has wet eyes she didnt use the amoxicillian!

Vets are great for important things and emergencies! I call this a love hate relationship! Or cant live with them and cant live without em!

Kimberly and Pat...excellent posts! I love my vets...all 3 of them. If it is something serious enough to call them, I do but many...probably most of the time...I'll turn to a long time breeder first.

I started the post - and agree with many of your replies.

My vet also asks me a lot of questions about my dogs and is willing to listen and learn. She said she learns something new everytime she has a new dog to take care of. And like human medicine, new medicines, treatments, and surgerys are happening all the time for dogs too. It is a lot of work to stay busy 6 days a week (sometimes 10-hour days) and keep up with all journal articles that are coming out.

I certainly agree that those of you who have bred and raised Yorkies for years have a lot of information you can share with your vet. And, a good vet will listen.

We can't always be sure, however, that people on the forum looking for medical advise will get those of you who are experienced and can really help them. They could just as well take advise from someone who doesn't know what they are talking about.

I work in Cardiology and can't tell you how many people I work with (even medical assistants) who couldn't draw the heart and tell you how it works if their life depended on it ---and some of these people have worked in Cardiology for years. And, unfortunately, some of these people think they are "experts" when it comes to cardiology. Unreal!

I also agree that you can't run to a vet every time your pet has an upset stomach or diarrhea. But, if it continues, you should go.

This is an interesting subject, and there have been a lot of good responses.
I am sure it is worth discussing and talking about.



Carol Jean