I am so pissed! Just need to vent!

[SlickTxMaine]

Well, some of you may remember I had posted about 3 wks. ago about my son's steer being sick; passing blood and diarrhea.  Called the vet, and he gave us some boluses on a Tuesday, did not think it was coccidiosis.  Thursday I called the vet again, still the same, more blood, and again I ask him about coccidiosis, and again he tells me, "no, have seen this before, insides just messed up from the feed".  He gave more meds: baytril, banamine, and some pepto bismol looking stuff to coat his stomach. When I picked up the meds, I brought in a stool sample in a ziplock and suggested he test it for coccisiosis.  He just made a little face and didn't reply.  The calf improved a little, but still passing blood and straining. So Monday I picked up some sustain boluses and treated him myself.  That knocked it out!  Hurray. 

So yesterday we take the calf to the breeder, just 2 miles down the road to weigh him.  The breeder says, "so I heard he had coccidiosis".  I asked him what he was talking about, and he informs me that he took some heifers in to get dehorned the day after I picked up the second round of meds and dropped off the stool sample, and the vet, (who knew we had bought the steer from this guy) told him that he tested the stool sample and it was loaded with coccidia!!  Do you think the vet, or any of his staff called to tell us this???  The calf could have died!  I was so pissed!  This vet always thinks I over-react.  We have to get the steer dehorned, and this guy does a really good job at dehorning and shaping the skull.  I definitely want to tell him how displeased I am with not getting a call about the coccidiosis.              How would you guys handle this?  Sorry so long!!

 

[RidinHeifer]

I feel for you...I work parttime with my vet and he never seems to take me seriously when i ask about stuff...I ask b/c i want to know (granted I ask a lot).  I would definitely call your vet and act stupid and ask for the results of the fecal test...just play the stupid card then ask why you weren't notified sooner and then bring on why did the breeder knew about it...patient/client confidentiality...then go nuts and find a new vet... If you are in central IL and not too horribly far from Greenfield IL let me know & I will hook you up with an awesome cattle vet
Sorry about your problems! Hope the steer is catching back up on the weight side of things

 

[AAOK]

We all have our faults.  I would just forget about the whole ordeal.  Life goes on.........................concentrate on the Good Stuff!

 

[HAB]

Not knowing your relationship with your vet, I would talk to him about the situation.  Yes, you should have been notified upon the findings.  I don't doubt he will admit to that.  Maybe someone on his staff was to contact you, and didn't.  He was giving you things to treat what he thought your calf had.  It is a good thing you found what worked before it was too late.  I would follow up with another dose and probiotics, my opinion.  Hopefully your calf heals up and goes back to gaining weight.

As far as him telling another person...well, the calf did originate from that herd, and he was possibly letting the breeder know he might have an issue.  That being said, hopefully that was the only reason, and he doesn't make it a habit about sharing too much info about other clients issues.

What I am saying, is to calmly talk about the situation.  It may have just been a mistake that you were not notified.

HAB

 

[mooch]

NOT telling him your concerns with his office and and their handling of this situation helps asolutely no one!!If he is running a business that wants to stay in business he needs to fix the problem. Yeah yeah turning the other cheeck is great , but this is business and almost resulted in a catastophic loss to you for no reason. Call him ASAP.

 

[xxcc]

well, there may be two sides to this.

why does your vet think you over-react? - how many times do you 'cry wolf'?

second, CORID is cheap.  I don't know why the vet didn't tell you to drench your animal with that.  I saved a bull once that had it bad.

in regard to the vet, give him a chance to get his ducks in a row, and by the same token, see if you can't do the same.  the vet knows you're bent.  maybe let sleeping dogs lie and if he flubs up in the future then air your concerns and let him know, 'look you and your's didn't do the best job communicating before and now you're doing it again.'  ask him what can be done to remedy the situation.  vet's can tend to be whiners (about 7 out of 10 of them).

good luck...oh yeah, try the CORID drench, per label instructions.

 

[RidinHeifer]

in regard to the vet, give him a chance to get his ducks in a row, and by the same token, see if you can't do the same.  the vet knows you're bent.  maybe let sleeping dogs lie and if he flubs up in the future then air your concerns and let him know, 'look you and your's didn't do the best job communicating before and now you're doing it again.' 

I agree with what you're saying here, but my only concern-would you want it to continue and happen to other people or you again? and you or others lose animals this time...If you wait the vet & the office will not remember the fecal sample fromthe steer that tested + for coccidiosis. They won't remember you ever having an issue until they look at the records..Nip it in the butt before it ruins a client/vet relationship...any more than it has.  Any good businessman will accept advice and better be willing to change if it is a true problem like you have here.

 

[SlickTxMaine]

well, there may be two sides to this.

why does your vet think you over-react? - how many times do you 'cry wolf'?

second, CORID is cheap.  I don't know why the vet didn't tell you to drench your animal with that.  I saved a bull once that had it bad.

in regard to the vet, give him a chance to get his ducks in a row, and by the same token, see if you can't do the same.  the vet knows you're bent.  maybe let sleeping dogs lie and if he flubs up in the future then air your concerns and let him know, 'look you and your's didn't do the best job communicating before and now you're doing it again.'  ask him what can be done to remedy the situation.  vet's can tend to be whiners (about 7 out of 10 of them).

good luck...oh yeah, try the CORID drench, per label instructions.

Do I cry wolf? ....Well let's see, several years ago my kids' welsh pony foundered.  He gave me some banamine to treat her.  I kept calling him as she was not doing any better, wanting to bring her back in, and he kept  telling me, "it takes time, she'll have good and bad days, etc", well she did not get better, and one evening I called him....he lives 1/2 mile from me, and asked him to come by in the morning as it appeared she now had strangles.  By the time he arrived the next morning, she was dead.  Two years ago, brought my horse in that I thought was colicking, had temp. and diarrhea.  He sent me home with banamine and told me he must have eaten something that did not agree with him.  The next morning at 6am I am calling another vet as the horse is in serious colic.  He had rotated his insides, and could have easliy died.  So, no I do not think I over react.  I know when something is not right and needs attention.  I think I am a sensible person.  Had he called me on Friday and told me that he had coccidiosis, I could have treated him for that Friday, not wait until Monday, when I decided to go with my gut and treat him for it anyway.  

The vet does not know "I'm bent".   As far as I know, he does not even know that I found out the diagnosis.  Or either he thinks one of his staff called me.    I feel like calling him and saying, "You know that steer, he died, are  you sure it could not have had coccidiosis"  and let him stew on that for a little while.  

Okay, I have calmed down now----you just got me a littel riled up!!

 

[rackranch]

I would treat every calve in the barn with Corid and find another vet..G-Luck

 

[OH Breeder]

I am not sure why all the sudden people are like ....well just don't say anything let sleeping dogs lie. Don't make them made just be quiet it will  pass.  I have to call BS....I got that $700 vet bill for a c-section that HE forgot suture and killed the calf. I could have just paid the $700 but you now what, I have worked in the medical community for 20 years. You would never go to a surgery with no suture or no back up on your truck? Unacceptable. If you don't say anything the vet may  never improve his communication skills. I went round and round with the billing lady at his office saying we didn't charge you for the return trip to retrieve the suture and we don't guarantee live animal. I SAID and I DIDN"T KNOW YOU WERE going to show up to a surgery with NO SUTURE. The calf was alive for 10p to 515am!
Now when I talked to them I didn't shout and didn't get mad but presented my case logically and professionally asking they assume part of the bill. They should assume some liability for a huge mistake. After some back and forth they vet agreed it was a bad choice on his part and he did feel responsible. That is all I was asking for. Come to find out it was a new grad that was just finishing up vet school that was responsible for stocking the vehicles and the kits. That student will some day be a practicing large animal vet. The student did not know THEIR error cost me lot of money and potentially the cows life. I wanted this experience to be a learning experience not just for our family but for his assistant that is going out into practice.
Don't feel bad about venting or saying anything. Just approach it professionally and with out emotions. If you have to sit down and write it out to get rid of the emotions do it. Yelling will not get you far and emotions will only cloud the real issue. If it were me, I would ask if the vet had some time in his/her schedule I could discuss the recent treatment for one of your animals. Then discuss with him the discovery of the test results from the breeder. I would tell him that you appreciate his time and work but would appreciate notification with such information as it really make a difference in the outcome of your calf. You can make a positive come of this by improving his communication. maybe someone in the office was suppose to call you and forgot.

 

[OH Breeder]

I guess one more thing....


When discussing this or preparing for the dicussion evaulate what you may have done different that you could have improved the outcome of the situation. I am not saying you did anything wrong but evaulate how you handled this situation. You may find you need a new vet and this one does not meet your needs. That may the big "Ah Ha" for you. Or could also been something as simple as taking the stool sample in sooner than you did. Again, not placing any blame but just saying really look at both sides when approaching the vet for a discussion.

 

[SlickTxMaine]

Just to detail the time line:
   April 16th - picked up steer
   April 19th - first call to vet and boluses
   April 21st  - second call to vet, stool sample brought in and 2nd round of meds picked up.
   April 22nd - breeder is told by vet that calf has coccidiosis -  not me    
   APril 25th - I decide to treat with Sustain myself
   
        STILL NO CALL FROM THE VET  

    May 15th - breeder tells me he found out on April 22nd that calf had coccidiosis.  
   

                     It has now been over three weeks and STILL NO CALL FROM THE VET

This is really good therapy - I am feeling better already!

 

[Till-Hill]

Wow I feel bad for you. I am fortunate to have alot of good vets close to me. I call, text, email my vet all the time about little stuff. Maybe he thinks I bug him, I don't know. That is why I hired him. TO TAKE CARE OF MY NEEDS! And he gets paid for it. If he don't want to be paid I will find someone that does!

 

[hunter1]

We had one of our steers do the same thing earlier this year and i just called the guy we bought him from and he told me it was a no brainer he had coccidiosis. He told me what to treat it with and a week later we had no symptoms and all was good.  I will say that if i take my dog for instancce to the vet and tell him that it is wormy he asks me how i know...and i just reply that i am not stupid like he thinks i am that just because i dont have his degree doesnt mean that i dont know what im talking about.  Maybe your vet is like mine and doesnt want you to tell them what you think is wrong. And then some are just butts....

 

[twistedhshowstock]

Having been a lead assistant and practice manager for about 3 yrs, with about 10 yrs experience as a tech...I think you DEFINATELY need to address this issue with your vet.  I am gonna have to say I suspect that someone else in the office was supposed to contact you. Fecals are generally run by staff members and only looked at by the vet if something is seriously screwed up, especially if its a busy practice. In the practice I managed we as the Tech staff ran the fecal, if the chart/file was pulled we called the owner immediately(unless there was something we felt needed to be discussed with vet first)...if the chart/file wasnt up or we didnt have quick access to owners number or were extremely busy...a note was left for receptionist to call or with some clients note was left for vet to call. If this was the case it was most likely that someone just looked over the call, or someone may have assumed someone else made the call.  If this is what happened the vet needs to know so he can improve the service his staff gives, overlooking things in this field leads to major and potentially deadly problems.
On the other hand if they just didnt feel like calling you, sometimes if they view you as a pesky client they try to avoid you, not saying you are a pesky client, all concerns you listed seem legitimate. But if they just chose to avoid you and not tell you, then there is a major issue, no matter how good of a vet the guy is, if he is gonna act like that he is absolutely worthless as a vet because you cant depend on him. Find another vet.
I do not disagree with him telling the breeder though, as quickly as the symptons appeared after you brought the steer home, it is likely that the breeder has an issue to. So any good vet would inform him.

 

[justme]

I'd say something because I'll bet you when you get your vet bill...that lab cost will be on there.  You are paying for the test, you deserve to know the results

 

[xxcc]

I would address the issues with your vet, turn them into the Better Business Bureau ...and hey, here's a thought, find a new damn vet. (dog)

 

[RidinHeifer]

That is why I hired him. TO TAKE CARE OF MY NEEDS! And he gets paid for it. If he don't want to be paid I will find someone that does!

If he can't do his job he needs to find another one..PLEASE FOR YOUR OWN SAKE GET ANOTHER VET
Third strike your out!

also about the better business bureau-if the clinic isn't a"member" there isn't anything that they can do...my parents had a business for a while and mad people would try to say that and we would simply say whatever because we weren't members of the BBB so that is probably a lost cause

 

[CAB]

So I'm kind of having a problem with everyone throwing the vet under the bus on this one. I seriously doubt that the vet or a vet can or should disclose any information about any of his clients troubles with other PPL without asking the client whether or not that she or he would care. I think that the person that should have been talking to you should have been the person that you bought the calf from. Now if the vet did get a possitive diagnosis on your calf, he/she should have talked to YOU about that and possible treatment decisions.