Message Number: YG4875 | New FHL Archives Search
From: Christopher
Date: 2001-06-25 20:38:00 UTC
Subject: Re: question and answers

--- In Ferret-Health-list@y..., "Cyndy Nelson" <cyndynelson@h...>
wrote:
>and he said, "I wish I had so much spare time to spend on the
>internet". It wasn't said in a nice way either. Grrrrr....he makes
>me so mad. He is the only exotics vet around except for a new one
>to town, but when calling their office, the girl there didn't even
>know what insolinoma, or adrenal was...so I didn't opt to go there.
>

Cindy, not to be a smart-butt.... but the girl who answers the phone
shouldn't be expected to know what insulinoma or adrenal is. Think
about it, do you want the secretary, receptionist or office manager
diagnosing your ferret? Think it's just a tad unfair to judge the Dr
by the lack of medical knowledge of the "girl who answers the phone."

> My question now is, do we really have to have blood work? I can
>insist on it, but it will make him mad. He thinks the info off the

What is the consensus here? I'm personally just the guy who answers
the phone (not a vet) but of the opinon that in MOST cases the TN
panel is a waste of money. If it walks like adrenal and quacks like
adrenal, I'd rather just have my vet go in. If I wasn't sure it was
adrenal, or the furkid was a lousy surgical candidate to start with,
then I'd be yelling TN panel.


>internet is half bogus, and the rest is not really reliable. Not a
>great bedside manner. He is a great surgeon. He preformed a c-
>section on one of my guinea pigs, and a bladder stone removal on

If you honestly feel he is a great surgeon, you've seen his work,
ultimately, that is what counts. I think I would look into the other
vet and ask around to see if anyone else has used him with good
result. An anatagonistic Dr/client relationship is going to cause
someone to miss something down the road as it has to affect
communication. I'd let him do this surgery, and start shopping so
that I had someone else I was more comfortable with before the next
emergency. How is he with the patients? A vet who is a brilliant
surgeon, and has a lousy bedside manner I could probably live with. A
vet who is a brilliant surgeon and treats my furkids with any sort of
indifference is going to see only my backside going out the door.

I think I would call the new guy in town and set up a well ferret
visit just to see what he's like.

Hugs
Christopher