United we fall

Here comes part 2 of the nightmare – Post-Less than Stellar Experience at Mount Pleasant, Pringleman brought Pringles to United Vet. We'd previously visited them in a desperate bid to revive kitty. Dr Chang Siew Yee was efficient, offered resuscitation, but didn't push it. Given that their published charges were affordable, we left with a positive impression. Here, we thought, was a lady whom we could rely on in times of great emotional vulnerability - someone who could guide us towards making rational decisions (i.e., don't try to revive a dead cat).

This time around though, it was a highly inexperienced Dr. Pearlyn Ting (google her. No seriously. Google her. She’s the one with the uninspiring background) who was on duty.

Upon being informed of the circumstances of his condition (that he had gotten diarrhea after drinking water at Mount Pleasant, and that the diarrhea had lasted about 4 days), to do blood tests for pancreatitis, and also upsold Pringleman a "pet wellness programme" which included myriad blood tests which all (surprise surprise) revealed pringles to be a very healthy young dog. Then she tried to sell Pringleman "Diarrhea Diet" by Science Diet despite him saying that Pringles rarely gets diarrhea........  Thankfully, he managed to say no.

Really. Pringles is two, he exercises regularly, and he eats well. Was it really required to test him for PANCREATITIS? REALLY? REALLY?? While Pringleman was under no legal obligation to accept those tests, he was sufficiently stressed about Pringles' condition to say yes to everything the vet said... so we really can't blame the vet entirely for this entire issue. The onus is on the pet owner to veto suggestions they are uncomfortable with. However, even as someone in marketing, whose KPI is to drive sales volumes, I feel that the line must be drawn at taking advantage of emotionally weak individuals. 

The final bill was $500. $500. That's the price of a semi-luxe weekend break in HCMC or Manila. $500. 

Incidentally, I found out about this just after calculating how much I had spent that day, on buying designer shoes… I had spent $575. When Pringleman revealed this astounding figure to me over the phone, I swear I saw 80% of my holiday shopping disappear in a puff of smoke. $500 is crazy for a case of uncomplicated diarrhea in a young dog.

While this may have been a case of the vet trying to err on the side of caution.. how would you feel if I brought a previously healthy human teenager (aged 14) in to the doctor for persistent diarrhea (3-4 days), and the doctor decided to test him for...pancreatitis? You would probably be up in arms. 

BUT a doctor for humans probably wouldn’t have made that mistake anyway. Because of the rigorous training provided. I once saw a comment by a forum participant, stating that Vets are the people who couldn’t make it into med school, but decided to become vets instead, to continue to earn the same income as doctors! But judging by Dr Pearlyn Ting’s qualifications, I cannot help but wonder if she is one of those.

Vets treat a wide range of animals, with varying internal systems.. shouldn’t the conditions for entry and graduation be as strict, if not more stringent?

The unfortunate truth about pet services is.. pets can't talk, and hence marketers and business owners are all to happy to fill in the blanks for them. There really needs to be more regulation, or at least education, for the sake of pet owners. Why don't human food regulations apply to these animals?

Citing the very "diarrhea diet" that dear Dr. Pearlyn Ting recommended, I found two matching products on Science Diet's website:

Hill's® Prescription Diet®
i/d® Canine Gastrointestinal Health (8.5lbs, USD28.99) ($3.41/lb)

Ingredients

Brewers Rice, Chicken Meal, Whole Grain Sorghum, Cracked Pearled Barley, Pea Protein Concentrate, Pork Fat, Soybean Oil, Flaxseed, Chicken Liver Flavor, Whole Grain Oats, Dried Beet Pulp, Brown Rice, Lactic Acid, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Iodized Salt, vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Niacin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Taurine, Dicalcium Phosphate, Oat Fiber, Mixed Tocopherols for freshness, Phosphoric Acid, Beta-Carotene, Natural Flavors, Dried Apples, Dried Broccoli, Dried Carrots, Dried Cranberries, Dried Peas.

and

Hill's® Science Diet®

Adult Sensitive Stomach & Skin (30lbs, USD45.99) ($1.53/lb)

Ingredients

Brewers Rice, Chicken Meal, Whole Grain Sorghum, Cracked Pearled Barley, Pea Protein Concentrate, Pork Fat, Soybean Oil, Flaxseed, Chicken Liver Flavor, Whole Grain Oats, Dried Beet Pulp, Brown Rice, Lactic Acid, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Iodized Salt, vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Niacin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Taurine, Dicalcium Phosphate, Oat Fiber, Mixed Tocopherols for freshness, Phosphoric Acid, Beta-Carotene, Natural Flavors, Dried Apples, Dried Broccoli, Dried Carrots, Dried Cranberries, Dried Peas.

Oh wow.... did they just .. sell the SAME product at DOUBLE the price? Believe Hill’s Pet Nutrition has the perfect answer for this. Off their website....

What is the difference between Prescription Diet® and Science Diet® brand pet foods?

Prescription Diet® brand pet foods are formulated to address specific medical conditions that can develop in pets. Science Diet® brand pet foods are formulated to meet the needs of healthy pets during various life stages. Prescription Diet foods are available through your pet's veterinarian, while Science Diet foods are available through your veterinarian and at pet specialty stores, feed stores and some pet grooming facilities. We do not make Science Diet products that serve as substitutions for Prescription Diet products.

Yup. You got that right, everyone. People with sick pets are easier to fleece, than people with healthy ones. Not sure what the last line was about though.. because the Science Diet item certainly looked like the Prescription Diet one. Maybe it just had the same ingredients in different concentrations. Ha. Ha. Ha.

Anyway it’s a 2.5 star dog food. Quite relieved Pringleman didn’t cave and get it..

Mount Not So Pleasant

About 1 week back, we brought Doggy to Mount Pleasant (Jln Gelenggang) to fetch a friend who was donating blood. And as dogs are wont to do in a place with a water source, all three of them consumed water... and got diarrhea after.

While some may think it presumptuous of us to blame it on Mount Pleasant, we did our due diligence on this - the three dogs had just happened to all visit the same doggy cafe the night before, so we'd checked with all our contemporaries to see if anyone was down with diarrhea too. Nada. The next thing they all had in common - was a trip to Mount Pleasant.

The most proactive of us brought her dog back to Mount Pleasant immediately after the onset of diarrhea, and the "boss" (this was how his minion kindly referred to him) waived all consultation charges, and she was only billed for medicine.

Over the next few days, I journeyed overseas, and Doggy failed to recover - in fact, he began regurgitating all his food. Poor baby! So Pringleman brought him to Mount Pleasant alone, where the receptionist declared, upon seeing him, that:

A, They had done a check on the water, and there was "no bacteria", and it was not the cause of diarrhea
B. Consultation fees would not be waived for our dog

Well Mt. Pleasant's infamous for being expensive, so fearing a very high bill, Pringleman drove straight on to a different vet, but I was just shocked at the lack of professionalism encountered. I even called the clinic to clarify, because it just sounded so unbelievable and illogical. Putting it in point form below so it is easy to reference the points above.

A.

• They made the comment without sampling Pringles' poop - how would they know that the bacteria in his poop did not match ANY bacteria in the water? At the very least, a Fecalysis and treatment should have been rendered, with the agreement that if there was NO match between the water and his poop, then we would have to foot the bill! Hello - people enter hospitals expecting to recover, not emerge half dead.
• Water ALWAYS has bacteria - that is why contact lens wearers are advised to DRY THEIR HANDS before putting in contact lenses. Wet things ALWAYS, ALWAYS have bacteria. That's why an M&M dropped behind a sofa for the past 3 months is probably safer than a piece of meat dropped on a hawker center table just 5 seconds ago (time to review your 5 second rule, everyone). Based on ignorance of this alone, the receptionist was not qualified to make this statement.
• Receptionist. Hello receptionist! I believe you're not a qualified vet. I trust and respect you for doling out our pets' meds, and keying their information in correctly, but unfortunately I don't trust your medical judgement...

B

• Hello - why waive it for one dog, but not the rest? Especially even after being informed of the situation? Water has ALOT of bacteria. Even if Doggy 1's diarrhea reaction was not in response to a given bacteria in the water, how could she have known that OUR doggy had not suffered from the water?

I was highly disappointed when I confirmed statements A and B to be true, after calling two personnel at the clinic to clarify. What rights did the receptionist have, to declare that our dog's situation was not the result of the water at her workplace? What an imbecile. And the best part was - she did not even check with authority before issuing her statement and turning Pringleman away. I'm pretty sure her job description didn't include making medical judgement - totally overstepped the line there.

As I was overseas, I left Pringleman's mobile number, and Dr. Dennis returned the call the following day, kindly apologizing for his staff, and offering us a complimentary consultation. Not bad..  I suppose.

Update - 23 Aug 2014 - we went for the complimentary consult! And it was okay! I think we should be engaging Dr. Dennis as our annual vet going forward. Hope all goes well!