Are Fear-Free Veterinary Practices Practical?April 4, 2016Jill Breitner, a professional dog trainer and author of the Dog Decoder app is telling pet owners that fear-free veterinary clinics as the "only way to go." In an article for our sister Dogster, Breitner recommends fear-free clinics because pets are "unnecessarily traumatized." As she writes: "What goes on behind closed doors in some veterinary practices is not a pleasant topic to talk about, yet it needs attention. It needs attention because of the lack of education most veterinarians and their staff have in how to read and handle signs of stress and fear in dogs. There are no required courses in veterinary school that teach body language, behavior, or safe handling of animals, so they are not to blame. With limited time to get the veterinary tasks done, our pets suffer needlessly. Thankfully, though, as we continue to be a more aware and educated society regarding our dogs, veterinarians are being called upon to learn better practices." The fear-free movement is a growing trend in the veterinary world, with veterinarians like Marty Becker, DVM, and
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Why You Need to Start Saying 'No'March 17, 2016In the course of my 20 years in veterinary practice, I’ve learned lots of stuff—mostly the hard way. Worst of all, I’ve kissed lots of frogs. I know you have, too. Be they clients, employers, employees, product suppliers, service providers or business partners, we veterinary professionals interact with a wide range of possible reptiles. But as we all know, even princesses have to pucker up to get what they want. Yes, people will come and go. The hard part is learning to say “no” gracefully so you can move on to the next potential prince with the least amount of slime on your lips. Indeed, most of us eventually learn that declining specific actions, interactions and scenarios is well worth the stress that accompanies the negativity that comes with “no.” With maturity, we recognize that people, places and things we once tolerated are not worth the energy they demand, and we can finally muster the courage to bid them farewell—and fast. Unfortunately, the possibility for negative interactions has kept pace with the speed and complexity of modern veterinary practice. Whether you’re firing a client, splitting up your practice’s …
How Does Adding Vet School Seats Impact the Veterinary Workforce?February 17, 2016In one of my former roles of advising foreign governments and agencies on small-business development, I would always begin with three basic prerequisites that I feel are most important and need to be answered before starting a new business. First, can you physically do it? Second, can you make money doing it? And third, can you sustain it in a competitive market? The continued push to expand the number of veterinary schools (and, thereby, the number of seats available to veterinary students) certainly has me wondering whether all of these basic prerequisites are being considered in the planning process and before commitments are made to pursue the necessary approvals and begin the accreditation process. There is no doubt that the necessary resources, both in terms of capital and expertise, to build new veterinary colleges can be acquired anywhere in America. Based on current information about the willingness of veterinary college applicants to pay for a veterinary degree, new colleges can probably be profitable, more so if they are state-funded. The third prerequisite, however, offers a more daunting hurdle, as is frequently the case. The market for veterinary education faces …
5 Things We Love and Sometimes Hate in the Veterinary PracticeFebruary 11, 2016Love is in the air. Lots of it. But you wouldn’t know it by following the news. Presidential primaries, Syrian refugees, Parisian atrocities, Putin’s posturing, domestic xenophobia. It’s enough to make you question whether there’s any room in our frigid human hearts for snow cones and bunny rabbits, much less Valentine’s Day. Thankfully, though, I’ve amassed plenty of evidence to the contrary. After a tumultuous first year in my own veterinay practice, I’ve learned a lot of tough lessons the hard way. I’ve also managed to be excited, uplifted and even awed by the many ways in which practice ownership, and veterinary practice in general, can inspire the best in us. Unfortunately, it also can awaken the worst. But just because we want to strangle the occasional human doesn’t mean we have to behave like serial killers. I’m finally beginning to understand that becoming a veterinary professional doesn’t automatically mean that the world will bend to my will. Nor does buying the practice increase my control of the world around me; ironically, quite the opposite in my case. We still have to deal with people who …
Is Crisis Control Going Too Far?January 26, 2016Originally published in the January 2016 issue of Veterinary Practice News. Did you enjoy this article? Then subscribe today! I’ve been practicing veterinary medicine in Florida for more than 20 years. Though it’s arguably the most litigious state in the country vis-a-vis medical malpractice claims, I’ve never been sued. Not even close. In fact, I can’t name one colleague who’s been successfully sued. I know of two who have had complaints lodged against their licenses and of a specialist group that was unsuccessfully sued twice (once by a referring veterinarian/client, no less!). But none that I know of ever lost much more than some sleep, a couple of days of work, and maybe a little faith in humanity. I don’t mean to minimize this experience. I know one of the veterinarians sued in the above example and I understand how much it can hurt to be targeted by an owner’s desire for retribution, misplaced or not. What’s more, for decades now, it’s been clear to our profession’s legal counsel that we veterinarians are a marked lot. These veterinarians represent only the first wave of veterinary medicine’s tort-ridden …
Declawing and CyberbullyingDecember 23, 2015Originally published in the December 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News. Did you enjoy this article? Then subscribe today! I’ve been blogging since 2005, so I think I know a thing or two about cyberbullies. These are typically kind, well-meaning people who, when armed with a keyboard and a screen and a cause to fight for, can suddenly turn into trolls. A troll, according to the Urban Dictionary’s top definition, is “One who posts a deliberately provocative message to a newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument.” These are the people who got loose in August and initiated what the American Veterinary Medical Foundation called “a vicious cyberbullying attack,” one that “disrupted and contaminated” its third annual America’s Favorite Veterinarian contest. After some finalists endured online harassment surrounding the issue of declawing, the contest was called off September 1. The 20 veterinarian finalists were given certificates of appreciation and the charity’s heartfelt apology. The contest, as conceived in its first three years, would not go on. A new way to determine America’s Favorite Veterinarian would have …
Managing the microchip messNovember 30, 2015If you’re a semineurotic pet owner like me, you’ll have microchipped all your pets by now. But even if your policy has gone the way of the cobbler’s kids shoes, you’ll have implanted thousands of these tiny bioglass-coated RFID devices into your patients.
Go Pink?October 27, 2015Originally published in the October 2015 issue of Veterinary Practice News. Enjoyed this article? Then subscribe today! Chico quivered pitifully under the stainless steel exam table, peeking furtively in my general direction every few seconds––probably to be sure I hadn’t suddenly altered course. He was clearly calculating his escape options. As if my patient’s disapproval wasn’t enough, his person appeared equally dissatisfied with where this particular veterinary visit was headed. “Good thing Chico’s colorblind, Doc, otherwise he’d be out the door by now for sure.” Nice. Original, too. It was one of many statements I’ve come to expect from a certain contingent of my clientele. But that’s OK. I’ve learned to accept these ill-mannered remarks as the cost of doing business. Too bad I didn’t elect enormous breast implants instead, I’ve often mused. Those demand a degree of verbal prudence my pink hair is unlikely to ever recruit. Let me explain. A few years back I submitted a column on the pedestrian topic of shoes. Another time it was tattoos. Even more recently I tackled certain management gurus’ politically objectionable fashion …
No Obamacare for Pets EitherOctober 9, 2015You’ve probably heard it before: Veterinarians accused of only being in it for the money. But as we all know, medical care for pets is costly, and most veterinarians are barely breaking even. (Which sucks when you have vet school bills to pay.) It’s hard for people to understand the true cost of healthcare period, since we’re mostly unaware of the cost of our own healthcare, thanks to insurance companies and Medicaid/Medicare. It’s led to a popular joke around here: “Too bad there's no Obamacare for pets.” It’s no different over in the United Kingdom, as Veterinary Care Assistant Tracey Morgan writes in her opinion piece "There Is No NHS for Animals" over on the Huffington Post's UK website. Morgan says nothing we’ve haven’t already said before, but she does make a point of breaking down the real cost of human healthcare: “As humans in the UK we are incredibly lucky to have the [National Health Service], so let's look at how much human care actually costs. Well for a ten minute consult with a GP we cost the NHS between £45-70 (without taking anything away from GP's who …
How Integrative Medicine Can Change Your Veterinary PracticeOctober 5, 2015If you have been in veterinary medicine for more than a minute, you have noticed that there is a growing trend amongst pet owners. They acknowledge pets more like family members, anthropomorphizing them along the way. Words like “parents” and “children” are common descriptors in the relationships between people and their pets. We have all heard the reports of how many billions of dollars consumers are spending on their pets annually, too. Combine this with the increasingly demanding personality of consumers and it becomes obvious that veterinary hospitals have to increase their service. This includes the patient care, the quality of medicine and the customer service. Considering patient care and the quality of medicine, veterinarians need to be thinking about what medical services they bring to the table. I have been in this industry for 18 years. For the last five I have been the practice manager of an integrative practice. This practice was started in 2009 — remember what the economy was like in 2009? Despite starting up in a tumultuous economy, it has grown exponentially, thanks largely to the conscientious pet owners that are no longer willing to accept mediocrity …
