Ignorant Owners

No, this isn't a rant about how some ignorant owner wronged me or one of my dogs. This is about how sometimes I wish I was an ignorant owner. OK, not really, but sort of. . .

Sometimes I wish that I didn't have as much veterinary knowledge as I have. Aside from the time I would save cleaning ears, expressing anal glands, trimming nails, and looking at limping and lumps on friends pets; I would save my self a great deal of worry about my own pets.

My kids are getting old and I see all the symptoms - perhaps magnified because I know exactly what I'm looking for. While some people wake up one day and find that their 8 week old puppy is suddenly a 12 year old geriatric dog; I see all the small symptoms along the way. I notice that hesitating to get into and out of a car is a surefire sign of early arthritis. I see that "accident" as evidence of kidney disease or loss of bladder control. I see the slowing down on a walk as proof that we are having back problems.

While many owners would ignore these small symptoms - or not see them all together, I panic and rush my babies into the vet to figure out exactly what is going on. Because of my panic I learn things about my kids that other people might not know for years to come. And while I think that it often causes me unnecessary worry, I think that in some cases it prevents the problem from becoming irreversible. Learning Abby had kidney problems through a routine blood panel (after noticing more "accidents" ) I freaked out. Once I calmed down, I made a plan and with a slight change in diet, we remedied the problem. While I know that her kidneys aren't fixed, I know that we can manage the problem for longer than we would if I had just ignored it and let it get worse.

Recently, I have noticed that Mole's back isn't doing too well. . .again. Sure he is still getting around ok, but he is slightly off. I can see it when he walks and how he stretches and how he gets up from a nap. I know he is uncomfortable, but my stoic old man tries his best to hide it from me. We've tried muscle relaxants for a few days, but that hasn't seemed to help. We are going to try NSAIDs for a few days and hope that works. He isn't bad enough to put on steroids, but we might have to go back to the opiates.

Sometimes I wish that I didn't know as much as I did and then I wouldn't worry quite so much. But other times I'm thankful for my knowledge because I can pick and choose my medications more carefully rather than relying on a standard Rx from a vet. Then again, if I was an ignorant owner, I wouldn't know any better to begin with. . .