De-Stress Your Vet Visit

Stress-LESS Visits to the Vet

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[00:00:41] Amy Castro: Our merchandise is the perfect way to show your support for your favorite pet, podcast, and animal rescue at the same time. So what are you waiting for? Just visit our website at www.starlightpettalk.com to order your merchandise today. Welcome to Starlight Pet Talk. I'm your host, Amy Castro, and today we're going to talk about every pet's favorite car ride, which is going to the vet.

[00:01:05] Amy Castro: I know.

[00:01:06] Dr. Zoo:  I want it to be, and that's our goal.  

[00:01:07] Amy Castro: I know, we’re going to work on that. Okay, good. Going to the vet can be extremely stressful for many pets, which in turns means that we are going to be stressed out as pet parents and pet owners, not from the time that we get into the car or in the case of cats, from the time we chase them all over the house to try to get them in the carrier.

[00:01:23] Amy Castro: Until the time that we get back home. So our goal here today is to talk about some things that we can all do to make the trip to the vet more pleasant for everybody involved. So my guest here today, I'm super excited to have her here. Is my favorite veterinarian who works with us at the Animal Rescue, 

[00:01:42] Amy Castro:  Dr. Arsue Shokrollahi-McClain. And she is the owner and the medical director at the Family Animal Hospital in Friendswood, Texas, which is just one town over from me. And we see each other a lot don’t we?

[00:01:53] Dr. Zoo: Yeah, we do. And so that you don't have to. Struggle with my name. I go by Dr. Zoo, so That's right.

[00:01:59] Dr. Zoo: Makes it a lot easier for everybody. 

[00:02:01] Amy Castro: That’s right; you’d think I would know how to say my own vet's name, but I just call her Dr. Zoo. Okay. So let's talk about this trip to the vet, right? So let's, start with the things that we can maybe do at home to reduce stress for ourselves and our pet.

[00:02:16] Dr. Zoo: Yeah, I think planning is the biggest one for sure. And you can probably, from the time you make your appointment, start planning the visit. Especially with cats, leaving the crate out, putting a little Feliway, which is a pheromone that you can spray, you can, or order even online. Amazon and all those places have it where you can put these calming pheromones in the room around the crate, in the crate that can get a cat excited about the crate.

[00:02:44] Amy Castro: Alright, so getting the carrier out, using the Feliway. Great, great way. We'll put a plug for Feliway on the show notes.  

[00:02:51] Dr. Zoo: Remember who plugged you. Yeah. Starlight could definitely use some help and they'll continue, especially rescue cats. They need Feliway.

[00:02:57] Amy Castro: Yeah, they need de-stressing many of them.

[00:03:00] Dr. Zoo: So, and that's our cat side. On our dog side. A lot of dogs actually like going in the car. That's great. You know, just go in the car, drive to the mailbox. If you have a far mailbox, go in the car, drive to Starbucks. They don't even have to get out of the car. But just getting in the car can be like a fun thing.

[00:03:14] Dr. Zoo: So by the time you go in the car, you go to the vet, then it's like, Oh, okay. There's a little surprise there for them sometimes, but at least they're in in a happy mood and good serotonin is in their brain. Just from it's fun to be in the car with mom or dad. For the dogs that don't like getting in the car, then maybe just opening the car door and putting treats in there, letting them sneak a treat in and out, and just walking in out of the car just a little bit.

[00:03:37] Dr. Zoo: at the time, that would get him used to it. Turning the car on in the driveway. Sitting in the car five minutes and turning the car off. And then there's of course, chemical assistance that we sometimes have. Owners call.

 Amy Castro: Everybody likes a little bit of chemical assistance. 

Dr Zoo: Yeah, you made a good point earlier is sometimes if the stress levels are too high, You won't get good test results, you won't get a good evaluation.

[00:03:58] Dr. Zoo: You know? Does your dog always shake at home or is he just shaking because he is here, the Chihuahua. So you're 

[00:04:03] Amy Castro: not seeing the real dog chemically or physically, you're examining.  

[00:04:06] Dr. Zoo: that’s right. It can be, it can be affecting your results and you want to get a really good feel. A lot of times vets ahead of time, if they know they can prepare liquids.

[00:04:14] Dr. Zoo: Something you can mix in cat food. We special order treats that are in cat nip flavor with gabapentin in them, which is a one of the drugs that cats are really good at relaxing with, and we use a lot of things like Trazodone or C B D for our dogs, depending on how high their level anxiety is. We try to go with the natural stuff if we can, but.

[00:04:35] Dr. Zoo: Their anxiety levels can be sometimes more than what CBD or some of the natural things can do. L-theanine  is another natural one. There's a lot of calming chews out there. They have a combination of natural things and you want to maybe test that before you go to the vet. So maybe you want to, if they're nervous about getting in the car, test that natural product out,

[00:04:53] Dr. Zoo: go for the car ride and see how that goes. And if you're like, wow, that really didn't help, then maybe call the vet ahead of time. Can I pick up something? Sometimes you can even get those things called into your pharmacy near you, so you're not having to drive all the way to the vet depending on how far you're going.

[00:05:07] Dr. Zoo: That way you have a little extra something in your arsenal to help calm the animal down beforehand.  So, it’s going to take some pre-planning.

[00:05:12] Amy Castro:  Pre-planning and I think the whole prepping the cats thing with the carriers. It's like, usually the dogs, my dogs are not really the issue, but it's like the cats, as soon as the carriers come out,

[00:05:24] Amy Castro: everybody disappears and it's like, that's kind of dumb. I should have figured that out sooner to just have them out more often so that they're used to having them around and not so traumatic. The other thing I was thinking about because, and I'm just going to speak to my own mistakes that I make when I go to the vet.

[00:05:39] Amy Castro: You think I would be better at this game,

[00:05:41] Dr. Zoo: We all learn from our mistakes and that's sometimes the most memorable lesson.

[00:05:45] Amy Castro: Well, I do this at my, at my doctor's office. I went to go get an MRI recently and they want your list of your whole medications. It's like I take brown pill and I take the white pill and it's, I don't know.

[00:05:55] Amy Castro: Yeah. So I, would it be also a pretty good idea to have the meds written down? Absolutely. You should have those. But if I was at a new vet or maybe I'm giving a new supplement.  That I you don't know about. That's to have, that's written down.  

[00:06:06] Dr. Zoo: I have people that are great about going to their Amazon cart and seeing what they ordered for that last supplement, which is great.

[00:06:14] Dr. Zoo: But certainly sometimes if medicines are bottles you're not sure about, take your phone. And really, we’re in a society of being able to use technology to our advantage, we should. And take a phone, a screenshot of all the pill vials and your vitamins and maybe the branded dog food, because we're going to ask about that too.

[00:06:31] Dr. Zoo: What you're feeding your dog and what are the ingredients and, and sometimes we're like, oh, what's the blue bag like? Okay. There are a lot of blue bags and it's, it's got a dog on the front. Okay. There's a lot of dogs on the front of blue bags. Yeah. So yes, it would be helpful if you can use your phone and take those pictures just prepare, that information.

[00:06:50] Dr. Zoo: It could put some puzzle pieces together like. Oh, she has diarrhea. Off and on. We're going to want to know all those questions about, okay, well what about treats? What do you give for treats and things like that. Because anything that goes in can affect what goes out, right? So, or even if there's some deficiencies, vitamins and things like that.

[00:07:07] Dr. Zoo: We want to know what you are feeding so we can put those puzzle pieces together. So that will be helpful. And a lot of clinics, including our clinic, we have our online forms, you can fill those out ahead of time. So then save you some time, not only save you some time because yes, you do have a life and you have things you want to do, but.

[00:07:24] Dr. Zoo: Also the longer that it takes to get to dealing with your animal, sometimes the more anxiety can build up in the animal, the longer they're in that environment. So if we can make the visit more efficient, it's nice for the animal and it's nice for the client because they've got to go and do some things and the animal isn't waiting and building up the, the stress of being somewhere new.

[00:07:43] Dr. Zoo: So we do try to be efficient with them and that could help us if you fill out paperwork beforehand. We'll send texts about the appointment with links that says, Hey, fill this out beforehand and this will help you out. Learn about our Petly plans beforehand. And that way we can sign you up for, let's say, a payment plan beforehand so that you're not sitting in the office taking a lot of time, and the animal sitting there going, why are we still here, mom?

[00:08:06] Amy Castro: Yeah. Well that's a, and that's a good point, from the animal stress standpoint. But also I was thinking about, as you were saying this, I was thinking. That explains why the schedule gets thrown off. Because people like me coming in like the blue bag or my worst one is, well, how much are you feeding them?

[00:08:22] Amy Castro: I don't know, because to be perfectly honest, people, when you run a rescue and you've got a bunch of dogs, sometimes you just throw a big scoop on the patio. And everybody, it's every man for himself. And so I don't know how much this one's getting. I know that's, that's bad to admit to my vet, but it's real.

[00:08:36] Amy Castro: That's, you always say we should be honest, right? Yes. That's another thing.  Don't lie to your vet. 

[00:08:40] Dr. Zoo: Honesty is the best policy. I mean, it's just like going to the doctor and anytime you are not sharing all that information, maybe we're not able to help us much. We want to know how much you're feeding, what you're feeding real life.

[00:08:52] Dr. Zoo: Common problem. You know, you're giving the medicines. Yeah, I'm giving the medicines, but really I'm fighting the animal for the medicines. And the medicines are more on the ceiling than they are on the pet. Yeah. And, uh, my carpet is pink. Thanks to that antibiotic going everywhere instead of it being in the animal.

[00:09:07] Dr. Zoo: And if we know those things, we can actually help with different types of medicines and or, maybe once a day type medicines. So twice a day type medicine. So communication is important. Even if you feel like you may be judged, we're not going to judge you, and you're a good vet and a good veterinary team knows that it's hard to convince your pet to take medicines or eat just this and not beg you for food.

[00:09:30] Dr. Zoo: We, we need to know those things so we can help you, for example. One of my admissions is I feed my dog table scraps sometimes here or there, and that's a huge taboo. Don't do it. What we do is, I have a rule with my husband, it's like, okay, it's bread or carbs or green beans or vegetables. No, they're not going to get the piece of steak off your plate, but at least you can

[00:09:51] Dr. Zoo: pick and choose wisely. And so we have those talks with clients. Like if I say don't feed them table scraps. Well, the odds are we're going to keep feeding table scraps, but maybe we can just say, Hey, try to feed these things instead. Yeah, these things are better. Like if you happen to have a crouton on your salad, they can have the crouton instead of the piece of fajita meat or something like that.

[00:10:09] Dr. Zoo: So choose. Carbs or vegetables over fatty meats, essentially. But that's just an example of someone just being honest, saying, it's really hard to keep this or that from happening. Well keep some animal crackers on your table and they can have a goldfish or animal cracker while you're trying to eat your dinner in peace and they're begging you for food something like that. 

[00:10:27] Amy Castro: Teach your better manners. Well, yeah, that's a whole nother, that's a whole nother podcast episode. 

[00:10:32] Dr. Zoo: And a good one. Yeah. Yeah, that's a tough one 

[00:10:34] Amy Castro:  So we finally get him into the car. We get to the parking lot; we breathe this heavy sigh of relief.

[00:10:40] Amy Castro: One of the things that I was again mentioning to you earlier was the fact that when I had my Doberman Pincher, Jack, and he was a good dog. He was very well trained, but he was very reactive to other dogs. So I could be sitting there at the vet in the corner. I would pick a nice far away spot, having him heeled next to me and some knucklehead, it's you.

[00:10:59] Amy Castro: No, it's somebody out there, some knucklehead with a yappy Chihuahua or a big goofy golden retriever on a flexi leash comes in, goes to the front desk, the dog's over here, and now my dog is the bad dog because he's gone ballistic. 

[00:11:13] Dr. Zoo: He’s Just minding his own business. 

[00:11:14] Amy Castro: He’s just minding his own business. 

[00:11:16] Amy Castro: Oftentimes what I would do with a reactive dog is I would just call and let them know, I'm here is it clear to come in? Or can you just call me when it's my turn and I can go straight to the scale? So that's one way to manage the in process, 

[00:11:31] Dr. Zoo: Yes, we call it traffic control.

[00:11:33] Dr. Zoo:  Sometimes before I let an animal or a client out of an exam room, I'm like, hold on right here. I'm put my head out in the hallway and just make sure that they're not going to run right into another dog by accident. It can get busy and that can happen. And you know a dog that doesn't know another dog plus,

[00:11:47] Dr. Zoo: when they're on a leash or restraint, it heightens their sense of defensiveness because they feel like they're kind of trapped in a certain way. And you know, if I run into another dog it could be bad and I can't protect myself in their mind. So they often will kind of go to that next level. And even though they're may be great like at a dog park because they're off the leash or whatever it might be.

[00:12:06] Dr. Zoo: So, yeah, great idea. Call before you get in if you know your dog is nervous around other pets and even cats. I mean, cats don't really like dogs coming and sniffing up to their carrier. So you might, even if you're a cat, mom or dad, you might leave, before you get out of the car, call over and just say, hey, can I go straight into a room?

[00:12:23] Dr. Zoo: My cat doesn't like dogs. And that's our goal is to really try to streamline the process. If there's a room available, we'll do that. And if not, a lot of times they'll say, Hey, hang tight in your car, we'll call you when a room is available. So that it's a quiet environment. There's no extra smells yet.

[00:12:37] Dr. Zoo: No extra noises yet for them. So then we can get them straight in your room if possible.

[00:12:41] Amy Castro:  Kind of less stress for everybody involved. And I think people can help too, by just being aware of what, I joked about, well I wasn't really joking, sorry, about the whole flexi leash, mama.

[00:12:52] Amy Castro: But it's like, just because your dog is friendly doesn't mean that my dog is, doesn't mean that my cat wants his nose right up against his carrier. 

[00:13:02] Dr. Zoo: That's right. He's trapped in his carrier, so if something comes through, he's going to feel trapped.

[00:13:05] Amy Castro: Yeah, he's going to freak out. Now my cat's having a stress reaction.

[00:13:09] Amy Castro: And to be perfectly honest, a lot of times people are coming from work or going to work and like, I don't need your golden retriever, or whoever, St. Bernard slobbering all over my work pants. Respect your environment, respect people's space, and keep your dog or your cat with you and safe.

[00:13:23] Dr. Zoo: Yep. Confined and safe and yeah, for sure. You don't want any extra nose to nose too, because some dogs are coming in there because they're having a respiratory cough. Kennel cough is a well-known, very contagious. Luckily, not always very serious, but it is a contagious cold that can happen. And all it takes is for a dog to breathe in your face, you know?

[00:13:43] Dr. Zoo: And it's like, give him his six feet. Just like we all learned in Covid. Give each other your six feet. Let the dogs have that space too. And then that way they're just going to be less issue for them. Another thing is when dogs do get kind of excited; they can easily pop out of their leashes and harnesses.

[00:13:59] Dr. Zoo: So at the very least, you may want to tighten the collar, even though you may not normally come in with a tightened collar, but just to be on the safe side. But really we recommend a slip type leash for that sort of environment and that way as they back up and can tighten up. But it'll loosen when they relax and that's less likely to lose the animal.

[00:14:17] Dr. Zoo: But we have seen animals pop out of their colors and try to get into a fight in the lobby, we've seen animals pop out of their colors and run out the front door and there's a busy street out front. That's bad. It's scary. Yeah. Those are also times when we're like, oh, that collar's loose. We may hand you a leash and you're not.

[00:14:31] Dr. Zoo: We're not trying to be insulting. We're trying to protect your pet. So if we give you an extra leash because it's a little bit more secure. That's for your pet's protection.

[00:14:39] Amy Castro:  Also another thing that I would say is with dogs that have necks that are wider than their heads, to have what they call a Martin Gale collar.

[00:14:48] Amy Castro: Yes. That tightens kind of on its own. Because all it takes is for them to start backing up. And doing the crab going in reverse. And he's out of that collar. And she's out of the collar. 

[00:14:58] Dr. Zoo: It's scary. You could use a Martin Gale and they make leashes that have a Martin Gale at the end of them, so you have like a combo of one.

[00:15:05] Dr. Zoo: And again, you can find those all over. You know, the internet these days. Yeah. So that's the easiest place to shop. 

[00:15:11] Amy Castro: Yeah, definitely. Yeah. One other thing I wanted to address about arriving is when should we arrive? Because Amy Castro comes from a military background. So generally if my appointment's at nine,

[00:15:22] Amy Castro: my belief is I should be there ready to go before nine, so, get there at like 10 till nine so I could check in. So hopefully my appointment will kick off at nine. And I know that doesn't always happen because emergencies, come in or whatever. But, would you say that’s a pretty good rule of thumb?

00:15:39] Dr. Zoo: That's just so respectful and helpful and it gives us time to give you more information and we're not trying to rush through things with you. For example, we do have all kind of assistance. Some of our companies that provide certain prescription medicines have. Reward programs, and if you're there a little early, we can talk about those things.

[00:15:56] Dr. Zoo: And then you can save maybe hundreds of dollars on your medicines by knowing about these programs. But let's say you're late, and that does happen. And honestly, because that pushes everyone else's time forward too, right? There's late fees for being late. Sometimes we do. We want to go over things like. Hey, we have our Petly plans where your annuals can be broken out into 12 monthly payments.

[00:16:17] Dr. Zoo: Your pet has multiple issues. We only see them once a year and you want to talk about skin and blood work and dental stuff. These are all our conversations. And then let's say there's a heart murmur we find in the middle of that. So we really want to take advantage of all the time that your appointment has.

[00:16:31] Dr. Zoo:  And come in a little early and getting some of the paperwork and that sort of thing out of the way is going to make it where we can talk in depth about your pet. During your appointment, so yeah, for sure. Coming a little early is helpful. Um, and then again, any kind of pre-information that you can prepare through any of the different tools, whether it's our early paperwork online or other things like that.

[00:16:51] Dr. Zoo: Taking pictures of your medicines like we talked about, just preparing that way. Having other records from other vets that can be real time consuming. 

[00:16:59] Amy Castro: So, you brought up a good point though, made me think of other things. How often is it an issue where somebody says, oh, I'm coming in for this, and then it's like, oh, by the way, can you look at this?

[00:17:07] Amy Castro: Oh, by the way, I brought my cat too, and my other dog too. 

[00:17:12] Dr. Zoo: Yes, they’ll bring other animals. Yeah. We want to see them and we want to give them the time they deserve. So we, we want to make sure and schedule you properly. I always have clients who, like I’m at home remember, Penny, you just started her on this medicine.

[00:17:23] Dr. Zoo: It's going like this. That's fine. I want to know about that. But as far as like bringing Penny in when it was an appointment for one pet, that's going to be a little bit, difficult to give you, give that pet the fair amount of medical attention that it needs. So another thing as far as just having the proper time, let's say we do find medical issues.

[00:17:44] Dr. Zoo: You know, we're, like I said, we come in for. Vaccines. But if a pet isn't healthy, we're not going to vaccinate them. We find a high fever, we find something like a heart murmur or heart disease or something like that, we're going to put the brakes on some of those preventative things and really try to get the major issue under control first a lot of times.

[00:18:03] Dr. Zoo: So be prepared that you may not be going in for what you think you're going in for sometimes. And that's because we always have the animal's health as our first priority. 

[00:18:11] Amy Castro: Right. Why is it, and I don't want to catch you off guard by asking this question, but I feel like sometimes. There's some redundancy in, I called and I said, this is the issue.

[00:18:22] Amy Castro: And then I get there and then I get in the room and the technician, or the nurse or whatever terminology is used where you live. Ask the same questions again. And then the doctor comes in and asks the same question. Is there a reason for that?

[00:18:35] Dr. Zoo:  Yeah, that's a great question. There's many reasons, but one of them is we just don't want to miss any detail.

[00:18:39] Dr. Zoo: And I don't know if you've ever told a version of a story with my friend, and then you remember another detail when you tell it to another friend and that's just natural the way our brains work. So sometimes the more times you start telling that story, you go, oh yeah, he did give her that leftover ham sandwich right before the diarrhea.

[00:18:57] Dr. Zoo: Yeah. Starts to click.  Or I don't know why this isn't human nature, but I think it's because there is a little bit of like a fear of judgment. Sometimes they'll say, Hey, nurse or technician, this is, oh yeah, this is all he eats. Just dog food, you know? And then I'll walk in there and then they'll go, well, we also do put some ground beef on top of it from when we have Taco Night and Tuesdays, whatever.

[00:19:19] Amy Castro: We go to Sonic and get a sundae on Sunday.

[00:19:20] Dr. Zoo:  And, I think he just kind of took time for the trust to build up over that visit. And finally they're like, okay, what, they're, they're not judging me. They're here to help my animal and I really, well do want to get to the bottom of this diarrhea problem or whatever.

[00:19:33] Dr. Zoo: And so then they're, the honesty starts to come out there and we, we want to encourage that. And you know, you learn that in any field is how to communicate in a way that's like, hey, we're just here to help and all the facts are going to help with that. So that's part of the redundancy. The other part might be just because of the fact that things do change.

[00:19:51] Dr. Zoo: Like maybe you'll say, well, Dr. So-and-so prescribed these medicines and I'm giving these. Okay. But then you come to find out after the nurse, or maybe the doctors ask the question that the pet. Figured out the medicine was in the food, and now they're just not taking it, you know? And so, yeah, maybe it says twice a day, amoxicillin, but in reality, it's not getting in the animal.

[00:20:12] Dr. Zoo:  And, but sometimes asking multiple times finally reveals that kind of information.  

[00:20:18] Amy Castro: Sometimes it’s just the way somebody asked it or something too.  Like maybe you just phrased it a little bit differently. That made it easier for me to be honest or reminded me of something.  Or whatever it might be.

[00:20:27] Dr. Zoo: Yeah. I mean, sometimes we have to directly ask that question. My pet's pretty sneaky. Does your dog figure out that you put it in the Velveeta cheese? No. Yeah, he figured it out, you know, and then we go, okay, well let's try to come up with something different or better, whatever it might be. 

[00:20:40] Dr. Zoo: There's some neat advances in medicine where we have antibiotics that last two weeks sometimes instead of giving a oral, Because that can be a real challenge sometimes. Joint supplements are one thing, but sometimes there's foods that have joint supplement already in the kibble and so that can be helpful.

[00:20:55] Dr. Zoo: You know, we just need to know what your challenges are and honesty helps. 

[00:20:59] Amy Castro: Yeah. Along the lines of communication, there are some people that if you ask them a lot of questions, they perceive that as questioning them. Or, or from the stand point, flipping it around from your perspective, then I'm questioning your judgment or what you're trying to do for my pet.

[00:21:16] Amy Castro: How do you feel about people because. I feel like if I don't understand why you want to do this blood work, or why my dog needs this vaccine or you're offering it that why wouldn't I just ask and say, Hey, what's that for? Does he really need it?

[00:21:28] Dr. Zoo:  Those are good questions. Honestly, we respect those questions because we're scientists, and scientists in lots of ways we like to ask questions like, what caused this problem and how can we fix it and how can we prevent it?

[00:21:41] Dr. Zoo: And so when people are, clients are asking us questions, we can respect that because they're obviously trying to figure out, do I really need to do this blood work? And is there a reason? And so, yeah, I do think that if they could ask, that would be great. I will say a lot of people just don't, they just go, Ooh, that's a hundred and whatever dollars I'm, I don't see a value in it and I'm not going to ask about it because I don't want to seem like I don't understand something.

[00:22:02] Dr. Zoo:  And so a lot of times, we coach our team to talk about it ahead of time, this will catch problems early. This will allow us to maybe do an easy fix, like a little diet changer, a supplement, versus having to wait until this problem grows and you have to hospitalize your pet kind of a thing.

[00:22:18] Dr. Zoo: And so I do think communication and education are a big key in veterinary medicine, and that's sometimes what makes okay vet clinics to like really good ones is that they're willing to teach clients. So definitely be willing to ask questions. Do not leave there until you understand what's going on, because it, it's a lot.

[00:22:38] Dr. Zoo: We had to go to vet school, for so many years and my nurses have had to learn and study for so many years to understand these things. So we're not expecting you to get every single bit of information figured out in your 30 minute, one hour appointment, but we want to make sure you get as much as you can.

[00:22:53] Dr. Zoo: So a lot of times we'll put things in writing, which you can ask for. Can I get that in writing? Can I get a little article on it? We'll, There's plenty of great resources. We'll print out something online about allergies and how that works, and we often say, okay, here's the process. Allergies is a big one.

[00:23:08] Dr. Zoo:  I'd say allergies and skin problems aside from your, well, vaccines and things like that, or probably 50% of our appointments. You think you're coming in for an ear infection, you're actually coming in because your dog has allergies, not because allergies causing your infections most of the time.

[00:23:23] Dr. Zoo: There's a few smaller reasons why we get ear infections, but most of the time it's allergies. So we have to try to explain the whole process of allergies and how that leads to secondary infections and how that can be chronic and how hormones can make that worse, and certain diets can make that worse.

[00:23:37] Dr. Zoo: And so it's a lot to talk about. Yeah, and it's a lot for them to try to retain. So ask questions. Feel free to pause somebody and say, can you elaborate on that a little bit more? But then also we'll send home reading and knowledge if you request that too. 

[00:23:52] Amy Castro: So you mentioned the internet. I wasn't going to bring it up, but now I'm bringing it up.

[00:23:57] Amy Castro: So how do you feel about the people that come in with the, Dr. Google? Not that I have anything against Google. I live and breathe by Google, but, 

[00:24:03] Dr. Zoo:  No, no, it, there's nothing wrong with it in the sense that it kind of gives them a broader picture of what's out there, but there's so much, like literally you can find exactly the opposite kind of recommendations.

[00:24:15] Dr. Zoo: Like, yes, feed your pet meat. No, don't feed your pet meat. You know, and it's just exact opposite. So, when it comes to the information you get from Google, bring it. Say, I saw this in this spike, my curiosity and does it apply to my pet? And then we can help filter it out for you. So yeah, they have a general statement on the internet because they don't know your pet, they don't know that, he has this kind of sensitive scan or that's, they don't know what his last blood work looked like and

[00:24:40] Dr. Zoo: if that can be helpful or detrimental to him, you know? But we do. So if you're curious about that thing, let's see if it applies or doesn't. Yeah, so bring it up, learn about some things, and then if you really want to study some things at home, we are happy to provide links and websites that are trusted, that put to some information together in the very

[00:24:59] Dr. Zoo: helpful layman's terms, whatever word you want to use, that basically helps you filter and understand that information better. Because if you understand it, you can help your pet, your pet can't go and study it for himself and figure it out and how. It all depends on you. And, that's probably true for human health too.

[00:25:14] Dr. Zoo: It is just, you got to take it into your own hands to a certain degree and really understand it and not just kind of give two pills once a day for what reason? I don't know. I'm just giving it, you don't, and we don't want ever anyone to fall into that category. 

[00:25:26] Amy Castro: But the research sometimes can be a big source of like this MRI that I was telling you about that I went for the other day, I've got this weird ringing whooshing sound in my ear.

[00:25:36] Amy Castro: So of course I Google it. And it's like brain tumor, aneurism. Well, I have none of those just FYI. But it's like you can scare yourself. And so we're talking about reducing stress for you and your pet going to the vet. Sometimes, do your research, but don't panic until you have an opportunity to talk to your vet.

[00:25:53] Amy Castro:  And you also said about the sources. That's so huge. People will put stuff out there, it was on the internet.  And it's like it was on this blah, blah, blah website. Which is probably not a wealth of scientific based information. 

[00:26:07] Dr. Zoo: I heard someone say it was his dog and was something that applies to my dog.

[00:26:10] Dr. Zoo: Well, my dog had this. Doesn't apply to every dog. It just doesn't, and so this is why having that close relationship with your vet can be more helpful to specify, dial down on what that pet needs. But yeah, you're right. Sources are important. Of course, we like to see research back sources. We'd like to see scientific papers written about certain things.

[00:26:30] Dr. Zoo: And that's going to be helpful. And not everybody wants to go sit through a boring scientific paper. But then maybe if you find a link that's, let's see veterinarians who have read through scientific papers and given their opinion, then that might be more helpful as far as learning. But, again, nothing is as good as that one-on-one relationship with your vet

[00:26:50] Dr. Zoo: where they know Fluffy, they know how many teeth she has left in her head because, take a bunch of them out already. They know what kind of things upset her time. They know she's had pancreatitis in the past and she can't have this much fat, or only that much fat. They know, that her kidneys are a little bit on edge and too much of this or that can push her through into the danger zone.

[00:27:09] Dr. Zoo: And that's because they've watched her grow up over the years. So, if you can find a good vet, stick with them as long as you can with that life or that pet, that's going to be a lot more valuable than just a, a nugget on the internet. 

[00:27:20] Amy Castro: Yeah, that's a good point. And it's a good point too about, listening to

[00:27:24] Amy Castro: your friends and stuff, just like parents saying, well, I never wore a seatbelt when I was a kid and I didn't die. That's really not good logic or science right there. So just because somebody said on Facebook that their dog eats this or takes that, or whatever it is, more power to them and their dog, but doesn't mean or cat, or it doesn't necessarily apply to you.

[00:27:44] Amy Castro:  So let's talk about the most stressful time at the vet for the person. Checking out the bill and getting the bill. The bill. So I had mentioned to you before, yeah. We were, and we were talking about this, about somebody posting on Facebook in our local area, just basically bashing the veterinarian because of the price of the, the sticker price when they came out of the vet.

[00:28:05] Amy Castro: And I have a lot of answers to that. Some logical answers to that. But there's no reason for sticker shock when you go to checkout, right?  So how can we prevent that sticker shock? Because everybody's on a different budget. Not everybody can afford the Gold Standard of Care at every visit.

[00:28:22] Dr. Zoo:  That's right. And emergencies have happened like right before you made your vet appointment and you, the car decides to not work and you had to go rebuild your engine. Yeah, you're right. So I think it's just good communication. Hey, can you gimme a treatment plan? Can you gimme an estimate?

[00:28:35] Dr. Zoo: There's all kind of words for that. It helps to do that right off at the beginning. There's no surprises for people. I think the greatest of areas, maybe like if an animal gets hospitalized, then we have to give like ranges because we don't know how it's going to go while the animal's in the hospital.

[00:28:50] Dr. Zoo: If they're going to feel better, then they'll require less medicine and money. If they're feeling worse, they may require more medicine and money and we do try to keep people abreast of that. But if it's like a vaccine thing or a skin thing or in and out outpatient thing, you should be able to get

[00:29:04] Dr. Zoo: numbers before treatment occurs. And so there shouldn't be any surprises. And on top of that, many clinics do offer assistance. So let's say you get that treatment plan, man, I really want to do the best, at the top my budget is only this. If it's something that becomes pertinent, like, maybe a doctor seeing something on the exam, that that blood work could really help unfold the

[00:29:22] Dr. Zoo: more details. A lot of those places take in our place, those two care credit and scratch pay and other kinds of payment plan type of things. So if you are looking for assistance, there are some assistance out there, and certain places, offer those sort of things. I also have people that just like, let's say we,

 [00:29:39] Dr. Zoo: do an exam and we find a tumor or something on the skin and we want to take it off, but this estimate is, feels high. A lot of times we'll say, well, on your account you can put a little bit of money down every two weeks or whatever, and then next thing you know, by the time the surgery date comes up, they've already saved up a little bit.

[00:29:55] Dr. Zoo: So basically we create like a little savings account on their account. So sometimes that's a helpful way to plan ahead. 

[00:30:02] Amy Castro: I think people are afraid that in this particular instance it's like, on one hand it could have been yes, that person couldn't afford that. On the other hand, whether they could afford it or not, maybe irrelevant.

[00:30:11] Amy Castro: But the point is, is people don't want to ask and look like they're being cheap, or that they can't afford it when they really can't, but they don't want to admit it. But you've got to get over your pride.  Because it's kind of unfair to put your pride first. And then be angry, because this person's like, I'm looking for another vet.

[00:30:27] Amy Castro: It's like, how is that, how is that their fault? Like if you'd have just asked the questions I had asked or just said, hey, this is what I can do today. Yeah, maybe we just bring one dog in in a time and wait six months and then do the other dog, instead of bringing everybody in the same day.

[00:30:40] Dr. Zoo: And I, I've had, I've given a treatment plan and a person or two, which is great, will say, well, what's the priority here? This is my budget. Where can we, where do I need to really get this done and where can I put this later? Some things, for example, are required to be done during an exam, like a rabies vaccine

[00:30:56] Dr. Zoo:  needs to be done during an exam. So we might, let's say it's a vaccine type of visit, we might say, hey, let's get your rabies done today, because that you have to deal with the doctor. But now that you've been examined, you can do the rest, spread it out with a nurse, and so maybe they'll come back for another vaccine or two with a nurse visit.

[00:31:11] Dr. Zoo: And so that saves them costs and they spreads out their costs as well, that's, there are definitely options, but it's really just like I said about putting the pride down and just communicating. Because trust me, our field isn't exactly a very high paying field either. 

Amy Castro: People think you’re raking it in.

[00:31:28] Dr. Zoo: We're not, but we know budgeting and so we can help with that, and then, and my employees are super great about looking for those rewards programs that are out there. So let's say an animal does have to be on some medicine regularly. There are some neat programs, just like in humans, they have GoodRx and some of those other programs where it saves you money.

[00:31:47] Dr. Zoo: They have those for dogs too.  And we can help sign you up for those sort of things if we know. But if we don't, then it's just like a silent stress that everyone's going through. Nobody needs that extra stress.

[00:31:56] Amy Castro: Yeah. Well and that, yeah. And that poor person sitting at the front desk when you're like, wow.

[00:32:01] Amy Castro: Yeah. That's not, they don't need that stress either. They go through that all day 

[00:32:05] Dr. Zoo: And your animal can pick up on your stress. Quickly they can sense your pheromone so fast that yeah. If you're upset, they're going to be like, oh, I’m never come to the vet because mom gets mad when we get here.

[00:32:15] Dr. Zoo: And yeah, absolutely. It can affect everybody. So communication at the onset is helpful. We are going to make that stab first of communication, but we definitely, if there's something that you're not getting the information you need, we need to know. Another one kind of like that, is sometimes the clients will ask, Hey, can you do everything in the room?

[00:32:34] Dr. Zoo: I'd rather be here with my pet or be present with my pet. And when that's possible, we're happy to do that. But sometimes my nurses will say, well, I'm going to take Fluffy onto the back and get this shot done. And then I'll go in and they'll say, oh, well they didn't, they took so and so and they didn't let me keep him in here, 

[00:32:51] Dr. Zoo: I was like, well, did you ask them?  No. They're like, okay. You ask them and I promise you we'll do that. In fact, I'm going to make a note on your chart. So from now on, we'll always do Fluffy’s things in the room with you. There are some instances where that's not the better idea because a lot of animals are very protective of their owners, and we have to take out the Doberman, the German Shepherd, even the Labrador from being right there next to Mom, because they're going to

[00:33:17] Dr. Zoo: have mom behind their back and they're going to try to protect mom. And that can make it dangerous for them, for us. And so sometimes we need to remove the pet from there. But the good news is that the dog is usually happier, especially if it's a dog when they're not with their owner because they're, they only have to look out for themselves.

[00:33:33] Dr. Zoo: They don't have to look out for two anymore. And suddenly their guard drops. It's pretty neat and different. And I, and I've like Face Timed, ok owner, I'm going to Face Time you because they don't believe it, that their pet is less, afraid back there. That their pet is actually more calm back there and I'll say, I'm going to Face Time you and we'll Face Time and the dog is getting his nails trimmed his blood done.

[00:33:51] Dr. Zoo: And he's like, okay, great. Because now he doesn't have to look out for mom and protect her or him either. So it's really neat. 

[00:33:57] Amy Castro:  I wonder how much of it too is from a behavioral standpoint, and I was just thinking about like. When we have bottle kittens, I've had fosters and I've had this happen to myself where it's like, I can't get this kitten off the bottle.

[00:34:08] Amy Castro:  Like it will not get off the bottle. And then I pass it off to somebody else and it's eating and solid food the next day.  And it's like, I wonder how much of that could be manipulation. Like you try to cut my nails at home, I have a big screaming fit, you quit. And so now I know that if you're here that's going to work.

[00:34:25] Dr. Zoo: It’s true, I’m sure there's a little bit of that human children, like, mom's going to let me go have spend the night partying, but dad would never give me permission for that. Same with our little pets. That's absolutely true. 

Amy Castro: They know. They know how to manipulate.

Dr. Zoo: And they will. They'll look at their owner and they go, Ack!

[00:34:40] Dr. Zoo: The back then, and then it's over, you know? So usually we're like, okay, I promise you they're going to be better back there. So yeah, they do. It's kind of a manipulation thing. And you know, they're, they don't know. They don't know we're not going to eat their feet for lunch, that we're touching their feet.

[00:34:53] Dr. Zoo: They're scared. But it is interesting how much calmer they are when they're not around their owners. 

[00:34:59] Amy Castro: Feeding off of that owner energy too. Like if I'm already, like, my dog's going to flip out when you touch his nails. They know Now. They know. They know. That's something to be worried about.

[00:35:07] Amy Castro: Now you're freaking me out. Yeah. It just becomes a vicious cycle. 

[00:35:10] Dr. Zoo: Yeah. Yeah. That's right. That's, that's very true. And so, yeah, that's a good idea to, let us try both ways and see what's actually the quickest and most efficient way. Another thing is we don't want you putting your hands in and around the pet's mouth during that time, because sometimes I think owners would want to protect us from their pets trying to be nippy or bitey.

[00:35:29] Dr. Zoo: So instead, if you can sit as calm as possible, like nothing's going on, maybe even look at your phone, that pet will realize that you're being calm and they will actually calm down. 

Amy Castro: I'm not that worried about it. 

Dr. Zoo: Yeah, but we don't want you to get hurt or, a lot of people will say, well, my pet would never bite me.

Amy Castro: Yeah they will. In the right situation they will.

[00:35:44] Dr. Zoo: In the right situation, they will, in this situation they're going to, because they, they don't even see that those are your fingers. They're just seeing fear and dinosaurs or going to eat me, and they're going off of these deep instincts that are the wild side of their nature and so they just, they don't think, and they'll bite owners and I've seen it happen, so I'm always like, Hey, why don't you just sit in this corner and just be calm and it's going to help our pet be calm, you know?

[00:36:08] Dr. Zoo: There's a way to say it to on an owner that hopefully won't hurt their little heartstrings, we're trying to protect you or trying to protect pet, it's okay. 

[00:36:17] Amy Castro:  So I've got one last thing, but then I thought of one that I missed. So the whole coming to the visit thing, that becomes stressful because, Amy decides that the dog needs to go in.

[00:36:27] Amy Castro: Amy calls and makes the appointment, but Kelsey brings the dog in. So my child brings the dog in, or my spouse, or significant other brings the dog in, or Cat or whoever it is. And then either doesn't have information or approves things that I didn't approve, and I either go to pick him up. And so what about the whole family stress communication thing there?

[00:36:50] Amy Castro: Any thoughts on that?

[00:36:50] Dr. Zoo:  The most awkward is being in the middle of a husband or wife disagreement. And that happens sometimes because maybe the one spouse that's there truly does want to do those things and I'll the other spouse gets upset about, let's say, some choices of whatever vaccines or medicines they chose to go home with.

[00:37:08] Dr. Zoo: And so, yeah, it would be better if both people are involved with the conversation. So many, I have a lot of people that will say, do you mind if I get my husband on the phone, my wife on the phone and speaker phone in? And then that way our communication is kind of, everybody's on the same page. We're on the same page.

[00:37:23] Dr. Zoo: Of course there's times where that other person's at work or something, it's just not going to work. So I've had people write little checklists or notes and that's super helpful. Make sure and ask about this, this, and you know, his anal glands in his nails and those other things. I like that kind of communication and really it all boils down to having more communication than not enough communication. 

[00:37:41] Dr. Zoo: But yeah, it is difficult if someone approves something and then later on the other spouse or child or the mother or parent calls and says, why did you do this? I'm like, so for in our clinic, if you're not 18 or older, you're, you don't get to make those decisions. We have to get mom or dad on the phone.

[00:37:58] Dr. Zoo: If it is like 

[00:37:58] Amy Castro: Yes. So be careful when you're dropping, having kids underage.

[00:38:01] Dr. Zoo:  Which is teenagers. They're going to be there, but you got to be available on a phone call.

[00:38:06] Amy Castro:   And I will say, just as a customer, don't make it the clinic's fault that you and your spouse or significant other or whoever else adult in your house weren't on the same page.

[00:38:18] Amy Castro:  Take that fight and have it at home.  Not in their lobby. Don't involve the person at the front desk.  Because I've seen it as somebody watching, and I just want to go and smack you because 

[00:38:27] Dr. Zoo: it's, it's silly. It's silly. We've had to put notes on the account. Mom is not allowed to make decisions.

[00:38:33] Dr. Zoo: That is like the one spouse that will say, well, he's not allowed her. She's not allowed. Okay, well that's, that's how you told us. Well, we'll put the notes if you would like that, but yeah, that's going to, I think that's make 

[00:38:44] Amy Castro: it’s overly accommodating, but nice.

[00:38:46] Dr. Zoo:  We're just trying to help.

[00:38:47] Dr. Zoo: Yeah. And, and it is easier to blame the service industry or whatever service you are in than it is to say maybe I should have communicated better with my husband and your wife. But yeah please communicate. Counseling is healthy. Communicate better with your husband and wife.

[00:39:03] Dr. Zoo: This is not what we thought we were talking about when we were talking about veterinary medicine.  But it's, it is. But your pet is part of the family and so I can see why the fight occurs between husband and wife, because that's just another one of their kids.

[00:39:15] Dr. Zoo:  They're fighting over, which is sweet.

[00:39:18] Amy Castro: It happens. It happens. Yeah. All right. So let's say, despite all of the things that I've tried, I've just got this, I was telling you before about my poor kitty mingy is that, we tried medication and other things and that poor kitty, and he was old

[00:39:33] Amy Castro: and he, he was towards the end of his life and I, wouldn't be halfway down the street and he'd already thrown up twice and pooped himself and it's just, it was just too much. So, you know, I finally got to the point where it's like, look, if, if he needs to go in, I'm just not going anymore.

[00:39:48] Amy Castro: You know? Is there, are there other. Better alternatives. They're definitely alternatives. Then just saying, I’m never going to the vet again with this animal.

[00:39:53] Dr. Zoo:  Many businesses are out there now that do house calls. I think that's a really good option for multiple cats or a senior cat or even aggressive cats, believe it or not.

[00:40:05] Dr. Zoo: They often are they're like a kitten at home. They just turn into a wild beast when they come to a vet clinic because their wild instincts kick in for survival. They don't know what's going on. So a lot of times if you can do a house call that it's like a whole different animal really. It's really interesting.

[00:40:23] Dr. Zoo: Yeah, we can still bring medicines to help out calm our friend if we need to, but then you don't have the car ride and like maybe you didn't seatbelt the cat carrier and doesn't have to go flying across the seat and adding to that stress. It will get better test results for sure if we get blood there, for example, because again, stress will affect your liver enzymes,

[00:40:42] Dr. Zoo: your red cell counts, your white cell counts. And so if we can avoid some of that stress, we'll get better and truer values, on our test results. So, yeah, a house call is a great option. Pre-medications we talked about are a great option. And then the sad part, but it is an important, very important part of your pet's life, is the day that you may have to euthanize your pet.

[00:41:02] Dr. Zoo: A house call euthanasia can sometimes be the most peaceful way to do that too. And so a lot of our house calls are, are letting our pets go in the most calm and peaceful environment for them, which may be the home. And so many clinics, especially again, if you have established a good relationship with that veterinarian over time, will offer to do something like that.

[00:41:24] Dr. Zoo: And then there are some great small businesses that are, that that's all they do. That's all they do. Lap of Love is one.  One of my associates going to be starting to work there pretty soon, and they have an amazing protocol that just brings relaxation and peace. And, and then of course, the pet gets to pass away with dignity in a stress free

[00:41:44] Dr. Zoo: type of way. So that kind of a house call is, maybe the most important kind at the end there.

[00:41:50] Amy Castro:  We've done an episode on pet loss and grief, and that's the memory that you're going to unfortunately live with for a long time afterwards. So if, like with Mingy throwing up and having all these issues all the way there, it's like, that's not how you want to remember his last day.

[00:42:03] Amy Castro: So, better to try, try to arrange the house call it’s a good point.

[00:42:08] Dr. Zoo: So let's see other things that might be around that sort of thing on the multiple cat sort of thing, if you're going to have a house call for that. I have had to chase multiple cats on two story houses and go up and down the stairs and get my cardio workout in there.

[00:42:23] Dr. Zoo: Maybe lock the cats up in their own comfortable spaces, like maybe with a litter box. Maybe they're not in a room at that time, that you're going to lock them up where there's normally a litter box, put one in there and just close the door and just let them be in there. And sometimes that'll make it also easier because it's not, you're canceling out the anti-stress by having to vet chase your cat all around the house.

[00:42:44] Amy Castro: Yeah, definitely. I haven't thought about that.

[00:42:47] Dr. Zoo: So, lock them up .Yeah, we've done that.  

[00:42:49] Amy Castro: So, any final thoughts, advice for making the vet visits as stress free as possible? We pretty much, we've covered a lot.  

[00:42:57] Dr. Zoo: We have and a lot of good things. I think we've kind of said it, but communication is the best part of that to help you with that is what, what do you need?

[00:43:06] Dr. Zoo: What, what things make you anxious about coming to the vet? And if you can call ahead of time. Especially our front desk ladies are really good about that. That's a lot of their calls sometimes is to help guide people, I'm anxious about this, or if I had a bad experience last time because of this, or the last place I went because of this,

[00:43:22] Dr. Zoo: and if we know those things, we're going to not only meet the standard, but we're going to try to go above and beyond to try to help you have the best experience, your pet have the best experience, get the most thorough results from that, get the value that you're expecting for whatever price you're paying there.

[00:43:37] Dr. Zoo:  And so, yeah, if we could just get some communication about even just those anxieties, we’ll help. 

[00:43:43] Amy Castro: Thank you so much. Thank you for coming to my little studio here and doing this podcast episode. I think the things that we talked about are just again, it starts way before you actually even get to the vet.

[00:43:56] Amy Castro:  So the planning ahead is huge. So I think if people just take the time to kind of follow some of those procedures they can greatly reduce the stress, not only for their pet but for themselves.

[00:44:05] Dr. Zoo:  I think so too. We want to see all your little fuzzy kitties and puppies bring them. 

[00:44:10] Amy Castro: Or chickens. Or chickens.

[00:44:12] Amy Castro: I saw have chicken. I just want y'all to know I was at her office the day there was a chicken there. 

[00:44:15] Dr. Zoo: Or Guinea pigs or hamsters. We see them all. So we'll see whatever can fit to the door. 

[00:44:21] Amy Castro: Okay. All right. Well, thank you. Thank you. Thank you for being here. I really appreciate it.

[00:44:26] Dr. Zoo: Appreciate you having me on. 

[00:44:28] Amy Castro: Sure, sure. Thank you. All right. Well, for all of you that are listening or watching, thank you so much for being with us for another episode of Starlight Pet Talk. Please make sure you tell your friends because we're trying to help educate. We're trying to help people have better lives with their pets, and we don't want it just to be you.

[00:44:42] Amy Castro: We'd like it for it to be lots of people. So spread the word for us. As I always like to say, if you don't do anything else this week, give your pets a big hug from us. 

[00:44:52] Announcer: You've been listening to the Starlight Pet Talk podcast. We're glad you joined us to gain new insight on the many loving ways to adopt and care for your pets.

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