Vets and Canadians

Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay she
hasn't been to the vet.

"James" wrote in message
ups.com...
Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay she
hasn't been to the vet.
----------
In the United States, a competent vet will not vaccinate an animal without
having examined the animal first. And animals do require routine checkups,
especially as they age, because problems can be caught early and treated.
One of the reason cats are now living to be 15 to 20 years old is because of
advances in veterinary care. (Another reason is that more people keep cats
indoors). Cats who do not receive routine care have a greater chance of
dying young due to undiscovered illnesses that could have been treated. If I
hadn't been taking Alex for routine examinations, I would never have found
out that he has a heart murmur and cardiomyopathy. There were no symptoms.
My health insurance covers the cost of my checkups. I have to pay for my
cats' checkups. Nevertheless, the cats get more checkups than I do.
Best regards,
---Cindy S.

James wrote:
Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay she
hasn't been to the vet.

I'm not sure where you're going with this, but here goes. I get an
annual checkup for myself. My health insurance covers checkups to a
certain dollar amount. However, a couple of years, my previous
insurance did not cover checkups, but I paid out of pocket to go
anyway. Checkups are a small price to pay for overall health.

Yes, I "drag" my cats to the vet for annual checkups. One cat does not
get vaccinated, due to having severe allergic reactions to the
vaccines, but he still gets bloodwork and an exam. The other cat gets
vaccinated, but not as often due to recent studies (another topic).
Both are brought in if a medical problem comes up. I pay for this
myself, and do not hesitate to do so. I made a commitment to these
animals when I adopted them.

On Jun 18, 11:33 am, "Rene S." wrote:
James wrote:
Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay she
hasn't been to the vet.

I'm not sure where you're going with this, but here goes. I get an
annual checkup for myself. My health insurance covers checkups to a
certain dollar amount. However, a couple of years, my previous
insurance did not cover checkups, but I paid out of pocket to go
anyway. Checkups are a small price to pay for overall health.

Yes, I "drag" my cats to the vet for annual checkups. One cat does not
get vaccinated, due to having severe allergic reactions to the
vaccines, but he still gets bloodwork and an exam. The other cat gets
vaccinated, but not as often due to recent studies (another topic).
Both are brought in if a medical problem comes up. I pay for this
myself, and do not hesitate to do so. I made a commitment to these
animals when I adopted them.

Where I was going is trying to get a feel of how many people like
cindys for example would bring their pets to vet more often that their
own visits to the MD.

Also a bit OT is if people go to MD's needlessly. I already know that
people demand antibiotics needlessly resulting in superbugs.

Where I was going is trying to get a feel of how many people like
cindys for example would bring their pets to vet more often that their
own visits to the MD.

Also a bit OT is if people go to MD's needlessly. I already know that
people demand antibiotics needlessly resulting in superbugs.

To use the example from your original post, no I would not go to the
doctor for an insect bite *unless I felt it necessary* (ie, it got
infected, didn't clear up within a few days, extremely swollen, or an
allergic reaction). I do not go to the doctor unless I feel it's
medically necessary (excluding my annual checkup, which I feel is
important in its own right). Why would I want to pay a copay, wait at
a pharmacy, pay that copay, and then pay the % my insurance didn't
cover? Makes no sense to me.

Like Lis said above, yes, I might take my cats in for something I
wouldn't go in for myself, or for something that seems "minor." One of
my cats is especially stoic and hides his illnesses. If I waited until
he truly acted sick, he might be too far gone. If I have a question, I
call the vet's office and tell them the symptoms--and they can advise.

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 09:31:14 -0700, James
wrote:

On Jun 18, 11:33 am, "Rene S." wrote:
James wrote:
Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay she
hasn't been to the vet.

I'm not sure where you're going with this, but here goes. I get an
annual checkup for myself. My health insurance covers checkups to a
certain dollar amount. However, a couple of years, my previous
insurance did not cover checkups, but I paid out of pocket to go
anyway. Checkups are a small price to pay for overall health.

Yes, I "drag" my cats to the vet for annual checkups. One cat does not
get vaccinated, due to having severe allergic reactions to the
vaccines, but he still gets bloodwork and an exam. The other cat gets
vaccinated, but not as often due to recent studies (another topic).
Both are brought in if a medical problem comes up. I pay for this
myself, and do not hesitate to do so. I made a commitment to these
animals when I adopted them.

Where I was going is trying to get a feel of how many people like
cindys for example would bring their pets to vet more often that their
own visits to the MD.

Also a bit OT is if people go to MD's needlessly. I already know that
people demand antibiotics needlessly resulting in superbugs.

Cats age quicker than humans so it stands to reason that they need
more checkups in a similar time frame. Mine are young so I do only
bring them once a year but that will increase as they get into senior
years.

What kind of health insurance doesn't cover routine physical exams?
Doesn't the Canadian system cover them?

dgk wrote in
:

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 09:31:14 -0700, James
wrote:

On Jun 18, 11:33 am, "Rene S." wrote:
James wrote:
Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an
itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on
vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay
she
hasn't been to the vet.

I'm not sure where you're going with this, but here goes. I get an
annual checkup for myself. My health insurance covers checkups to a
certain dollar amount. However, a couple of years, my previous
insurance did not cover checkups, but I paid out of pocket to go
anyway. Checkups are a small price to pay for overall health.

Yes, I "drag" my cats to the vet for annual checkups. One cat does
not
get vaccinated, due to having severe allergic reactions to the
vaccines, but he still gets bloodwork and an exam. The other cat
gets
vaccinated, but not as often due to recent studies (another topic).
Both are brought in if a medical problem comes up. I pay for this
myself, and do not hesitate to do so. I made a commitment to these
animals when I adopted them.

Where I was going is trying to get a feel of how many people like
cindys for example would bring their pets to vet more often that their
own visits to the MD.

Also a bit OT is if people go to MD's needlessly. I already know that
people demand antibiotics needlessly resulting in superbugs.

Cats age quicker than humans so it stands to reason that they need
more checkups in a similar time frame. Mine are young so I do only
bring them once a year but that will increase as they get into senior
years.

What kind of health insurance doesn't cover routine physical exams?
Doesn't the Canadian system cover them?


yes annual exams are covered - only 1 per year. The original poster was
misinformed.

Bobble

on Tue, 19 Jun 2007 19:23:27 GMT, bobblespin wrote:

The original poster was
misinformed.

apparently on several levels...

--
Lynne

On Jun 19, 3:23 pm, bobblespin wrote:
dgk wrote :







On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 09:31:14 -0700, James
wrote:

On Jun 18, 11:33 am, "Rene S." wrote:
James wrote:
Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an
itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on
vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay
she
hasn't been to the vet.

I'm not sure where you're going with this, but here goes. I get an
annual checkup for myself. My health insurance covers checkups to a
certain dollar amount. However, a couple of years, my previous
insurance did not cover checkups, but I paid out of pocket to go
anyway. Checkups are a small price to pay for overall health.

Yes, I "drag" my cats to the vet for annual checkups. One cat does
not
get vaccinated, due to having severe allergic reactions to the
vaccines, but he still gets bloodwork and an exam. The other cat
gets
vaccinated, but not as often due to recent studies (another topic).
Both are brought in if a medical problem comes up. I pay for this
myself, and do not hesitate to do so. I made a commitment to these
animals when I adopted them.

Where I was going is trying to get a feel of how many people like
cindys for example would bring their pets to vet more often that their
own visits to the MD.

Also a bit OT is if people go to MD's needlessly. I already know that
people demand antibiotics needlessly resulting in superbugs.

Cats age quicker than humans so it stands to reason that they need
more checkups in a similar time frame. Mine are young so I do only
bring them once a year but that will increase as they get into senior
years.

What kind of health insurance doesn't cover routine physical exams?
Doesn't the Canadian system cover them?

yes annual exams are covered - only 1 per year. The original poster was
misinformed.

Bobble- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Is it covered in BC? BTW BC still charge for health insurance and I
think AB also.

On Jun 18, 9:31 am, James wrote:
On Jun 18, 11:33 am, "Rene S." wrote:



James wrote:
Do you get a annual checkup for yourself? Health insurance don't
include checkups. If you had to pay $40 for the MD to check an itchy
insect bite, would you still go to the MD?

Do you drag your pet to the vet annually just for a checkup? Just
wondering how different Canadian vs American point of view on vets.

My pussy only gets rabbies shots and no checkup. Except for spay she
hasn't been to the vet.

I'm not sure where you're going with this, but here goes. I get an
annual checkup for myself. My health insurance covers checkups to a
certain dollar amount. However, a couple of years, my previous
insurance did not cover checkups, but I paid out of pocket to go
anyway. Checkups are a small price to pay for overall health.

Yes, I "drag" my cats to the vet for annual checkups. One cat does not
get vaccinated, due to having severe allergic reactions to the
vaccines, but he still gets bloodwork and an exam. The other cat gets
vaccinated, but not as often due to recent studies (another topic).
Both are brought in if a medical problem comes up. I pay for this
myself, and do not hesitate to do so. I made a commitment to these
animals when I adopted them.

Where I was going is trying to get a feel of how many people like
cindys for example would bring their pets to vet more often that their
own visits to the MD.

Also a bit OT is if people go to MD's needlessly. I already know that
people demand antibiotics needlessly resulting in superbugs.



I do now get anual checkups, but mostly because my doctor won't renew
my asthma inhaler if I don't. I know I should. I just try to avoid it,
so she knows she needs to push me.

The cats get their anual checkups regardless. I don't mind paying, and
they aren't sticking ME with the needle. My dog Jenny is older, so
goes twice a year now for senior checkup.

As for medications, I have trouble taking medications. I tend to choke
on most pills. They can go partway down and then I choke and cough
them back up. So, I try to avoid medications unless I am desparate.

I did get a mild muscle relaxer when I hurt my back a couple years
ago. And the last time I got sick enough to go to the doctor, I was
concerned that I might be geting bronchitis (which I had before). My
doctor checked me and said my cold was just about over, but was
concerned about my untreated asthma (I had been doctorless for about 8
years before that appointment. She put me on a daily inhaler for 6
months, and then back to just a rescue inhaler for times when it
flares up. I can usually avoid asthma attacks by avoiding my known
triggers.

It has probably been about 15 years since I had antibitiotics. And
that was when I had the bronchitis. I think it was 1995.