9504Singapore pet health and welfare educational for animal lovers, excerpts from The Glamorous Vets, Singapore, sponsored by  AsiaHomes Internet.

The vet is no good

"I don't think the vet knew how to treat the skin problem of my dog. I have consulted him for two time!" exclaimed a senior citizen.

"He had prescribed a harsh shampoo," complained Mr Norman Tan, "that is why my Labrador has been scratching non stop since I used that shampoo. The skin disease had worsened." He continued: "When I last consulted him, he wanted to take a biopsy of the elbow lump to check whether it is cancerous."

This was an unsatisfied client who had hopped to another veterinarian for a second opinion. 

"Skin diseases in the dog are due to many and varied causes," I explained, 'some cases are easily treated with one injection and others take a long time."

This young Labrador's skin looked normal from afar. However, if you look from the sideways, you could see small raised lumps under the coat.

"Let's check the dog in the bright sunlight, outside the clinic," I said. The lumps were all over the body.  They looked as if they were caused by those involved in a general allergy of the skin, a hypersensitivity reaction to some chemicals, food or other allergens. 

"This looked like a case of urticaria.  Skin diseases caused by allergies are notoriously difficult to cure," I explained to Mr Tan. "It was not because the first vet was no good. You needed to follow up regularly to monitor the progress of treatment"

"Time was also needed for the drugs to work, " I said. 

"But the Chinese New Year will be coming soon and there is not much time to bathe the dog. I don't want the visitors to see my dog scratching non-stop. As if I had not brought him to seek veterinary attention," lamented Mr Tan.    

"Most likely, there will be a bacterial and or fungal infection under the coat," I continued. "It would be best to remove the infected hairs, reducing the concentration of pathogens so that the skin can heal faster."   

"How much it would cost me?" Mr Tan asked. He was a retiree and every cent counted.   Prices seem to be going up in Singapore every year. This
Australian imported Labrador cost $1,200 and veterinary bills could be substantial for skin diseases which required protracted veterinary attention.  He just would want the cure at the least cost.   

Groomer Ken was called to give a quote. Ken said: "One hundred dollars for clipping the coat very short. It will take some time, this being a big dog. Is this OK with you?" This was a week before the Chinese New Year and every groomer had raised their prices as they got more cases than they could handle.

"How about the veterinary costs?"

"That would be around one hundred dollars including medication." 

Should he get the coat clipped or should he just carry on with the medication and shampoo the dog? 

The clipped coat revealed multiple red spots on the skin.  The hair follicles were inflamed.  A few thousand of them.  This would be very itchy for the Labrador.

Would the second opinion be satisfactory? The next three months will tell.     

Updated:
27 Jan 2001