Hubby likes to play ‘I’m the vet’

Dear Dr. Forsythe: My husband doesn’t trust veterinarians. He thinks he can do all the medicine himself. He goes to the pet store or to the pharmacy and gets whatever he thinks will help our animal (we have a cat and a dog and a lamb) and plays “I’m the vet” as often as he can. So far, he has drained an abscess, wrapped a large tear in the skin, and even pulled a tooth without ever calling a professional. He feels that doctors, lawyers, vets and mechanics are all “overpaid.” Needless to say, we have a cabinet with hundreds of dollars of worthless and expired potions, bottles, creams and tablets that either don’t work, have made things worse or were never used. How can I convince this hardhead to take his pets to the vet once in a while?

Pet advocate

Dear Pet advocate: Explain to your husband that you will not stand by and let him experiment on any more animals. Let him know that it is against the law to practice medicine without a license. Then call up one of the many competent and kind veterinarians in Sonoma Valley (there are many) and have your pets checked up. Tell him that a good veterinarian will work with him, not against him, to provide great care for your pets. This means showing him how to do the appropriate at-home care such as baths and nail trims. Then ask him if he’d like you to pull one of his teeth without any Novocain while he is at home in his BarcaLounger. Remind him that if he should ever fall and break his hip, he’d probably expect kind, compassionate care and some pain relief, not simply a six-week stay in a wheelchair. I suggest a frank discussion and some open, honest communication about the value and quality of life the pets deserve – and compare his life to those of the family pets. Perhaps hitting him “where he lives” will bring out his compassion and empathy. Good luck.

Dr. F

Dear Dr. Forsythe: I was wondering how well dogs and cats see. My 3-year-old Lhasa likes to watch TV with me, but when I put something right in front of her, she doesn’t seem to see it very well. I was thinking that she might be like me and need reading glasses! Could you please explain if dogs see the way we do? Thanks for your articles, I really enjoy them.

Reads with dogs

Dear Reads: I often get asked, “What does my cat or dog see?” and, “Does my pet see color?” This is a somewhat complicated question, but since so many people are curious, I’ll give it a “shot in the dark.”
Dogs and cats are five to seven times more sensitive to light than humans because they have a really interesting layer in the back of their eyes called a “tapetum,” which has millions of rod photoreceptors. These “reflectors” create the glowing saucers that you see in car headlights or in the flashlight during a late-night hike. While you and your friends have a field of view that spans about 180 degrees, your dog can see from 200 to 240 degrees in order to really scope out a room for treats or to make new friends.
In terms of visual acuity, compared to humans who see 20/20, most dogs and cats see about 20/100. While humans can focus on objects as close as 7 centimeters away, dogs and cats can only focus on an object that is 30-35 centimeters away from their face. Anything closer than that will be blurry and possibly frustrating. Perhaps that is why some pets snap when something is stuck right in front of their nose.
Thanks for a great question, and please take good care of your wonderful little pet, and make sure to cherish all that great TV time!

Dr. F