Call of the Day: We’ll get right on that Edition

by | Friday | January 8, 2010 | 12 comments

This call takes place about 5 minutes after I leave:

Staff: Hello, how may I help you?

Client: I need to talk to the doctor right now.

Staff: She’s left for the day, how can I help you?

Client: Can I have her cell phone number?

Staff: I’m afraid not, is there something I can help you with?

Client: She gave my dog some medicine two weeks ago and it’s not working. The dog is still itchy.

(Staff looks up the client: This person had come in one month ago, using a “free wellness exam” certificate in order to get her puppy with hardly any hair left evaluated. The dog looked suspiciously like it had a Demodex infection- a mite common to puppies. The owner declined a skin scrape to diagnose the mites, injections to help with the itching, and mite medicine, taking only a week’s worth of antibiotics. Staff reads notes to client, including “strongly advise skin scrape for mites”.)

Staff: We can get you in first thing tomorrow, will that work?

Client: NO! She needs to call something in RIGHT NOW!

Staff: I’m afraid I can’t reach her right now. Would you like the number for the emergency clinic?

Client: Can they call something in for me?

Staff: Without you going in?

Client: Yes.

Staff: I highly doubt it.

*dial tone as client hangs up*

Filed: Daily Life
  • Chile

    I wish stupid people weren’t allowed to have pets.

    • Tonya

      Amen!

    • http://www.biscuitsbylambchop.com Annette Frey

      “Stupid people should not be allowed to have pets” — I think that is a keeper!

  • Nicole

    Dr. V! I was in your Flickr a while back and you had a picture of an ADORABLE dog in your clinic who was a black lab/basset mix. I can’t find it any more! I know this is sort of bizarre, but if you happen to know where it is would you mind linking me? I wanted to show it to a friend of mine. I’ve never seen a dog more up her alley in my life.

    • http://www.pawcurious.com Dr. V

      I think it was in my twit pics- http://twitpic.com/photos/pawcurious

      • Nicole

        You are amazing. thank you. No wonder I couldn’t find it! Not that I minded an excuse to look at so many pics of Brody…

  • http://www.rileyandjames.com/ Shawn Finch

    I always feel like my entire staff is being a giant shield in front of me when they protect me like that! Love it!

    • http://www.pawcurious.com Dr. V

      I think they all realize the dire consequences of doing such a thing to me. ;) lol My boss has given her cell out on occasion, but I never, ever have.

      • Megan

        Very, VERY rarely do I give out my personal information to clients. Fear of things like this are also the reason I don’t facebook, twitter, or myspace. I love people like this client, BTW. Had a vomiting puppy come in last night, owners declined x-rays, an ear cytology and meds for the otitis I diagnosed in the one ear and took her home on the good ol’ vomiting shotgun: injectable pepcid, anzemet and SQ fluids. Os were pissed they’d just had to shell out like $150 for diagnosis and treatment of scabies on this pup at their regular vet. Oh, and they had recently switched her cold-turkey from the science diet the shelter had been feeding to Bil-Jac. Shudder.

  • amber

    this makes me not miss working there!

    • http://www.pawcurious.com Dr. V

      Did you ever? ;)

  • http://finnspawprint.blogspot.com/ Susan Montgomery

    Poor puppy! a month of misery, and the owner still won’t do what needs to be done. Kudo’s to your staff for deflecting that 1/2 hour waste of your time conversation!