Board Certified Internal Medicine Vet Recommendations

[John Popp]

Our IM Vet is retiring and we need to find someone else to care for Dooley and his liver disease. Dooley's doing very well, we have been able to modify his program as things have improved and we just need someone that can roll with keeping up with the meds as things change. At this point, we are OK with a day's drive from Ohio to get him care on a bi-annual basis.

If you know anyone who fits, let me know. Dooley's regular vet has been in contact with Sharon Center at Cornell which could be a possibility if she's taking on new patients. There may be someone at Ohio State as well, just beginning to get things figured out, and Dooley is finally starting to like rolling around in the car.

 

[Manu+Horde]

When the current IM Vet is retiring - i would recommend that you ask for the medical history file from Dooley so that the new Vet can have a better look what have been done in history till now & what treatments Dooley need.
It would help a lot for a smooth take over ...

I hope you'll find a qualified new IM Vet for Dooley ...

 

[John Popp]

Thanks, I’ll double check. I’m pretty sure we currently have all Dooley’s records as does his regular vet. It’s a pile, at over 300 pages. Also, the hospital isn’t going away, just one of the half dozen IM vets there.

I guess this is also worth mentioning, that despite the staff at the hospital being excellent, there are members there that aren’t comfortable dealing with Dooley. He’s incredibly strong and imposing while also being pretty vocal. It’s all show although if he smells the slightest bit of fear he won’t cooperate. The other issue is that some vets insist in having their vet tech handle him and I just tell them “this isn’t going to go well”.

When I asked the Doctor who would be the right choice to handle Dooley, she mentioned the fear factor of other Doctors as well as mentioning they have someone that specializes in “exotic” pets. That’s a far cry from the confidence I heard from other vets when we signed on with her to care for Dooley.

At the moment we have a rock solid plan for Dooley, but you never know when things may change. We also continue to gradually increase the protein percentages of his food while making steps to minimize the medication he’s on for seizures. Lots of inter working variables, so it’s important to us to have a vet that can do deep dives on the lab reports.






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[Patti]

If you don't get any references I would start calling around to other IM vets in your area and ask if they routinely treat Savannahs or if they have an IM vet who also treats exotics. Chances are if they do, they will be comfortable treating Dooley.

 

[John Popp]

Thanks Patti!

Dealing with Dooley is certainly a big part of it, then on-site lab services as well as some experience with feline liver disease. The blood ammonia levels testing is really toughest, as it isn't very stable and as I understand there's a pretty short window getting the sample collected and analyzed. Collectively it's a pretty big ask, facilities and knowledge for a disease not all that common in cats.

 

[Akila]

Hi John,
Have you thought about reaching out to your local zoo? They may be able to give you some references for vets in your area that deal with exotics. That is what I am doing now to find a new vet in the area for Akila. I have also reached out to the Local animal hospitals for referrals.

 

[Akila]

Good Morning John,

I found this website this morning and I thought I would share it with you. It seems there are quite a few vets in Ohio. Good luck!
https://abvp.com/animal-owners/find-an-abvp-specialist/

 

[John Popp]

Thanks, Akila!

Dooley and Dino have a regular vet who does excellent with them. In fact, one of the vet techs at the practice works at our local zoo.

Also, thanks for the link. I had found a similar website and there looks to be a vet at Ohio State that would suit Dooley's need for his bi-annual checkups and lab work. It's about a 2 and a half hour drive, so it would definitely be a long day for Dooley. He does seem to be enjoying the rides more these days, so the journey to wherever we need to go shouldn't be an issue.