At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

We were in for my dog's check up and this mom comes in with her daughter, who I would say was about 4 or 5.

The little girl was happy and singing and twirling around the waiting room and the words she's singing sound like:

"Dead, deady, dead, dead
Dead, deady, dead, dead"

Over and over.

Then her father walks in, so I think I must have heard her wrong and she must be singing "dad, daddy, dad, dad"

Until I notice what the father is carrying....

It was a dead cat in a clear plastic trashbag.

I mean, shouldn't there be a separate entrance for that or something? Maybe a discreet way to dispose of your dead cat instead of bringing it through the waiting room so everyone can see??

All while being serenated with the charming dead deady dead dead melody.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry!!

Message edited 3/15/2007 8:27:55 PM.

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

OMG Lauren -- when Ebony died at the Vet Hospital, they had me sitting in the waiting room forever, watching people come in with their pets, all hopeful they would come out again just fine. It was so hard for me.

Then, without bringing me in to consult with the Dr. about WHY or HOW he died, they call me up to the counter and tell me that I have an outstanding balance.

I FLIPPED OUT. I was yelling and crying and I felt bad for all those hopeful pet owners who had to see it but I didn't care at the time -- it was so incredibly insensitive. I was just destroyed, and then this crap????

They finally took us into a consultation room and sat down to go over everything, but really --- hey your dog died, give me $$??? In front of all their customers??

I totally agree with you, they need to bring mourning family into a private setting!!!!!

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

I agree. At my vets recently, there was a little boy who walked in with his father. The boy was hysterical. They apparently came in to put their pet (who was at the hospital) to sleep. Everyone felt horrible and heard all the details of what was going on

When I put my cat down in 2000, I remember being calm in the waiting room but fell apart when they actually put him down. I went hysterical in the examination room. I remember walking out and seeing a young woman waiting with her boyfriend; she was crying hysterically as well. She came over and hugged me. It felt good to have a stranger acknowledge my pain but at the same time I felt embarrassed that everyone heard me

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

Wait, they made someone wait with a dead pet?

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

My german shepard dog had cancer and had to be put down. By the time this had to be done though we couldn't put a leash on him without him attacking us, so needless to say we couldn't take him to the vet. My friend is a vet tech, she gave us a sedative and her and the vet came to my house and did it right there in front of me My parents refused to be there because they couldn't handle it so I had to stay. Afterwards they carried his body and put it the trunk of her car. I am so traumatized by this, the image is forever ingrained in my head, but I am lucky that I had a friend that would come and do this for me and that he could pass away at home and not at the hospital

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

This is so sad

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

Posted by MsMBV

Wait, they made someone wait with a dead pet?

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

That's so sad.

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

OMG
why Am I laughing?

This is such a horrible story but I have to say..only you Lauren. Your life is just too funny in a sitcom sorta way.

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

When I was about 7 or 8 years old, my estranged father showed up on Christmas with a kitten. (He would come visit me one time a year - on Christmas to give me gifts, watch me open them and leave.) My mother was pi$$ed at him because who was he to bring in an animal to me without asking, now she needs to take care of it, etc. So he gave me the cat, and left. 2 days later, the kitten died in front of the fridge. Woke up and it was just dead. It was Christmas so the ground was hard and we couldn't bury the kitten in the backyard; so we put it in a box and my mother called 'special pickup' to come and pickup the box right away. She put the box outside, and I sat at the large picture window watching the box, making sure that it was OK, and i even remember asking my mother if she thought that the kitten was cold and if we should get it a blanket. An hour or so after calling, I was still watching the box and the big garbage truck came. The guy came out of the truck, picked up the box and hurled it all the way up onto the top of the truck. Of course, I was hysterical crying because he threw the kitten. I remember my mother calling the town and yelling and screaming how they could do that. Thinking back, the workmen probably had no idea what was in that box so they wouldnt know to be gentle with it, or even if they did know they really didnt need to be. It was just upsetting as a 7 year old after your first animal's death from your @sshole father. I think my mother also then called my father and ripped into him, for him giving me a present of a dead kitten, let alone a kitten at all.

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

when dh and i got back from vacation in september we went straight from the airport to the pet hotel to pick up owen, only to find that he had gotten bitten by another dog while in doggie day camp - he had a puncture wound on his head it was night so we took him to the pet emergency room to be seen, and i have to say that it was probably the most depressing place i have ever been. people crying, walking in with wounded/dead pets... very traumatic for everyone there, whether their pet was dying or not. there's got to be a more compassionate way for these places to handle these things...

Re: At the vet last night (not for the easily upset)...

Almost a year ago I had to put my dog down. It was past 12 am and at the emergency hospital. Luckily nobody was there because me and my DH were sobbing. It was the hardest thing for us to do. But even if it was in the day with a room full of people I would have reacted the same way as I did. And I doubt I would have been embarrassed because I was so devasted I just didn't care. Luckily the people were decent there. They even sent a grief card days later.
There was one lady that worked at my old vet that seemed to care more about the money than anything else. To them they get desensitised from seeing the same things over and over. It's always sad though.