Annual visit, 2 year old MORBIDLY OBESE miniature dachshund mix. As in, wider than she is long. As in, 30+ pounds when she should be around 10.
Owner: So, I, uhm, heard about that one drug, Slim-, no, Slen-something? (c'mon, we all know you've spent the past three hours before your appointment furiously pouring over Pfizer's webpage)
Me: Slentrol? (internal sigh)
Owner: Yes! That's it? Do ya think it'd work for her?
Me: Well, have you tried cutting back on her food or increasing her exercise?
Owner: Well....no....(clearly)....she doesn't like to move around too much, ya know....and the kids feed her stuff from the table, I just can't stop them...(I bet I can.)
I want to beat you over the head with this giant stack of shiny Slentrol brochures I have no use for.
Full disclosure: We have yet to actually prescribe Slentrol for a case, so I can't truly comment on it's effectiveness. Maybe it's really liquid magic, but like all diet drugs, I highly doubt it. I am currently neck-deep in slick, colorful Slentrol handouts emblazoned with fat, sad dogs with big eyes and "Body Assessment Rating for Canines" thingies, compliments of Pfizer. Apparently, February is National Canine Weight Check Month or something like that (according to Pfizer).
Of course, it's supposed to be used in addition to exercise and calorie restriction - but what fun is that? Chances are, if your dog is fat, too little exercise and too little calorie restriction got him into the mess in the first place. And why, WHY, would you pay for an expensive medication when you could pay LESS by JUST NOT FEEDING SO DAMN MUCH? I just can't fathom why it's so hard to just say "No. 1/2 cup a day for you. No more. Go chase a ball or something." I have yet to see a euthyroid dog that failed to lose weight if the owners really stuck to cutting back on food (or switching to a lower-calorie food), and made an effort to increase the exercise.
On a different note, after a run on coccidia-laden puppies and counting out sixteen thousand tablets of Primor, I'm convinced Pfizer has an obsession with little blue pills.
Speaking of which, we have this middle-aged male client that always comes in wearing Viagra t-shirts. I really hope he's a urologist or something.
3 comments:
Hey I think we saw that same dog last week, only minus the Slentrol but with added "I think she could have bloat! I read it on the internet!" No, honey. Your dog's just fat.
hehe, can't say I've heard that one before...
What's the old quote? 'If your dog is fat, you're not getting enough exercise'. What always gets me going is the people that say 'But that's how much it said to feed on the side of the bag'. Mmmm hmmm.
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