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Why do some vets

weedug

Mama Doe
Feel like they can talk to you any way they want?

I had to take Honey to D1ck vet today, and had taken a picnic of goodies to tempt her to eat after her ct. I got a huge lecture for feeding her Rabbit Royale, and was then spoken to as if I was an idiot.

She only had the RR as a treat to get her to eat, as well as hay, readigrass, herbs, and some forage. She normally gets a tiny amount in the morning, and the rest of the day she has hay, until a supper of green veg or forage.

Even when I explained why I use RR, it still wasn't acceptable to him.
 
That's awful of them!

I think some vets/people have got hold of the information that most pellet feeds are better than most mueslis and just ran away with it not taking into consideration that there are also rubbish pellet feeds and that the information mainly means that feeding ONLY pellet feed is better than feeding ONLY muesli feed! If they're getting hay and veg and only a minimal amount of either pellet/muesli it doesn't matter which it is (although obviously should be the better types that don't contain rubbish like egg!), their fibre and vitamin/mineral requirements should be mainly met by the rest of their diet not their feed! Plus rabbit royal smells and looks amazing :love: it's all natural stuff in there and I personally think it's great!

Wish people would listen to logic rather than taking one stance and holding that for every situation no matter of the circumstances!
 
I can't imagine my vet speaking to me like that. He's an exotics specialist, so very knowledgeable, and we work as a team.
 
I can't imagine my vet speaking to me like that. He's an exotics specialist, so very knowledgeable, and we work as a team.

This - Sarah has a wonderful tableside manner and is so lovely with Alfie. I'd hate to have a rude vet :(
 
I would hate that kind of attitude. I mean its fine for them to mention (in a nice way) that muesli isn't maybe the best option but when you have explained your reasons, surely they should know there is no one size fits all approach to feeding sometimes.
 
Feel like they can talk to you any way they want?

I had to take Honey to D1ck vet today, and had taken a picnic of goodies to tempt her to eat after her ct. I got a huge lecture for feeding her Rabbit Royale, and was then spoken to as if I was an idiot.

She only had the RR as a treat to get her to eat, as well as hay, readigrass, herbs, and some forage. She normally gets a tiny amount in the morning, and the rest of the day she has hay, until a supper of green veg or forage.

Even when I explained why I use RR, it still wasn't acceptable to him.

To be honest I would have been out the door. I need a very good relationship with my vet/s, and that includes them trusting me that I do the very best I can. It works both ways.

Sorry you had that experience. Didn't he realise what a stressful time it was for you as well?? :roll:
 
I would be well peed off with that.

I feed RR through choice, I find that my two do well on it and I will not be changing.

I also feed SS pellets.

I think that whatever works for the individual bunny and owner is fine :)
 
Perhaps ask him why the research was on such a small study group, why there was no pellets only group and that the comment only say feeding muesli 'May' cause dental problems, which scientifically, means nothing! It's also worth saying that the statement can only be made for the specific muesli used compared to excel ( the pellets used) it does not cover all pellets v's all muesli. Tests would have to be done for each and every food to be able to categorically say all muesli is bad compared to all pellets.
 
I am still mad at him. I was going to change to pellets, again, but I'm not prepared to upset Honey's tummy to keep a vet happy. Especially since she is having an op in a week.

His problem with RR was it has wheat in it. I got shown a bit wheat and told buns don't eat that and how bad it is for them. Checking the Excel packet I'm using for other buns, it also has wheat. And eggshell :shock:. I know D1ck vet uses Excel.

She has been x-rayed and had a ct scan on her head, and her teeth are fine, so they can't argue that muesli is bad for her teeth.

I know it's an over-reaction, but I was so upset and stressed anyway, I really didn't need the lecture. A polite "Did you know..." or "Have you tried..." would have been better, especially since she had a pile of herbs and forage and hay in her picnic so she was obviously not just fed on muesli.

The other annoying thing, they told me she was eating but her picnic hadn't been used :?. Will be really cross if they fed her some other rabbit food.
 
Apart from anything else, sounds as though a bedside manner is sadly lacking - very important if you are a vet.
 
Wasn't that particular research also funded by burgess? If so it stands to reason it'll be bias.
 
I am still mad at him. I was going to change to pellets, again, but I'm not prepared to upset Honey's tummy to keep a vet happy. Especially since she is having an op in a week.

His problem with RR was it has wheat in it. I got shown a bit wheat and told buns don't eat that and how bad it is for them. Checking the Excel packet I'm using for other buns, it also has wheat. And eggshell :shock:. I know D1ck vet uses Excel.

She has been x-rayed and had a ct scan on her head, and her teeth are fine, so they can't argue that muesli is bad for her teeth.

I know it's an over-reaction, but I was so upset and stressed anyway, I really didn't need the lecture. A polite "Did you know..." or "Have you tried..." would have been better, especially since she had a pile of herbs and forage and hay in her picnic so she was obviously not just fed on muesli.

The other annoying thing, they told me she was eating but her picnic hadn't been used :?. Will be really cross if they fed her some other rabbit food.

The way I see it is that they are YOUR buns - and YOU are bunny-savvy enough to know what is right for them. Just because the vet has a degree in doctoring animals - which is great and woo hoo for him - it doesn't give him the right to dictate to you. He can advise certainly - but at the end of the day he should take into account the fact that you're obviously not inexperienced and you do know what you're doing.

All our buns get given a little RR at night as a bed time treat - and I get a bit of chocolate - neither the buns or me will suffer from having a little bit of naughtiness when the rest of our diet is healthy.

Some times people can get way too worked up over things :roll: (the vet in this instance).
 
I feed mine RR most of the time as they love it and I find it is cheaper than SS or Excel, although I do buy these when they are on offer. At the moment SS is on offer at PAH so they have a mixture of this and RR.

The buffets I make up to tempt a bun after an op include some 'treat' stuff as I don't think it hurts in moderation to encourage them to eat (I don't mean chocolate or human food, but apple, grated carrot, fibafirst). My vet has never commented, just smiled at the little picnic.
 
I feed mine RR, they only get a tiny amount and none of them selective feed. I think that as long as 1- the diet is at least 80% hay 2- The Rabbit does not selective feed and 3- only a minimal portion of RR is fed then it is no worse than feeding pellets. I find it odd that there is never any mention of how all the feeding guidelines on pellet feeds are way above what is really needed by the average Pet Rabbit. So how can feeding too many pellets, meaning hay intake wont be great, be better than feeding a minimal amount of RR and 80% hay :?

I would respectfully tell the Vet that whilst in general a pellet feed may be better to recommend it is not always suitable/appropriate for some Rabbits and not all Rabbit owners who feed RR are neglectful numb-skulls !!

I could go on to talk about the three almost fatal choking incidents I have witnessed from feeding pellets (SS). That was another reason I changed to RR.
 
I feed mine RR, they only get a tiny amount and none of them selective feed. I think that as long as 1- the diet is at least 80% hay 2- The Rabbit does not selective feed and 3- only a minimal portion of RR is fed then it is no worse than feeding pellets. I find it odd that there is never any mention of how all the feeding guidelines on pellet feeds are way above what is really needed by the average Pet Rabbit. So how can feeding too many pellets, meaning hay intake wont be great, be better than feeding a minimal amount of RR and 80% hay :?

I would respectfully tell the Vet that whilst in general a pellet feed may be better to recommend it is not always suitable/appropriate for some Rabbits and not all Rabbit owners who feed RR are neglectful numb-skulls !!

I could go on to talk about the three almost fatal choking incidents I have witnessed from feeding pellets (SS). That was another reason I changed to RR.

I too have almost lost a bun to choking on SS pellets. It was one of the scariest things ever. Everybun is happy on RR, no selective feeding, no excess gas and no choking.

Honey gets 12-15g in the morning, a small selection of green veg/forage at night, and the rest is hay or grass. The buns all get one fenugreek crunchie at bedtime so I can see if everybun is eating ok before I leave them for the night :oops:. The only treats they very occasionally get are dried forage I have bought for them. But obviously because they are getting fed RR, they have an unhealthy diet :roll:.
 
The pellet research was scientifically invalid anyway. I do think generally they are better overall but RR is in my opinion fine!

If my vet spoke to me like that I wouldn't go back I'm afraid. Trust is important and that includes the vet trusting you to do the best by your pet.
 
The pellet research was scientifically invalid anyway. I do think generally they are better overall but RR is in my opinion fine!

If my vet spoke to me like that I wouldn't go back I'm afraid. Trust is important and that includes the vet trusting you to do the best by your pet.



:thumb:
 
Mine are fed on RR as well, have been for ages, it's certainly not because I can't afford pellets etc, it is personal choice and as Jane said seeing as they have 80/90% hay I can't see how it matters so much.
 
The pellet research was scientifically invalid anyway. I do think generally they are better overall but RR is in my opinion fine!

If my vet spoke to me like that I wouldn't go back I'm afraid. Trust is important and that includes the vet trusting you to do the best by your pet.

I don't have a choice but to go back. He is one of the exotics specialists at **** Vets :(.

Unfortunately, I really don't like him for a number of reasons, one being he kept calling Honey "it".
 
I don't have a choice but to go back. He is one of the exotics specialists at **** Vets :(.

Unfortunately, I really don't like him for a number of reasons, one being he kept calling Honey "it".

I would have had something to say about that :evil: Just because a Professional has lots of letters after their name it doesn't mean that it's OK for them to ignore basic manners.
 
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