VetCareComplete - Covering Your Tails
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My new hobby - or - Move over Betty Crocker!

October 4, 2008 – 9:48 pm

So, along with an insane exercise program I have just begun, I have decided to start my hobby of baking. Now, I’m only talking about making a Bundt cake every so often or a coffee cake to take to work or such. I’m not talking about changing professions or starting the next Nabisco, because I actually love this pet insurance schtick.

Baking? Everybody I tell seems surprised. What can I say? I just like it. Maybe it’s a stress release like my mother-in-law thinks (she actually phrased it as,”a sign of something” and I’m thinking she meant stress), or the result of a deep seated passion for the perfect chocolate glaze, I don’t know. But I can tell you one thing, I like it.

The great thing about it is that I currently also work at a veterinary clinic that is very accepting of my new hobby - or at least the results of it. Literally - think of a pack of piranha but the cow is a pumpkin spice cake. This is great for me (my wife had this panicked look in her eyes as if I was expecting her to eat all this stuff I’m making), but it all comes with a price…the nick-names. In the last 3 days since I announced my new culinary pursuit, I have been called Julia Childs, Betty Crocker, and even June Cleaver. My response was that there are plenty of male chefs in the world… Chef Boyardee, Duncan Hines, Chef Tell… even Ron Popeil had a Chop-o-Matic and a Pasta Maker. I also just bought a T-shirt that says,”This recipe doesn’t call for your opinion.”

“Now,” you ask me, “what does baking have to do with Pet Insurance?” Well, when I really looked inside about why I want to start baking and what truth I’m seeking with it (other than the perfect coffee cake), I realized something. To bake, you have a goal in mind and a definite way to get there. Stress dissolves away as the recipe dictates what and how to prepare the dish and you know, with few exceptions, that you’ll get the same thing each and every time. After working in private practice for almost 13 years, one thing I can assure you is that veterinary medicine is not as simple as following a recipe in a cookbook. What most pet owners don’t realize is that veterinary medicine is much different than that. There’s so much more that can affect the end product when treating a sick animal than what’s in the books. That’s why your doctor cannot just follow a recipe for health and may have to change the plan multiple times in the course of treatment to get you a healthy animal. It’s not like baking a cake or like fixing a car. A living, breathing, wonderful little four-legged friend is so much more complex and there are so many different outcomes during treatment that it makes the future pretty much unknown. Your vet knows what he or she wants, but also knows they will have to deal with the difficulties and course changes as they arise. Let me tell you, from personal experience, that’s stressful enough without a pet owner’s economics entering into the mix.

That’s why we’re putting together VetCareComplete as the best of all available pet insurance. So that we take the economy out of the equation - one less variable to change the outcome that you want - a healthy and happy pet. By not thinking about the cost, you can allow your vet to offer the best and newest diagnostics and treatment to your poor little dog or cat.

So, maybe the real reason that I like baking other than making my house smell really nice, is that I can affect a quick and wonderful result by following a simple, little-old-grandmother recipe… stress free. Dr Keith and I are working hard so that your vet (and you, too) can feel that same freedom from stress - even if it’s just a little freedom.

We just want a stress-free world full of healthy animals, happy pet owners and vets… and some warm blueberry muffins.

With love from 350 degrees for 65 minutes,

Dr. A.J.

Veterinary Medicine of the 21st Century

September 25, 2008 – 4:40 pm

It makes me laugh when I hear 4 and 5 year old children talk about wanting to become a veget…vetrim…veteriminary…doctor for animals.  I think at that age I wanted to be an engineer.  That promptly changed in high school when I took my first part time job as a veterinary assistant (and I decided that I really disliked math).  The year was 1986, when a practice might be considered state of the art for having an in-house blood chemistry machine.  I remember dunking x-rays into fixer and developer tanks and having to air dry them on a rack in the dark room.  Nowadays, you would be hardpressed to find a clinic without in-house chemistry and CBC machines.  While there are x-ray processors in most hospitals (eliminating the need for those hideous dunk tanks), many are beginning to upgrade to digitial x-ray machines.  Talk about cool technology, the digital radiograph can be magnified with minimal loss of detail and manipulated to provide optimal interpretation.  Better still, these digital films can be emailed to veterinary radiologists and specialists for interpretation. 

(This is an example of a digital radiograph taken of one of my technician’s dogs after it was hit in the head by a passing car.  See if you can spot the jaw fractures and the fractured tooth)

Since I graduated veterinary school in 1996, we have seen other dramatic changes in technology that have brought veterinary medicine into the 21st century.  These advances have allowed speciality medicine to transition out of academic environments and into public venues.  There are veterinary specialists in all the same fields as human medicine (e.g. cardiologists, neurologists, internal medicine, ophthalmology, etc. )  Speciality centers have opened up all across the country providing state of the art services such as digital radiography, ultrasound, MRI, CT, endoscopy, state of art laboratory equipment, and high-tech surgical tools that allow veterinary specialists to mirror many of the same things their human counterparts are doing. 

My generation of veterinarian graduated accustomed to being able to refer patients to any of the speciality fields that a patient required.  It is now considered “standard of care” to offer referral as an option.  This is due in large part to the accessibility of referral centers in local communities.  

Now for the catch, which I am sure you can guess at this point.  High tech definitely equates to higher cost.  Even though the cost of some of these technologies has been reduced into the accessible range, a $1500 to $3000 bill at a speciality care center is not uncommon.  I have mentioned in past blog entries that it can be really frustrating practicing as a veterinarian with your hands tied by financial constraints.  As veterinarians, we want ALL owners to benefit from the wonderful advances that have taken place in veterinary medicine.  VetCareComplete’s insurance policies will allow you to visit any vet or specialist that you choose, providing you with comprehensive coverage and reimbursement taken directly from your veterinary bill, not a benefit schedule.   This will maximize your ability to take advantage of all the technologies and speciality fields that are available today and in the future.

VetCareComplete is firmly committed to supporting veterinary research, residency programs, as well as scholarship programs for the next generation of veterinarian and veterinary specialist. 

Yours in support of the veterinary profession,

Dr. Keith

 

 

Exceptional Customer Service?

September 3, 2008 – 12:20 pm

Somebody told me that is getting harder to spend your money without getting angry. I agree. How sad is that? We put up with so much lame customer service that it’s become the standard that companies aspire to.

I mean, why don’t we boycott companies that outservice their customer service call centers (like my phone company)? Nothing is worse than pushing your way through an automated answering system only to finally get a human on the line who is on the other side of the planet outsourced by the company you’re trying to call. When I call a company because I have a question about their product or service, I want to talk with someone who works there, who makes that product or offers that service. They’re more personally invested in what they’re selling me. It’s difficult enough to get people to understand what the heck I’m saying without having to explain it to someone who doesn’t really care. Which, sadly, is the norm nowadays.

I guess the reason for this rant is that when we’ve launched and are actively selling policies, we have some relatively simple goals. By goals I mean something we will work every day to accomplish. They are:
1) Give Value - to treat every client as if they are our only client.
2) Be Reliable - fix problems and answer questions the first time we get a call.
3) Be Honest - in our treatment of others
4) Exceed Expectations - of all the goals above.

I once told a friend of mine that if there was a roofing company in Richmond that answered their calls, showed up on time and sober, and finished a job in time - they could charge anything, do only adequate work, and corner the market. Looking back, I can see a correlation from what I felt to what people currently feel about pet insurance companies.

I don’t vow much. But I’m telling you now that we’ll be setting a new standard of what you’ll expect from everyone in your life - from roofers to your phone company.

Love to all, 

Dr. AJ

The $4000 Dog

August 29, 2008 – 2:45 pm

I saw a client of mine the other day that really embodies what the average pet owner thinks about pet insurance… not that there was any negativity by any means. She was a very concerned and lovely young woman who loves her dog and would do anything for him. She just didn’t know much about pet insurance and didn’t see why she would need it.
Now, this situation wouldn’t be noteworthy, at least for this blog, but there were circumstances that makes her attitude wholly surprising. You see, two years ago, her dog ate a stuffed animal that almost killed him. After an intensive abdominal surgery and a week in intensive care, the dog lost about a foot of intestine, a week of running around the yard and his owner was out of pocket about $4000. The dog made a miraculous recovery, but I’m not sure how her bank account fared.
So, the other day, I performed an annual exam for her little 4 year old Westie and pronounced him the picture of perfect health. I asked her, though, at the end of the appointment, if she ever considered getting pet insurance, thinking about what they went through 2 years ago. She said,”Why? You just said he is perfect. ” I was speechless (trust me, that’s saying alot as I am also known as Dr. Jibber Jabber).
What I proceeded to talk with her about is a very important thing that all pet owners should consider… Buy pet insurance when your dog is healthy and you don’t think you need it. You will.
As far as this Westie is concerned, I just couldn’t believe that his owner forked over $4000 of her hard earned cash (albeit for a great cause) and never once explored a way to save money if the dog decided to chew on another toy.
As far as this young lady is concerned, I took a few minutes to describe to her why in particular she needed to look into insuring her pet. I’m hoping she went home and signed him up.
So, the point of all of this should be clear. Please, please, get pet insurance the moment your vet says that your dog (or cat) is in perfect health.
Tomorrow they could just as easily swallow their favorite toy, and take your credit card with it.

Looking out for you, even if you don’t think you need it,

Dr. AJ

The Painted Cats

August 22, 2008 – 9:34 am

Sometimes I get forwarded a must see picture email from a friend or family member that, against my better judgment,  I find irresistable and just have to open.  (Remember the digitally altered photo of the great white shark jumping up out of the water attacking the helicopter?) Ok. I’ll be honest. I am a sucker for those pics. Yes, the monster of Montauk and the recent Bigfoot hoax…both opened by me. However, occassionally there is one that blows me away! Behold! The painted cats!

 

Apparently, people pay thousands of dollars to fancy up their felines. I think what intrigues me most is how in the heck they get them to hold still without the benefits of chemical restraint? I guess what you can’t see is the artist holding his paint brush and bleeding from the battle wounds inflicted in the process.

It is certainly creates an amazing effect, and yet I can’t see my cats actually requesting to be painted to look like a koi. (My bull mastiff pouted for a day after our groomer painted her toe nails pink.) It does illustrate how fanatical we can all be about our pets though.

This is Dr. Keith “I-will-never-get-my-cats-painted” Taylor leaving you with a final thought…

If you are going to spend $50-70 at the groomer each month to primp and pretty up your four legged children, doesn’t it make sense to spend an equal amount to insure them with VetCareComplete for the peace of mind of having the most comprehensive healthcare coverage available?

P.S.  We do not advocate cat painting of any kind.  Feel free, however, to continue painting anything that doesn’t have to capability of causing serious bodily harm.

Oh yeah, one more thing.  Photo Shop is an incredible piece of software.  As I still have not actually seen a painted cat in person, I will assume that, while possible, it is equally likely that we are all victims of photo shop manipulation. 

Unfortunately, we are not able to offer coverage at this time to dog-birds, cat-squirrels, or alligator-bird hybrids.

 

“Can we do something?” Vs. “Should we do something?”

August 20, 2008 – 1:41 pm

Being a veterinarian is so much more complicated than just treating sick animals. The job title should really read Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, detective, forensic expert, animal psychic, counsellor, and psychologist. I still laugh when people suggest that one goes into veterinary medicine because he/she loves animals and doesn’t like working with people. The reality is that in order to be an effective vet, clear communication and interaction with clients are essential skills. (The patients have yet to verbally respond to my questions regarding their ailments. I guess if I start hearing responses, I have either achieved Dr. Doolittle status or desperately need a vacation).

As a veterinarian, it is my responsibility to objectively and unassumingly offer consistent recommendations and treatment options to every client.  It has been demonstrated in numerous industry surveys that what a client is willing to spend on diagnostics and treatment of their loved one has more to do with trust in their veterinarian and less to do with finances.  Regardless, what becomes challenging is managing a case with a client that you know is working on a fixed income. Often times it is like working with one (or both) hands tied behind your back. Unfortunately, veterinary medicine is not reliably like an episode of “McGuyver” where a piece of chewing gum, some dental floss, and a box of raisins will disarm a bomb.   The point being there is not always a viable conservative treatment option.

Enter VetCareComplete pet insurance. Thank goodness there is a program that will allow owners to take financial considerations out of the picture! Veterinarians are practicing the medicine they were trained to provide! Ah, but here’s the rub and the point of this blog entry…even if we can do something, should we? Read More »

Some cats don’t go to the vet.

August 11, 2008 – 6:42 pm

I mean, truthfully, who really likes going to the doctor? Hypochondriacs and those “Münchausen by Proxy” people are all I can think of that like it.

Right now, I’m with my family at our yearly beach trip in the Outer Banks, NC - a place as close to heaven as I can imagine. I take this time each year to catch up on reading all these magazines I get throughout the year. In fact, I just read a statistic that says that cats are twice as likely not to see the vet as dogs. This report found that pet owners took their dogs to the vet for routine care more often than they took their cats, even in households that had dogs and cats. That statistic blows me away… that people think cats don’t get sick.

The only reason that I can think that that happens is because cats fake it when they’re sick. I’ve seen cats that have severe dental disease (that is painful rotting teeth that would have most people begging for relief) and according to their owners, these cats showed no signs of problems at home and “still are eating well.”

I think my whole point of this blog is that it is so important to have at least one exam at the vet for every pet every year… ideally every 6 months. Those cats that haven’t been seen most probably have problems that need to be addressed. I don’t think cats have less problems than dogs. I think that because of their sometimes solitary nature, and the fact that they are master fakers, people don’t realize that they need help.

Now for the insurance tie-in… I know that pet insurance will help all cat owners not think twice about the money side of it. There will be no,”Oh, the cat’s fine. Let’s skip the exam this year,” attitudes. Owners will bring their cat to the vet for every recommended exam and vaccination, and will jump at the chance to bring that cat in the moment it hunkers up under the bed and misses a few meals.

I want all our pets to have long and happy lives filled with love… (and annual or semi-annual exams).

That’s really why we’re all here for in the first place, isn’t it?

Blogging from my slice of heaven,

Dr. AJ

Flea control as it relates to sharks?

August 5, 2008 – 4:26 pm

I have always loved the ocean. Recently my wife and I received our PADI certification to scuba dive and had the pleasure of diving at Stuarts Cove in the Bahamas. During a dive at a wreck called “Ray of Hope,” we were surrounded by carribean reef sharks ranging in length from 4 to 10 feet. It was truly one of the most beautiful and powerful experiences our lives. Watching these magnificent creatures materialize in and out of our field of vision, effortlessly moving through the water, is a memory I will always treasure.
I guess that’s a rather long segway for discussion about an episode of Mythbusters during Discovery Channel’s Sharkweek. They explore the truth behind the myth “swimming in the ocean with a dog increases your likelihood of being attacked by a shark.”
After creating a robot dog to simulate swimming and barking, they employ the use of dog urine, anal secretion, and trace amounts of blood similar to the amount that would be in flea excrement on a dog. (Did you know that flea poop is actually digested blood?) They hoped to determine whether any of the above conditions could provoke shark interest in robo-pooch thereby increasing a human’s risk of being attacked.
After placing the simulated dog in waters teeming with carribean reef sharks, the experiment began. No significant increase in shark activity was noted with swimming, barking, or upon remote release of urine or anal secretion. With the introduction of trace amounts of blood, however…it only took seconds before the sharks picked up the blood trail and traced it back to it’s source. The sharks did not attack but more or less investigated the robotic dog.
I believe the conclusion reached by the team was “plausible” but not confirmed. With rare exception, humans (and dogs) are not on shark menus. However, all bets are off when it comes to excited and/or agressive sharks that are incited to feed. Even in these instances it is often a case of mistaken identity.
Regardless, the episode did give new meaning to the importance of flea control.

Wishing you a wonderful summer’s end and safe beachgoing with Fido,

Dr. Keith

The Passing of Reggie

July 31, 2008 – 9:47 pm

It is with a heavy heart that I write about the passing of Reggie, the 17 year old dachshund that has been such an inspiration to this project. When he came into the office today, it was clear that his health had taken a dramatic turn for the worse. His owner reported that he was no longer the same dog we had come to love and appreciate. The spark was missing from his eye and the spring in his step was replaced by unsteadiness. Even his attempts to bite me were lacking his usual enthusiasm. His pain was no longer effectively controlled by the medications he was taking and his quality of life had deteriorated.

One of the most difficult and yet probably the single most important part about being a veterinarian, is the task of taking a family through the evaluation of quality of life and ultimately helping them to make the determination to euthanize a beloved pet and family member. Sometimes the decision is clear cut, other times it can clouded by shades of grey arising from medical or financial factors

In this case, Reggie was blessed to have been cared for by one of the most compassionate owners I have known while in private practice. He had lived a full life and his owner had provided him the opportunity for the best care imaginable. His little body had finally caught up with his age. We euthanized Reggie while he lay quietly in his owners lap and said good bye to him with the dignity that he deserved.

I am thankful to have known Reggie. He will always hold a special place in my memory and will continue to be an inspiration to us at VetCareComplete.

- Dr. Keith

My Brother, Jim

July 27, 2008 – 6:51 pm

My brother Jim emailed me yesterday and told me about something that was bothering him. It seems he was watching The Today Show and they had a Consumer Reports segment on “tip-offs” and “rip-offs”. What got him upset was that they really ripped up the whole pet insurance industry as a big waste of money. As a loving and concerned brother, I think it really got to him. He is a really great brother, by the way.

So, I told him that in all honesty and in my opinion, they’re right about the current market for pet insurance. That’s why we’re creating VetCareComplete. Consumer Reports was just stating the obvious fact that there is a desperate need in the US for pet insurance that actually gives value back to it’s customers. That’s exactly what we’ve been saying. And that’s exactly what we are creating.

So, thanks Consumer Reports and The Today Show. Thanks for getting America ready for VetCareComplete. We now know, without a doubt, that they are waiting for us!

Love to all,

Dr. AJ

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