I want to discuss intuition as one tool in helping a pet in times of illness or suspected illness.
For example, some of you might have read about my cat Tommy and the possibility that he has diabetes. After researching the subject and discussing diabetes and his blood test results with Traci and other people, and after watching him closely for weeks, I am still not sure whether he has it or not, but my feeling is, he has not, although I wouldn't bank on it. Still, my feeling made me decide to NOT go ahead right now and do more bloodwork (cause it freaks him out so much), but simply keep watching him.
So, I meant to ask the board here, when do you let intuition make a decision when it concerns your pets? A friend of mine said "you know your cats better than anybody else, you just KNOW if they are seriously ill or not, so you should listen to your gut feeling".
Do you agree with that?
Does intuition help?
Re: Does intuition help?
Well if there really is a suspected illness, and a test can give results, I would opt for the tests. By delaying, it might cause more harm.
However, several years ago, Winnie was acting strange on a Thursday, and X-rays showed no bladder stones, so the Vet sent her home. By Saturday, my gut was still telling something wasn't right, and being a long weekend I just took her back for the Vet to observe. He ended up doing emergency surgery that afternoon. In that instance, my gut feeling was right on, and she may not have made it through the weekend.
However, several years ago, Winnie was acting strange on a Thursday, and X-rays showed no bladder stones, so the Vet sent her home. By Saturday, my gut was still telling something wasn't right, and being a long weekend I just took her back for the Vet to observe. He ended up doing emergency surgery that afternoon. In that instance, my gut feeling was right on, and she may not have made it through the weekend.
Re: Does intuition help?
The x ray wasn't showing the stones? 
Good example for the gut feeling working the other way.
Good example for the gut feeling working the other way.
Re: Does intuition help?
It would be unwise to rely on intuition for your pets' health, since both instinct and tuition would be better served when you feel something is not-quite-right or wrong, rather than "nothing is wrong, I don't feel like there is anything wrong".
In Tommy's case, since he is around 8 years old, and since he did have concerning symptoms, and since your vet did have some indication that diabetes may need to be investigated, it was better that you got that checked, discussed, knew your options, as opposed to not doing anything, not getting bloodwork, not knowing what to monitor. Now, you have some basic understanding of what to watch for, what to monitor, an understanding of the disease, and steps to take to recheck bloodwork/urinalysis.
Words of wisdom: Always play it safe, better safe than sorry. You'll always have peace of mind for getting a vet checkup over something that may be nothing, and should something be detected, you'll be glad you did (and so will the pet).
Btw, any pet over the age of 7 should receive annual or bi-annual checkups plus bloodwork to help stay ahead of the common conditions that often inflict our senior pets. Many disease conditions can be slowed in progression if caught early on, and treated appropriately. Unfortunately, you are rather isolated in that your vet is not advanced in vet med.
In Tommy's case, since he is around 8 years old, and since he did have concerning symptoms, and since your vet did have some indication that diabetes may need to be investigated, it was better that you got that checked, discussed, knew your options, as opposed to not doing anything, not getting bloodwork, not knowing what to monitor. Now, you have some basic understanding of what to watch for, what to monitor, an understanding of the disease, and steps to take to recheck bloodwork/urinalysis.
Words of wisdom: Always play it safe, better safe than sorry. You'll always have peace of mind for getting a vet checkup over something that may be nothing, and should something be detected, you'll be glad you did (and so will the pet).
Btw, any pet over the age of 7 should receive annual or bi-annual checkups plus bloodwork to help stay ahead of the common conditions that often inflict our senior pets. Many disease conditions can be slowed in progression if caught early on, and treated appropriately. Unfortunately, you are rather isolated in that your vet is not advanced in vet med.
..........Traci