Pet Related Decision Making: Smarter, Better
One of the biggest blessings and curses of living in the time that we do is information overload. When it comes to just about any decision, from which humidifier to purchase to how to get your hair to curl naturally, a quick search can give you all the information (and usually more than all the information) you need to make decisions.
Animal lovers everywhere have likely experienced pet related decision making paralysis. Filtering everything at your disposal can be difficult, but with the help of Animal Medical Hospital & Urgent Care, smarter, better, and well-educated pet choices are your future.
Information Overload
These days, everyone has an opinion, personal story, or reference when it comes to most aspects of pet care. So when you want to know what the best pet food is, what vaccinations your puppy needs, or the right way to housetrain, it can be hard to know what information to take in and which to filter out.
When we take a step back and look at things objectively, one truth becomes clear: some of the information out there is simply not true. So how do you know which sources to trust?
- What are the source’s credentials?
- Are there scientific references cited?
- Is the source trying to sell you something?
- Is the information current?
- What is the background of the person/website giving the advice?
- Is the information based on actual research or anecdotal evidence?
For instance, a stranger’s story on an Internet forum about how a certain dog food led to her pug’s skin problem should carry a lot less weight than one of our educated doctor’s advice that the food might be a great choice for your pug.
There are many reputable sources out there to help guide you in your pet-related decision making. Please never hesitate to reach out to us, either, for guidance.
Planning and Pet Related Decision Making
Planning ahead can also help you to make smarter decisions for your pet. At a time where we know more than ever about veterinary medicine and have more resources at our disposal for treating and fixing our animal patients, the sky’s the limit.
Many times our hand is forced by finances, however. Yes, maybe we could potentially expand a patient’s lifespan with chemotherapy, diagnose and better treat a brain disorder with an MRI, or fix a devastating fracture with plates and pins, but sometimes it does not make financial sense to do so.
Being able to take money out of the equation when trying to make the best choices for our pets is a true advantage. It lets us see the situation objectively and feel better about our decisions.
There are a few ways to do this. You can definitely just put away for a rainy day so that you have a nice stockpile of savings for your pet’s care should they become sick or injured.
For most families, though, pet insurance is the best solution. With a variety of deductibles and plans out there, having pet insurance is a great way to be sure that you are making decisions for your pet without having to factor in cost.
Pet related decision making can be overwhelming, but if you consider who you will trust as a reliable source of information and be sure to set yourself up for financial stability when it comes to pet care, it really isn’t hard to make good choices. We hope that you will consider us your partners when it comes to quality pet care decisions.