Vet Unresponsive to Client's Concerns

A few weeks ago my dog was licking his paw and when I inspected it there was a small wound possibly from a foxtail. I took him to the vet and they flushed the area but did not find any foreign object in the wound. The vet had sedated my dog to perform the procedure and also administered an injection of Rimadyl for the "pain." She prescribed oral anti-biotics to be given for three weeks. I am ticked off at the vet because she put my dog on an anti-biotic that I had never heard of. My dog has tested and tolerated doxy, & tetra but she put him on Simplicef. After giving the RX for a few days, I noticed that my dog was itching so much, literally jumping out of his skin. I called the vet & the tech assured me that NO such side effect has been reported with that med. A few days later, I find a bump on his groin area and rash on his leg. Again, I called the vet to let them know that the medication was causing an allergic reaction & again she said that it was not so & that vomiting and diarrhea were likely side effects. They told me to come in for another consultation. At this point I was convinced that the medication was making my dog break out & researched Simplicef.  It turns out that less frequently hives and rashes ARE side effects which the vet's office said were NOT. I went to the consultation and the vet looked the area and said it was a "pustule" and my dog needs some medicated shampoo (costing $32.00 a bottle!) I wanted to discontinue the med but she advised against it So, having paid another office visit fee and the cost of the shampoo, (on top of the $400.00 already paid) I go home and follow the vet's advice to continue with the meds. Soon after I give the dose, my dog starts sneezing uncontrollably 15-20 times and after it stopped, he was itching again. VETS NEED TO LISTEN TO THEIR CLIENTS WHEN THEY ARE TOLD THAT THE PETS ARE REACTING TO THE MEDS THEY PRESCRIBE! Nobody knows a pet as well as the owner or primary care taker but we are dismissed as "lay people" who don't know anything about animal husbandry. I called the vet's office again and told the vet tech what had happened with the latest dose and she said the the doctor "is baffled." That is what I get from a professional - baffled?? They finally told me to stop the med and since then the itching  has stopped and the "pustule" subsided on its own with no intervention. NO apology or acknowledgement from the vet's office that I was on the right track about the medication being an allergen to my dog. I would like to find out if other people have observed negative side effects from Simplicef or Rimaldyl medications. The vet had also prescribed Rimadyl to be given to my dog for the "inflammation" and "pain" for 10 days. From my research,  I noticed that both the medications she prescribed were made my the same manufacturer. I now have the feeling that the vet is being given an incentive to push certain medications. I have lost faith in this vet and I feel that there is no informed consent and full disclosure. How does one handle this type of a situation. Of course, I could just find another vet to go to but I don't want a repeat performance this type of a situation. How can I make it clear that I want to know before hand if a vet is being compensated or otherwise induced to push a certain type of drug? Thanks for any help that anyone out there can give.

[ginger899]

I had something vaguely similar when my dog developed bad diarrhea and vomiting 48 hours after booster innoculations (she's usually in excellent health) I KNEW this was connected with her shots, but of course the vet was "baffled" (!) -had never heard of this happening, and said the only likely side effect -if any at all- might possibly be redness and swelling at the site of the injection.
Well, we know what we know, about our own dogs. We may not have qualifications or much medical knowledge but we have enough common sense to be able to see when a medicine is having a bad effect on our dog.

I have also been told certain things at my vet's practice that did not make sense (such as, when I took her in a few years ago for a very tiny breast lump to be examined and needle-biopsied, I was told that this lump was a "lymph node" slightly swollen because of her hormonal state as she was coming out of season. I knew that it was no such thing, and in my limited knowledge of canine anatomy, I knew there wasn't even a lymph node situated in that precise position!)
That scared me. After those incidents, I was going to switch vets, but now instead, always insist on seeing the head vet at the practice, because he certainly has his head screwed-on right, and has never said or done anything untoward, and is sympathetic to my concerns about innoculation. Also he performed life saving surgery on my dog and did a grand job.
It's just the rest of them -vets who seem to drop in on their travels from here and there, and I wonder if some of them maybe have only just qualified! Then they pass on again and leave. I do not trust them at all.

So I know now it can be a bit of a lottery as to which vet you get to see when you book an appointment! Only I insist on seeing the same vet each time. I even asked him about this, and he said it was fine, even for an emergency.

It's hard to tell who you can trust and who you can't. I wonder if you could ask other animal owners which vet they would recommend, and why. And insist on seeing ONLY that particular one each time? That's the only real advice I can give you.
All I know is it shouldn't be like this.

[lindapalm]

We had our dog on Rymadyl for joint pain, as needed.  I never notice any side effects, and it really helped her pain.  I have learned, the hard way, that if you are dissatisified with your vet, doctor, etc. and they just aren't listening, get rid of them.  Keep trying others, even if you have to travel farther, it will be worth it for the peace of mind you will have knowing your dog is being treated by someone you trust.