• DVM360_Conference_Charlotte,NC_banner
  • ACVCACVC
  • DVM 360
  • Fetch DVM 360Fetch DVM 360
DVM 360
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
By Role
AssociatesOwnersPractice ManagerStudentsTechnicians
Subscriptions
dvm360 Newsletterdvm360 Magazine
News
All News
Association
Breaking News
Conference Coverage
Education
Equine
FDA
Law & Ethics
Market Trends
Medical
Politics
Products
Recalls
Regulatory
Digital Media
dvm360 LIVE!™
Expert Interviews
The Vet Blast Podcast
Medical World News
Pet Connections
The Dilemma Live
Vet Perspectives™
Weekly Newscast
dvm360 Insights™
Publications
All Publications
dvm360
Firstline
Supplements
Vetted
Clinical
All Clinical
Anesthesia
Animal Welfare
Behavior
Cardiology
CBD in Pets
Dentistry
Dermatology
Diabetes
Emergency & Critical Care
Endocrinology
Equine Medicine
Exotic Animal Medicine
Feline Medicine
Gastroenterology
Imaging
Infectious Diseases
Integrative Medicine
Nutrition
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain Management
Parasitology
Pharmacy
Surgery
Toxicology
Urology & Nephrology
Virtual Care
Business
All Business
Business & Personal Finance
Hospital Design
Personnel Management
Practice Finances
Practice Operations
Wellbeing & Lifestyle
Continuing Education
Conferences
Conference Listing
Conference Proceedings
Resources
CBD in Pets
CE Requirements by State
Contests
Veterinary Heroes
Partners
Spotlight Series
Team Meeting in a Box
Toolkit
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vet to Vet
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
By Role
  • Associates
  • Owners
  • Practice Manager
  • Students
  • Technicians
Subscriptions
  • dvm360 Newsletter
  • dvm360 Magazine
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us
  • MJHLS Brand Logo

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences™ and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Three tips to manage equine client misinformation

July 18, 2008

First, veterinarians can address the client worries, then go from there.

It happens regularly in equine medicine: A client shows up at your door having investigated the symptoms of his or her horse's condition on the Internet or via the second- or third-hand knowledge of friends, family, or the guy at the feed store. It's this disease, right, doc? Clients are showing up at appointments with more and more symptom lists and self-made diagnoses, says Dr. Erica Lacher, owner of Springhill Equine Veterinary Clinic in Gainesville, Fla. She says it's a result of the younger generation poking around on the Internet, an everything-goes environment of sound medical advice peppered with harmless but useless treatments and some dangerous suggestions. Here are ways to manage clients' well-meaning but often incorrect diagnoses and information, courtesy of Dr. Lacher and Veterinary Economics Editorial Advisory Board member Dr. Jim Guenther, MBA, CVPM, a consultant with Mountain Management and Consulting in Asheville, N.C.:

> Start appointments by addressing the client's concerns, worries, and opinions. Reassure the client, says Dr. Guenther. "If the owner thinks the horse is lame in the left-front but your first instinct is to look at the gait from the right-front, check out the left-front first," he says. "This reassures the client that you heard him, that you respect his intelligence and his opinion."

> Ask clients to keep you in the loop. Dr. Lacher encourages clients to call or e-mail her with questions. She shares with them online sources she trusts, like The Horse and the AAEP Web site, and asks them to send her links to online sources they're not sure about.

Advertisement

> Be nice. If the remedy the client found on the Internet doesn't hurt, it can't be too bad. Some of Dr. Lacher's clients have gotten some New Age-y suggestions, like chanting and magic crystals. While Dr. Lacher doesn't prescribe such methods, she says she's got a respectful answer for innocuous treatments as long as they don't interfere with her medical recommendations: "Well, I haven't tried it personally, but it certainly can't hurt."

For more on educating equine clients, check out the August issue of Veterinary Economics, coming soon!

Related Content:

BusinessPractice Operations
Paw Prosper acquires brands and becomes one-stop destination for pet aging
Paw Prosper acquires brands and becomes one-stop destination for pet aging
3 tips for selling your practice
3 tips for selling your practice
AmeriVet Veterinary Partners makes 2023 Inc Southwest Regionals List
AmeriVet Veterinary Partners makes 2023 Inc Southwest Regionals List

Advertisement

Latest News

Xylazine moves from the stables to the streets

DEA reports widespread threat of fentanyl mixed with xylazine

3 Must-reads for National Poison Prevention Week

UC Davis study on eye diseases in kittens

View More Latest News
Advertisement