Pet Owners' Rights & SB 697

Okay, I'm climbing on my soapbox, but this has really got me riled!

I've been taking Katie to her regular groomer, Pampered Pets, in Oakhurst, for five years now and every year or two I make an appointment for 'anesthesia free teeth cleaning' for her.  In this area, the service is done by scalers with Canine Care, Inc. at the various groomers.  Canine Care has been in business for 32 years, a wee bit more than just a little start up company, don't you think?  Katie's teeth are in very good condition for a 10 year old dog.  Unlike me, she eats right; no people food with the exception of vegetables and she thinks those are treats.

This procedure doesn't get inside the gums and address other periodontal issues.  It simply removes (scales) tartar, cleans the teeth, and the tech/scaler lets you know if, in fact, a 'procedure' might be necessary and, if so, refers you to your vet.  The biggie, for me, is that NO ANESTHESIA is required.  At the risk of repeating myself, Katie is 10 years old, 11 years next month.  SHE DOES NOT NEED TO BE PUT UNDER ANESTHESIA UNNECESSARILY.  What's the point of a clean dental checkup for a dead dog?

The Veterinary Medical Board in California is currently trying to pass a bill to create a monopoly that will put their perceived 'competition' out of business by making “anesthesia-free teeth cleaning” solely a veterinary medical procedure.  So next year will veterinarians be the only ones allowed to groom our pets?  Now, I know times are hard.  The economy is taking a bad hit.  But I don't expect that the veterinarians who treat our animals are going to be on the streets anytime soon.  The cost of dental checkups and cleaning is upward of $400 per animal, a big part of that is the always risky anesthesia even with the requisite pre-anesthesia tests.  The cost of anesthesia-free teeth cleaning is under $100.  I may not be terribly bright, but even I can do the math.

Once again, someone else, who doesn't even know me, feels they're better qualified than I am to do my thinking for me and, in this case, to decide how to best care for my animals.  It irritates me that for a few extra dollars, those who are supposed to care for our pets, are willing to put them at risk while preventing someone else from performing a needed and relatively affordable service while earning a living.

Killing this service and putting these people out of business does not mean that my local vet will automatically  be allowed to put my pets at risk.  It means that the dental cleaning they do get, they won't get any longer.  And if my local vets are willing to put my pets at risk, any kind of risk; I need to reconsider where and to whom I take my pets.  I won't be railroaded and I won't allow Katie & Kasey to undergo any unnecessary and/or risky treatment for anyone's bottom line.

For more information go to petownersrights.org.  If you're a California voter and see a petition to prevent the Veterinary Medical Board from usurping the work of anesthesia free scalers and eventually obtaining sole authority over everything having to do with anything dental (SB 697), please ... please, sign it!  Katie, Kasey, and many other animals and their 'parents' will thank you!