To ask wtf happened?

[ifonerememberstoturnonthelight]

Right so I rescued our neighbours dog from neglect and sadly after 2 weeks of treatment and love his condition deteriorated and he had a massive stroke so needed putting down it was awful and I felt so shitty about doing it.

My issue is..

Keith had to be put to sleep outside on the grass of the vets because of COVID. So the lovely vet hung the bag of fluid on the washing line outside the vet and Keith was laid underneath it, then the drugs injected to the iv so the vet could distance from us etc. However when it had been confirmed that he had passed away we stood up to go back to the car and it turned out that behind us literally 2 foot away was a family (mum and kids) having a picnic of Burger King on the grass in the rain at 7pm whilst the dad revved the engine of the car.

I get that cars break down and I get that kids need to eat but it was very obvious a dog was being put to sleep at the time. Id just like to ask the vet if they could have given us more privacy or asked them to move? I dnno. Maybe I'm overreacting. But it was the most surreal experience of my life having just said goodbye to a lovely dog to turn around and see a family having a picnic next to us. I mean I nearly stepped on the kid!

I would have gone to different vet!

The vets are just making up their own rules! Why is it deemed safe for waiters to serve customers in restaurants, hairdressers to cut peoples hair, teachers to be in school with no social distancing or PPA but too dangerous for vets to be in a room with clients?

The vet should have spoken to the gormless family. I'm so sorry about your dog.

Sorry for your loss. I think the vets need to get a screen if this is how they are euthanising during the pandemic.

Vets need to stop this now. It’s perfectly possible to protect yourself from Covid risk with masks aprons and hand washing. I am in Public facing healthcare and Manage this daily.
Well here's the difference. Vets require someone (usually a nurse) to hold their patients whilst they're examined, this requires very close contact, often head to head depending on the procedure, most vets are understaffed and smaller practices don't have enough staff to form bubbles so yes 1 covid positive case in a practice will mean the practice closing for 2 weeks and leave thousands of patients with no healthcare.
Masks aren't working, I know because several of my colleagues tested positive 7-10 days into isolation after 1 member of staff testing positive despite extremely high levels of cleanliness and everyone wearing disposable ppe including masks and shields. Veterinary professionals have been told in no uncertain terms public health comes first.
We will no longer be allowing any clients into our practice as staff safety must come first. Lots of veterinary staff are themselves classed as vulnerable and do not have the luxury of working from home.

Sorry about your experience OP, it sounds bizarre, I can't think why the family weren't asked to move.

@Itsatravesty Funny how vets come first before their clients, but not other workers like teachers, nursery staff, restaurant staff or carers.

@CheetasOnFajitas

I’d like to think the vets attention was fully focussed on the pet he was euthanising not cars pulling up behind him.

[quote Thecobwebsarewinning]@CheetasOnFajitas

I’d like to think the vets attention was fully focussed on the pet he was euthanising not cars pulling up behind him.[/quote]
I meant afterwards.

I would complain that the vet wouldn't allow this procedure to be done inside tbh, cos covid is no excuse for putting an animal to sleep in that manner, he deserved dignity and respect. Not only that but those drugs are pretty dangerous, obviously. Handling them in the wind and rain hung from a washing line sounds like a massive risk.

Every vets is doing things differently. We have let the owner in for euthanasia throughout lock down. We just used a liner line to inject with. We felt there's some things that need privacy and respect

@LunaLula83

Get some perspective love. It was no ones fault. We are all in a shitty situation and trying to make the best of it. Put your big girl pants on and move on

What a shitty, pointless comment.

So sorry, OP, I remember your post about Keith, it made everyone really sad but also happy that there are people in the world like you that tried to help him.

Please don't feel bad, you were an angel to little Keith in the two weeks that you took him in, his last days were full of love and care and that's what you should focus on.

I really do think that vets need to rethink their euthanization procedure during the pandemic, it's so traumatic for both the animal and the humans involved. There must be a better way.

So many questions...

Were they in the car or on the grass?

Where is this grass in relation to the vets?

Why didn't the vet take the dog inside? And why didn't they use the correct dosage of medication?

What is ridiculous, is how this vet is treating animals. There’s no reason for doing this kind of treatment outside of the clinic.
The family may or may not have noticed what’s going on. I don’t have any idea of how animals being put down. If it was that important to you that there was no one around, you could have asked them to move, I guess. But again, policies in this vet clinic are ridiculous.

So sorry to hear about Keith. I would try and forget about the idiot family. I mean who has a picnic in the carp park of a vets or in the rain?

They sound too stupid to have realised what was going on. You said your goodbyes to Keith and that is all that matters

It’s terrible that this poor dog was euthanised outside in the rain using drugs hung on a washing line. I think I would be complaining about that tbh.

If they can’t do it inside(although vets near to us are), they should have screens and procedures in place to give privacy. Imagine that being the way you say goodbye to a dog you’ve owned and loved for 15+ years.

Both our cats have been put to sleep during lockdown and they came to our house for A small fortune, in ppe as we couldn’t enter the vet building. In the situation you describe, I would assume the family were being obvious. You wouldn’t really expect the vet to be putting a dog down in full sight and if they’re not local they probably just found somewhere to eat while the dad tried to sort the car. I imagine they were fairly self absorbed sorting their own situation.

I personally think your vet needs a more private set up but the main thing is you were their for Keith and he would have known that.

@Crunchymum

So many questions...

Were they in the car or on the grass?
behind us literally 2 foot away was a family (mum and kids) having a picnic of Burger King on the grass

Where is this grass in relation to the vets?
it was the vets property. As soon as you turn into the car park it's abundantly clear it's a vets. There's a car park for 15 cars, the front door is in the car park and faces the cars. Then round the side of the building is a side door and in front of that is a garden where they dry the bedding for the dogs on a washing line. We were underneath the washing line.

Why didn't the vet take the dog inside?
Our vets have a closed door policy still due to COVID. We're in a high risk area and the vet is in greater Manchester so they pick the dog from the car. You get out of the car one side and the vet collects the dog from the other side then they ring you with any results etc. Our options for having PTS were outside in the rain on the grass or he went alone with the vet and they gave us his collar afterwards

And why didn't they use the correct dosage of medication?
Sometimes it happens that despite the correct calculations being done, an animal doesn't react as quickly to the medication. Sadly, occasionally, it's not an exact science.

Apart from your last question, the answers were literally all there in the OP's posts. Please, at least have the decency to read the OP's posts before commenting!

So their car had broke down? Where did you expect them to go?
Perhaps they were there waiting for their own pet.
Sounds like you didn't realise they were there until you were leaving anyway (not sure how that's possible if you almost stepped on a child that was behind you because they were so close).

Poor little Keithy. You were wonderful to him, OP.

The family were selfish and thoughtless. But the vet may not have realised what they were doing in time - they could have been customers waiting to deliver their own pet. So I don't think it was really vet's fault. Maye=be email expressing your sadness at what happened, but without actually framing it as a complaint per se?

In terms of outdoors, obviously it's traumatic for the owners, but maybe not so much for the dog? Often they associate the vet's surgery with pain and unpleasantness, so maybe not going in causes less distress at the end?

The person in the wrong is the vet. If they can't or won't do this inside, and surely it is possible, then they should ensure the outdoor area doesnt have those having picnics nearby and I dont know, use a screen or similar?

' I was allowed to go in, we maintained social distancing, and the vet used an extra long line to administer the drugs so I could stroke him while it happened. It was heartbreaking but I was so glad I could be with him and it was done in private'

Yes this is surely what should happen. Sorry for all those who have lost pets recently .

Hi @ifonerememberstoturnonthelight

I followed your journey with Keith and how he came round, liked your other dog and loved your hoodie.

This sounds like the family were trespassing for want if a better word. I can’t imagine it was a common occurrence being on vet property and the vet probably didn’t realise until in the middle of a procedure and didn’t want to make you conscious of it if the saw.

If it’s not obvious the garden belongs to the vets, they should get a private property sign or such.

You did such a lovely thing for Keith. You have such a big heart. Please know that you gave him the best two weeks he had in years x

@GeorgiaGirl52

I would be wondering what kind of mother would have a picnic in the rain and let her children watch a dog being euthanized? She is the one who should have moved away. I would have fed my children in the car before I let them view that as "entertainment".

I imagine she didn't realise what was going on and then by the time se realised it draws far more attention to move than just distract the kids. She could justifiably be annoyed herself.

@Thecobwebsarewinning

I’m very sorry the poor dog had to die so soon after you rescuing him but I don’t think anyone’s at fault here. The family pulled over in the rain in the twilight to eat their meal and probably didn’t notice what was going on. Until I read this I’d never heard of an animal being PTS outdoors (apart from horses on race courses) so it would never have occurred to me that such a thing was happening. I don’t think they can be blamed for not noticing or realising.

Yes the vet could have asked them to move on but he/she was probably focussed on the animal under their care, not on what was happening in the car park.

You were doing something stressful and upsetting which may have made you extra sensitive. There was no way this could have been made a happy or positive experience. I’m sure this family didn’t help but equally they probably didn’t actually make it any worse

This

Agree with georgiagirl52.
What kind of parent would take their children to a vets car park to eat BK and watch a dog being euthanised. Fucking hell.
Even if they weren’t expecting it, it’s not much of a leap to anticipate seeing animals in distress and injured, so probably not the place to be picnicking
Poor Keith and poor children having that as a parent.

I wouldn't know that a dog with a drip attached was being put to sleep. I would have assumed that perhaps he as being put under anaesthetic for an operation.

If they were 2 feet away then surely you'd notice as they pulled up.