“Is it safe for me to cuddle my pet when we get home?”
I had to stop and think. The pet had been with us for less than an hour. We had used full PPE. Client knew we were working in a covid secure way. Yet they were scared of cuddling their pet when they got home.
They are not necessarily classed as extremely vulnerable, however some risk factors existed.
I’d taken the responsibility of asking them to leave home to have their pet seen. I judged the danger to their pet to be enough that it needed to be seen. I’d been trusted to take their pet from them in the car park and treat it. And now they were considering how to keep safe from the virus after doing so because I’d said they needed to be seen.
Covid in pets
It would be very rare for an animal to catch covid according to latest guidance. There is a small risk of covid being transmitted on objects or a dogs fur however there are no known cases reported of people catching covid this way.
Yet these people had taken the risk to themselves for their pet. Because their pet is part of their family. Because they care.
I am being tough. I am consulting by phone as much as I can. I am trying to avoid any contact with all clients. I am attempting to minimise my contact with colleagues. Even outside of work I am limiting my contact with anyone else. I am not allowing any clients into the practice. This includes for euthanasia.
I could tell this client that there is a very tiny risk to cuddling their pet because I am being tough. Their pet will still sleep in a crate tonight just in case. This is the hidden impact of covid.
Covid in people
Covid is a disease you cannot see. You can be asymptomatic. Go about your life without realising you are positive. Yet spread the virus to everyone you meet. 1 in 3 people are currently doing this simply because they have no symptoms. Then you have those that simply cannot afford the time of work to get tested. Let alone isolate if they test positive. These unfortunately just ignore their symptoms and carry on because they need to survive.
I am doing everything I can to minimise the chance I am one of these. I am lucky my employer supports me in being able to say I need a test. So far I’ve had two negative tests which have not affected my ability to survive.
Toll of toughness
Do I enjoy telling clients that they cannot be with their pet in practice? No. Have I got time or energy to argue about this? Not really. Not even for euthanasia? I hate doing this. Do I like euthanizing an animal away from its family? Definitely not.
Could I live with being the person that spreads covid to a vulnerable person and puts them in icu? Or worse kill them? Nope.
Not me. I am being tough. I am being tough to protect my clients.
It takes a toll though. I feel for my patients being separated from their family. Though often I’ve found animals are less stressed and easier to handle this way though. It is difficult sometimes to discuss things by phone – especially when it comes to bad news. Worse if the signal is bad. It means that we are cuddling animals as they cross the rainbow bridge.
This is me being tough. I’ve written a will for the first time this year. I’ve not stopped working as I know if I do animals will suffer for this. I will keep working for as long as I can. And I will keep being tough, to help protect you.
