Since she was a puppy, Dr James Tan has been Domin’s vet. When we bought her way back in end 1992, the seller gave us her vaccination card which stated James Tan as her vet and so we proceeded there for her to complete her course of required vaccinations.
Throughout the years, we stayed with him. He performed the sterilization surgery for her, he removed the meat lump on her paws (more than once) and her forehead, he cleaned her teeth, he administered her yearly vaccination. When she coughed, when she had diarrhoea, when her ears were infected, when she vomited, when she limped, when there was blood in her stools, when her anal glands was full and causing her discomfort (we knew because she would be sitting on the floor and dragging herself), when she was not eating, when she was seriously out of sorts in one way or another, we were always at his clinic at Stevens Road.
Domin never liked going there. Most times, she would shiver when she was waiting for her turn and would cling tightly on to us. Sometimes she would panic and inflict red painful scratches on my legs – I can almost see and feel them again when I close my eyes. When on the examination table and under the watchful eyes of James Tan, she was a frightened little child who just wanted to go home.
I have to admit that sometimes the things that James Tan said irked us. When we asked why Domin had black spots/patches appearing on her body (we even called Domin a Dalmatian then – she must have been so hurt), he said that old people had that too. When we asked why her cough was not getting any better, his reply was along the same line – that our old grandparents experienced the same persistent coughing and bugging discomfort in the throat too. He just was not that sort of reassuring vet who tells you the kind of things that most parents want to hear when they bring their kids to the doctor. There were numerous occasions when I really think his comments were irritating and uncalled for. We would then grumble and complain among ourselves about him.
I knew there were rumours about him not being the best or ethical vet. Some say he does not practice the best surgical procedures and some say he does not treat pets’ bodies with respect. Till today, I do not understand why there were all these negative talk about him and I am also not sure how true they are.
For Domin, all her operations at James Tan clinic went very well. There was never any complications or infections of any sort. Except for maybe the last one year of her life, most of the medicine prescribed by James Tan worked ok. I really don’t have much complaints about him as a vet (apart from his occasional irritating replies/comments).
I remember one particular day clearly. It was 26 December 2008, the day after we had celebrated Christmas at Vivocity (that was also our last outing to Vivocity together as a family). We decided to change a vet for Domin and brought her to Mount Pleasant Veterinary at Sunset Way. She had been vomiting for some time and previous visits to James Tan did not help – the medication from James Tan was just not stopping her vomiting and coughing. She was losing her appetite and getting weaker by the day and we wanted to get a second opinion.
That is still a day I look back with so much pain. From that day till the day she passed on, it was a mere 2 weeks. And yet, Domin was subjected to so much pain and discomfort in that 2 weeks. She underwent numerous blood tests and was diagnosed with kidney failure, she was subjected to injections and different medications, she was fed some bland and so-called ‘healthy food’, she had to stay overnight at the hospital in a small cage (away from her beloved bed), she was put on the drip, and she was most unhappy.
For some unknown reason, I always assumed Domin would live till 18 years old. I cannot explain why but that was what I hoped and expected of her. On 26 December 2008 when I brought her to vet at Sunset Way, she was 16 years and 3 months old. That is already quite a feat for a dog (even for a small one) but yet to me, that was still more than a year away from my targeted 18 years for her. I did not realize my best little friend was really reaching the end of her life and the best thing I could have done was to spend more time with her and give her the best and most comfortable goodbye possible.
Looking back now, what we deemed as irritating comments from James Tan made some sense. Senior dogs and humans do have more ailments and may not necessarily be cured always. This was what we could not understand and accept then. I recall that on more than one occasions in recent years, James Tan had said that Domin is already at a ripe old age and it is already very good. I think he was trying to prepare us for the inevitable but we refused to listen.
I stubbornly still wanted to celebrate Domin’s 18th birthday. When James Tan’s medication did not work, we were disappointed and unhappy and blamed it on his medical skills, his stupid medicine and his co-called nonchalant attitude. I chose to believe that there was still a vet out there somewhere somehow who could cure the weak-and-frail Domin and help her to recover her health – without realizing that degeneration of the body is inevitable as the years roll by unconsciously. I was still waiting for the once greedy-and-busybody Domin to come back, not knowing that those are times gone by.
Nothing can ever hope to triumph old age and death – not even the most skilled or well-trained doctors, the best or most expensive medication or treatment, the latest medical advances or breakthroughs. This was something we did not realize then but I think James Tan did. Perhaps that was why he seldom if ever recommends Domin to undergo blood tests or invasive medical treatments of any sorts. But I think perhaps the vets at Sunset Way Mount Pleasant did not… maybe such a realization will only come with age and experience.
Domin’s jie-jie
Throughout the years, we stayed with him. He performed the sterilization surgery for her, he removed the meat lump on her paws (more than once) and her forehead, he cleaned her teeth, he administered her yearly vaccination. When she coughed, when she had diarrhoea, when her ears were infected, when she vomited, when she limped, when there was blood in her stools, when her anal glands was full and causing her discomfort (we knew because she would be sitting on the floor and dragging herself), when she was not eating, when she was seriously out of sorts in one way or another, we were always at his clinic at Stevens Road.
Domin never liked going there. Most times, she would shiver when she was waiting for her turn and would cling tightly on to us. Sometimes she would panic and inflict red painful scratches on my legs – I can almost see and feel them again when I close my eyes. When on the examination table and under the watchful eyes of James Tan, she was a frightened little child who just wanted to go home.
I have to admit that sometimes the things that James Tan said irked us. When we asked why Domin had black spots/patches appearing on her body (we even called Domin a Dalmatian then – she must have been so hurt), he said that old people had that too. When we asked why her cough was not getting any better, his reply was along the same line – that our old grandparents experienced the same persistent coughing and bugging discomfort in the throat too. He just was not that sort of reassuring vet who tells you the kind of things that most parents want to hear when they bring their kids to the doctor. There were numerous occasions when I really think his comments were irritating and uncalled for. We would then grumble and complain among ourselves about him.
I knew there were rumours about him not being the best or ethical vet. Some say he does not practice the best surgical procedures and some say he does not treat pets’ bodies with respect. Till today, I do not understand why there were all these negative talk about him and I am also not sure how true they are.
For Domin, all her operations at James Tan clinic went very well. There was never any complications or infections of any sort. Except for maybe the last one year of her life, most of the medicine prescribed by James Tan worked ok. I really don’t have much complaints about him as a vet (apart from his occasional irritating replies/comments).
I remember one particular day clearly. It was 26 December 2008, the day after we had celebrated Christmas at Vivocity (that was also our last outing to Vivocity together as a family). We decided to change a vet for Domin and brought her to Mount Pleasant Veterinary at Sunset Way. She had been vomiting for some time and previous visits to James Tan did not help – the medication from James Tan was just not stopping her vomiting and coughing. She was losing her appetite and getting weaker by the day and we wanted to get a second opinion.
That is still a day I look back with so much pain. From that day till the day she passed on, it was a mere 2 weeks. And yet, Domin was subjected to so much pain and discomfort in that 2 weeks. She underwent numerous blood tests and was diagnosed with kidney failure, she was subjected to injections and different medications, she was fed some bland and so-called ‘healthy food’, she had to stay overnight at the hospital in a small cage (away from her beloved bed), she was put on the drip, and she was most unhappy.
For some unknown reason, I always assumed Domin would live till 18 years old. I cannot explain why but that was what I hoped and expected of her. On 26 December 2008 when I brought her to vet at Sunset Way, she was 16 years and 3 months old. That is already quite a feat for a dog (even for a small one) but yet to me, that was still more than a year away from my targeted 18 years for her. I did not realize my best little friend was really reaching the end of her life and the best thing I could have done was to spend more time with her and give her the best and most comfortable goodbye possible.
Looking back now, what we deemed as irritating comments from James Tan made some sense. Senior dogs and humans do have more ailments and may not necessarily be cured always. This was what we could not understand and accept then. I recall that on more than one occasions in recent years, James Tan had said that Domin is already at a ripe old age and it is already very good. I think he was trying to prepare us for the inevitable but we refused to listen.
I stubbornly still wanted to celebrate Domin’s 18th birthday. When James Tan’s medication did not work, we were disappointed and unhappy and blamed it on his medical skills, his stupid medicine and his co-called nonchalant attitude. I chose to believe that there was still a vet out there somewhere somehow who could cure the weak-and-frail Domin and help her to recover her health – without realizing that degeneration of the body is inevitable as the years roll by unconsciously. I was still waiting for the once greedy-and-busybody Domin to come back, not knowing that those are times gone by.
Nothing can ever hope to triumph old age and death – not even the most skilled or well-trained doctors, the best or most expensive medication or treatment, the latest medical advances or breakthroughs. This was something we did not realize then but I think James Tan did. Perhaps that was why he seldom if ever recommends Domin to undergo blood tests or invasive medical treatments of any sorts. But I think perhaps the vets at Sunset Way Mount Pleasant did not… maybe such a realization will only come with age and experience.
Domin’s jie-jie
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