08/15/2022
As a veterinarian, you can prepare yourself for anything that comes your way each day, but one thing most do not prepare for is working on a patient that tend to be their biggest fear.
Arachnids are that biggest fear for Dr. Alison Mason of Hope Animal Hospital, who does not see zoological companion animals as part of her practice.
On Tuesday, Dr. Mason reacted quickly in the moment to an emergency case presented by a mom and her son. The boy, visibly distraught in the hospital, explained to Dr. Mason that he dropped his pet tarantula Maddie, causing a laceration in her belly region.
Dr. Mason was going to euthanize Maddie, but the sadness of the situation, and visible emotion the boy showed pushed Dr. Mason to treat the tarantula. With the lobby already packed with Dr. Mason’s waiting patients, as well as being the only DVM in the hospital at the time, Dr. Mason took in the emergency case despite being petrified of spiders.
Being that Dr. Mason does not see zoological companion animals at all, she contacted some of her peers in the VCA network.
Dr. Irwin Ruderman of Vca Animal Hosp of Staten Island provides insight into arachnid needs as well as guided her in her treatment decisions. Dr. Angela Silva of VCA Bond Animal Hospital provided moral support to her friend and colleague during the treatment process. Dr. Mason was able to sedate Maddie with isoflurane gas, and then began to suture the laceration carefully with tissue glue.
As of this morning, Maddie is stable and doing well.
When asked why Dr. Mason was compelled to treat a pet who she is very afraid of, she responded “I will never forget the way this boy looked at me with tears in his eyes and said ‘I know this seems stupid because she’s just a spider, but you trying means so much to me.’ It is for the human animal bond that this boy had to Maddie that inspired me to become a veterinarian, so I knew I had to do all I could to try to save her.”
Both the mom and the boy are so thankful for Dr. Mason’s care and compassion, and the patients waiting in the lobby also expressed their admiration for Dr. Mason during the situation, and how proud they were to have her as their veterinarian.
This is a prime example of VCA hospitals working together across our network to provide support and guidance, as well as the excellent client care and experience we strive to provide every day.
Helping all companion animals, both normal and unusual, is what our veterinarians do, no questions asked.
