SensiblePets Staff

Physicians encountering patients seeking painkillers isn’t new, but veterinarians have noticed the trend in recent years as the nation deals with an epidemic opiate addiction.

The most troubling cases, they say, involve people abusing their pets then taking the animal for treatment in hopes of scoring a prescription.

 

Animal abuse itself isn’t a new phenomenon, but experts note that the motivation in a segment of these cases tie to drug abuse.

“We’re really looking for things that don’t match up,” said Dr. Duffy Jones, owner of Atlanta’s Peachtree Hills Animal Hospital. “As we start to question the owner, we look at the owner’s response.”

Jones notes that such instances are highly uncommon, though there’s enough of them that vets are aware of the possibility.

“We typically believe what people tell us and we don’t want a pet in pain, but now we’re taking a bit more of a critical look at exactly what the client is like and what the dog is like — does it fit?”

Observing the pet owner’s behavior can help identify their intent. One of the most obvious giveaways comes when a person requests a specific drug or won’t grant access to the animal’s medical records.

Veterinarian Dr. Lexi Becker said a Tramadol, a drug with opiate-like effects, is a drug commonly sought.

“Owners will purposely hurt their pets to trick vets into thinking Tramadol is needed to treat the animal. But in reality, the owners are the ones using it. There’s unfortunately always the risk of abuse with any of these medications, and it’s a sad reality we have to be aware of.”