I needed to order some more of Scout’s joint supplement – the vet in Orkney gave a 4-month supply when we left. So I went online looking for a vet – I could only find one in town and they are only open M-F 2:30 – 5:00pm. Hunh. When I finally got through to the receptionist, she explained that she’d have to call to one of the other offices (they have surgeries all over Lanarkshire, it seems) to get a supply of the pills. I wasn’t worried, as I still had a few weeks’ worth left (this was on Aug 4). After 10 days I realised I hadn’t heard back, so I called again and the receptionist said, “Oh dear, the other office must have forgot. I’ll call again and get back to you.” The ‘other office’ forgot? Okaaay.
Two weeks later – still nothing so I called again – by now I’m running out of the pills (and patience). After some searching the new receptionist found them and booked an appointment for the vet to see Scout first. NP, they have their protocols before handing out meds, even OTC. Then someone else phoned back and said the appointment wasn’t necessary; I could just pop in. But by now I was starting to worry about this veterinarian’s office’s approach to, well, everything. In just under 90 days I am transporting a dog via air to another country. Are these people going to be able to meet all the requirements? Will they have their sh#t together? For example, rabies shots aren’t a usual thing here, so most vet’s offices have to order the vaccine in specially – and a rabies vaccine is a deal-breaker for animal transport. So, I decided to keep the appointment so I could ask the vet a few pointed questions and assess their overall competency. I mean, I prided myself on my organizational skills at work, and I admire it in others, and right now, with the move imminent, that skill set is particularly important. And they seem to be the only game in town. So I took Scout this afternoon; we just got back.
The vet was a young lady from France. I had a whole bunch of things I wanted to ask her about: rabies shot, expiration date of some of Scout’s meds, flea, tick, de-worming, and distemper meds, Scout’s medical history from Orkney, etc. Instead of writing all this down on a list, like any sensible, organised retired businesswoman would, I just started throwing out questions; I was all over the map, mixing things up right, left, and centre, and jumping from one topic to the next. We finally sorted through most of it; I’ve got a date for ordering the rabies vaccine, she clarified my misunderstanding about expiry dates, and we reviewed Scout’s recent history. But I truly was all over the place – it was at the point that I mixed up de-worming and distemper (they both start with ‘d’, you see), that the sweet, young, French veterinarian leaned over to me and kindly said, “This is all causing you very much stress and confusion, isn’t it?”
OMG. I am a dippy old lady. When the feck did that happen? Why wouldn’t I have taken a list? Why? I always use lists (either paper or OneNote). I wanted to jump up and show her my phone with the Trello software outlining the various steps of my move; the app with all the details of an upcoming trip to Ireland; the way my Outlook is sorted to maximize efficiency and stay on top of things; my spreadsheets tracking the Milton property, my taxes, my expenses. Dammit, I am not a dippy old lady, current evidence to the contrary. (Thank God she didn’t realise I had arrived 20 minutes early for the appointment because I hadn’t checked my Calendar and had had to kill time in the park waiting.) Instead I just apologised for all the mix-ups, stood quietly while she examined Scout, and let her be kind to the doddery old fool in front of her.
I felt like an eejit.
Edit (30 minutes later): I just noticed that the receptionist charged me completely the wrong amount for today’s visit (£130 in my favour – completely her fault, nothing I would have been aware of at the time). I will correct this with them when I am in later this month, but I am not going to address it now – let’s just see how long it takes them to catch it and let me know. *Suddenly I’m not feeling quite so stupid. But I am back to worrying about their competency for the move in November.