The Corporate-vet Complex

THE MORE I THINK about it, the more troubled i am by the remark my veterinarian made to me, that flea collars do now work, and she simply does not recommend them. The really set me to thiking, because, looking back on it, of all the pets i have had, and all the flea collars i have used, it strikes me that i have never really seen convincing evidence that they were working, but a good deal of evidence that they were not. And, if you think about it; if they work , exactly how? For one thing, they make very little contact with the cat or dog, because you always make sure that the animal is not confined by the collar, that the collar isn't tight. Does it work through osmosis, or radiation? That leaves topical ointments or pills to rid or pet of rleas, and it turns out you can get these at either wal mar,t for five dollars, or from your vet, for fifty dollars. And guess what? The wal mart stuff doesn't work, and the stuff you get from the vet does. At least,that's what my vet told me, and i found it to be true. All of which i find very, very disturbing. Disturbing for many reasons. First, that we the american people have been duped for decades by flea collars and phoy flea treatments. Secondly, that the treatments shich wor, can only be gotten from a vet, and at a very high price. What is this then, corporate veterinary conspiracy? Another version of the american medical association and pharmaceutical industry conspiracy? Ph great, that's all we need. In a country in which nearly half of the people are dirt poor, yet happen to love animals, real flea prevention is available from corporate america and its priestly spokespeople, the vets - but only at a very dear price. How lovely. For those of you who don't believe in socialized medicine, capitalistic medicine would be wonderful, if that's what we really had in america, true free market competition, rather than this incestuous, corporate controlled health and medicine industry. Millions of elderly, millions of poor americans try to enrich their lives by forging connections with dogs or cats, and millions of dogs and cats need homes. Isn't there any way to help pets and needy people be together without sucking them dry for the purpose of further enriching the already well to do?