I had the best annual wellness exam with my veterinarian, Dr. Doug! At first I was hoping my appointment would be a telehealth visit, like the one my Mom had a few weeks ago. This way I could avoid the poking and the prodding, and perhaps shed a few pounds on my self-reported weight. However, much to my surprise Dr. Doug insisted that he meet with me one on one, without Mom and Dad! Finally, an opportunity to tell him how I really feel!

Not to brag, but I will, I got the VIP treatment from the moment I arrived. Rather than go in and sit in the waiting room, Dr. Doug couldn’t wait to come out and see me. In fact, he left the vet’s office and came right out to the car to greet me. He then personally escorted me into the building, while Mom and Dad had to wait in the car. I did notice that before walking away, Dad slipped Dr. Doug a note with their questions and concerns. No problem, I knew I had Dr. Doug’s undivided attention for this important appointment.

Once inside Dr. Doug and I had a serious conversation about now that I’m getting older he’ll need to monitor a few things more closely on me. So I let him take some of my blood to do a full panel. I’m not sure who was on that panel, but when the results came back the judges said my numbers were all good. Speaking of good numbers, Dr. Doug complimented me on maintaining my excellent weight. Yep, NO diet for me this time! However, he did caution that at my age I may want to switch to a “mature” diet. I really don’t know what he meant by that, but I’m going to tell Mom and Dad that Dr. Doug said I needed to get bacon with every meal.

Despite not being in the room with me, Mom and Dad did manage to interfere with my appointment. Prior to going to it, they circled with a green washable marker a lump on my leg that had them concerned. Dr. Doug immediately eased all of our fears. It turned out to be a fatty cyst that he easily popped and removed. In fact today, other than the lingering green marker, there’s no sign of it at all on my leg. That’s not the only thing that disappeared during that appointment. You should have seen all the treats Dr. Doug gave me! One by one I made them disappear, while he continued to examine me.

There were though a few drawbacks to this rare one on one appointment. He ignored my concerns that Mom and Dad haven’t left the house in over a month. In fact, Dr. Doug didn’t seem surprised at all when I revealed this was my first car ride since early March! I also wanted to mention my concerns about Mom and Dad’s new hobby of leaving the house wearing masks. But then I realized Dr. Doug and all the staff there were also wearing masks. Perhaps they were planning a robbery after I left? Thus I decided not to mention that concern, in case they were planning a heist together with Mom and Dad. I wouldn’t want to be an unwitting accomplice. But hey, who am I to judge what Dr. Doug does in his off-time?

Eventually Dr. Doug escorted me back to the car, and discussed with Mom and Dad what he told me. Well he neglected to mention the bacon part, and I did notice he gave them a new bottle of ear cleaner, which I did not request. But other than that, this was the best vet visit ever! I wonder if I can request this VIP treatment for all future vet appointments?