The Tails of Truth Podcast:

Tails of Truth: Your Pet Deserves a Specialist and Here's How to Ask for One

We're doing something we've never done before...welcoming our very first guest to Tails of Truth.

Dr. Kenneth Pierce, DVM, MS, DACVO is a board-certified veterinary ophthalmologist with over 18 years of experience and a career that has taken him to nearly every region of the United States. He founded VESPECON (Veterinary Specialty Consultants) after seeing firsthand how devastating the specialist access gap is for both veterinarians and their patients.

In this episode, Dr. Angie, Dr. Pierce, and JoJo explore:

  • Why the specialist shortage is getting worse and why your local vet is often doing their absolute best without enough support
  • How VESPECON works by connecting your general practice vet to board-certified specialists in real time, at a fraction of the cost of a traditional referral
  • What pet parents can do. How to advocate for specialist involvement without putting your vet on the defensive
  • The feline herpes deep dive — Dr. Pierce explains exactly what happens at the cellular level during a herpes flare-up, why cats overproduce tears, and the one lubricating eye drop that can change everything: I-Drop Vet Plus
  • Pet insurance and specialist consults how they interact and why having insurance matters more than you think

Who This Episode Is For

Pet parents:
If you’ve ever wondered whether your pet might benefit from seeing a specialist, or how to advocate for your veterinarian to consult one, this episode gives you a behind-the-scenes look at how collaborative veterinary medicine works.

You’ll walk away understanding:

• When specialists should be involved
• How veterinarians collaborate behind the scenes
• How to advocate for your pet’s care
• Why access to specialty care is harder than ever

Veterinary professionals:
If you’re a veterinarian, veterinary technician, or part of the veterinary industry, this episode explores how specialist collaboration can support general practitioners managing complex cases and why services like VESPECON are helping rebuild the lost art of vet-to-vet consultation.

Products + Resources:

Key Takeaways

For Pet Parents: 

  1. You can ask your vet to consult a specialist, it's completely okay, and most vets welcome it.
  2. Go to vespecon.com and share it with your vet. They can do a free trial or an a la carte consultation before committing.
  3. Feline herpesvirus is incredibly common, and chronic tearing/squinting in cats may not be as mysterious as it seems. 
  4. Veterinary collaboration ultimately leads to better patient outcomes.

For Veterinary Professionals:

  1. VESPECON offers unlimited specialist consultations via an affordable membership or on an as needed basis. 
  2. Consultations are white-glove and scheduled around your availability, including weekends.
  3. You can have multiple specialists on a single call for complex cases.
  4. You don't have to feel like you're on an island anymore.
  5. Wherever you practice: rural, metro, or anywhere in between, the specialist gap is real, but the VESPECON is working to bridge the gap. 
More Episodes

Sound Bites

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  • "Your local vet is like your main bread and butter and the first line of defense... and sometimes they need a lifeline." — Dr. Pierce

  • “When veterinarians can collaborate with specialists, the confidence in that case goes way up.” — Dr. Pierce

  • “I feel really guilty packing them up and sending them to a specialty hospital because I know it’s going to be costly.” — Dr. Angie 

  • “That shared knowledge that we kind of have lost… it sounds like you are building a bridge back to that.” — JoJo

  • “I’ve been practicing for 18 years and I’m still asking questions.” — Dr. Angie 

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