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 On The Prowl:

A Feline Purr…spective

PetTemp Thermometers

 By Stacy Mantle

Fast, Accurate, and Easy – the Pet Thermometer for All Pets

These days, my most exciting event is the UPS truck showing up at the house.  So you can imagine how happy I was when it showed up with this week’s little gem. I was so excited, in fact that had I been a dog, my tail would have been wagging, I would have been yipping happily, and jumping circles.  But, since I’m a human, I’m a little more controlled in my reaction, so I just jumped up and down. 

While I was excited, my pets had mixed feelings.  You see, the Pet-Temp thermometer is a unique thermometer that takes a pet’s temperature via their ear canal rather than their “nether regions”.  I know that, given the option, I would much prefer to have my temperature taken through my ear than my bum.  So – I was really excited for my pets when the Pet-Temp thermometer arrived. 

You see, I will go to great extremes to avoid an animal’s “hind end” (for proof on this, see the story, The Problem with Kittens).  In fact, I will even take them to the vet’s to have their temperature taken, and that is saying a lot for a person who gives their own vaccinations.  Needles don’t bother me, thermometers, well – that’s another story.  So for me, Pet-Temp is a lifesaver on many levels.

My first patient was the “Cog”, our resident “guinea pig” (hypothetically, not literally).  She’s really a cat who thinks she is a dog, and she makes the absolute best product tester because she fears nothing.  Except a thermometer in her ear.  As it turns out, cats don’t like things put into their ears any more than they like things put into their bums. 

But, it was MUCH more pleasant for me! 

One thing that I did learn is that I’m not very good at shoving foreign objects into my pet’s ears.  But, the good thing about PetTemp is that it’s incredibly easy to use, comes with a fantastic set of instructions (which my husband is very good at reading), and on top of everything else – is simple to read and takes only one second to obtain a reading.

The thing I like most about Pet-Temp is that I only have to control one part of the animal.  With traditional thermometers, you have to have control both the hindquarters of your pet, as well as their head.  With Pet-Temp, you only need control of the head and have the ability to avoid the hindquarters. I happen to be better at avoidance than control.  But, while average thermometers need to be “inserted” for what seems like an eternity, this thermometer goes into the ear for one second (yep – I said it – ONE second) and it is done.   Completely done – one second and if you have performed this procedure correctly, you will have obtained an absolutely accurate reading.  That’s all it takes. 

Now we have all seen these on the market for humans for some years now, and we have all wondered why we couldn’t just use that same human ear thermometer on our pets.   I’m going to address that issue here and now, so that no one gets any bright ideas.  The problem is that we have completely different ear canals.  While ours is short and stubby, most animals ear canals are long and narrow.  Therefore, your kids ear thermometers are completely inappropriate, and dangerous, to use on your pet.  Not only will you end up with an inaccurate reading, you will probably traumatize both your kids and your pets.

There are several things that I learned while testing this product.  First of all, there is a little trick to putting on the small thermometer covers.  Second of all, I have yet to figure out what this trick is.  I’m getting better at it, and I am confident that I will one day conquer it.  But, until then, I can only say, it is very important to use a new cover each time you take a pets temperature, and they rip very easily, so be careful.  There is also a place for you to put this cover on (successfully) built into the case, but as I mentioned before, I have yet to figure out the process.  And this is with a college degree… 

In Advanced Monitor’s defense, I do tend to complicate things in my life, and I’m fairly certain that this is one of those things.  Also in their defense, I have to put in the disclaimer that I do not read instructions.  My husband has just told me that had I done so, I would be much more successful in putting a cover on the thermometer.  However, I’m obstinate and will not read them, and hence, will likely have to ask him to put on a cover whenever I want to use the thermometer.

I say this so you will learn from the error of my ways and read the instructions…

True to review form, I contacted my favorite veterinarian, Dr. Diego Florez who writes the Veterinary Viewpoint on this website and asked him a few questions about this product – primarily about its accuracy.  Come to find out, it’s an extremely accurate product when used correctly.  Just as a human ear thermometer is accurate when used correctly.  The trick is in using it correctly.  The reading must be of the animal’s ear drum, so if there is a large blockage of the ear canal, an infection present, or if the animal is just simply not cooperating, its best to revert to the tried and true method of “rear entry” to obtain a perfectly accurate reading.  But most times, everything will turn out well! 

In all, we highly recommend this product as a necessary addition to your pet’s first-aid kit, which I know you all have.  For a list of what’s normal and not normal, refer to this handy article (and chart). 

And follow the instructions.  If you don’t want to read them, ask your significant other to do so for you.  It will be worth yours, and your pets, while.

From the Cats:

Hisses:  We’re not big fans of giant instruments being stuck in our ears.

Purrs:  Better to have it in our ear, than in our “nether regions”!

From the Humans:

Two opposable thumbs up: We love the Pet-Temp!  It works on cats, dogs, and all other species including ferrets, guinea pigs, rabbits, and chinchillas!  It’s much easier to work with one part of the animal, than to control both sections!

Drawbacks?  Make sure it’s an accurate reading, which means you may need to take it twice… This is not a big issues, because each reading is only one second long!