So you walk into the vet office with your sweet and trs feminine Fifi, and you walk out with your sweet and trs feminine Frank and a glazed look of shock on your face. (Frank, meanwhile, knew it all along, and is just going to go on with his day.)
Gender bending pets are rare, but not utter anomalies. They occur often enough that Miami veterinarian Patty Khuly blogged about the odd phenomenon last week on PetMD. She briefly explains some tricky stuff going on with XX/XY chromosomes, and its over my head and even Jakes. But the basic concept is fascinating.
Its always interesting (and often an endless source of amusement) when the pet an owner had imagined was a he turns out to be a she, she writes.
Amusing is in the eye of the beholder. Some people apparently take the transgender pet issue very seriously, although cats usually fare better than dogs.
Cats? No big deal they tend to be viewed as asexual anyway. Dogs? No way. People personalize sexuality onto their dogs to an extent I wouldnt have thought possible were it not for my experience in vet practice, according to Dr. Khuly.
The upshot is that transgender pups are more likely to be returned to their breeders upon discovery even when the owner had no intention of breeding anyway.
If Jake were to pay a visit to his vet and she told me, Sit down, Maria, I have some news. Jake is actually a girl, I would indeed be shocked. His leg lifts and obvious body part notwithstanding, it would be very weird. But would I send him packing? Are you kidding? My canine BFF? Besides, were in San Francisco! My friends would probably throw a coming-out party for Jackie.
Or maybe wed just forget about that little vet visit. If it takes a vet to tell you your dog is not the sex you thought, who cares? And one things for sure: Your dog wont breathe a word of it to anyone.
