Friday, February 22, 2013

"Just Answer": just not likely



Like my Dad told me long ago, "If it seems too good to be true-- it is."
Veterinarians are highly-paid professionals.  Beware a service that claims (as Just Answer did in my case) to offer an involved assessment from a veterinary specialist, late at night, within 15 minutes of the request, for $15.  
At that point, JA showed me a teeny tiny "answer" that they claimed was the answer to my question, and they told me that I would be able to read the answer once I paid up.  Using a magnifying glass, I found that the teeny tiny text shown was actually a question about a human medical issue. 

I found a Just Answer response online to a question about mutts vs purebreds.  The "vet" gave an answer that revealed s/he had not seen the inside of a Biology 101 classroom, and had badly misunderstood what s/he had read in a hasty internet search.  Many if not most high school graduates are aware of this very rudimentary principle of genetics: small gene pools lead to inbreeding and cause greater likelihood of genetic defects manifesting.  But the pseudovet in this exchange got it backward, and averred that a smaller gene pool was better.

Google "Just Answer scam" for plenty of other examples.  

It is most likely that JA uses poorly-paid people with no specialized education, oncall at all hours to do quick internet searches and come up with answers for worried pet owners.  Real vets would not be available for this.  JA routinely first promises answers for very little money, then badgers people to pay more.  I have seen JA answers that did appear to have been written by a professional; real vets may be called in when users hand over serious cash.  

If your pet is seriously sick, there is no substitute for professional treatment, but you may be able to treat some minor problems at home.
You can, in fact, find a lot of good information on the internet, for free.  Look for sites sponsored by professional organizations, or by vets whose full names, license credentials and physical addresses are displayed on the site.  Don't pay Just Answer to do your internet search (and possibly misunderstand the results) for you.

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