If you are moving to a new are or know someone who is please read!!! Finding a new vet can be very stressful. A lot of factors going into making a decision on where your beloved furbabies will go for their medical needs. My mission this blog is to give you a list of things that you should look for to help alleviate some of the stressors that come with this task.
1st- Make sure to do your homework: Now I know that the first thing most people will do is go straight for the reviews. Unfortunately from our personal experience as I am sure it is with a lot of places, the only people who review are people who are complaining. Negative people. Although all of them can be rebutted, someone on the outside reading them would not know this. So with that being said, please make sure when reading reviews to not take everything you read too seriously. For example we have had a client who gave us a bad review who said that during a physical exam the tech and Doctor at no point or as little as possible touched the pet while in the room. The story behind this was that the dog without the owner warning us had lunged at our technician on two separate occasions, when it was mentioned that the pet may have aggressive tendencies the owner became outraged and later followed up with a review. We have thousands of happy clients, so happy that they have never had the need to post a review. I am working on that đ Your best bet on getting real reliable information is to ask around, using your friends and families experiences. They wouldnât steer you wrong!
2nd- Ask Questions: Do not ever be afraid to ask questions. This is your pet that we are talking about and the only way to get the right answers is to asked the questions. If your pet is on certain medication or on prescription foodâŚmake sure to ask if they carry it or are able to order it in should you need it. If your pet has only ever had certain vaccinations then ask if they carry them. Make sure that if your pet is having a certain medical issue that you check to see if the Vet at the practice knows this situation or topic very well. All Veterinarians are educated in all things pet but some see more of one case than others. The Pet Doctor for instance sees a lot of skin related issues so much so that in diagnosing and treating we have found different ways of dealing with different pets and or breeds. Dr. Stephanie for instance is a bulldog lover and always has been since she was young, she now owns two of them. So she has seen a lot with this breed personally and can help others as well!
3rd- Make sure they ask a lot of questions: When calling a vet to set up an appointment feel it out by talking to the receptionist or technician. Are they asking you a lot of questions in regards to what is going on with your pet? Follow up questions? Lets say you call because your pet isnât eating as much. The person on the other line may then ask you if there have been any changes lately with their environment? Is the pet still drinking, urinating and pooping? Will the pet still take treats or has he/she stopped eating completely? This is a vet I would want to take my pet to!! They are trying to get as much information from you to make sure that your pet can get the best possible care. By asking these questions they can determine when you should have your pet in as well as giving the doctor a heads up so that they can already start going over testing options before you even get there.
4th- Stop in: It always helps to make sure to have physically seen the veterinary clinic that you will possibly be taking your pet to. Most times if they are not too busy or have patients in being treated they will give you a mini tour of the facility as well as answer any questions that you may have. Or call ahead and see when they would be able to make this time happen for you. Maybe on a lunch hour if they are still staffed rather than fully closing. Make sure it is clean. If they are not properly cleaning the facility you will know, believe me. Which means that your pet could be at risk of contracting diseases as well as fleas. (Although fleas are very common and can be anywhere, if cleaned properly you cut down the possibility of infestations).
These 4 topics are just a few of the different things that I have seen when it comes to finding veterinary clinics. I do remote blogging for The Pet Doctor and was just recently in the position of having to take my pet to a veterinarian that was closer to where I was living up North. These topics are things that I later complied after leaving the veterinarians. The doctor was great but their technicians were not and I was disappointed in a lot. I know that no matter what obstacle I will make the trip to SC for my pet to always be seen at The Pet Doctor!! I hope that his helps you if you should ever find yourself in the same position! If you have any other ideas on things to look for please let us know!!