What do you WANT & EXPECT from a vet?

snowman2_2

albacookie wrote: »

To sell to vets the pharmacies would need a wholesaler licence.

The service offered by the on-line pharmacies is far inferior to the service offered by my wholesaler. I can get next-day delivery on items orederd up to 9pm. What we need is consistent pricing scales from manufacturers.

bratz81

I've recently (about 6-9months ago) changed vet and the difference couldn't be greater. I'm so much happier with my new vet for the following reasons:

1) my new vet is much more open about costs and charge a standard rate for things. The old one seemed to charge whatever they felt like.

2) the receptionist at the new place is friendly, greets everyone with a smile and comment on the weather/news/whatever. You don't feel like an inconvenience. She also manages to look you in the eye which is nice. The old one was a dragon.

3) if I don't get to see the vet each time, which can happen due to various reasons, the one I'm seeing actually reads the notes on file and knows the background on my cat. At the old place I never saw the same person twice and they seemed to NEVER read his notes - I'd to explain things each time I went in.

4) my cat has several issues - partially blind due to abuse, crystals in his bladder(so he's on special food), he 'quacks' instead of meows and is more susceptible to cat flu(was so mistreated as a kitten it's unreal) and his standard body temp seems to be a little high - which is normal for him. My new vet actually listens to me, knows I know his conditions and how he is normally so I know if something is up or not. The last one wouldn't listen, refused to believe me and treated me like a bad owner. For example they wouldn't neuter him because his temperature was high - 3 times!! I explained each time I handed him over that this is his normal temp (I'm talking 1degree higher than the 'standard') he was fine etc. And each time I'd pick him up and be told he has a fever and they'd given him anti-biotics which he didn't need and had to pay for - and he wasn't even neutered!

So basically I want a vet who listens, takes time to read his notes before an appointment, doesn't treat me like a half-wit and charges fair and standard prices. And if anyone in Belfast wants to PM me I can recommend who I go to now!

Mayflower10cat

I think we've been blessed with our vets over the 20+ years of being cat owners. When we relocated from the SE to the SW with a very special sugarcat (also with CRF) I was more worried about finding a vet we could work with than of finding a the 'perfect house'... Having registered initially with the biggest group practice in the area - and very quickly realising we'd made a mistake - I then made an appointment with a small practice that was only three miles away from our new home purely to see the vet herself and 'have a little chat.' I'd brought my copies of our sugarcat's records, all his graphs and all my notes. The lady I saw was the owner and despite seeing her at the end of a long surgery, (she was running late due to an RTA emergency) she was kind, sympathetic, listened and looked over all my paperwork with genuine interest. I warmed to her straight away. After an intense chat of a good 30 minutes, she looked at me shrewdly, with gentle amusement, and asked 'so, have I passed the interview? Do I get to look after Rocky???' Of course she did.

I got exactly what I wanted in a Vet; someone who loves animals deeply and puts them first at all times. Someone who became a vet for all the right reasons, someone who can sum up owners and knows the (technical) level at which to pitch a consult, someone who loves surgery but who is happy to refer to another practice for more specialised procedures. Someone that will help an injured hedgehog or pigeon for free, (or in our vets, case capture an escaped hawk harrier and contact the owners before it decimated an entire flock of pet chickens....) and someone who, with judgement, knows to offer credit or at least easy payment terms to certain clients who really need it. Our current vet has two fairly 'basic looking' small surgeries, clean but spartan, one is in the ground floor of her own home. However, the equipment she's invested in is every bit as good as the 'huge' group practice I first registered with.

Vets all have their own personal specialisms, their areas of real expertise and knowledge. I'm glad about that, it must give them real satisfaction when dealing with a pet that's 'right up their street' so to say. Like GP's, they have to be 'a jack of all trades'. What do I hope for in a vet? Lack of ego, I suppose sums it up. To be able to consult another vet for a second or third opinion without feeling threatened or undermined. Also, someone with a good bedside (cat side??!!!!) manner, someone who can handle an animal (and their owners!) and talk to them with gentle skill and patience.....

Does all that sound too much, I apologise if it does. But as I said earlier, maybe we've just been very lucky with our Vets.

borderlakland

friendly/helpfull reception and nurses are a godsend as often you see them far more than the vet
my current vet was great offering me a choice between a antibiotic injection or tablets depending how comfortable i was giving the cat tablets (same result but 2x difference in price)

i don't want to come across as prejudiced but i would prefer to be able to understand what my vet is saying (lots of foreign locums)

where ever possible to make every effort to keep dogs and cats and small furries as far apart in the waiting room.

i like the sympathy card but my old practise wasn't very good at removing the pets details from the system and for at least 2 years (even though we did mention it to them)we recived reminders for jabs/wormers etc which was upsetting
a vet and or nurse that is better educated on nutrition not just on the crap they get paid to offer

ananonvn

I'd like to address a few points from a well travelled VN's point of view...

Ego/Reluctance to refer/research: Yep, seen this, thankfully it's the minority of vets who are like this. Very VERY frustrating!

Not reading history: I've only seen this with one or two vets, I don't understand why they don't tbh? They usually fall into the above category too

99% of the vets I have worked with do all of the following

* Greet the huge dog with a hug and get their face washed

* Read the history - and then some - big gaps between appts? You're in the waiting room getting ansty? Chill - you have a good vet who is reviewing your pets history!

* Don't mean to talk to you in a 'patronising' tone - please forgive them - clients come from all walks of life, and often need things repeating, lots. If you know what you are talking about then speak up

* Will offer you all treatment options they know of, and 'fess up if they are stumped

* Will not take insurance into account in their advice - offer all available treatments, ant not just the pricey one - the RCVS would go down on them like a ton of bricks!!!

And finally, all the best vets know that vet nurses are NOT mini vets, have no desire to be vets, and are actually better than vets at things like restraining animals, hitting veins, tableting cats, and most importantly, nursing and giving TLC to hospitalised pets

UKTigerlily

Thank you Snowman for asking this question! I'd like the following:

* Vets to make direct claims on the insurance, I have it because if anything happened to my pets I couldn't just find £xxx at the drop of a hat

* Vets to give the animal some fuss or speak to it some, it's nice when they seem interested in the animal & my Vet always fusses them quickly or talks to them if doing something not so pleasant.

* Is honest & says if they aren't sure!

krlyr

Many of my 'wants' have been covered. One I didn't spot was treating all pets equally - many people wouldn't choose to have pet rats but many do, and I don't expect to be told that there's "not much point" doing x procedure because "it's just a rat" or "would be a waste of money". I hadn't actually wanted to do the procedure suggested, but that was because of the stress it would cause my pet and the fact there were less stressful alternatives to try first. Also saw another vet who picked one of my rats up by his tail - just after I told him he had a suspected ear infection, so had rubbish balance anyway. Queue stressed rat spinning around in the air until I quickly grabbed him. You wouldn't pick a cat or small dog up by the end of its tail so why a pet rat?
Fortunately my current vets have been fab with all my small furries (and their service overall is fab) but it's that kind of treatment that has made me leave other vets and not recommend them to friends.

cheeswright

Hi Snowman 2
I have recently changed vets
so I can give you a short list of things that prompted me to leave one practice and find another

making me wait an hour in a crowded waiting room to have my dog put down
making me wait 45mins - even when i had the first appointment
always always having to wait, my time is at least as valuable as the vets
telling my husband that my cats were addicted to added sugars in catfood ( i actually contacted the petfood manufacturer to see if this was possible - and now know more about sugar beet and cats digestion than I ever wanted too - and it was a lie)
and the final straw
getting a clients dead puppy out of a box in the waiting room in front of my young children to examine it

I am not going back - and I will happily tell anybody who asks what a horrible practice it is - even though the vet is very friendly - the lack of professional competence shown in these acts makes me doubt all of the vets other abilities

snowman2_2

UKTigerlily wrote: »

* Vets to make direct claims on the insurance, I have it because if anything happened to my pets I couldn't just find £xxx at the drop of a hat

Fair enough - just check with your vets beforehand if they will accept a direct claim as we will but only from about 75% of companies.

Krlyr - I am actually happy to see all animals - if they are a loved pet it doesn't matter what they are. However, some vets are scared on unusual pets and it is probably the fear of the unknown. We see a mix of animals that other vets don't want to see but it is usually unfamiliarity and fear.

Cheeswright - A good vet will try to keep to appointments but emergencies crop up & some patients need longer for complicated cases. We always allow "catch-up" gaps every 90 minutes so we don't ever run too late. A good receptionist will explain this when you arrive. The annoying ones are when clients turn up late or just turn up without an appointment - it is us that look bad when we then run late - or clients who just keep talking though& talking & talking. Although I try to give everyone as much time as possible, some people forget I have other clients to see.

*doodle*_2

I changed vets a few months ago and I am so glad that I did. I always saw a different vet at my old practice - never the same one twice and this lack of consistency started as a niggle but grew into a huge concern. I mean, I always see the same doctor so I want the same for my animals.

My new vet speaks to me as though I am a human being, I see the same one every time, has fantastic communication skills and, more importantly, my pets really like him and will headbutt a hello whenever they see him. One of my cats became seriously ill shortly after switching practices and I am certain that if it wasn't for my new vet then he wouldn't be here today.

Good vets are like gold dust.