Choosing A Veterinarian - What to Look For ... What to Ask?

[Doctor-S]

What things should pet owners consider, or ask about, when looking for a "back-up" small animal veterinarian, or small animal veterinary clinic (e.g., the veterinary clinic is temporarily closing, due to new construction)?

What would YOU look for ... or what questions would YOU ask ... when choosing a small animal GP veterinarian?

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[EngrSC]

If they're temporarily closing and you intend to return to that hospital upon re-opening, I would ask who they recommend you use in the meantime

I worked in a busy small animal practice as a pre-vet and there was a decent chunk of time where we weren't accepting new clients because we needed to put our existing clients first. New clients would ask us who we recommended since we couldn't see them and we had no problem giving them the names of a couple hospitals in the area that we thought provided similar quality of care to ours. The vet med community is pretty small so we simply didn't refer people to clinics we knew didn't provide the quality of medicine we did.

 

[Doctor-S]

If they're temporarily closing and you intend to return to that hospital upon re-opening, I would ask who they recommend you use in the meantime

I worked in a busy small animal practice as a pre-vet and there was a decent chunk of time where we weren't accepting new clients because we needed to put our existing clients first. New clients would ask us who we recommended since we couldn't see them and we had no problem giving them the names of a couple hospitals in the area that we thought provided similar quality of care to ours. The vet med community is pretty small so we simply didn't refer people to clinics we knew didn't provide the quality of medicine we did.

Thanks for your comments @EngrSC.

They were already asked but they didn't have any immediate recommendations. They said to go the local 24/7 emergency veterinary hospital for emergencies.

So, I was just wondering ... what things should pet owners consider when looking for a "non-emergency" small animal veterinary practice as a back-up ... you know ... just in case (e.g., how many DVMs are employed in the practice, ultrasound, radiology, dental, overnight care, etc.)?

 

[LetItSnow]

What things should pet owners consider, or ask about, when looking for a "back-up" small animal veterinarian, or small animal veterinary clinic (e.g., the veterinary clinic is temporarily closing, due to new construction)?

What would YOU look for ... or what questions would YOU ask ... when choosing a small animal GP veterinarian?

I'd echo the "who do you recommend temporarily", but since they apparently dodged that....

I wouldn't specifically look for # DVMs, Ultrasound, Radiology, etc.

I'd look for values.

There is a huge disparity in how veterinary medicine is practiced and, more specifically, what some owners want.

Some owners view pets as something they'll provide basic minimum care for (annual exam, vaccines, mayyyybe dental care) but when they get sick - it's empirical therapy (or at best minimal diagnostics) and see how things go.

Some owners want very aggressive diagnostic and therapeutic care on par with what is available for many people.

So the first thing I'd look for is how well that owner's "values" as pertaining to the care they want align with the vet. Some vets are far more comfortable with "minimum" levels of care. Some even prefer it and aren't comfortable with complex, advanced work-ups for problems. Some are. Suss that out, first.

Next I'd look at availability - how easy is it to get in? In today's world, that's a huge problem.

Then I'd look at other factors - does the owner strongly want to be able to do drop-off appts and does that vet allow those. Is the owner super demanding about callbacks immediately, and can the vet accommodate that.

For me, it's much less about specifically the level of care the vet can provide - it's whether that level of care matches the owner expectation.

We have a few local vets here who practice some serious old-timey medicine. They aren't bad guys, they just firmly are sticking to "shots yearly, and steroid/abx when it gets sick." Their clients LOVE LOVE LOVE them because they're self-selected for clients that want that type of medicine. They'd fail miserably with a client who would drop $4000 in a hot second for a CT and bronchoscopy.

Yanno?

 

[genny]

For me, it's much less about specifically the level of care the vet can provide - it's whether that level of care matches the owner expectation.

This is perfect.

 

[Doctor-S]

I'd echo the "who do you recommend temporarily", but since they apparently dodged that....

I wouldn't specifically look for # DVMs, Ultrasound, Radiology, etc.

I'd look for values.

There is a huge disparity in how veterinary medicine is practiced and, more specifically, what some owners want.

Some owners view pets as something they'll provide basic minimum care for (annual exam, vaccines, mayyyybe dental care) but when they get sick - it's empirical therapy (or at best minimal diagnostics) and see how things go.

Some owners want very aggressive diagnostic and therapeutic care on par with what is available for many people.

So the first thing I'd look for is how well that owner's "values" as pertaining to the care they want align with the vet. Some vets are far more comfortable with "minimum" levels of care. Some even prefer it and aren't comfortable with complex, advanced work-ups for problems. Some are. Suss that out, first.

Next I'd look at availability - how easy is it to get in? In today's world, that's a huge problem.

Then I'd look at other factors - does the owner strongly want to be able to do drop-off appts and does that vet allow those. Is the owner super demanding about callbacks immediately, and can the vet accommodate that.

For me, it's much less about specifically the level of care the vet can provide - it's whether that level of care matches the owner expectation.

We have a few local vets here who practice some serious old-timey medicine. They aren't bad guys, they just firmly are sticking to "shots yearly, and steroid/abx when it gets sick." Their clients LOVE LOVE LOVE them because they're self-selected for clients that want that type of medicine. They'd fail miserably with a client who would drop $4000 in a hot second for a CT and bronchoscopy.

Yanno?

Thanks for the informative comments @LetItSnow.

In my town, many small animal veterinary clinics are owned by corporations. Many of these practices were formerly owned and operated by private practice veterinarians. The remaining (privately-held) small animal practices do not own much tech equipment whereas the corporate-owned practices own lots of in-house medical equipment that is used by multiple medical staff (e.g., surgery, radiology, neurology, orthopedics, etc.). The corporate-owned small animal clinics also have 24/7 multi-specialty emergency hospitals located conveniently nearby that are also owned by the same veterinary corporations. One of them is located next to a large veterinary diagnostic lab.

Now, that I think about it: I am not aware of any small animal veterinary clinic in my town that is offering urgent medical services for pets. Instead, they send the pet to one of the multi-specialty corporate-owned veterinary hospitals for emergent or specialty medical care.

Your comments about the owner's values and the owner's expectations are well-taken and made me think about *what* would I want if my own pet was ailing or injured?

If that occurred, I would want a full-service veterinary practice, with more than one veterinarian available 24/7, with access to high-end medical equipment and related medical specialty resources.

I have a comprehensive pet insurance policy for my pet. So, professional expertise and medical specialty resources would be very important to me. The pet insurance policy provides 90% reimbursement for all covered expenses - so that takes care of the veterinarian's fees and other covered medical expenses. In that case, nothing would be spared for my pet.

However ...

Based on your comments, it sounds as if a "back-up" small animal veterinary practice (at least, in my own town) would be practical for non-emergent veterinary care (e.g., annual wellness exam, routine dental, general practice veterinary matters) because I would not expect the clinic to provide specialty medical care 24/7.

Right now, there are a handful of small animal clinics that offer that level of primary care in my town - so they would be suitable as back-up clinics when my pet's primary small animal veterinary clinic is not available.

Thanks for your comments!

 

[DVMDream]

I think important questions to ask of a GP clinic that'll see your pet for wellness and maybe skin, ears, limping, mild coughing, etc will be to start with... what are the open hours?

If you work M-F 8-5 and the clinic you're thinking of is only open M-F 8-5, it might be harder for you to get in without planning the appointment during your lunch or being able to take a day off. So you may need to find a clinic open later or with at least some weekend hours.

Next is asking if they allow for drop off appointments. If you work when they're open but they'll let your pet be dropped off and then you can pick up during your lunch break, that could work. Or if drop offs in general work better for you. Maybe you just have a lot to do that day and can't be hanging about in the clinic, having that option is nice.

After that, it is more things you'll notice once you start going. Does it constantly seem like there is new staff? Could indicate high staff turn over, which means constant training of new staff.

Or if you need a specific procedure like a dental. Verifying they put all pets on IV fluids and have dental radiography are good things to know.

 

[Doctor-S]

@DVMDream, thanks for your informative comments.

Nearly all of the privately-owned small animal veterinary clinics in my town are allowing drop-offs. I prefer to remain at the veterinary clinic, when my pet is initially examined, to answer the DVM's questions and provide additional medical history or information, if needed. If the DVM or vet tech needs to keep my pet at the clinic for a while, I leave my pet with them, for as long as they need to keep my pet. These in-patient pet appointments are non-urgent and do not require specialty medical care.

Very much appreciated your suggestions about dental procedures.

Before my cat's annual dental cleaning and exam, I asked about anesthesia, dental x-rays, and warming (during and after the dental exam), as well as BP monitoring, IV fluids, antibiotics and potential pain meds. The DVM and vet techs assigned to the procedure were happy to answer all of my questions. Then, I left my cat at the clinic, and they did their work as my cat's GP doctor, and small animal dental team.

I have noticed that some of the privately-owned small animal clinics in my town often have only "one DVM" present in the clinic on certain days of the week.

Many of these small animal clinics are also closed on the weekends and do not provide any overnight medical care. Hmmm ... those could be problems if my pet has been treated by the same DVM for a long time, and now that DVM is on a lengthy absence (e.g., family leave), or if my pet presented with an unexpected problem that required overnight medical care and monitoring. If that happened, I'm sure the veterinary clinic would refer/transport the pet to one of the 24/7 multi-specialty corporate-owned veterinary hospitals in town. If they didn't do that, I would do it.

 

[battie]

Many of these small animal clinics are also closed on the weekends and do not provide any overnight medical care. Hmmm ... those could be problems if my pet has been treated by the same DVM for a long time, and now that DVM is on a lengthy absence (e.g., family leave), or if my pet presented with an unexpected problem that required overnight medical care and monitoring. If that happened, I'm sure the veterinary clinic would refer/transport the pet to one of the 24/7 multi-specialty corporate-owned veterinary hospitals in town. If they didn't do that, I would do it.

I think we're at the point in vet med where GP is GP and ER is ER (depending on the vet clinic). My hospital has a 24/7 ER as well as GP. At this point, all the local GPs send their ERs to us or another local ER. Most clinics/offices don't have the staff to support both scheduled GP appts and ERs, regardless of how many doctors are in the practice. If there are 5 doctors seeing GP appts, fitting in random ERs or sick appts puts them behind for the rest of the day, which leads to angry clients. In my area at least, it's very much like human med. My GP isn't going to squeeze me in for an ear infection, UTI, or worse. I'm going to be sent to urgent care or the ER.

 

[genny]

I think we're at the point in vet med where GP is GP and ER is ER (depending on the vet clinic). My hospital has a 24/7 ER as well as GP. At this point, all the local GPs send their ERs to us or another local ER. Most clinics/offices don't have the staff to support both scheduled GP appts and ERs, regardless of how many doctors are in the practice. If there are 5 doctors seeing GP appts, fitting in random ERs or sick appts puts them behind for the rest of the day, which leads to angry clients. In my area at least, it's very much like human med. My GP isn't going to squeeze me in for an ear infection, UTI, or worse. I'm going to be sent to urgent care or the ER.

Our clinic still squeezes in sick appointments rather than sending to ER if we can help it. But we’re running out of squeeze room.

 

[battie]

Our clinic still squeezes in sick appointments rather than sending to ER if we can help it. But we’re running out of squeeze room.

It's almost a damned if you do, dammed if you don't sort of thing. Clients are angry because you cant squeeze them in, or they're angry cause you're late to the appt because you squeezed someone else in.

 

[dyachei]

having only 1 dvm on during the day wouldnt be a deal breaker for me. Like others have said, we're moving away from GPs doing a lot of emergencies

 

[LetItSnow]

I think we're at the point in vet med where GP is GP and ER is ER (depending on the vet clinic).

having only 1 dvm on during the day wouldnt be a deal breaker for me. Like others have said, we're moving away from GPs doing a lot of emergencies

We certainly have moved that direction, but given the utter collapse of ERs that is going on ...... unless something changes this trajectory, we're headed back to the days of more GPs seeing more of their own emergencies rather than less, simply because there are fewer fewer open ERs to send patients to.

Of our 7 ERs in MN, 1 is closed three nights/week, another is closed 2 nights/week, a third is closed 1 night/week, and mine - a 24hr ER/referral - is now closed 5 shifts/week (including Fri night, Sat day, Sun day, every other Sun night, and Mon nights). This is entirely due to both staff <and> DVM shortages.

On top of that, our overall capacity is low even when we ARE open because of staff shortages. Most nights I have 1 ICU staff, severely limiting how many cases I can hospitalize. That 1 ICU staff can handle a ton of UOs and carprofen toxicities .... but if I throw a few really critical cases in the mix, we're done considering we ALWAYS have several post-op patients, several IM patients, etc.

So we're seeing fewer cases than ever, even while the caseload is higher than ever.

The other ERs in the area also close regularly (essentially nightly for at least a few hours) and are in a similar situation.

This is a nationwide problem (obviously worse some places than other, but....).

Dunno. The situation is crappy and getting crappier for ER medicine in the U.S.

 

[dvmcatdog]

I just moved and am working in ER so I needed to find a GP for my pets as I left my old GP in my old state. I went to 4-5 vets in town until I found one that I really liked. She is so caring, compassionate, and knowledgeable. These are the things I look for personally! I just wanted someone I felt truly cared about my pets and felt knowledgeable about treatments she was recommending. Since I'm pre-vet and a tech currently, it was nice she took my opinion into consideration when making a treatment plan. I've had vets that ignore anything I say sometimes.