Whether you’ve just got a new puppy or kitten, moved to a new area, or are needing a change, choosing a new vet is an important decision. No two vet practices are alike, and many areas will have multiple practices nearby. With all this choice, how can you decide which one to take your pet to? What is the single most important factor in choosing a new vet?
Table of contents
Where Are the Vet Practices?
We think that location is a good place to start. We’re a small island, and there are vets up and down the country from the Shetland Islands to the Isle of Wight; dependent on where you live, you might be spoilt for choice. It is up to you how far you are willing to travel for a vet.
If you want routine care, then a local practice might suit you best. If you have specific requirements (more on this later), you might be willing to travel further. Remember that in the unfortunate event of an emergency, getting veterinary care quickly could mean the difference between life or death. We would therefore recommend having your pet registered to a vet close by; even if you don’t visit them regularly, in case you need to be seen urgently (we will discuss multiple practices in a bit).
It’s also important to consider how you will get there. Can you drive and is there adequate parking? Are the roads there easy to drive on? Is there public transport access? Could you walk? Is the practice located in a safe area?
What Sort of Vet Practice?
Once you’ve decided on location, you’ll need to consider what sort of vet you need for your pets. Most vets aren’t just ‘vets’ anymore. Many practices will specialise in one specific group of animals, such as small pets (dogs and cats), horses, farm animals, exotic animals and more. Some practices may be considered ‘mixed’ and have vets that deal with multiple groups of species. Certain practices may even advertise being ‘cat-only’ practices, which for especially nervous felines can be better for them.
All vets will have had training in the most common species as students; but veterinary medicine varies wildly species to species. Practices may not have the capabilities or equipment to treat certain species (e.g. farm or exotic animals) effectively. Thus, they may recommend speaking to another vet if they feel they cannot provide adequate routine care, or offer an appointment but advise they are not experts in these animals.
It is important to note that any vet must provide emergency treatment for any animal in their care. This means that if you turn up to an equine vet practice with a sick dog, for example, the vets must provide first aid. However, this may only be limited to pain relief, stabilisation of critical functions, or even euthanasia on welfare grounds. Thus, we would advise against visiting a vet that does not routinely treat your pet’s species, even for emergencies, unless you have no other choice.
What Do They Provide?
Next you need to think about what you want from a vet. Not every vet will have every piece of equipment and offer every possible procedure. The level of care offered will vary, ranging from charity medicine for owners who cannot afford veterinary care, cheaper practices offering basic services, standard practices with a wide range of skills and equipment, to referral level and beyond for the gold standard (but most expensive) care. This does not mean that cheaper practices are inferior; all vets work to high standards and will offer the best care they can provide. It is important that the costs and types of care vary to suit individual circumstances; (compare this to supermarkets, which also vary from budget to high-end). Note that insuring your animal may allow you to obtain care you might not have been able to afford otherwise.
Within these price ranges, you can distinguish vets further.
Do you feel your dog will only need routine care that any vet can provide; or do they have specific needs that might require specialist equipment? Pieces of equipment or procedures offered that are commonly advertised to help practices stand out are endoscopes, CT scanners, MRI scanners, digital x-rays, in-house blood machines, laparoscopic surgery, orthopaedic surgery, neurological surgery, and many more. Remember, you can always visit your general practice and use another practice for specialist procedures if needed.
Out of hours care is another point to consider. All vets should facilitate their clients in getting care out of hours if needed. For some vets, this may mean that they always have a vet on call who you can ring if you have any major concerns when the practice is shut. Other practices will use out of hours centres to care for their patients when the primary practice is closed. It is important to know how your vet offers out of hours care in advance; as you don’t want to be trying to work it out during an actual emergency!
Who Works There?
There will be a lot of overlap between this and the previous paragraph, as high-tech equipment or procedures generally needs certain vets to provide their skills.
All vets will have good broad basic knowledge and are able to deal with routine care.
But if you think you may need specialist or advanced care, you should consider which vets work at the practice. This might be finding a practice with a first-opinion vet that has a particular interest in your species, such as the vet that likes birds! Or you can consider extra qualifications in certain areas, such as neurology, cardiology and more. Many of these vets will work in referral-level practices and require you to see a first-opinion vet for a referral. Generally, the more qualified and expert the vet, the more the care will cost. Often, cost will mean these vets aren’t suitable for routine care (or they may not even offer it). So it is important to see your first opinion vet regularly regardless.
Some people may want to see specific vets because they know them personally as family or friends. As long as the vet is okay with this, there’s no reason not to. However, don’t be tempted to ask for a family discount, as usually the vets don’t choose the prices, and could get into trouble with the boss! Some clients will also follow a specific vet around if they’ve built up a good relationship with them in the past; even if this means travelling a long way to see their favourite vet who moved away!
Can You Go to Multiple Practices?
As we alluded to earlier, yes, it is perfectly legal for pet owners to have their pets registered at multiple practices. Some may prefer this, having one vet for routine care and one closer for emergencies, for example. However, from our point of view, this can be a difficult situation to contend with.
Vets must ensure that when taking a client from another practice, we have full detailed clinical notes and continuity of care. If a client is moving regularly between practices, it is easy for notes to be lost or forgotten, and important information missed. It will make our job more difficult. Furthermore, in emergency situations, there is often not time to contact a previous vet and get them to email history over. If critical information is not known, such as drug-allergies or underlying health conditions, it could mean life or death for a patient.
It also makes it harder to build a relationship up with a client and an animal. 15 minutes isn’t long to get to know an animal and their specific quirks; so repeated visits to the same vet can help us get to know you both. This means we can have happier pets, diagnose disease more easily, and understand your points of view. If you see multiple vets at different practices, this relationship is hard to manifest.
So, in short, while we aren’t saying not to visit multiple practices, we advise limiting yourself to one or two you are satisfied with, ensure both practices are aware you are seeing the other, and that clinical notes are shared between them regularly. This will also apply to pet owners seeking second opinions or going to referral practices as well.
So What Is the Single Most Important Factor in Choosing a New Vet?
In our opinion, the single most important factor is whether you are happy with the care provided, whatever this means to you. We realise that this probably isn’t a satisfactory answer, but it’s true. There are millions of pets and owners out there, each with their own idea of what a perfect vet practice looks like. Identifying a single factor for everyone is impossible.
So instead, ask yourself are you happy? Do you feel listened to? Is your pet happy to visit? Does your pet get the care they need? Does the vet admit when they don’t know the answer, and offer ways to find out (remember, we frequently won’t know the answer!)? Is the vet happy for you to get a second opinion, or be referred? Do they lack something you’d like for your pet?
If you aren’t fully satisfied, is there anything you could change within this practice, such as seeing a different vet or discussing your concerns with the manager? Or would you be happier finding a different practice that suits your needs more? Both are acceptable approaches, but just remember to address concerns in a kind and sensitive way – we can’t please everyone, but only by having civil discussions can we improve. We won’t be offended if you decide to see another practice, but please let us know so we can send your records over!
Discussion