minding the menagerie

Love Your Veterinarian

When our pets are young and most of their medical problems are cuts and scrapes from tripping over the porch stairs or playing a little too hard, it’s easy to forget entirely about their veterinarian until it’s time to refill their heartworm meds or get their annual rabies shot. So it’s often not until we actually have a serious illness or injury that we consider how vital our vet is to us and, sometimes, it’s the first time we realize that we haven’t put enough thought into our selection of a clinic that suits us and our pets as best they could.

It’s important to think about your selection of a veterinary practice as early as possible, ideally before you even adopt your new family member. If you are planning to adopt an exotic pet, like a chinchilla, bird, or lizard, this is doubly important. You need to make sure the vet you choose has plenty of experience with your chosen species. Ask key questions to ensure that their answers are in tune with the research you have done before your pet’s adoption. For example, if you are adopting a rat, it would be inappropriate to withhold food before surgery, unlike a dog or cat would need to, since rats cannot vomit and withholding food could cause more harm than good with their very quick metabolisms. Small animals like these are not tiny dogs or cats. Your new vet should have studied these species specifically and have worked with clients with the same type of pet as yours. The best vets know their strengths as well as their limitations and will be clear and honest with you. This holds true for more common pet species as well. You should not make do with a dog oriented practice, if you have a cat. Many do see both, and that can be fantastic, provided the vet you choose is comfortable and experienced with each species.

Some other considerations go beyond education or experience into something more personal. It is important that you and your vet share similar philosophies and that your vet and animal click. If your vet always seems annoyed with you or your pet, or if they handle your animals in a way that makes you uncomfortable, it’s okay to go somewhere else. There are many different attitudes and philosophies toward animals in our society and different vet clinics are not immune to this. Some vets may be more brusque with a preference for working dogs over close companions. Some are very open to complementary holistic care while others may be opposed. One handy tip is to look at the products recommended by the clinic, usually displayed in the waiting area. How comfortable are you with the quality and ingredients of the prescription diets they offer. There are many options and brands to choose from. Ask them why they chose the products they did. It’s one way to see if your nutritional choices mesh.

It’s not uncommon to visit several vets before finding the one you feel is right for you and the animals in your family. If you need a head start, ask your dog trainer, animal rescue group, or friends which vets have really impressed them and why. It’s a good way to get started on finding the vet you can develop a true partnership with in protecting your pet’s health and happiness.

Veronica Noechel is a trainer and cat consultant for Sylvie’s K9 Solutions and president of 3R Rescues: Raleigh Rodent Rescue. She is the author of several books of poetry and the Yummy for Dogs Cookbook. Reach Veronica at ratgirl@raleighrodentrescue.org