Vets dating clients

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Are vets allowed to date their clients?

Just curious...

The owner is the client, the animal is the patient. The animal isn’t the one making the business decisions or signing the paperwork, so they aren’t the clients. The owners are not the ones receiving medical care so they are not the patients. There was one vet who was struck off a few years back for bestiality, but obviously that’s very, very unlikely. Client confidentiality is a thing just as it would be in any other professional relationship, but yes of course a vet can have a personal relationship with a client, just like a lawyer could. The only issue would be around direct conflict of interest eg signing legal certificates for animals belonging to a spouse would not be ok.

Is there some kind of annual reporting of the 1000s if vets in the country confirming no dating activity?

That's a massive extrapolation of personal experience to assume it never happens

All kinds of people meet their partners in work related situations, why would vets be a special case?

Well obviously I haven't worked in every single practice but I have worked in a lot locumming all over the UK for years and I've never known it to happen, like I say it could potentially lose a practice clients. Vets dating other vets or nurses is however very common.

I’ve known it happen several times. Quite common especially in rural areas with female vets meeting farmers; I can also think of several colleagues who met partners through canine consultations. I’ve been a vet a really long time, but some of these are < 5 years ago. What would people do otherwise if the only vet on an island?

And sometimes it has gone wrong and the business has lost a client. That doesn’t make it inherently against professional ethics, though.

Quite. A relationship with a plumber/ electrician/ bank clerk/ retail assistant etc. could go wrong and lose the business a client but it isn't unethical.

So many posters don’t know the difference between the client of a business and a patient treated by that business 🙄

So you fancy your vet?

I think it's supposed to be humorous.

Maybe she is a vet.

My cat and I are engaged, getting married next year 😉😉

My friend met her vet DH when he treated her animal.
As a pp says, it would be like dating your architect or plumber.

Do you have the hots for your vet OP?

I don't see anything wrong with it. It's not like he's dating his patients.

Your user name suggests you might be a candidate for some vet action 😂

I think it's one of those cases where you need to be cautious but isn't a blanket no. If you're the vet and you're client could be considered vulnerable I would be cautious, if they are not vulnerable then I can't see the harm

Yes they can

You could say that

I haven't personally but I've had a few colleagues over the years who've met people through work. It's never been seen as an issue as far as I'm aware. One of the large animal vets at the very first practice I worked in married a client (farmer). Their eyes met over a labouring cow and the rest was history 😄

Perhaps we could have a double wedding 😺😺

Because it’s wrong to shag a dog or cat, OP.

my vet is absolutely gorgeous. If he was single he'd be chatted up all day long by the customers! (and still is by those who don't care he's married )

Oooh. Ask him out. Friend’s vet husband is very good looking , they make a beautiful pair.

So many posters don’t know the difference between the client of a business and a patient treated by that business 🙄

And some people are too fucking serious, with a stick up their arse.

I'd be worried in case he says no and then I would feel I couldn't take my pets to him again as it would be too awkward.