What do you want from your vet? (not only for the dog-lovers!)

[Joolyjoolyjoo]

Right, I am setting up my own practice in the next month or so (gulp!) I want to get it right and give people the service they want. Things I think are important are:

Clean, comfortable waiting room, with seperate areas for cats and dogs

Friendly receptionist and staff, easy to get a same-day appointment

To see the same vet each time, if at all possible (as there is only me, you won't get any choice )

Your concerns to be listened to properly, and you and your animal to be treated with respect and empathy.

Procedures and prices to be explained and detailed. Prices to be reasonable.

A good range of in-house facilities (xray/ blood work etc)

Ample parking close by/ right outside

Computerised records/ receipts

What else? What makes a practice a good one in your view? Really interested to hear all views!

Yes, I am. Since having kids I really wish I'd gone for law or dentistry though

I'm working for a practice where we as vets get a lot of say in the day to day running of things and our suggestions are taken on board. But I am still constantly frustrated. IIRC you're in Scotland? Once you're running let me know if you're looking for a partner

(Sorry, I forgot to say, I think a good website is essential)

WildAndCrazy- know what you mean- the childcare aspect is one of the reasons I have finally decided to take the plunge. My new premises are right across the road from the kids' school, and I have a huge basement area (dungeon?? ) for the kids for afterschool etc. Hoping by the time they are older they will be making themselves useful! PLus it is local, so that mad drop-them-off-at-two-separate-places-and-still-get-to-work-for-nine will hopefully be a thing of the past!

I am in Scotland- are you? I fear the next few years will be a hard slog before I can afford another vet, but you never know And you can bring your children... (I have walk-in kennels if they are really unruly )

Wild sex,he is gorgeous!

Excellent, although walk in kennels won't be necessary, I've already checked and I can get the biggest one into a spaniel-sized cage

Very best of luck to you :)

deepcover- thanks for that!

Madondogs- what did I miss???!

at spaniel-sized cage!

My old Bear was (and my new lady is) a Staffordshire Bull Terrier. Not terrifying to those in the know - but the receptionists/nurses at my previous were guarded, to say the least! I found it a bit insulting, that professionals treated him like that. It was enough that members of the public did! He allowed an inexperienced vet from the previous practice to take a 1 cm shard of glass out of his paw with no sedative of any sort AFTER she had (inadvertently) hurt him for about 5 minutes. He was a lovely, tolerant boy.

I put a photo up of him.

Is a certain Mr Dixon taking care of your OOH for you?

motherjack - he looks lovely. what a good temperament he had too.

a friend has two staffies and they are so soft and cuddly. she gets looks from others when she is out too. i have been walking my dogs with her and seen people pick their dogs up and walk in opposite direction. shocking though that some professionals dont know better

Awww! What a soulful face! I have to say, I am a bit surprised your nurses etc were a bit wary, as I have never met an SBT I was frightened of! One of our nurses in a previous practice had an SBT and an EBT, and people used to cross the road when they saw her, but as far as I was aware most people who work in the doggy world are fans of staffies. I personally like their big wide smiles and their expressive voices. Not always great with other dogs, but can't say I've ever had a bit of trouble from any of the ones I have met. Unless maybe there were a lot of "staffie-crosses" in the area, giving the poor old staffs a bad rap!

WildAndCrazy- actually no! A friend of mine is doing it...I'll let you guess who that might be (small world emoticon!)

To paraphrase a well known TV show Jooly..... "He was the only Staff in the village".

They are complete puddings with people, aren't they? In retrospect, the previous vet experience was just a bit weird. I stuck with him because he was the one who got to the bottom of the wee fella's pain and managed it well.

Haven't a scooby, maybe we're geographically distant or something - should I know?! The main thing is you're not doing it yourself (I'm trying to negotiate escaping our rota just now, what a nightmare that is). Lock up and go home, yippee!

Have to say, all the ones I have met have been sweethearts and lovely to work with!

Up here, every second dog seems to be a staffy now, so it's just as well!

Wild- I'll second that! Although I still had my neighbour's cat to visit in the middle of dinner on NY day! I think that will be the problem with being local...!

I would be wary of toys too - our vets has some good children's books and that seems to be enough and keep the children calm. Often the animals are a bit stressed and noisy kids with toys wouldn't help.

I would ask you to be gentle with small animals. Our vets has four vets working there and one of them, very much a farm vet, picks up my guinea pigs and rabbits by the scruff of the neck. This upsets the animals, me and the dcs if they have come with me. I always offer to hold them for him and have had no trouble with any of the other vets. This vet is fantastic with our dog though - I suspect he just doesn't "do" small animals.

Our surgery also gives dogs wee treats as they leave. My dog doesn't take treats but I know a lot of people whose dogs try to drag them into the surgery when they pass as they know they get treats there. Makes a nice change from the dogs who have to be dragged in!

Magazines, noticeboards etc help to distract owners while they wait - the more you can do of this the better as it can be very difficult if you are worried for your pet.

Ways to avoid passing other dogs as you leave would be good too. Our vets let us out the back if our dog is upset or if there is a lively dog in the waiting room.

A seat or two in your consulting room if there is space to "park" the dcs if you have to bring them with you. They are more likely to stay out of mischief if they can sit down.

Good luck - it sounds like you are going to run a fab surgery!

Right, so, books/ colouring books for the kids seem to be the way to go??

Plenty of space in my consulting room so will have a few chairs. poss some children's books etc in consulting room too, to keep them occupied? (My doctor has this, and it has gone down well when I've had to drag all the children with me to the surgery!)

Magazines and noticeboards- check. Re magazines: should I just have animal-orientated mags or a mix? I am hoping to have practice newsletters available too, so people can help themselves to them.

Unfortunately there is no back door, but waiting room is also quite big, and there is a foyer (get me!) so hopefully be able to prevent any unwanted interactions!

And promise to be gentle with the small furries! Picking up a guinea or rabbit by the scruff does sound a bit of a large animal vet thing to do! Used to know a vet like this- he was a great guy, but a farm vet, used to inject everything with cow-sized needles!

I really really appreciate everyone's input. This practice is my new baby, and I am very PFP (perfect first practice) about it!

I know it is a bit silly but our vet address all correspondence to the animal in question. So the latest bill was sent to Master Jimbo Surname. Always makes me smile. We get cards in the mail about vaccinations etc before they are due.

The vet also has a WW/SW for pets. They have photos of before and after weight loss and awards for the most weight lost.

I would not have kids toys. It is a vet not a creche. have some books and magazines to read while waiting though, that is a must.

Lots of posters on the walls with facts about animals, skeletal systems etc

And GOOD LUCK!!

Definitely hoping to do weight clinics- good point to have befores and afters on the wall, and possibly awards.

Nice to know that owners like the idea of mail etc sent to the animal- it's almost natural to do it, but I was never sure if folk liked it or thought it was daft! I always call the animal into my consulting room eg "Sparkle Smith?" and have occasionally had people look at me like I was a loon!

Toys for the children seem relatively unpopular- good to know! What about activity sheets for children- wordsearches to do with animals, crosswords, spot the difference, amybe some animal "facts"?

Another bunny owner here, as well as a dog and a variety of birds. Some of these may double what others have said, but thought you?d want to know how many people see these things as important!

Good stuff

1. When we got our puppy, the vet made it very clear that we could bring him along to visit any time. We could weigh him, the receptionist made a fuss, and if there was a gap between appointments he could go into the consultation room for a fuss and a biscuit. Two years on and my lab can?t wait to get in to the vets.
2. When we?ve had to have pets pts, they don?t expect payment on the spot ? they leave it a few days and then send a bill. Before the bill arrives, we get a ?With Sympathy? Card.
3. Our vet runs a ?Well Rabbit? Clinic, where the nurses clip claws, check teath and will administer panacur etc.
4. Our vet is always honest if he?s not sure about an animal. I have Bourkes Parakeets, and he said straight off that he didn?t know much about them. He didn?t charge for the consultation I needed either. I?d rather be told ?I don?t know for sure, but let?s try?? than have a vet pretend they knew what they were doing.
5. My rabbits live in bonded pairs. When one was unwell and had to be taken into the hospital, the second rabbit was allowed to stay with him. Considering how prone to stress rabbits can be this was brilliant.
6. Our vet has a number of childrens books in the waiting room ? much less tempting for the dogs than toys!
7. Be open to suggestions. I follow a lot of research on rabbit health, and have often called my vet to discuss it. He?s more than happy to do this, has asked me for copies of things I?ve read, and on occasion has made changes because of this (for example, I brought up the subject of pancur to prevent e.cuniculi. He now includes panacur treatment as part of the well bunny clinic).

Bad Stuff

1. Make sure your receptionist is polite. When my puppy was a few months old he tried to eat a daffodil bulb and I had to take him to the vet so they could induce vomitting. I had a very miserable puppy in my arms, and the receptionist said ?well, I suppose you know better than to leave him alone in the garden now, don?t you!?. I was livid. Had she had any common sense she would have realised that if he HAD been alone, I wouldn?t have known he?d eaten the bulb, nor would I have been able to prise his mouth open and fish the remains out.
2. When somebody rings up to book a vaccination for your rabbit, make sure they?re not told ?Oh, I wouldn?t bother. The vaccinations are more expensive than a new rabbit?. I changed vets after that one.
3. Don?t just put up any old posters in your waiting room. Our vet does say that he doesn?t endorse any of the trainers advertised, but still, you don?t expect to get the details of a trainer from your vet, only to discover that the trainer is a barbara woodhouse devotee who advocates choke and prong collars. And if you DO put up a poster like that, and one of your clients tells you how awful the trainer is, take the poster down.

I?m sure there are more ? I?ll come back if I think of any!

Our vet has a couple of ringbinders in the waiting room which are full of plastic wallets containing adverts for local kennels, dog training, pet-sitters etc.

There is a disclaimer at the front that the vet doesn't endorse any of these businesses.

It is very helpful having all of this info together and saves the vet having to put up posters. I think all the posters at our vets are non-profit making e.g. advertising lost pets and rescue dogs for rehoming.

lettherebecupcakes - thats a great idea re not paying for an animal pts at the time. i have been stood by the counter crying my eyes out while paying and it does add to the stress. i like the idea of a sympathy card too

just realised that i walked out of vets earlier without even checking about paying! my hen is staying in for a few hours and may be pts at lunchtime

our reminder cards are addressed to animals too. i like it but then i am daft

i think activity sheets for kids is a great idea. maybe they could be left on the counter so they can be taken one at a time and not end up spread over the floor?

I was actually surprised by ours last night - had to pop in for some Drontal as the furry dustbin was due(as much as we can work out with a rescue dog)... they're cheaper than Pets at Home online by quite a substantial chunk!

I laugh at the pets name and surname thing - our dog sounds incredibly upper class because of the way the combination falls.

I also laugh at the comedian who put the fish tank in the cats waiting area... moggy TV much?!