How to Choose the Right Vet for Your Dogs Health Needs

Your vet is a pretty important person in your dog’s life – and in yours too. Hopefully, you’ll only ever need him or her for routine checkups and preventative procedures; but nevertheless, it’s a good ideas to take the time to develop a good relationship with a suitable vet, before you need their services.

Where to Look

While you could just pick a vet at random from the Yellow Pages or from the Internet;  having the right vet is crucial to your dogs health and happiness.  Certainly if you were trying to choose a doctor for yourself, would you be willing to just select one at random from just any impersonal list?  Of course not, you would want somebody who comes highly recommended – somebody you who is trusted.

The best place to start looking for a vet is by word of mouth. If you have any friends or relatives who take good care of their dogs, then that’s a good place to start: ask them who they’d recommend, and why. This last one is important, because everyone has different priorities: for example, perhaps they like their own vet because he/she is a specialist in their own particular breed; or they don’t charge very much … their priorities are not necessarily yours, so it’s a good idea to make sure that your values coincide with the person giving the recommendations.

Another great place to find a vet is through local training clubs (Schutzhund, agility, herding classes, police K-9 academies, etc.) These organizations are almost guaranteed to place a great deal of importance on high-quality veterinary care, because the health and well-being of their dogs is such a priority.

Once you’ve got a list of vets that you’re interested in pursuing further, all you have to do is call up the clinic and explain that you’re looking to find a regular vet for your dog.

HAVE A LOOK BEFORE YOU NEED TO

Before you decide to go with a particular clinic, test the waters first. Ideally, you want a chance to talk to the vet, and discuss his or her philosophies and approach to pet care.  This is really important. If your dog ever really needs emergency vet-care, you want to be sure that you’ve made the best possible choice as far as her health and comfort levels are concerned.

THINGS TO ASK THE VET

- How many vets are there on staff?  If you need to make an urgent appointment, you don’t want to be waiting around while precious minutes tick past. Ideally, there’ll be at least two qualified veterinarians on hand (not just techs or assistants.)

- What kind of testing and analysis capabilities does the clinic have If they have to send away to a lab for this kind of stuff, it means the results are going to be delayed. If your dog is very sick, time is important: it’s best if the clinic has at least blood-analysis testing on hand.

- What after-hours services are available? A lot of clinics close the doors in the evenings and on weekends, which means that if there’s an emergency, you’ll have to go somewhere else – and subject your dog to an unfamiliar vet,

- What’s their price range? How are payments made? Is there a facility for payment plans in case of unexpected vet bills? The payment-plan option is particularly important. Even with pet insurance, vet bills can sometimes be high – and not everyone has the resources to deal with large vet bills.

- How up-to-date is the staff with advances in the industry? Do the vet, the technicians, and the assistants attend seminars and workshops regularly? The field of medical care is always changing – responsible vets keep up with the times.

MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICE

When you choose a vet, you’re balancing convenience and quality. There’s no right or wrong vet for you and your dog – which is why making the choice can be so confusing. There are lots of vets to choose from, and they’re all different!

A good vet knows how to take care of you as well as your dog. The relationship that you have with your vet will hopefully be one that’s based around a healthy mutual respect and positive synergy – there should be very little scope for misunderstanding.

FURTHER READING

For a complete survival guide on stress-free dog care, including detailed information on when your dog needs to see the vet, how to respond to pet emergencies, dog First Aid, and all common health problems, check out The Ultimate Guide to Dog Health. It’s a complete handbook on dog health care, and teaches you how to take a proactive and prepared approach to knowledgeable dog ownership.

You can visit The Ultimate Guide to Dog Health by clicking on this link here.