So we’ve moved to a new town, and it’s a two-hour drive to our old vet.
That means it’s time to shop for a new one.
And because Bubba gets monthly injections of Adequan for his arthritis, the shopping started soon after arrival.
Here’s a bit of advice to vet clinic administrators: make sure the person answering your phones know what the hell they’re talking about.
I first called the two clinics closest to home. Makes sense, right? No point in driving across town if I don’t have to.
Both clinics told me they’d be happy to order the medication for ME to administer to Bubba, but only after putting me on hold while they asked someone else what I meant.
Nope, I’m not giving an arthritic cat a shot. He’s old and I’m not trained. I want a vet tech to give the shot. So I kept calling around.
I did find a vet on the beach that could accommodate me. Bubba and I visited the clinic last Friday. The office had a nice feel. Dogs were behind the receptionist’s desk. The waiting area was clean and roomy. The vet examining Bubba seemed knowledgeable. And the clinic has hours that work well with my schedule.
It’s what I was looking for in a vet. But…..I don’t like the location. While it’s only a 15 minute drive when there’s no traffic, come summer there will be LOTS of traffic.
So I will keep searching here in town for a secondary vet.
In the meantime, I am established at a local vet clinic. Which is good, because I found out there’s no emergency clinic here in town, and most of the local vets only respond to emergencies for established clients.
That’s not a good sign in a vacation town, is it?
Dogpaddling Through Life 
Good Vets are hard to find.I have a great vet. He listens to me,Has a Caring Staff. He will come to the office 24/7. I know because I have had Emergencies in the middle of the Night, On Holidays, and Sundays. He takes Payments. He is not a know it all if he don’t know he finds out. I am thinking of moving and if We do he will be a 2 hour drive away. But unless it is life or death I will make the drive. I will get a vet near me if Life Treating Emergancy comes up.
I wish I could do that, but I can’t subject Bubba to that ride so often. But I did tell my old vet that we’d still be in touch!
I understand totally..we moved 3 hours away and before we moved I was on the phone constantly..quizzing vets…hours emergency hours..etc etc etc..my old vet sent all our files prior to the move and we did introductions not long after as we had serious issues with Forrest..they make house calls ,offer their own healthy foods and vitamins,have well trained staff in ALL areas ,have a grief counselling room and services .do inhouse labs,xrays etc…we have been very lucky..they were patient and even let me discuss each animal over the phone..before we met. Maybe country towns are a bit different..i hope you can find a really good one that suits you well 🙂 Fozziemum
I think the one i visited will be a primary vet. But a sick or injured animal, an upset human, and traffic are not a good combination. So i’m weighing my options.
Totally agree…let’s face it humans have different drs for different things…so far we have had snake bite emergencies and pancreatitis..all treated quickly with only a 7 minute drive…phew..i was stressing before we moved ..over finding a great vet more than even selling the house! our old vet was a gem! keep on looking I am sure you will find a back up 🙂
Oh that’s bad that you are in double trouble in an emergency case.
Specially in a vacation town… We have to drive 45 minutes to Easy’s vet, that’s a little “hairy” too :o(
Wishing you well in your search for a good Vet nearer home..
Wishing you all settled and enjoy your week… Sue xox
At least they’ll respond to established clients… we don’t even get that here. In Charleston SC, there is ONE emergency Pet Hospital – ONE. For the entire tri-county area. Yuck. And it doesn’t stop there. We recently “captured” a wandering Husky… after attempts at finding its owner failed, we tried to take to to the local shelter… they were closed. No off-hours drop off place, and a big sign saying it’s ILLEGAL to leave animals at the gate, and there’s a surveillance camera capturing the whole thing. A call to the emergency number wasn’t any help – again, it’s after hours. A call to the county animal services was even less helpful. Apparently animals only go out running loose 8am-5pm… Monday -Friday. Ugh… triedt o call 911, their suggestion, take the dog home with us until the shelter opened the next day. WHAAAAT? What if it had been a dangerous animal, like a wolf or something? Sigh.
Sensible advice to have a fall back.
Ya never know!
Glad you at least have someone to rely on now.
I’ve been very lucky to find several excellent vets over the years. But the one bad experience I had was really, really, really bad.
I have as well. Of course, ive also had a few bad eggs.
Oh cripes, I can’t believe they didn’t know what it was nor have it available if needed. Good luck finding a vet that is closer to ya’ll.
In NYC we have a vet every five blocks. It doesn’t make choosing one easier it just gives more choices. I looked for a few most important when I chose a vet. Recommendations, his/her interaction with me and with BJ, the office’s cleanliness, available hours and backup, specialty services. location.
I hope you find a good vet and one that you and Bubba like.
My thing is im a worry wart. I want a cer that can explain to me whats happening without being condescending or trying to take advantage.
It’s so important and is one of the things that worries me most about moving! No emergencies for non established clients is a worry. Imagine if that had happened when my two ended up cone heads last holidays?
There is an energency vet thats an hour’s drive from here. I guess thats where i’d be heading.
I’m glad you were able to find a local vet, it’s not an easy task finding someone to take care of our furry ones!
Finding a vet you like and trust is not easy. We’re glad you found one even if it’s not ideal.
My Sunny gets Adequan every 3 weeks. As we have been doing this for years I did learn how to give them. But I did taking nursing years ago. Good vet you are comfortable with is hard to come by.
Reblogged this on cgw629.
I went through many vets before I found the right one. Good luck in your quest.
I had a similar thing when I moved with a cat who was getting chemo. I was amazed at how insensitive and stupid some of the offices were when I called about transferring him and also ordering in his special food. That was to find a regular vet.
The new veterinary oncologist was even worse. He was the only one in the region, so him I was stuck with him and I couldn’t stand the guy. I really think my cat died early because the guy was miffed that he didn’t do the original diagnosis from halfway across the country. The regular vet had to step in and take over the care because I hit a point where I wouldn’t go back and I didn’t trust anything the guy told me.
More recently, we switched regular vets. We were having too much trouble getting stuck with the third vet in the office, who seemed to turn over every few months. Some of them we truly detested. The vet we liked was never available. And frequently they were recommending expensive things that were not necessary. The one we’re at now came as a recommendation from a co-worker and we’ve been happy so far.
Nancy
It’s been just as bad finding a regular family physician. This shouldn’t be so hard!
I did ask my co-workers. They gave some great tips!
We finally found a new vet we like. BUT it’s a much longer drive than the previous vets. BUT she’s better, longer hours, better prices, much more sympathetic and willing to work with us. So ultimately, we decided that we’d have to cope with a longer drive to have a better vet. I had to make the same decision for a doctor for myself. I hate the longer drives, but I like the better care. I guess we can’t always have everything we want.
So true. And the Unoverse has its reasons for everything.
oh, baby….THIS IS DIVINE…sharing!!!
Jen you are so good x We cannot make Panama City on our trip due to timescales tight :-(. One day our paths will cross.
I hope you enjoy your trip nonetheless!
I think that this is “one” of the hardest parts about moving with animals. Having to find a new vet, I have seen some pretty terrible ones too, and that’s just crazy they wanted you to give the shot! Sheesh!
ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
I wonder if I’d told them I was an animal blogger, would they have given the same answer?
Here the vets are better than our human healthcare! The Staff is thinking of registering with mine!! Good luck with the search!
Yes, it’s very hard to find a good vet….we not sure if ours are good ones…Tora and Hime go to the same vet and Shiro and Chibi go to the another one from Toras. We don’t know which is better though….we just think that we might want to have two alternative for our four kitties…..
I hope that Bubba will have a nice one for his arthritis….
Thank you a lot for sharing this with all folks you actually recognise what
you’re speaking approximately! Bookmarked. Please also visit my website =).
We may have a hyperlink alternate arrangement among us