How to be a Good Veterinary Client

"This article won the Peerless CATalyst Award at the
2002 Cat Writers' Association Conference".

by Kari Winters

As the owner of a companion animal, you have certain responsibilities. One of these is to make sure your animal gets good veterinary care when needed and you can help with this by becoming a good veterinary client. First, it’s important to choose a veterinarian whom you trust and with whom you can be open and honest. Even if your veterinarian graduated #1 in his or her class and has the best technical skills in the city, it won’t be a good working relationship if you don’t feel comfortable talking openly. It’s also important to trust the staff, particularly the veterinary technicians. These are people who love animals and have gone to school to learn the very special skills that they have. If your veterinarian trusts them enough to have them work at the clinic, assume that they’re worthy of your trust, too. Although it’s tempting to always want to talk with the veterinarian, often your questions can be answered by the vet techs. They can give you great advice that can save you time and money and add to the quality of your animal’s life.

Your veterinarian’s office has rules and policies that they’ll ask you to follow. It’s important to comply even if you think they’re “stupid” or don’t make sense. Most offices ask you to have dogs on leashes and cats in carriers. Your dog or cat may have great behavior, but you don’t know about other clients’ animals and containing your animal will help keep it safer. The staff may also ask you to step aside and let them restrain your animal for a particular procedure. Trust that they know what they’re doing even if you believe that you could do a better job. Don’t ask for special things, such as a prescription for medication for an animal the veterinarian hasn’t seen. It’s illegal for them to do this, not to mention bad medicine.

No one likes to be kept waiting for an appointment, but emergencies and other unforeseen events happen. Be patient if you’re kept waiting, and be glad that your veterinarian is the type who takes the extra time when it’s needed. That means that he or she will do the same with you if the need arises.

Whenever possible, plan in advance for your appointments. Most appointments are either routine or preventive. If you know that your animal’s vaccines are due in two weeks, call now for an appointment. Let the person at the desk know the exact reason for the appointment without going into too much detail. As much as they’d love to hear stories of your Fluffy’s antics, they don’t have time because there are ringing phones and other clients at the desk. Also take the time to write down any information you want to give your veterinarian or any questions that you have. You may think that you can remember everything you want to say, but the fact is that most of us can’t. Ask about things like diet, exercise, and behavioral issues.

Be an informed consumer. Ask your veterinarian and the staff if they have handouts or other client teaching materials they can give you or can refer you to. There’s a lot of good information out there regarding animal diseases, as well as preventive care. Having this information can often save you a lot of money over time.

Money can be a difficult issue. Most veterinarians have a policy that payment must be made at the same time the service is given. Don’t ask the office staff to make an exception for you. Although your veterinarian went into this business because of a love for animals, he or she has a home and family to provide for and many other costs (staff salaries, mortgage or rent on the building, as well as other business expenses.) Ask about prices before hand, and talk frankly with your veterinarian. Find out if there is a cheaper procedure available. If you can’t afford the cost of vaccines, ask to be referred to a vaccine clinic.

It is a rare companion animal that doesn’t need emergency services at some time in its life. Plan ahead for this. Set aside a special savings account or keep enough credit on your credit card to be able to pay for these services. Although adoption is important, think carefully before adopting a new companion animal. Can you afford it? What would happen if an emergency arose? In talking to staff at various animal hospitals, this issue came up over and over. People say things to them like, “You mean you’ll let my pet die because I don’t have money?” The staff cares about animals and feels deeply every time this happens, but the bottom line is that payment is YOUR responsibility. They wouldn’t be able to stay in business if they treated all these animals without payment. It may sound cold, but it really isn’t. Just as you can’t go to the grocery store and have them give you food for free when you don’t have enough money, the same is true of veterinarian care.

There are other responsibilities with companion animal ownership that can also make your veterinarian visits better. Do preventive care like brushing your animal’s teeth. Feed your animal the best food in the right quantities. Things like this can save you from some big veterinarian bills in the future. Also work with your animal on some sort of behavioral training. Besides basic things like not jumping on people or biting, your pet should also be able to have you check its mouth, ears, and feet without getting agitated. This will also make veterinarian visits less traumatic for your animal.

The bottom line is that you love your companion animal and want the very best for them. Being a good veterinary client will help your animal have a better life.