Why It's Important To Choose The Right Animal Hospital For Your Pet

By Diane W. Forester

Choosing the right animal hospital for your pet is very important for their health as well as your peace of mind. This article will cover some of the things you should look for in an animal hospital if you're looking for a veterinary care provider for your pet. Knowing how to compare animal hospitals can help you to make a good decision about where you should bring your pet when they're in need of medical care.

First, find a friend who has a dog or cat or pet like yours and ask for a referral this often is the best word of mouth approach to feedback on the given animal hospital. Choosing an animal hospital in your region can be a daunting and challenging task to the area, is it urban? Rural? If you are part of the demographic not knowing anyone to ask for a good animal hospital reference can make the process a little more difficult. Referrals are a great way to observe what kind of outstanding care, animal hospital or animal veterinarian services are offered and just as important remember negative feedback is just as important to avoid a less than desirable animal care provider and negative experience for your precious pet. Your pet is given the best care you can in your hands, wouldn't you want the same to be done by health care professionals? There is a wide variety of services and levels of skill out there; it is your job to do the research for your pet's sake and safety to get adequate care and proper diagnosis when taking them to a pet hospital.

Secondly, here are a few basic guidelines if you need to choose a good animal hospital. Ask to see the veterinarian's license and start by asking if there is a registered veterinary technician on staff at the animal hospital. Doing this means that you have qualified staff working there, for example, a registered veterinary technician has passed the regulated state tests for all vets: education is essential because a registered technician will have the experience and skills that are prerequisites for required proper pet treatment and examinations. Please note: you should only allow a registered per technician to treat you pet and administer shots and pills (almost all animal hospitals will have non-registered employees working for them).

Thirdly, ask for a short interview with the Vet. In this meeting beyond asking to see the license of that Veterinarian (do not assume that it is valid, look at the issue date and expiration date to avoid your pet being mishandled and what experience your Vet has) and then discuss what the Vet Tech's specific roles are with your vet. While it is up to you to decide how many years in practice you would like your vet to be, number years of experience does say a lot.

Before you finish reading the license make not of whether it is temporary or permanent. If temporary, it will be labeled so which means that a temporary license is often issued to residents and interns and this means that the person taking care of your precious pet is in the final stages of earning their education (you may not want someone so new to the field looking after you pet and treating them). Next, in your interview with the Vet, for example, ask about the roles of the Vet Tech on staff, are they allowed to do much more than weigh the animal and escort you to the examination room? If so, what are they responsible for?

Fourthly, when you first visit the animal hospital ask to see the veterinarian's services beyond routine maintenance make these mental observations and ask yourself these questions: do they have an Urgent Care? (If so, what are the hours?) Do they perform surgeries and complicated interventions? Do they offer educational services such as puppy classes and trainings? Do they provide nutritional services and dietary supplementation and information for your pet's elderly care needs? Do they have a website? What does it say about them and their staff? Do not assume that just because an animal hospital states in it's name that it's an ?animal hospital' that they are legitimate or top notch or comprehensive for pet health care needs. This is especially important if you are at the animal hospital for an emergency medical procedure. If you don't have someone to recommend a good animal hospital to you, you can ultimately come to a discussion by taking a tour of the facilities.

Getting a quick tour after your Vet interview/meeting is a good idea. Knowing what to look for in an animal hospital's examinations room and surgery area is important and a simple observation can say a lot, start with how clean are these two areas: work surfaces and examination rooms. For example, vet work surfaces should be clean and sterile (think hospital). It is okay to take a quick peek directly underneath the edges of tables without offending anyone. Also important, the floor should be free of pet hair and any debris. Sanitary conditions are just as important for your pet as for you during medical procedures; thus are the examination room and surgical areas organized? Organization is key while taking care of the health of a pet, especially in an emergency. How does the animal hospital smell? This can say a lot more than what you see, check out operating rooms and examining rooms beyond the waiting room--it can be an indicator because this is where the actual medical care will take place-a bad odor, beyond the usual pet smell, is a sign that something is not right (such as a mishandling of animal bodily fluids can crate an unhealthy environment for both you and your pet).

In sum, follow these simple guidelines to choosing an animal hospital and you will find why it is imperative to make an informed decision. Remember, get a referral first, listen to good advise and bad, set up an interview, check the license, discuss roles of staff and within getting an interview and tour make your sensory observations. This will calm many fears and lead to better observations and an informed decision of +the best animal hospital in your area and Veterinarian service you will choose for your precious pet. It is why it is important to do the research yourself so that you can give your pet the best he/she deserves. - 29953

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