Tips for choosing the right vet

Choosing the right vet is very important, so I’m dedicating a whole blog post to this topic.

According to the article written by the Hungarian Veterinary Chamber owners in Hungary are currently free to choose a vet. This decision is made on trust, which has one important prerequisite: the chosen vet must have a chamber praxis.

You can almost always count on a good veterinarian. It is easier to find a specialised clinic in capitals or in their agglomeration. Owners, living in smallercities, towns, or the countryside, usually choose a local vet. They only take their four-legged pet to a specialized pet clinic when it is needed.

There are special cases when special devices are needed or when a cat can only be treated at a veterinarian clinic specialised in cats. A good vet can give a helping hand in choosing these clinics and can give advice to cat owners.

Considerations for choosing the right vet

• should be experienced and an expert
• should also answer the cat owner’s questions
• should give an opinion if you turn to him/her for advice
• should also take into consideration the opinions of others (e.g. another veterinarian, breeder)
• should give an appropriate diagnosis
• should explain in detail the necessary treatment and the things to do afterwards
• should specify the treatment fee in advance upon request
• the veterinary clinic should be located nearby
• the waiting room and the veterinary clinic should be clean

The Cat Friendly Clinic program of the International Cat Care (ISFM) organization aims to create cat-friendly clinics to reduce the stress of cats visiting the veterinary clinic.

Choosing a vet through the eyes of a cat owner

Now, I’m writing about my personal experience regarding the choice of our vet. I would emphasize the importance of this in terms of the cat’s recovery time and our own expenses.

Although our first vet was experienced, we had sympathy and he provided us with all the necessary information about treatments, but we still had to spend a huge amount of money on medical products because of Tirus’ sensitive stomach. Furthermore, we could go there only by car, because it was located quite far from our home. So, I decided to choose another vet for Tirus.

Our current vet, is a young, experienced, well-educated vet, who also knows a lot about Maine Coons. He works at a local veterinary hospital. We had many good experiences with him, because our old collie had also been cured  and treated by him.

The veterinary hospital can be reached by bicycle in half an hour. Furthermore, the clinic can be reached by local public transport, too. It is beneficial to the owners, just like me, who don’t have a car.

The cleanliness of a veterinary clinic is very important to me. The waiting room of the veterinary hospital and the clinic itself meet this requirement. Our vet also meets the criteria of the list above. He is a conscientious, highly knowledgeable young vet, who loves animals. As he has many patients, it’s difficult to reach him during working hours ont he phone, but he always gives me information even on it. He has already cured Tiri from several diseases. He has cured his tummy, for what we had already spent more than 100 euros to our previous vet.

Summary

Regarding the posts, it’s important to notice, that it is worth setting aside for unexpected veterinary expenses for our cat or taking out a pet insurance. As our cat is getting older, this could mean higher veterinary costs. Although, I wouldn’t recommend to base the fact about owning a cat just only that claim alone. In our case, there wasn’t a year in which we didn’t have to go to the vet more time than the routine veterinary examination during the 4,5 years.

It is important to emphasize, that cats are living creatures and unexpected events requiring veterinary treatment can occur at any time.