How To Choose A Good Cat Vet ?
If you have moved to a new area and are looking for a new vet for your cat or have just acquired a new cat how do you choose your new vet? I rather suspect that most people just choose the nearest vet or some other random means of choice, of course personal recommendation from someone already in the area is a good way as well but one man’s meat is another man’s poison and what suits one owner may not suit you.
.I have been a vet involved with cat health for a great number of years and if the tables were turned and I was an owner there would be a number of questions I would ask to help me choose a veterinary surgeon I could trust. My aim here is that you should be able choose a vet with whom you can establish a good working relationship and your cat’s receive competent and caring treatment under his or her hands when they are ill.
.So to cut to the chase, what are the questions you should ask?
.1. Ask the vet if he or she has cats of their own, to understand cats and their health needs a vet will do so better if they own one of their own. If the vet has more than one cat then they will then understand social interaction between cats better and problems related to cat social interaction such as territorial marking are very common and sometimes demanding to treat.
.2. Should my cat be indoor or outdoor? This decision impacts how you and your cat interact. More importantly, it determines to a significant degree how long your cat may live. As a rule, indoor cats live much longer than outdoor cats but this decision does depend to some degree on where you live and your garden and immediate environment.
.3. What are the most common diseases and conditions that I should know about? You and your vet should briefly discuss the most common conditions that develop in cats. This discussion can expand to include your breed, and of course may vary based on where you live in the world.
.4. What are the most common signs of disease that I should look for? In addition to knowing which diseases are common locally, you should know what to look for. Getting a good idea of the common signs of disease will help you detect trouble early. Some common signs of a number of diseases are excessive thirst and urination, excessive vomiting, weight loss, and lethargy, but see what your vet says.
.5. What do you recommend for cat litter? This can be somewhat controversial, but you should get your vet’s opinion. There are many options, probably too many, on brand and type. Using the “wrong” cat litter can have a profound effect on the well being of your cat. Some cats will refuse to use the litter box if you even change brands. Expand this into a discussion on litter box type, number and placement as well if you have an indoor cat.
.6. Is there a particular diet or brand of pet food that you recommend? This again is controversial as most commercial diets on the market today are well balanced nutritionally but that does not mean that commercial pet foods are all the same. In addition, a number of well meaning cat lovers, including some breeders, are recommending home made cat food, or raw meat diets. Take care as these can be dangerous, especially if not done correctly. Find out what your vet is feeding her own animals, and why they do so.
.7. Ask if you will always be seeing the same vet each time you come to the clinic, you cannot build up a relationship with a vet if you are constantly seeing different ones and ask what the out of hours arrangements are, will you be seen at the same clinic or will you have to travel a long way with a sick cat. Will they house visit if this proves necessary?
.8. Most importantly assess your vet’s attitude as you work through the above questions, a vet who will quietly and courteously work through such a list with you is likely to pay attention to you and listen to what you have to say when your cat is actually sick.
.Lastly when your cat actually is ill try and give simple direct answers to the questions your vet asks, do not elaborate, the vet will ask more if he or she needs to know more. It is a good idea to show up at your vet visit with written questions, and write down the vet’s replies so you are sure what is going on and do not forget anything. How many times have you been at the doctor and come out knowing you had forgot something or the explanation was unclear? It is no different at vet visits. Are there more questions to ask your vet than just these? Of course there are. Are there others that are also vital to you and personal to your cat? Absolutely, and some of them only you may know. The above list, however, should at least get you started on a great dialogue, and give you some solid information that a surprising number cat owners simply do not bother with.
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