Advice on Vet Care

[RockyDad]

Hi, I was wondering if I could get some advice on Veterinary care. I've been going to Banfield Hospital, it's a corporate veterinary clinic found through out the country with PetSmart Stores. I signed up for their annual plan, free vet unlimited vet visits, all puppy vaccines, multiple fecal tests, a few other diagnostic tests, neutering and bloodwork prior to neutering for around $550 for the year which I thought was a great deal considering one of the local Vets in a private clinic by my house was charging $50/visit and around $90/vaccine. So we signed up for the year. Now we need to get about 13 teeth pulled and we want to do this at the same time of his neutering and the vet quoted us an estimate of around $370 to have those teeth pulled. I just saw an ad in our local paper advertizing another smaller chain of animal clinics that will neuter for $89 and will pull the teeth for $130. My only concern is that we like our current vet and trust him, he's older and has been in practice for 36 years. I read some reviews online about both places and it seems like our current vet has a few negative reviews about him getting old and not being "on top of his game" anymore becuase he miss diagnosed a few skin conditions. Also he likes to over prescribe antibiotics which I think is a bad thing as well. However, after reading the reviews of this other hospital, they've had some animals die because of allergic reactions, one was to a vaccine, the other was a kitten who died while getting spayed, another reported having to bring her cat back to the office because the abdominal incision kept re-opening. So I am in a dilemma, I would like to save $240 dollars, but I don't want to kill my dog because I was cheap. Granted a lot of other people posted great reviews about that cheaper Animal clinic and love the doc there. Also allergic reactions can happen anywhere and a dog can react weird to anesthesia and die anywhere. So what would you guys do? I will ask my current vet for a discount since everyone else seems to charge so little for teeth extraction compared to him, but because it's a corporation I think the prices are set and he won't be able to change them.

Your advice appriciated.

[Lovetodream88]

I'm not a fan or banfield heard A LOT of bad stories about them but I would not do the low cost either. You really need to look at the anesthesia protocol. Do they put an IV cath in, do they monitor the vital signs and have a specific person to just do that, what do they do about possible temp dropping and so on. You also should not ever do a surgery without pre-surgery blood work.

[Maximo]

I agree with Taylor above. Keep looking for a good vet. Try to talk to neighbors and friends for recommendations.

Banfield is typically pricey and they tend to push things that are not necessary.

Check out the anesthesia protocol listed in the link below. Do pre-op bloodwork and ask the vet to confirm that they use the latest anesthesia techniques.
http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/yor...-protocol.html

[buddybear]

Just our history. Buddybear was fixed at the local county animal clinic, no worries, he did fine. Cost less than $100.00. However he was just under 6 months old. He just had his first dental at "pet Dental" 6 teeth pulled with 3 of those being baby teeth. Basically that is all this vet does. Cost $350 which included all meds post op surgery etc. Pet Dental might be a chain where a vet buys their program etc. I don't know for sure.

Im not a vet and this is my first yorkie so I really can't give advice. This is just what we have dealt with.

I know you have to have confidence in whoever you choose. Best wishes in making your decision.

[Lilah Charm]

We have the Banfield care plan and have since we got Lilah- I really like it and have had numerous good experiences (Lilah will be four in December), in part because we have the yearly dental inclusive plan- I could go on about what I like and don't like about it if anyone is interested but I will just move forward and put my two cents in on the question; I think the vet you work with has Lot more to do with then the office though of course the office and its policies have influence. My sister had her dog neutered at companion pet for about 100$ and he didn't die. But they didn't even do bloodwork on him first. I am grateful that my vet makes sure Lilah's liver will process the anesthesia and she won't die on the table. I would rather pay more (especially with an experienced vet I have worked with and has been great to me) and get done what needs to be done correctly. I think operations aren't one to look for savings on.

[Wylie's Mom]

I'm not a big fan of Banfield and how their business plan etc is set up, they try to rain services down upon you and I don't like that at all. I'd rather have a vet who didn't have that computerized protocol recommendation thing spouting out more and more recommendations.

I had it for a while w/ our Wylie and it worked out money-wise for that first year okay but after that, I got out.

Over prescription of antibiotics is a pretty huge red flag too, btw...

[RockyDad]

Thanks for your advice everyone. We really like the vet at Banfield. He's been in practice for 36yrs . He has served as a past president of the Southeastern Michigan Veterinary Medical Association and was a member on the board of directors for the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association. The do blood work prior to any procedure that requires anesthesia the place IV's and monitor the dogs vital signs. The over prescription of antibiotics are what the vet recommends if you feel they're not needed you don't have to give them to your dog and you don't have to buy them. No one is going to force you to do anything you don't want to do. We have an appointment scheduled for early September.

[Maximo]

Originally Posted by RockyDad

Thanks for your advice everyone. We really like the vet at Banfield. He's been in practice for 36yrs . He has served as a past president of the Southeastern Michigan Veterinary Medical Association and was a member on the board of directors for the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association. The do blood work prior to any procedure that requires anesthesia the place IV's and monitor the dogs vital signs. The over prescription of antibiotics are what the vet recommends if you feel they're not needed you don't have to give them to your dog and you don't have to buy them. No one is going to force you to do anything you don't want to do. We have an appointment scheduled for early September.

Good plan. Happy to hear you like the vet. A good resume and experience are important, but liking the vet is also essential in my book.

Like the grooming services at big pet stores, there are some that are really good. All vet offices and groomers, it's just a matter of finding the right one. The first vet that I took my puppy Max to pushed every vaccine under the sun and I didn't know any better at the time. I changed vets and learned a lot here on Yorkie Talk that enabled me to make more informed decisions.

Best wishes for your little boy.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by RockyDad

Thanks for your advice everyone. We really like the vet at Banfield. He's been in practice for 36yrs . He has served as a past president of the Southeastern Michigan Veterinary Medical Association and was a member on the board of directors for the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association. The do blood work prior to any procedure that requires anesthesia the place IV's and monitor the dogs vital signs. The over prescription of antibiotics are what the vet recommends if you feel they're not needed you don't have to give them to your dog and you don't have to buy them. No one is going to force you to do anything you don't want to do. We have an appointment scheduled for early September.

I understand what you're trying to say / justify / explain. But it really *is* a huge red flag when any vet or human doctor over prescribes antibiotics. Not only is it just plain unnecessary - but this is, verbatim, exactly how "superbugs" and antibiotic resistance is created in the first place (one of the most dangerous medical concerns of our time). That's the kind of clinician you're supporting here. I don't mean to sound harsh about it or anything, but merely feel compelled to point this out again as it really cannot be overstated as far as the meaning of it in the big picture.

Best of luck, whichever vet you choose.

[gracielove]

It is a difficult decision especially with veterinary expenses getting so high. Personally, I stay away from chain anything when it comes to my pets. I want to know the education and background of anyone who touches my babies and I want to know through personal experience of people that I trust.

I live in an area that is not a big city so word of mouth testimony is easier to come by. We also have rescued many stray cats and dogs over the years, gotten them spayed or neutered, shots, socialized them, and found them new homes. For this we have used the local privately run shelter. They have local vets come in twice a week to do surgeries. I have seen very wonderful and professional results from these doctors and payed far less than half the price for the work... but for my personal pets, I go to our regular vet.

If you have a small Yorkie I would advise waiting to do surgery until he reaches at least 4lbs unless his gums are getting infected from the baby teeth. Our vet would not give our small pups shots all at once but recommended brining them back every two to four weeks until all inoculations were completed. We did not have to pay for these additional visits. Extra precautions my be inconvenient but can save a little one from those unexpected reactions.

Maybe you could get your vet to talk to you over the phone. You could try to find out what kind of experience he has with small dogs and if he treats them differently than other dogs. Little dogs can be much different to treat than the traditional sized dog most vets are used to dealing with.

[lovestiny]

I love my vet bc she is a yorkie specialist...she loves them, owns one, works w the yorkie rescue on long island. Plus smaller yorkies are also just in need of someone who sees many in my book-there is my two cents, since you asked

[Lilah Charm]

Originally Posted by lovestiny

I love my vet bc she is a yorkie specialist...she loves them, owns one, works w the yorkie rescue on long island. Plus smaller yorkies are also just in need of someone who sees many in my book-there is my two cents, since you asked

Boy you are lucky! our vet is on maternity leave (gets back right before we go in for our dental though) and she has a lot of experience with small breeds too and in particular yorkies, it is a big reason I feel comfortable there. But I have to say, her sub vet we saw while our doc was gone was amazing too! I am sure there are some awful experiences people have had with the same corporation but I sure feel lucky for the vets they hire at my local clinic.

Originally Posted by gracielove

It is a difficult decision especially with veterinary expenses getting so high. Personally, I stay away from chain anything when it comes to my pets. I want to know the education and background of anyone who touches my babies and I want to know through personal experience of people that I trust.

I live in an area that is not a big city so word of mouth testimony is easier to come by. We also have rescued many stray cats and dogs over the years, gotten them spayed or neutered, shots, socialized them, and found them new homes. For this we have used the local privately run shelter. They have local vets come in twice a week to do surgeries. I have seen very wonderful and professional results from these doctors and payed far less than half the price for the work... but for my personal pets, I go to our regular vet.

If you have a small Yorkie I would advise waiting to do surgery until he reaches at least 4lbs unless his gums are getting infected from the baby teeth. Our vet would not give our small pups shots all at once but recommended brining them back every two to four weeks until all inoculations were completed. We did not have to pay for these additional visits. Extra precautions my be inconvenient but can save a little one from those unexpected reactions.

Maybe you could get your vet to talk to you over the phone. You could try to find out what kind of experience he has with small dogs and if he treats them differently than other dogs. Little dogs can be much different to treat than the traditional sized dog most vets are used to dealing with.

I really appreciate your post, it was so well written and considerate, brought up many things to consider as a yorkie owner when choosing a vet. I felt like a pain asking my vet to split up vaccines but they were very friendly about it and it was worth the frequent visits for the peace of mind and lower impact on Lilah.

[RockyDad]

My vet at Banfield actually mandated that we do one vaccine at a time. Because we have an annual subscription with them we have free unlimited visits and since they're open 7 days a week most of the time we can get in the same day. My yorkie isn't small, thank goodness those little guys are too fragile. He's a perfect 6 pounds. And for gracielove I guess you don't read other posts because I posted my vets experience. My dilemma was that these procedures are very routine and basic. Anyone who graduated from vet school can do them. You don't need to be a Yorkie specialist to cut off some balls and pull some teeth. That's why I thought about saving a few bucks, but after looking into it more the other vet charged separately for other things like lab work which was included with Banfield so I'll be using them.

Thanks everyone for your opinions.