stephanier.1765 Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 If when you call them because you have a sick animal, their first available appointment isn't until Friday 16th. What?! Do you know how they get away with that? They give you the number of a walk-in clinic. I've been to the walk-in clinic. It is so busy that you spend hours and hours waiting in a place where there aren't enough places to wait while your animal is miserable the entire time. Ugh, double ugh! I guess this is a venting JAWM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 :grouphug: I'm sorry. I wouldn't like a practice that is so busy. Even my walk-in clinic has been easy every time I've had to use it, which is just a few times when it's after my vet's normal business hours. If you go to the walk-in clinic, I hope it's not as busy this time. Does your dog need to be seen ASAP or can you wait until night time when it might be slower? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katy Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 I don't know, but I'd consider finding a new vet. I have a couple friends who are vets and all of them make time in their schedules for emergencies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebeccaS Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 I am so sorry. The one time I needed my dog to be seen for a sick visit, my vet got her in same day. Add me to the consider finding a new vet group. (though I realize that doesn't help matters right now.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 That's ridiculous. I was a receptionist for a veterinarian for 15 years. We ALWAYS got sick patients in the same day. I was only allowed to send patients to a walk in/Emergency place if it was after hours..or say, 5pm, we closed in 30 minutes, and it was obvious that the patient was going to need ongoing care overnight/lab work done, etc. If we'd already shut down the lab equipment, it would take 20-30 minutes for everything to warm up, so if we were closing in 10 minutes, we'd send them elsewhere, so they could get emergency treatment. But, if it was say, just an injured paw, red eye, hurt ear, etc that didn't need lab work we'd just stay late. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 :grouphug: Agreeing with you. Our cat had some health issues over the years and it was rare that we couldn't get a same day appointment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 That's crazy! If it's an illness & you're regular client, my vet always squeezes people in.We have 24h vets too but we'd use them only after hours (like really late at night)I actually don't know of any walk in clinics here. There are tons of vets here & many have extended hours & open weekends, so if necessary, I'd just keep calling vets in the Yellow Pages until I could get a same day appointment somewhere else (as opposed to the 24h emerg clinics which are way more expensive for something simple...). Hope you find someone to see your critter today! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted January 8, 2015 Author Share Posted January 8, 2015 Luckily, it's not an emergency but it's not something I want to drag out just in case it could turn bad. If I had had to wait over the weekend, that probably would have been okay but nothing longer than that. I've been to the walk-in clinic quite a few times because they are the main vet for my two elderly and sickly animals. Primarily because they are also very low cost but I dread going every time. It's always bad. That's why my other two pets go to this vet just so I don't have to deal with that long painful wait. Thus far we've only had to do well visits but now that I see how things run with a sick animal, I guess it's time for a change. So I'll be up bright and early tomorrow so we can get a slot. It's already too late for today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Agreeing with the others -- if you're an established client the vet should work you in on the same day you call (assuming an early morning call). One reason I've stuck with the same vet group for decades is that they do both appointments and walk ins. The vast majority of their business is walk in, but if you want an appointment at a certain time and/or with a specific vet they'll schedule it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunflowerlady Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 I'm sorry. I would call around to other vets and see if they could work you in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 I just called (not even half an hour ago) a completely new vet, described dog's symptoms and got in today for a 2 p.m. appointment. Find a new vet! Of course I am writing this rather disappointed in the vet we had (not an appointment issue) which is why I just selected a different one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Time to get a new vet. When I worked as a vet tech the schedule was specifically kept empty during a certain time slot. This was in case of an emergency or a last minute sick visit. It was almost daily that the blocked off part of the schedule was filled with some emergency or non emergency sick animal issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Find a new vet. IMHO. Unless there is extenuating circumstances, a general practice vet should be available within the day for sick/urgent appointments. They should manage their schedule better, stay late, hire help, whatever to get it done. We own our own vet practice, and dh is the main vet, and he does that. One of the first management things we changed when we bought the practice was to block out 25% of appointment slots for "same day sick/urgent" appointments. These slots can't be booked until the day of . . . so up until that morning. This portion was chosen because it best met the practice's needs. If there are more urgent/sick pet appointments needed on a regular basis, we'd just add more "purple" slots to our books . . . If one day is bizarrely crazy, then staff would just stay late/work lunch/etc to see everyone that needs to be seen. Then we'd look to adding more purple slots, lol. There are many choices vet practices make, and this is one that is a deal breaker IMHO. It's just bad management, but it impacts patient care. I'd go shopping for a new vet. First, though, I might talk to the actual vet on the phone about the issue (especially if s/he is the owner) and voice your concerns. There are many ways to solve this problem, but it takes commitment from the owner/manager to make it happen. The owner/vet might not know about this problem. (Besides designating same day sick appointments, you can also close to new patients if you are really SO busy and can't increase capacity . . . or raise prices to drive off some of the less devoted clients . . . and use the increased income to hire more support or even vet staff to add appointment slots . . . ) FWIW, I left an MD I loved for this exact reason. Front staff offered me an appointment 8 days out for a sinus infection . . . uh, no. I still love that DR and if he changes practices, I will go right back, but his current practice has awful front staff. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Is your area really short on vets? If you primary vet is so packed with regular appointments that they can't take emergencies......and the vet urgent care is so packed that it is a 2+ hour wait, it makes me wonder if there are enough vets in your town. Is there another vet in a town or two over that can maybe get you in sooner? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 You might want to let the vet know. Sometimes they really have no clue how the front desk acts. If he does and dies not care, change to a new vet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted January 9, 2015 Author Share Posted January 9, 2015 Update: I took my kitty to the walk-in clinic this morning. We only had to wait 2 hours which is really good for them. The vets in this practice are lovely caring people which is why, I guess, they operate a walk-in low-cost clinic. But how I dread the wait. I'm glad I didn't mess around and wait any longer to take her because she is sicker than I thought. She has a fever and nasty sounding lungs. Hopefully, she'll make a quick recovery on the antibiotics. It makes me even madder at our primary vet knowing how sick she is. Eight days to schedule a visit for a sick animal is just ridiculous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunflowerlady Posted January 9, 2015 Share Posted January 9, 2015 I am glad you updated. I hope your kitty gets better really soon. Yes, eight days is totally unacceptable. When your cat recovers, I would call them and let them know that. Then I would be considering changing to a different vet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted January 9, 2015 Share Posted January 9, 2015 (Hugs) Glad you were able to see someone! Hope kitty feels better and gets well soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songsparrow Posted January 9, 2015 Share Posted January 9, 2015 After your kitty is feeling better (I hope soon), I'd encourage you to explore other vet options in your area. Where we live, there are several emergency vets in the area, and we've used them for emergencies and were grateful for their help. But they are incredibly expensive - easily $200 to $300 just to be seen. And all of our local vets are closed on Saturday and Sunday, which turns any issue that comes up over the weekend into an "emergency" if you are worried and would like it to be looked at without having to wait through the weekend. Well, we had a gerbil issue one weekend. The issue was complicated by the fact that the percentage of vets that see small animals is quite small. After a couple of hours searching online, I finally found a vet's office that has normal hours on Saturdays and Sundays - it's not considered an emergency visit. They are quite a drive for us (30-45 minutes depending on traffic) but the savings of paying for a regular visit instead of an emergency visit was well worth it - around $35-50 instead of $300. They see small mammals and birds as well as dogs and cats, which made them perfect for our menagerie. So, now we have our local vet for our dog's regular care. We have a local emergency clinic for true after-hours emergencies (e.g., rush an animal who's been hit by a car or in severe distress there). But now on the weekends we have a place we can go at a reasonable cost in case of illness or injury that we want to have looked at ASAP but does not rise to the level of a true emergency. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted January 9, 2015 Author Share Posted January 9, 2015 I do need to find a new primary vet. It's going to take a lot of research because the one we use now is a low-cost one and we need to keep it that way. Even the walk-in clinic we went to today was only $34, which included both the office visit and the medicine cost. Unfortunately, I'm not a good waiter. Waiting that long actually feels painful to me and I come away stressed for the rest of the day. If I could learn to relax, I guess we could use the walk-in clinic as our primary vet. They aren't an emergency center, just a regular vet who doesn't take appointments unless it's for surgery. But boy, that wait is killer and the small waiting area makes it even harder. Sigh, trying to be a responsible pet owner should not be this hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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