My local vet closing on Saturdays

[TCRanch]

At the vet clinic I've always used, the owner no longer does large animals and he's getting close to retiring but had 2 other vets that did both small/large animals. The vet I usually worked with recently accepted a pretty sweet job with Zoetis and that left the other one swamped, especially now that most of the county is calving. They ended up sending out a letter stating that the remaining large animal vet will only be available every other weekend, only certain days of the week and the majority of farm calls will be emergencies only.

We've had weekend/after hour emergencies, but I get that they also have (need!) a life and time off.

 

[Son of Butch]

I wonder how much of that 'overwhelming demand' is little Fluffy dog and Waffles the cat?

You said Waffles was dead. Bet the Chinese neighbors never even ate your cat. Such a liar.

 

[alacowman1]

You can bet 90 percent of the time ,if a cows gonna have trouble ..she'll wait to the weekend.. or when you got plans that don't involve them

 

[Travlr]

So his schedule should be determined by customer convenience? If that is a single vet practice, he likely already is working 100 hours a week, not all for pay. That's like telling a small-town MD that "because people have to work M-F, you need to have Saturday hours. Not by choice, but because of community necessity ". Lived that life for a long time and my dad missed many big events in our lives because of it. We all make choices. To say that community need dictates business hours is not a place I want to live. Maybe the community should recruit extra help for that particular vet?

I'm just trying to put thoughts out there that don't seem to be being discussed. Vets do things for their own convenience too. Sometimes their own convenience at the expense of several other people that have it tougher than them. We all do it. I don't blame them. But what's wrong with thinking about every point of view and weighing the benefits and consequences of everything as an aggregate?

It also comes to mind that the vet could charge an additional fee for Saturday and pass it on to those that agree to work, considering Saturday overtime.

It's not likely anything we say here will result in any changes. But it's a fun thought experiment to see what we come up with. Taking sides one way or the other before we consider everything... in a hypothetical situation... doesn't benefit anyone... does it?

 

[Travlr]

You said Waffles was dead. Bet the Chinese neighbors never even ate your cat. Such a liar.

His real name is Schrodinger.

 

[Travlr]

At the vet clinic I've always used, the owner no longer does large animals and he's getting close to retiring but had 2 other vets that did both small/large animals. The vet I usually worked with recently accepted a pretty sweet job with Zoetis and that left the other one swamped, especially now that most of the county is calving. They ended up sending out a letter stating that the remaining large animal vet will only be available every other weekend, only certain days of the week and the majority of farm calls will be emergencies only.

We've had weekend/after hour emergencies, but I get that they also have (need!) a life and time off.

I've done work for several vets. Started out helping them at the local sale barns when bangs testing was mandatory and since they were there they would offer preg checking.

Some of the vets were great people that did their jobs well and really made an effort to benefit the community. Some were... less. I don't know why anyone would become a vet if they didn't want to be the best kind. But then I don't see why anyone would do anything unless they wanted to be the best they could be. Of course vets need a life. In my opinion being a vet isn't a job, though, as much as a calling. Especially large animal vets. Or maybe they should just be in it for the money...

 

[Lee VanRoss]

RE Local Vet Closing: I should have ignored that post. By what standard did he think his problem was going to be alleviated by posting
it on CT? So we are all going to write, email or go mano e mano with the vet and say " How dare you?! No.. I might inquire on here how
to go about a project or treat a certain ailment in an animal but a woe is me about the vet closing on Saturday? My guess is if he knows the
vet and had a genuine emergency a problem can be addressed. jmpov

 

[Rafter S]

Ask I can almost guarantee you it is.

How many cattle does your auction handle on an average sale day?

I used to live in that town and the vet clinic was busy on Saturday. Others did just as Rafter S on getting cows pregnancy checked. The sale barn was way too busy to preg check cattle and try to reload the ones that needed to go back home.

I suspect you're right.

RE Local Vet Closing: I should have ignored that post. By what standard did he think his problem was going to be alleviated by posting
it on CT? So we are all going to write, email or go mano e mano with the vet and say " How dare you?! No.. I might inquire on here how
to go about a project or treat a certain ailment in an animal but a woe is me about the vet closing on Saturday? My guess is if he knows the
vet and had a genuine emergency a problem can be addressed. jmpov

I didn't intend to get some help. I was just making conversation, and I didn't realize that bothered people, but if it does bother you then ignoring it would have been an option.

 

[Lee VanRoss]

No, you were belly aching and I wasn't interested.

 

[Rafter S]

No, you were belly aching and I wasn't interested.

And yet you responded. Several times.

 

[callmefence]

How many cattle does your auction handle on an average sale day?


I suspect you're right.



I didn't intend to get some help. I was just making conversation, and I didn't realize that bothered people, but if it does bother you then ignoring it would have been an option.

Lampasas is usually around 500 head. But gatesville, san saba and Cameron all will preg check your cows.
At lampasas I dont check in.
I go unload at the vets chute . Put my cows in the pen he says. When I come back my bred cows will be back in the same pen. The opens will be with the kill cows and be tagged for sale. The barn bills me for all of them of course. Last time I did it it 7.00 a head.

 

[Rafter S]

Lampasas is usually around 500 head. But gatesville, san saba and Cameron all will preg check your cows.
At lampasas I dont check in.
I go unload at the vets chute . Put my cows in the pen he says. When I come back my bred cows will be back in the same pen. The opens will be with the kill cows and be tagged for sale. The barn bills me for all of them of course. Last time I did it it 7.00 a head.

Navasota had almost 1400 last week, and that wasn't a big run. I randomly looked back at a few of the market reports they send out, and July 9 last year they had over 3,000.

I suspect they'd throw rocks at me if I unloaded some cows and told them to preg check them before they tagged them, and I might want to take some back home.

 

[Lucky]

We have 2 local big animal vets. Both went to appointments only and closed on Saturdays a few years back. One just went to no after hours call outs not sure about the other. If the vet is here to support the community that supports him or her I'd think Sunday/Monday would be better days off. To each is own though. I might visit the vet once a year so who am I to suggest their hours. I've found a better option is generally to find a good cowboy or 2 you can call.

 

[Travlr]

We have 2 local big animal vets. Both went to appointments only and closed on Saturdays a few years back. One just went to no after hours call outs not sure about the other. If the vet is here to support the community that supports him or her I'd think Sunday/Monday would be better days off. To each is own though. I might visit the vet once a year so who am I to suggest their hours. I've found a better option is generally to find a good cowboy or 2 you can call.

And that's probably a decent option in a lot of cases... but there's another thread here that's talking about how meds will no longer be available without a prescription. Just once I'd like to see something work in the favor of someone trying to make a living instead of those that charge us for inconveniencing them by trying to keep our animals healthy and putting their kids through college.

 

[callmefence]

Navasota had almost 1400 last week, and that wasn't a big run. I randomly looked back at a few of the market reports they send out, and July 9 last year they had over 3,000.

I suspect they'd throw rocks at me if I unloaded some cows and told them to preg check them before they tagged them, and I might want to take some back home.

Lol... you know what... nevermind.

 

[Hpacres440p]

And that's probably a decent option in a lot of cases... but there's another thread here that's talking about how meds will no longer be available without a prescription. Just once I'd like to see something work in the favor of someone trying to make a living instead of those that charge us for inconveniencing them by trying to keep our animals healthy and putting their kids through college.

For what my large animal vet charges, no way is he putting his kids through college. Yes, being a vet is a calling, just like most professions dealing with serving others. I totally understand the point of view though, of wanting a life outside of a profession. Community support for those who do maintain "convenience hours" would be a big encouragement, rather than accusations of just being in it for the money. If that were the case, large animal vets would probably never deal with food animals.

 

[Lucky]

And that's probably a decent option in a lot of cases... but there's another thread here that's talking about how meds will no longer be available without a prescription. Just once I'd like to see something work in the favor of someone trying to make a living instead of those that charge us for inconveniencing them by trying to keep our animals healthy and putting their kids through college.

You can get any meds you need through a place like Valley Vet.com. you will need a vet to sign a script but that's usually not a problem, in my area at least. We've got a local vet supply that will bring anything from meds to a box of needles out in a day or two. Most decent cowboys will have access to any meds you might need.

 

[Travlr]

For what my large animal vet charges, no way is he putting his kids through college. Yes, being a vet is a calling, just like most professions dealing with serving others. I totally understand the point of view though, of wanting a life outside of a profession. Community support for those who do maintain "convenience hours" would be a big encouragement, rather than accusations of just being in it for the money. If that were the case, large animal vets would probably never deal with food animals.

And as said in one of my other posts... there are vets, and there are vets. I've seen some that would literally give mouth to mouth resuscitation to a dying goat and not send a bill when the animal dies... and others that will charge $1000 to poor people for x-rays on a dog they knew was going to die. I've seen them both. Maybe that's why most vets don't go into large animal practice.

Look, I'm not here to put down vets trying to survive... but I don't think it's out of line to complain about practices abandoning services that help people out... nor do I think it's a terrible thing to suggest options that might or might not suggest a solution.

If you don't like it, tough...

 

[Brute 23]

You must have a good barn, @callmefence . The guys at ours would have those cows so jacked up when you came back.

I barely let them load calves I'm going to sell anyways.

 

[callmefence]

You can get any meds you need through a place like Valley Vet.com. you will need a vet to sign a script but that's usually not a problem, in my area at least. We've got a local vet supply that will bring anything from meds to a box of needles out in a day or two. Most decent cowboys will have access to any meds you might need.

That's another thing about a sale barn vet. Get to know him and prescriptions won't be a problem.