The Veterinary Industrial Complex

rockhillmanor wrote:
Yes I hope Doc you don't personally take offense. Certainly not intended to offend.

I hope he don't take offense at what I post either.

IMHO it's NOT the majority of 'vets', it's the new 'trend' of corp owned veterinarian clinics that are cropping up all over that stock them chuck full of 1st year vets, vet techs treating pets and pet owners becoming nothing more than an assembly line of consumers.

This is how we feel about the place we've been going to the past 5 or 6 years. All recent grads and it is indeed like an assembly line. First you wait in the waiting room as long as 30 minutes with an appt. Why? because they OVERBOOK! Then it's off to the exam room. What's with sitting people in the exam room and having to explain what's going on to a tech? She's not treating the pet, a vet is - send a Vet in. Then the vet comes in after anywhere from 15 minutes to 20 minutes, barely talks to you and runs your pet into the backroom for another 10 minutes or more. Then he/she is back, has no interest in what you have to say, and tells you what tests are needed or meds or vaccinations or whatever....

Just like shopping malls and Wally world drove out the mom and pop stores IMHO, I think these new 'corporate owned' 'assembly line type' vet clinics just might be driving out the old time small personally owned vets offices. The local vet just can't compete with the corporation owned type vet clinics that have ample finances and that have a lower over head.

That may be regional. They are competing very well with the overpriced Corp owned assembly-line type Animal Hosps where I live and in FL.

AND they immediately shut down their emergency service also.
Leaving clients to have to go to one of those 24 hr ER Vet Clinics way across town in an emergency where it costs $800.00 to just walk in the door.Just try and find one of these corporate owned assembly line vet clinics that offers emergency service. Sadly you won't.

They will gouge you after hours. They're staffed with recent grads who are not being paid high-five figures to staff the place at night. So why the outrageous charges?

Now I'm looking for a new clinic too after having two of the new vets there working for the corporation, that suggested euthanasia for 2 different dogs I own simply because they were not capable of diagnosing the problem. Even after I told them what was wrong with each one. :R

Because they don't have the time to really LISTEN anymore. They overbook and so the new grads have to get through their appointments quickly. So many clients per day must be seen. If an emergency comes in it's a disaster for those with appts. (Been there - done that) You can leave and make another appt or sit and wait several hours. This I never understood since both places I worked in NYC had Vets who worked in the back doing the x-rays, surgeries etc. They handled the emergencies so the vets up front were not required to handle them, leaving their appts sitting for, in some cases, more than an hour, hour in the half.