What to look for?

[tigerduh]

As with any doctor/vet there are good ones and bad ones. What are some things to look for/ask when deciding on a vet to make sure you get a good one? Being a new ferret owner in a new city doesn't give me much to go on by way of word of mouth referrals

There's the obvious - experience working with ferrets and being clean, but it be nice to hear some of your experiences (both good and bad) when dealing with vets and some other things to look for/questions to ask.

[wendy]

I would ask:

How many years has he/she veterinarian been seeing ferrets?
What are the most common ferret ailments they see.
Are they familiar with the approved vaccinations for use in ferrets.
Ask if they routinely perform CBCs and blood sugar levels for ferret. (over the age of 3-4)
What are the most common surgeries they perform on a ferret.
What range of services does the vet provide.
Whats cost of a office visit.
What are office hours.
How are emergency calls handled.
Who covers for them, after hours or weekends? Are they ferret knowledgable.

Word of mouth is probably the best bet in finding a ferret knowledgable vet in your area. Ask your local ferret club, pet stores.

I hope this helps.

Wendy

[tigerduh]

Thanks! That helps a lot.

[sherrie]

When mine met Mojo.. he kissed him. Not very professional, but it told me he saw a lot of ferrets and was comfortable with them.

Found out later he treats the shelter ferrets..

[lneill84]

My vet strictly treats exotics, so she was very knowledgable about everything. She is working with vets in the UK to develop a better food for ferrets (more natural) and is researching ways to prevent so many diseases of ferrets as they age. She always keeps me up to date on the vet side of things-it was an hour long conversation when she got back from a strictly ferret conference. I can't say enough wonderful things about her, and she was been great with the furkids, especially since they were so sick in the beginning. She wants to see Luigi every 6 months just for bloodwork, at no charge, because they want to catch the very early stages of insulimona and see if it can be managed better. Vets usually see the ferret when it actually has symtoms-she wants to see if we can see a change in BG, and treat at a more proactive, rather than reactive way.