What are signs of a good vet?

[spookypercy]

I'm in central Florida. The closest recommended vet on here is more than an hour away. Will definitely make the drive if need be, but I've been taking my guinea pig to a more local vet for an upper respiratory infection since about ten days ago. I knew she saw guinea pigs (that office is the main place that does around here). The office staff listened to my concerns over the phone and gave me options of scheduling out an appointment or bringing him in for urgent care (I used urgent care). She got him seen that evening. During the appointment, she weighed him and listened to his chest, then determined it was a URI but not in his lungs. She prescribed him 0.2ml of Orbax once a day for a week. It helped a lot but he's still congested, so I called the office and they refilled his prescription for another week. She also saw him two days after his initial appointment without charging me because he seemed to be tilting his head oddly every so often; she double checked his ears and had me describe the symptoms/how often it was happening and said it was probably irritation from his URI (at this point, he wasn't doing it as often as he had been the day before - I think the antibiotics had begun to work).

Basically I'm just curious how you determine what makes a vet a good one for your piggy. I've had guinea pigs for a long time but they've never gotten URIs before or had any medical issues, other than one dealing with a tumor right before she passed from old age (she was around 7 or 8 years old, I think). I'm 22 and this is my first pet who is 100% my responsibility; I've had pets my whole life, but the responsibility has always been shared between family members. Any advice would be appreciated.

For context, my piggy is a ~6mo boar. I've had him about two months. Again, I've never had a guinea pig get a URI, and I'm trying not to panic even though he's doing a lot better than he was 10 days ago.

(Also just a side note...I do have a young cagemate for him, but they are being kept separate from one another until Percy recovers.)

 

[Siikibam]

I think a good vet is preferably one who is experienced in treating guinea pigs. They listen to your concerns and investigate as necessary. They consider the guinea pig’s age/condition when looking at treatments. They talk you through things rather than just listing things. They aren’t afraid to consult someone more experienced than them if they’re not sure. I think your vet sounds like a good one.

With regards the cagemate, if he’s under four months you can’t keep them separated. Piggies under four months need socialising a lot more as well as companionship. It’s top of the list after food.

We don’t recommend medical separation. It can have a detrimental effect on the bond. The other thing is that the cagemate has already been exposed to the bacteria causing URI. If he’s to get it, he can still do so even if separated. And separation can also cause stress. That can, in turn, cause a drop in immunity leaving piggy open to catching bugs. So I would bond them and keep them together.

Hope your boy feels better soon.

 

[h.h.lovecraft]

I'm in a similar situation as you as I had piggies with family growing up, and just recently got two piggies of my own.

I took one of our piggies to the vet many years ago when my mom couldn't take her and I've had to take my current piggies to the vet multiple times recently.

Honestly the difference between a knowledgeable guinea pig vet and a not so great one has been obvious to me. I would first check their website or ask about their credentials. It sounds like your vet already has a reputation for treating piggies so that's a good sign. My current vet has a website and lots of information about her expertise. She even talks about how she specializes in guinea pig dentistry which is amazing! I find that if a vets office makes very little mention of small animals or what procedures they can provide for them, whether online or in person, it could be questionable. The vet office my mom booked an appointment for back in the day didn't even have an exotic animal specialist, so I had to go on a day when one just happened to be there, and I didn't get a great vibe. His diagnoses was very general and he didn't seem super confident. The piggy ended up ok and he treated her alright, but I didn't feel great about the experience.

My current vet speaks very confidently. You can tell she knows a lot about guinea pigs and many ways to treat them. She will also mention things I never even told her about. For example, I told her that I felt like one of my piggies was having bladder issues and she was naming small little signs and behaviors that a piggy with bladder issues would show. My piggy was showing those small signs, once again confirming she has experience in guinea pig health and behavior.

With all of that said, it sounds to me like you are going to a good vet. I don't have a lot of experience, but I could definitely tell when the vet didn't know much about guinea pigs, so I would trust your instincts if something feels off.

 

[Bill & Ted]

I have a fantastic vet, he’s not local, he’s 300 miles away but I would rather travel to see him than take mine to any of the local vets near me, that said in an emergency I would have to use one of the local vets who are ok just not as experienced

 

[Black piggies]

When I've been struggling to find a local cavy savvy vet, I phone the practice and ask for a vet who has or has had guinea pigs. Sometimes this is shown on the website of the practice "meet the team" section, where they list their pets / specialities. My current local vet has a big herd, which is good.