Got to find a new Essex vet :(

I am gutted - I just got a lovely card from my vet about Dusty bunny, and in it he says he is moving abroad!!

It has taken me years to find a decent small animal vet (and I honestly think that some of my animals have died unnecessarily along the way). Plus, he actually listens to my views and trusts me to manage things at home where I can etc.

There is no way I'm going to find anywhere locally that knows anything about spiny mice, but even mice in general are an issue, as well as guinea pigs. Especially if they only ever issue Baytril and are reluctant to issue the off licence meds. It would also affect my choice to have future bunnies.

I've never tried Spring Lodge vets in Witham, or Companion Care in Chelmsford. I'm so nervous to change after finally feeling comfortable with my choice of vet, but am going to have to.

That's a huge shame. It takes a while to build up confidence in a vet, and sadly it sometimes means you have out find out who the bad ones are the hard way.

Does Missy SJ use Spring Lodge? Have I imagined her saying that or is it a different branch? Maybe she could put your mind at rest. My geography is appalling and I don't know that part of Essex very well so you could well live miles away from each other. :lol:

I'm not sure which vet she uses these days. :? She lives very close to me.

What I could really do with is trying out a vet for something relatively uncomplicated - trouble is, with my sicky guinea pigs, nothing is uncomplicated!

I'm tempted to try Companion Care at Chelmsford - looking at the website, they do seem to mention small animals a lot (and I know they are small animal accredited - as is Spring Lodge Witham).

You could always ring them up and ask whether they've got vets experienced with mice/bunnies/etc - my local vets have profile pages on all the staff and quite a few mention having/specialising in small animals

SarahP said:

I'm tempted to try Companion Care at Chelmsford - looking at the website, they do seem to mention small animals a lot (and I know they are small animal accredited - as is Spring Lodge Witham).

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Alison uses CC at Chelmsford and says they are very good

I believe her old vet who is also great works at Spring Lodge now

Hi Sarah, as you know i'm very very local to you
We use Springlodge and i think they're very good, but we've never taken a guinea, just dogs, cats and rabbits
My friends took their guinea pig to The Vetinary Practice near Freeport in Braintree and said they were very good

*Spider* said:

Hi Sarah, as you know i'm very very local to you
We use Springlodge and i think they're very good, but we've never taken a guinea, just dogs, cats and rabbits

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Thanks - is that the Witham one or Tiptree that you use?

louise and Gus said:

Alison uses CC at Chelmsford and says they are very good

I believe her old vet who is also great works at Spring Lodge now

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Yes, I had a feeling Alison was still using CC. I think the vet you mean (who did 2 bunny spays for me) is at Spring Lodge in Tiptree though, not Witham. Not that that is as far as where I was going.

SarahP said:

Thanks - is that the Witham one or Tiptree that you use?

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Yes i use Witham

Thanks Spider, do Spring Lodge normally give medicines that are off licence, do you know? The last thing I want is somewhere that just issues Baytril.

I've sent an email to Companion Care asking a few questions - will see if they come back to me...

Hi, I use Spring Lodge and they're very good, though I find their vaccinations are expensive (£20.00) so use Black Notley Vets as theirs are cheaper (£15.00), with 4 buns, it makes all the difference

:wave: Yes you are all correct :lol:

Sarah, I bet you're gutted after after looking for so long for a vet!

Last time I heard, Melinda is now at Spring Lodge Tiptree - working part time - but she is a really good surgeon and is confident to go off-licence with drugs. I think there's also one called Kat although I'm not sure at which branch, she has an interest in exotics generally so might be good.

I now use Companion Care - there are three vets there now, they're all fine and all confident with going off licence, but I usually ask to see Simone who is the owner, I have a lot of faith in her. They do see any poorly PAH animals so might be more likely to be better with guineas, mice etc than somewhere else, plus I guess if people buy a mouse in PAH they might be more inclined to register with the vets there. The big advantage for me is that they are open 7 days a week so it makes getting appointments so much easier and also less risk of needing to use an emergency out of hours service! It's not cheap for drugs though, but I suspect Spring Lodge isn't either!

Good luck with your quest - be interesting to see what sort of reply you get!

SarahP said:

Thanks Spider, do Spring Lodge normally give medicines that are off licence, do you know? The last thing I want is somewhere that just issues Baytril.

I've sent an email to Companion Care asking a few questions - will see if they come back to me...

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I have no idea - you can always call them.
We are regulars there (with 8 animals, 5 go there!) And i've never had a problem with them, i agree they are quite pricey though.

Thanks! Yes, I was so gutted - it was such a lovely card/letter that the vet wrote, with the bombshell at the end!!

I wondered about the possibility that they might see more small animals at CC too - they don't sell mice at PAH but do sell rats, which I would say are very similar in terms of health needs and illnesses. I'm probably the only person in the whole of Witham with mice!

Although I did really like the vets I was with, it was often difficult to get an appointment, and obviously it's quite a distance. A more local vet that's open 7 days a week will be a bonus.

By the way, sorry for acting such a worrier on this thread! I should probably explain the history (without slagging off any vets in public) as to why I am so nervous about changing vets.

Basically, I used to use a certain practice, and didn't find them particularly good (I had a mouse nearly killed by a vet there, for one thing). Then I discovered that there was a vet at that practice who had a special interest in small animals. From then on I used to always book my appointments with that vet. The trouble was, her having a 'special interest' made me think she was knowledgeable, but she really wasn't. After a failed operation on a guinea pig, which I'll never quite forgive her for (I know that sounds melodramatic, but my poor guinea pig never made it through the operation), I decided to never go back. I then also tried another local practice, who were better, but still not brilliant. Then someone recommended the vet at Wickford, and I've been going there ever since.

I just don't ever want to lose an animal due to a vet not being as good as they say they are again.

SarahP said:

By the way, sorry for acting such a worrier on this thread! I should probably explain the history (without slagging off any vets in public) as to why I am so nervous about changing vets.

Basically, I used to use a certain practice, and didn't find them particularly good (I had a mouse nearly killed by a vet there, for one thing). Then I discovered that there was a vet at that practice who had a special interest in small animals. From then on I used to always book my appointments with that vet. The trouble was, her having a 'special interest' made me think she was knowledgeable, but she really wasn't. After a failed operation on a guinea pig, which I'll never quite forgive her for (I know that sounds melodramatic, but my poor guinea pig never made it through the operation), I decided to never go back. I then also tried another local practice, who were better, but still not brilliant. Then someone recommended the vet at Wickford, and I've been going there ever since.

I just don't ever want to lose an animal due to a vet not being as good as they say they are again.

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Oh God no, i 100% understnad why you are worrying for your animals welfare, totally understandable.
Sorry about Guinea Piggle.

My vet just called to say goodbye (am I their best customer or something? :lol, and said that a new exotic vet was starting tomorrow. Not sure what to do now...

Awwww, that was a nice gesture. (I doubt mine would ring me. :lol Maybe you could ask to have a chat with the new vet to see what he/she is like & hopefully you can stay with them.