Do You Need to Register With a Vet?

When you’re getting a new pet, one of the tasks you need to tick off your list is registering with a vet. While it can be difficult to find the right vet for your pet, it’s well worth doing. Today we’re looking at why it’s important and how you can do it.

Your Responsibilities

As a pet owner you have responsibilities, and they are enforceable by law! You’ll naturally want to take the best care of your pet possible, but in addition to that internal motivation the UK’s 2006 Animal Welfare Act makes you legally responsible for, among other things, protecting your pet from “pain, suffering injury and disease”. The best way you can do this is to register your pet at the vet!

The Right Vet

It’s important to find the right vet for your pet’s needs. This is easier if you’re getting a cat, a dog or a rabbit – most vets have the right training and specialisms to provide care for these common pets. The more unusual or even exotic pet you’ve chosen the harder it can be to find a vet who’s able to provide the medical care it needs.

Even if you have your choice of vets for your pet, you need to be confident they’ll take good care of your beloved companion. Finding the right vet isn’t just a matter of finding the closest vet!

Online reviews are a useful tool in your arsenal: have a look at what people have to say about the vets in your area, and make sure their experiences match what you need from the vet. You could also look for online communities of fellow owners to get recommendations in your area.

If you’re looking for a specialist vet for a more exotic pet – an avian vet, for example, it’s worth finding owner’s associations and looking for professional bodies that list all the vet’s with that specialism in the UK, allowing you to make an informed choice.

Emergencies

It’s not just a day to day vet you need: you also need to think about emergencies. While it’s to be hoped you’ll enjoy a long, healthy, happy life with your pet sometimes crises happen, and you can’t rely on a crisis to confine itself to normal vet’s hours. You don’t want to be googling “24 hour emergency vet near me” while you’re also panicking about your pet, so find the information first. Search for emergency vet details while you’re calm and keep the number and the address on file and easily accessible.

It’s also worth registering with an online vet: if you’re not sure what’s wrong, or if it’s serious, you can talk to a vet online to get advice about your next steps.