# Protocols for Changing Vets?



## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

So, I've been lukewarm about our vet for some time now, and been considering switching to another. They've never done anything 'wrong' per say, and always treated myself and the animals well, but I just haven't felt like I had a good connection or relationship with them. Just something about it has never sat right with me. Based on past experiences, I feel like I have to second guess the advice they give instead of feeling like I can trust them 100% to do what is best for my animals.

So anyway, I've finally decided I'm going to switch after doing research on other practices in the area. I've found two that I am choosing between, but I feel confident in either choice. They both seem fantastic, patient oriented, and are highly raved about within the local animal community.

My question now is... how do I go about leaving the old vet? I've never done this before... should they give me trouble in asking for the animals' vet records? Will they ask why I'm leaving? Do they need to send the records to the new vet directly or will they just give them to me? I'd really rather not get into a long conversation about it and be made to feel bad/guilty for doing what I feel is best for my pets.


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## CptJack (Jun 3, 2012)

You don't actually need to do anything. Change vets, go to the new ones, they'll request the records and you're done. 

Leaving the practice or not, though, you can always get your animal's record. There might be a tiny fee of a few dollars, but probably n ot.


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## Kayota (Aug 14, 2009)

I never talked to vets when i switch, just asked for records lol, no reason to tell them I'm going elsewhere.


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## pawsaddict (Apr 17, 2013)

I've always just had the old vet clinic send the records directly to the new clinic. If you say you need the records sent to such-and-such-clinic, they should have no problem doing it. I don't think they need any more information than that.


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## Remaru (Mar 16, 2014)

We just switched. I loved my old vet and hated doing it but as he has gotten older he was unavailable more and more often. He would be out of town or close for half a day or whatever. It just really wasn't convenient so we made the switch. The clinic we use now is open every day (even Sunday) and most evenings until 7pm. Much better for our schedule.


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

Hmm, so it seems like it shouldn't be too much of an issue. 

If I only had 1 pet I could get away with pretending I needed the records for something else (like a surgery at another clinic or something) but asking for all 3 at once I'm presuming would seem suspect, lol.


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## heidizag (Dec 1, 2014)

They will probably know what's going on and they might ask why (so they can improve service) so be prepared with something you feel comfortable telling them. "I haven't felt a good connection to the doctors here" is really a quite acceptable explanation in my mind.

(Where I live there is no such thing as "vet records" so this would never be an issue. The only record is the dog's health booklet which is updated at every vet visit, but stays with the owner, not the vet.)


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## BostonBullMama (Apr 20, 2013)

I've never told the vets we were switching either... I just stopped going one day and went to a different vet instead. My animals records are kept online so I can access them at any time.


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

I'm, not sure that "being 100% confident" in your vet is necessarily healthy.

We like our current vet quite a lot, but another vet in the practice told my wife we should be feeding our dogs Purina Dog Chow. I ignored that advice. Then, maybe six months ago, Molly had a horrible limp.They did x-rays and recommended major knee surgery. We put her on pain MEDs, kept her relatively quiet, and she has fully recovered. Without surgery.

I like our vets a lot, but I temper their advice with my own experience and familiarity with our dogs.


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## Laurelin (Nov 2, 2006)

I had one instance with a vet where I needed Summer's records like 3 years later and I had never had them transfer her information. She had had a bad reaction to medication and I wanted to let the new vet know. They wouldn't give me her information because of 'patient privacy laws'.... Made no sense because she's a dog. But in the end I just had to type up a letter to them and sign it stating that I was in fact her owner and I did give them permission to send her records over to the other vet office. I had to do that all via fax and this was last year.... was weird.

In the past I've just called the vet and said, hey I moved. Can you forward my dogs' records to XXX vet.


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

RonE said:


> I'm, not sure that "being 100% confident" in your vet is necessarily healthy.
> 
> We like our current vet quite a lot, but another vet in the practice told my wife we should be feeding our dogs Purina Dog Chow. I ignored that advice. Then, maybe six months ago, Molly had a horrible limp.They did x-rays and recommended major knee surgery. We put her on pain MEDs, kept her relatively quiet, and she has fully recovered. Without surgery.
> 
> I like our vets a lot, but I temper their advice with my own experience and familiarity with our dogs.


Maybe that wasn't the best way to put it... I don't mean going with whatever they say without question. More just that I don't feel like I can trust their advice to not have other motives behind it other than my pet's health.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

Laurelin said:


> I had one instance with a vet where I needed Summer's records like 3 years later and I had never had them transfer her information. She had had a bad reaction to medication and I wanted to let the new vet know. They wouldn't give me her information because of 'patient privacy laws'.... Made no sense because she's a dog. But in the end I just had to type up a letter to them and sign it stating that I was in fact her owner and I did give them permission to send her records over to the other vet office. I had to do that all via fax and this was last year.... was weird.


In most states, technically this is the letter of the law (to provide a written request). In reality, most vets will forward records with just a phone call from you but some practices are sticklers for doing everything by the letter. Some will ask why you're switching as sort of an "exit interview" to see if there was a specific thing they did to make you unhappy, some don't.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Just leave. You don't have to say anything to them. I've left many vets over the past few years, mostly because I moved, but sometimes because I just didn't love their practice, and I've never said anything to them.

If your new vet would like to get your dog's records, they can call and ask for them.


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

The main thing that I was sort of concerned/thinking about was that they send reminders every year that each pet is due for their yearly exam. I'm not sure if I ignore it if they'll be persistent and follow up with a phone call or something, or if they just send them out and don't think about it again.


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## MrsBoats (May 20, 2010)

I just went through the changing vets thing this week. I'm taking the guys to my agility BFF now as official patients instead doing ringside consults or over hanging out with wine consults. LOL I had my old vet fax me their records and that was it. Ocean has a little bit of pyroderma on his groin/flank area and really needed to be seen. He LOVES his "auntie" and he had the easiest vet visit in his life. I'm kicking myself that I hadn't started to see her as a vet sooner. 

My old vet practice had given me 2 incorrect diagnoses with Lars over his life. After how they handled his shoulder injury...I was all set with them. I just told the office manager that I wanted copies of the boys records faxed over to me and that was it. I didn't say why or that I was leaving. I'm just going to ignore their reminders they will probably send.


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## Amaryllis (Dec 28, 2011)

Laurelin said:


> I had one instance with a vet where I needed Summer's records like 3 years later and I had never had them transfer her information. She had had a bad reaction to medication and I wanted to let the new vet know. They wouldn't give me her information because of 'patient privacy laws'.... Made no sense because she's a dog. But in the end I just had to type up a letter to them and sign it stating that I was in fact her owner and I did give them permission to send her records over to the other vet office. I had to do that all via fax and this was last year.... was weird.
> 
> In the past I've just called the vet and said, hey I moved. Can you forward my dogs' records to XXX vet.


Yeah, HIPAA does not apply to animals.

The new vet I'm going to stole* a lot of business from my old vet. The old vet practice responded like spoiled children and started by refusing records requests from the vet, instead requiring the request in writing from the owners, and then moved to requiring the owners come in person and pay a $50 "records copying" fee to get their records. There is no way in hell I will ever spend $50 to get copies of 5 pages of information about my dog. The new vet went in blind, with just the vaccination records from my vet in PA.

*By "stole" I mean there was a huge population of pets being serviced by one, inconveniently located, overloaded veterinary practice. Then a new practice moved in, in a great location and people jumped on the chance to switch vets.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

HIPPA does not apply to pets, but in most states the medical record is legally the pet owner's property and technically can't be requested by a third party such as another veterinary clinic. However, most clinics don't make owners jump through that hoop.


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## moluno (Apr 29, 2009)

ireth0 said:


> The main thing that I was sort of concerned/thinking about was that they send reminders every year that each pet is due for their yearly exam. I'm not sure if I ignore it if they'll be persistent and follow up with a phone call or something, or if they just send them out and don't think about it again.


 I doubt any clinic is going to put in that much effort, our reminder cards are generated automatically so honestly we have no idea who's due when, or who's coming in and who's not unless we specifically look up that client. Eventually if they don't come in, we just mark them as inactive and that's that. The only time we ever muse about it is if they were a good long-term client who just suddenly stopped coming. 

Generally most people just call and say hey, can you fax my records over to XXX Clinic? And we will say sure, what's their fax number? It's really no biggie and it's not seen as an insult.


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## Kayota (Aug 14, 2009)

Laurelin said:


> I had one instance with a vet where I needed Summer's records like 3 years later and I had never had them transfer her information. She had had a bad reaction to medication and I wanted to let the new vet know. They wouldn't give me her information because of 'patient privacy laws'.... Made no sense because she's a dog. But in the end I just had to type up a letter to them and sign it stating that I was in fact her owner and I did give them permission to send her records over to the other vet office. I had to do that all via fax and this was last year.... was weird.
> 
> In the past I've just called the vet and said, hey I moved. Can you forward my dogs' records to XXX vet.


They taught us all this stuff in vet tech school about patient privacy and how important it is and I never understood lol... I mean they're animals...

My vets don't usually sent reminders but they did for my rat once (but not Roxie???) so I called them and told him he'd passed.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

The patients are animals, but the clients are humans and the records are their legal property. It's not a privacy issue so much as a property issue.


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## InkedMarie (Mar 11, 2009)

I've never announced that I was leaving and for the past 13 years, I have copies of everything done to my dogs so I havent needed to ask for anything.


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

Thanks for the replies everyone. We went to the new vet for the first time a couple weeks ago and I was more than happy with the visit. Very glad I decided to switch. 

Just for anyone reading this thread who might also be curious; the new vet asked us to sign a form that they would send to our prior vet on our behalf to have them send over the animals' vet records.


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