Vet reference What are they looking for?

Most often they are just looking in reference to the animals you have listed on your form, if you are a current animal owner. they are looking for someone who takes their pet to the vet when required and keeps up with any treatment recommended by the vet. For example, if the vet said you dog had diabetes and you needed to come in and get his blood sugar tested once a month and you never did...that would be bad. Or if you never completed vaccinations. This is what they are looking for. The only other thing might be if you had a dog come in with a lot of problems that could be related to an unsafe environment. i.e. It kept getting out and got in fights or hit by a car. Questionable abuse, etc.

Good luck with your dog adoption. And don't worry about the vet check!

p.s. Yes, call and have the cat removed off of your records if you are no longer living with the cat. Just tell the vet what you said, it was your roommates cat and you have since moved.

If the owner gives his vet permission to speak with you then the vet does not have to worry about confidentiality. Ask the owner to tell the vet you will be calling for a reference. If the vet still says he won't talk, I would tell the owner that is the same as a bad reference even if that is unfair. As a vet assistant for over 20 years, I gave many vet references to shelters and breeders who were checking on owners. We were always happy to tell what a wonderful client and dog owner they were and would be very happy for them to get a new pet. The vet should be able to tell you if their previous pets are up to date on rabies shots as that is public record. But if the pets are not up to date.....well, then he doesn't want to be blamed if they can't adopt. Here is what I would say: Your client, Mary Jones, asked me to give you a call because she would like to adopt a dog from me. The dog is a 2 year old Jack Russel who had no known health problems and is up to date on his shots. Would you advise her to adopt a dog like this if she likes him? (this will give the vet a chance to say she would do better with a more calm less assertive dog if he thinks that's so or to tell you she has an aggressive large do who might hurt a small dog or a cat that the new dog might chase) If he says yes, then I would ask, does she usually follow your recommendations with her pet's care and come in regularly for preventative treatment? (this gives him a chance to say, well I've only seen her the once when her little dog was hit by a car. Bad reference. Or he might say, Oh my she's a wonderful pet caretaker. One of our best clients. There is nothing she won't do for a pet and she even has rescued some pets and found homes for them. What a nice lady) Hope this helps.

I require vet reference from folks interested in my puppies. I do not always check the references tho but I will admit failure to give the info certainly rules them out. If I do check with the vet the things I am most interested in is if this person tends to be an animal trader. You know, the type of person who get a puppy and rehomes and gets another and shows NO commitment to the pup. Lots of them out there! Has this person ever had an "accidental" litter or purposefully breeds their pets. I also want to see if current pets are spayed/neutered. And if the vet personally feels that this person is capable of owning another pet and displays good dog ownership and provides adequately for the medical needs of current pets. There are some things vets cannot discuss because of privacy matters. I don't think you have any reason to worry.

I hope that Ms Manners is dead wrong! Any group that does not do vet references does not care where their animals end up!

When I do a vet reference, I look for routine vet care for all the animals listed on the application, including heartworm prevention and vaccines. I also look for any animals listed at the vet that were omitted on the application. Last but not least, I listen for the tone of the vet tech who gives out the info. In some cases their tones of voice give away what they think of the owner.

I once had an application from a man who lied about his dogs being outside dogs. One of them was heartworm positive, but he did not allow the vet to give out that info. We were able to get to the bottom of it through her tone of voice and he admitted that the dog was sick. Then we discovered that he did not want to pay for the treatment for his dog and did not use heartworm prevention on any of his dogs.

So yes, vet references are important.

Be honest with the group. Explain the circumstances of the cat and you will find them understanding. It is commendable that you wanted to do the right thing.

They just want to know that you HAVE a vet.

(See all the questions here about "my dog is bleeding, how can I treat it at home, because I cant afford a vet".)

I doubt that they will actually contact the vet and ask any questions about you.

Just give them the name of the vet you would use if there were a medical problem with the dog.