Petsmart Vets...okay to use them?

[EdieRabbit]

Hi Everyone,

I was at Petsmart today buying kitty and bunny supplies and stopped to ask the vet's officethere if they know of any rabbit savvy vets in the area that they could recommend for Edie. The receptionist said that they see rabbits all the time and spay and neuter them. Just curious what you guys think of them.

I do know of one small exotic animal vet in Knoxville, but don't know anything about him either. I am not from here and just moved here a few years back. I don't think the vet that I take my kitties too works on bunnies. I'm a little leary b/c it is Petsmart! What do you think. I made Edie an appointment for Thursday, but will cancel it if feedback here indicates that they are not a good choice of vets for bunnies.

I want to take Edie in for a general check up and to see if they can tell whether or not she has been spayed. If not, I want to see about having it done, b/c I worry about her getting uterine cancer. Anyway, I'll wait to hear from you more experienced bun folk. Thanks in advance!

Sandy

 

[ChompersMom]

Since I work (or did work..I just quit :biggrin2 for Petsmart I'll just let you know, each and every vet in the Petsmart is different. They are in no way associated with Petsmart they just rent the space from them. I would look around and see if you can get anyone's recommendations before going to them as I know the one we have in our Petsmart is absolutely horrible. They seem nice but I brought my dog to be spayed there (they don't do exotics at mine) and they treated me like crap. They didn't write down my appt. and then someone didn't tell me I needed a check up before so a lot of things were screwed up and they know me since I worked with them daily. I wouldn't recommend anyone to the vet in my Petsmart but like I said, every single one is different.


Good luck and I hope you can find some people's opinions

 

[EdieRabbit]

Thanks ChompersMom! I may just go ahead and schedule a visit to the other vet, since his website talks specifically about the work he does with small exotics (including buns). I was just not too sure about the whole Petsmart idea. Of course, they would recommend themselves. I just want someone who knows what they are doing with my baby Edie. She deserves only the best!

 

[EdieRabbit]

BTW, what big ears your bunny has! Like a basset hound! How cute!!!!!

 

[JimD]

In our PetSmart they have the Banfield Pet Hospital.
I love our vet there. She has a lot of experience with rabbits and has several colleagues that she consults with.

I found her by chance.
I asked if they knew bunnies and they told me that Dr. Frezzo did.
I scheduled an appointment for just a general check up.
I asked her some key questions like....what kind of antibiotics would she prescribe....what kind of anesthesia did they used....what kind of pain meds...etc.
And then I ran back to the forum and compared notes.
She gave ALL the right answers :biggrin2:

The only thing bad about it, is that you're dealing with Banfield. They aren't as flexible or accommodating as a private practice might be.
And they're a bit on the expensive side, too.

 

[MsBinky]

I say you visit the Petsmart vet and get a feel for them. A general check up is the best time to do it. You can ask about spaying etc. and then let us know what was said and we could help you from there. that way you get to know if they take you seriously, have good service, etc.

 

[tundrakatiebean]

I agree with MsBinky, general check up is a good way to get a feel for the vet and to ask a lot of bunny related questions to make sure they know their stuff!

 

[MsBinky]

When I answered Jim's reply wasn't there :?Lol. Sorry for repeating... I often have that problem with threads :?

 

[EdieRabbit]

Actually, I got verybusy today and forgot to cancel tomorrow's appointment, soI think I will keep it and do what you guys suggested and check them out. That sounds like a very good idea. It is sooooo much closer than the other vet, so it would be more convenient to go to Petsmart, but I don't want to risk Edie's health for convenience. Thanks for all of the insight. I will take my list of questions with me tomorrow and write down the answers so that I can compare notes to this board. You guys are the best! Happy Halloween!!!!!!

 

[missyscove]

I asked our dog vet for a referral to an exotics vet. If you trust your cat's vet, and the Petsmart vet doesn't work out, that may be the way to go.

 

[ChompersMom]

EdieRabbit wrote:

BTW, what big ears your bunny has! Like a basset hound! How cute!!!!!

Thanks! His name is Moose. His ears are 24 inches from tip of one ear to the tip of the other.. I just adopted him this last weeked :biggrin2:


Let us know how the check up goes! Hopefully they are an experienced vet so you can have the convience of them but not have to risk your bun's health. I only wish ours was better :grumpy:

 

[EdieRabbit]

Well I took Edie to Petsmart for her checkup and was pleasantly surprised! It seems Dr. Hollie McCray works on buns all the time and has quite an affection for them. She did a thorough check up on Edie, from eyes, ears, teeth, skin, abdomen,and a fewother parts that I will leave up to your imagination. She checked Edie'slower bellyfor a spay scar and couldn't find one, so I'm going to have her spayed when my husband and I return fromour first year anniversary vacation in two weeks.

In regards to the spaying, Iasked about pain meds, the surgery, potential problems, etc. and she gave all the right answers. She also said that when doing a spay on a bun, you have to be very careful because their stomach linings (and I could be quoting her wrong here...I am awful about remembering specifics) are so much more sensitive than a dog or cat.

She told me that she could get a better estimate of Edie's age during the surgery b/c as rabbits age, they accumulate more fatty tissue around their ovaries, so if she has a lot of fat stores there she might be older than we think. She estimated Edie's age to be between 3-4 years based on the wear and yellowness of her teeth, although she did say that this is very difficult tonail downin rabbits. This is what I am thinking her age is, as well, though, based on what I know about her history.

Dr. McCraysaid that she has only had one bun that had complications during or after spay/neuter surgery and she performs several a month. A lot of people bring their buns to her b/c there aren't many vets in our area that workwith them. She is one of the few. You could just tell that she loves bunnies. She even suggested getting Edie a friend from the local shelter (not Petsmart or any other petstore) b/c there are so many buns in need of homes.

She gave Edie an excellent record of health and Miss Edie weighed in at 9.8 lbs! She doesn't think that Edie is overweight, either, just a big bun. The whole office fell in love withEdie and her large dewlap...which was another concern of mine. She said that Edie seemsto have very good grooming habbits, sothe dewlapis not aproblem, evidently.

It was so exciting tolearn more about my bun, although poor Ediewas very distraught by the whole ordeal. Shewas very good though. She is a bit leary of me now, but I guess she'll get over that in time. I gave her a few raisins when we returned home and she seemed to forget that I "tortured" her...at least for a minute or two. LOL!

 

[Bo B Bunny]

I'm SO Happy for you! I hope your petsmart vet stays there and you can keep her for a long time! that's awesome! and conveniant!

So now, who's going to bab...... errrr..... bunnysit while you are on vacation?

She's a BIG GIRL! She's so pretty too! :stikpoke:camera

 

[EdieRabbit]

Thanks, BBB! My neighbor, who told us about Edie and her bad situation with our other neighbor three months ago (which ultimately led us to her rescue), is going to take care of her and our 3 kitties while we are gone. He was going to take Edie in himself when he found out that the other neighbors left her, but he has 3 large dogs, one in particular that is prone to aggression, so that is why he told us about Edie, instead.

He knew my husband is a sucker b/c he is alsothe reasonthatwe ended up with our girl kitty. He He...he is an animal rescue angel! Anyway, he is going to stop in twicea day to feedand clean up after them. I am sure that he will also be spoiling them rotten while he is at it. It is the funniest thing...he is a Viet Nam Vet in his 60's that drives around on a huge Harley, yet one evening I heard the Carrie Underwood CD blaring from his garage. A BIG softie on the inside. He LOVES animals!

 

[Bo B Bunny]

That's awesome! Gotta love those guys who love animals!

So where are you gonna go for the vacation? and congrats on the 1 year anniversary!

I just celebrated 17 years...... :shock:

 

[EdieRabbit]

We are flying to Fort Lauderdale and renting a car to drive to Key West. We want to stop at all of the places in between and then spend a few days in Key West doing water sporty things. We can't wait!!! Our Mexico honeymoon was awful and I will never go back there again. We are making up for our bad honeymoon. I can't believe we have been married almost a year (Nov. 11th). Then again, it seems like it has always been this way. We were both older when we got married, I was 34 and he was 32, so we were ready!!! :biggrin2:

I waited a long time to find my husband, but he was DEFINITELY worth the wait! My advice to all those single women out there who are distraught about finding "the one"...don't waste your time worrying about the wrong guys. When you find the right guy, you think, "I was such and idiot for wasting time on the rest of those losers!" Not that all of them were losers. I had some really nice boyfriends that ended up being good friends in the end.

BTW, we met on match.com. Turns out, he lived 5 minutes from me. We both joined to meet each other. We emailed back and forth for about 3 weeks and talked once on the phone. I was in Home Depot (b/c I woodwork) one day during a lunchbreak and he saw me and recognized me. I looked hideous that day and was traumatized! He thought I was so cute b/c of how nervous I was. I thought he would never write or call me again, but when I got home there was a message on my answering machine asking me if I wanted to go to dinner.

We dated for 2 1/2 years after that before we got married last November. Our relationship (not necessarily our lives, b/c that is a whole other story way too long for this post) has just been easy. That is how we knew it was right. We just fit together! : ) I'll post a wedding photo soon.

Sorry, this has nothing to do with bunnies....I just got all excited about my man!

 

[Bo B Bunny]

That's awesome!

You should be a MATCH.COM commericial couple!

Congrats! and have a great RE-honeymoon! LOL!

 

[EdieRabbit]

Here our our wedding photos...the last one is my Mom and me. I LOVE that pic! BTW, BBB, my brother in-law met his wife on Match.com too. They got married last June. So, yes, we should be on the commercial! LOL:biggrin2:

 

[Bo B Bunny]

You look almost identical to your mom in younger form! You seem to have your dad's nose!

You and hubby look adorable together - that's just awesome! Happy early anniversary!

 

[EdieRabbit]

Thanks BBB. Yes, I'm a mini-mom. LOL! I do have my Dad's nose, but I had surgery for a deviated septum years ago and everyone swears it looks different now. Thinner or something. Anyway, I didn't care, I was just glad I could finally, after 23 years, breathe out of both sides of my nose without using nose spray 3 times a day. It was awful! My hubby is a sweetie....such a pushover, especially when it comes to our furbabies! He says when we get a bigger placewe can get more buns, but I'm working on him to go ahead and get a playmate for Edie. Operation bun-mate is at hand! :dude: