I know there is another thread about current vet procedures but just to say I felt it was probably time for me to get Teazel in for a general health check - plus there's a small lump that keeps appearing to one side of her cheek.  When I massage it, it goes, and it doesn't seem to be hard, or causing her discomfort.  Some while back, when she had a dental, a broken tooth was found and supposedly dealt with.  I can't remember which side that was, and unlike with my Bassets I can't easily get her mouth open enough to see what's going on.  It may be that this has to do with the broken tooth although that was supposedly fixed!   She's a Whippet with a tight mouth, compared to a Basset. 

Anyhow I asked what their current protocol is and was told that clients can come in with one dog into the waiting area but not into the consult rooms which are too small for proper distancing.   I gather the vet would come out and discuss the problem, if any, prior to examination, and obviously, afterwards too.

I really don't want to have her examined without me being there I'm afraid, so I may wait until things free up further.  After all I've had both my shots + would wear a mask.  I hope I'm not pushing my luck by waiting!!

Are other vets doing similar still?

Different in different practices. One of mine is a big hospital so no going inside at all.
Another you can go into the consult room.

Why don't you want the vet checking her over without you? Does she panic without you?

Just come back from my general vet . They are now allowing you into the consult room and waiting room but one at a time wearing mask and sanitising your hands. Ours is very well controlled with lots of acrylic partitions.

It may vary practice to practice so you need to give them a ring.
Sorry just realised you know what they are doing . We have to work with whatever each vet decides.

We still have to wait in the car.

I had to stay in the car until vet invited me in

My vet you still have to stay in the car park and vet comes out to you takes animal in and then comes out again to return animal and talk to you.

If she has to go in without you I would draw on her with a none toxic pen where the issues are so can be no misunderstandings.

My favourite vets collect the dog from the car park, and take the details of the problem themselves. They take them into the surgery, and report back to discuss their findings. I am OK with that.
However, during the Winter months, we twice had the dog taken away by a nurse, and delivered back with, '*** says ....', handing over a pack of tablets and a Visa terminal. I appreciate that lockdown conditions have not been ideal, but this is not acceptable. I have now become very selective which vet I see - even if it means waiting longer for an appointment, or travelling several miles to a different branch of the practice.

Still in the car, or in my case loiter outside on foot.

For my vet there's a maximum of 2 people in the surgery at a time, you can sit in the waiting room as long as there's 1 or 2 people no 3rd person. As far as I know, you can go in if your pet needs to be put to sleep but not general health check, vaccine, etc. because the rooms are small and it's their policy to always have an assistant with the vet.

> <br />Why don't you want the vet checking her over without you? Does she panic without you?

No she shouldn't panic but I just prefer to be able to be right there and to be honest, I don't think being told, in the waiting area, after the examination would be much different to actually being in the consult room at the time.  But if this works best for them, so be it.  I'm out of alternative vets locally now.

I wonder if they would consider checking her over in the car or carpark ?
Totally possible as they arnt using much in the way of equipment for a basic check

I’m registered with 2 vets
The first will allow 1 person in the waiting room, will come out take dog...Then come back and discuss

The 2nd allowed in the waiting room and also is the consult room where the have a screen above table.

Our new vets allow the owners into the waiting room. The seats are socially distanced. We sit opposite the consulting rooms. We're not allowed in there but the vet leaves the door open so we can see, and we can talk throughout the consultation. We can then collect any medication and pay at the counter.

I wonder if other vets practices will feel able to go back to 'normal' after June 21st?

We're allowed into consult rooms now, if we want to go in.  Obviously that makes social distancing difficult, but masked up and sanitised, I'm happy.  It means I was able to be with her when my oldie had a bad arthritis flare recently and was manipulated - it caused her severe pain and I'd have hated for her to go through that without me.

We still wait in the car park though.

Dropped River off for patella luxation surgery this morning and the surgeon ran through everything with us in the car park. That suits River, he’s happier outside anyway (he knows that painful things happen inside the building).

Last time we were there we were allowed in the waiting room but not the consultation room - they are tiny and it would be very difficult to distance. I’m not convinced that me being there makes all that much difference to River, he hates it whether I’m in the room or not!

Hope all goes well for him xx

> We're not allowed in there but the vet leaves the door open so we can see, and we can talk throughout the consultation. We can then collect any medication and pay at the counter.<br />

This sounds like a sensible answer except where the consult rooms are in my vet's practice is a narrow corridor with one room on one side and two on the other.  So anybody coming out of the one would have to get past anybody standing outside one of the two opposite.  Difficult with the old property this vet has.  That would have worked at my previous vet just outside Bideford which has a big waiting area, and a row of consult rooms off the waiting area, all down one side.  But that was a newish build premises.

I guess it's better to observe care rather than Covid get in there and them having to close!!

> Hope all goes well for him xx

He’s had both legs done at the same time! The surgeon’s very pleased with now it’s gone, so that’s really good. I’m so happy he’s only got one recovery period to go through then hopefully he’ll be better than new.

Yes, our previous vet had unsuitable premises whereas our new one has a much more favourable building and consequent regime which I appreciate.

I wonder how many vets have actually had to close due to Covid, maybe it's an urban myth? I will be happy to stand corrected

Just got back from taking Teazel for a check-up.   The small bulge that keeps appearing on the right upper side of her mouth is a pocket over the tooth (which is fine) this is catching food and any amount of other 'detritus' as he put it, in there.  The tooth probably needs to be extracted, BUT before that can be done, her heart murmur has gone up from grade 2, to grade 4 (in a year).  He wants to do a heart scan to see what's going on and what treatment is needed, which presumably will be ongoing.  This all looks like £££ but she's cost us a fraction of what Frankie cost us over the years, so I guess she deserves her turn.

We had to wait outside, chat outside and she was taken in and returned to the car - more chat.   I was allowed in to pay inside.

As for any heart medication - what is that likely to cost and will it be available online?  If anybody knows.

Our Cavalier who died of heart failure just over a week ago was on 3 drugs,Pimobendan(trade name Fortekor plus), Fursoemide & Prilactone which we sourced online, even with cost of the prescription we saved a lot of money, even though money wasn't an issue

It's very likely the drugs are available on line . I was able to get nearly all I needed for ckd and heart disease on line.
What i usually did was accept a small amount first off from the vet then checked on line and got a prescription. Ive always found all vets being very open to getting online where possible .

I had no problem getting a prescription form my vet for Frankie's Metacam so I'd imagine once we know what we are looking at for Teazel, it will be the same (assuming the meds need a 'script?)

More than likley they will be pom. Cost of scripts varies but they usually give u more than one amount of the drug so it helps with costs.

> After all I've had both my shots

And there are people out there who have had both shots.  And still caught Covid.

My late Lurcher had a grade 4 murder. She was treated with CoventalD and Vetmedin, and did brilliantly on them. I had a scrip for the Vetmedin as it is fairly dear and was only half of the price online.
Sadly she had other issues which were not treatable.

Predictive text - grrr!! Murmer.

My friends vet had to close due to Covid in staff member.

Her bitch was mid progesterone testi g having failed to get mated twice.

Due to travel restrictions she couldn't complete testing. The slip matings did not yield results.

I hope she has been successful this time as it's the maiden bitches last chance as she was 5 in April.