[Jacob-list] vets - a matter of economics

[Mary McCracken]

Exactly.  When I realize what the sick sheep is 'worth' in terms of $ I know
I need to solve the problem myself either by doing my own vetting or
shooting.  My vet is wonderful about giving advice over the phone as best he
can.  In the first couple of years I did have vet calls, even night time
visits, but realized I couldn't keep doing that and afford sheep.  I do have
other animals that go to the vet...horses, llamas and dogs.  But my vet has
even helped me with a wounded CHICKEN by phone.  ANd it lived!!
-----Original Message-----
From: AvillFarm at aol.com <AvillFarm at aol.com>
To: jacob-list at jacobsheep.com <jacob-list at jacobsheep.com>
Date: Wednesday, January 24, 2001 9:50 PM
Subject: [Jacob-list] vets - a matter of economics


>A number of my close friends are practicing vets and the way it is
explained
>to me is as follows.  The realities of veterinary practice are that farm
>calls are on average relatively inefficient in terms of $ earned per unit
>time expended, i.e. you "lose" alot of time in driving and costs incurred
by
>doing same that it simply isn't possible to recover from providing
veterinary
>services.  Horses, for most people, are either big $ investment or big pet
>(hence willing to spend alot of $ on irrespective of $ return) so they are
>better return on time spent from a profit standpoint.  Most vets I know
that
>treat goats and sheep routinely do it for one or both of the following
>reasons:  (1) because it is expedient and incidental to their main practice
>(i.e. the client already has horses and cattle), or (2) they simply like
>sheep and goats and have a personal interest in them.  In one local
practice,
>treating goats and sheep is basically the bobby prize, i.e. it falls to the
>newest or most jr vet in the practice.  Alot of times these are good vets,
>but they tend to move on after a couple of years because they realize
they'll
>likely never make partner in this firm.  Don't know how common this is, but
>I'd suspect it is an issue some places.  Nowadays alot of young vets get
out
>of school with alot of debt and the realities of paying back school loans
>definitely have an impact on the choices they have to make regarding
practice
>as opposed to what they might do if they could just afford to do the kind
of
>medicine that they would prefer to practice.
>
>E.
>
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