[Jacob-list] vets - a matter of economics

[Alan J Kramer]

When we first started with our sheep, our vet told us the four "Ss" of sheep
management: Sick Sheep Seldom Survive!  Fortunately, he started raising sheep
and has turned out to be a good resource for vet care.  He does make farm calls
though prefers to have the sheep come into the office.  Also, the fees for farm
calls for sheep are the same as for a horse, so it is up to me to determine if
the call is worth the price.

Mary Kramer
Evanston, WY

Mary McCracken wrote:

> 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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>
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