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Vets in Hong Kong

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  1. #1

    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Posts
    1

    Angry Vets in Hong Kong

    Does anyone ever feel like the vets are money hogging with no real humility (pet-mility) when it comes to really caring for our pets?

    It is not enough that we are worried sick sometimes because we cannot figure out why our pet is acting sick/ is just sick, or flustered because of the ridiculous fees charged for short checkup or tests that is more often than not, inconclusive, but the vet has to at times prescribe drugs or food where the importance of buying it would mean your pet would be even more sick than if you do not buy it... what can you do but rely on their expertise? Oh! Correction - sometimes they shoot using their nurses - because the vet is on a pedestal and couldn't ever pick up the phone and talk to you directly. So the nurses are like "you must get it, the vet said so". When you asked for the vet to call back, they never do. Even human doctors call back.

    This is ridiculous. I was already suspicious and asked over and over again whether certain prescriptions are necessary, and the nurse refused to put the vet on (or the vet simply hid away in the castle). My pet got sicker and sicker until I stopped the prescription. I tried to get a refund for the prescription and the nurse was heck of a rude one, no one called back, and the vet is still missing. What kind of service is this? The prescription aint expensive, but for so little money, the vet and its clinic really showed me how ridiculous they can be.

    Where are the good vets out there in Hong Kong? I so want to file a complain at the Veterinary Surgeons Board.


  2. #2

    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Posts
    6,531

    Don't make a complaint about this...

    There are several things you have to consider...

    - There's lots of vet options in Hong Kong, so plan to change to another if you don't trust this one and don't agree with their communication.
    - There's a shortage of vets in Hong Kong. Up until recently, you couldn't train to be a vet in Hong Kong, so all vets were trained abroad at their own cost. Now CityU has a program, but it is not supported/subsidized by the Education Bureau, so it's a very expensive form of private education for locals. As vets are trained abroad or are expats, many got fed up and left in the recent years (I think, from my first hand experience). Generally, vets don't have time to make phone calls with every patient. VSH vets, which offers specialty medicine, did for us but we were paying for it ultimately.
    Edit: in my experience, I did have a lot of calls with vet nurses, and they're also highly trained/experienced, so it's also good to talk to them -- you're not being undercut necessarily.
    - Yes, vets take stabs in the dark about what could be ailing our pets. Pets can't talk to us and tell us what hurts and where or what happened, etc. It's very frustrating. I've also spent tons of money doing xrays, blood tests, etc. never finding the source of the problem. What has worked for me, though, is having a network of other animal lovers, mostly through the charities where I adopted or fostered with, and they helped a LOT with diagnosing or providing a sounding board so I could check about medications, etc. (It was a charity worker that works so much with stray cats that was able to diagnose my cat's problem as stomatitis when multiple vet visits and tests did nothing -- she had the hands-on expertise of dealing with a lot of sick cats to quickly recognize it!)

    So, change your vet, be a bit sympathetic and patient, and try to connect with charities and other people who have experience with animal health -- there's lots of opportunities in HK.

    As for the care and mannerisms of vets in HK, I've been generally very very pleased with some very caring people who work a very hard job (long hours with dogs yapping and cats screaming endlessly...). I've experienced this both in private and SPCA clinics, but yes, it's a tough environment and they don't have much time or resources sometimes.

    I'd recommend looking for an SPCA clinic near you, which will be the cheapest, too. But they do require some patience. Maybe if you say your general location we can make some specific recommendations?

    (Incidentally, if you think HK vets are expensive, try coming to Switzerland -- I was just charged a $300HKD extra consultation fee because I asked "Can I get some xxx" plus $400 for that medicine -- in HK, it would have cost me total $200 and vets never bat an eye at providing something I asked for for a pet that wasn't present...)

    And PS -- I've had some shit vets in HK, too, who rubbed me the wrong way, left me feeling frustrated, insulted for how they spoke to me as if I harmed the animal, etc. Just move on, there are far more good ones out there than bad ones.

    Last edited by Elegiaque; 20-03-2023 at 08:40 PM.

  3. #3

    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Posts
    6,531

    Incidentally, a friend (who adopted my foster kitten) posted this link about the vet shortage in Singapore. A friend in California also mentioned a shortage. It's a really hard job, so be really grateful we have vets available.

    https://sva.org.sg/news/staffshortage2023/

    jabalong likes this.

  4. #4

    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    Tri-State
    Posts
    11,647

    Being a Vet is a very hard job every where. We're also not producing enough of them. It's harder to get into Vet school than Medical school in the U.S. That said, there are some vets that are better than others. It's up to you to find the right one for you and your pets.

    https://www.npr.org/sections/health-...love-and-grief

    jabalong likes this.