How to find a great vet

If you’re looking for a new vet, you know how frustrating it can be to find the right one–after all, turning to the yellow pages or Google won’t tell you much about the vet’s bedside manner, education, or wisdom. You won’t know if it’s a bad vet or a good one based on an ad or search engine result.

So, how do you find a vet? Here’s my five step process for finding a new one each time we’ve moved:

1. Ask the neighbors. But don’t just ask them where they go. Ask them *why* they go to that particular vet. Their values might not be your values and if they like a vet because he has the cheapest rates or because he has the fanciest waiting room, you want to know that before you make an appointment.
2. Ask your doctor. If you already have a local doctor, he or she can be a great source of veterinarian referrals because of a shared interest in medicine–nowadays most people have pets, so if your doctor has a vet he or she likes, this can be a smart, easy option.
3. Consider online reviews. Cautiously. Online review sites are great, but they don’t always give the full picture–you don’t know if those glowing testimonials were posted by clients or by employees (and the same goes with the bad testimonials), so by all means check out online sites like Epinions but don’t rely on them exclusively.
4. Meet several vets–most vets will let you come in for a free or cheap meet and greet that you don’t bring your dog to. Setting up a couple of these is a great way to get a feel for how the vet takes care of people which is an important element of choosing a vet. (You don’t want a vet who’s brilliant at taking care of your dog, but has no ability to tell you what’s going on.)
5. Ask your old vet. If you’ve moved, or your vet has retired, and so you’re parting on good terms, don’t be shy about asking your old vet for a recommendation. Chances are, he or she knows someone, or knows someone who knows someone.

Each time I’ve needed to find a vet, I’ve used all five of these techniques because I like to have several great vets to choose from. This process is also somewhat similar to how I I find a dog trainer. How do you like to find a vet when you move or you just need a new one?