I have been using the same vet practice for over 50 years but a few years ago it became a Greencross vets. After that things started to change. The existing staff went and gradually staff became to change more often. I was referred to a Greencross Hospital nearby that all after hours calls were directed to. It was no longer possible to see anyone from my practice after hours. At that clinic you had to see whoever was on duty at the time. With a serious problem I saw 4 different vets over the course of a week. I have been getting increasingly unhappy but at my last consult received a quotation for my elderly cat for a tooth extraction plus one night on fluids before hand for $1500- $1800. On comparing this with a bill from 2 years ago I found price increases ranging from 26-40% which I thought was excessive. I am now seeking a second opinion from an independent vet practice that has been recommended to me. I read of the growth of Greencross vets and really think there increasing domination is becoming a monopoly situation and changing service delivery methods. Have others had similar experiences?
Welcome @Lulu44 to the Community.
Let your feet do the walking.
As I understand it, Greencross was established as a chain of vets, and is now owned by one of those nasty capital investment companies out of the US, TPG. They are also owners of Petbarn.
Find an independent vet practice and see how it goes.
Agree, Gregr. Their greed has overcome my laziness and I am now galvanised into action.
I was being loyal to a practice that had completely changed. CHOICE Transformers helped me change electricity providers and I’ve now done that again. Have to adapt to a rapidly changing environment or pay a price-literally!
Thanks for your post, @Lulu44 … I was considering a move to a Greencross Vet just recently, it would be geographically more convenient, but after reading this, I will not.
We joined Greencross 18 months ago with our new puppy after being with an independent local vet for 17 years before. I am semi doubting the move as they rarely seem to be available for short notice needs. Having said that, all the vets have been terrific with their checks and care. Maybe they are too popular - or maybe there is a business model there that prevents ‘spontaneous’ vet service needs. We will see more over time.
Currently there is a vet shortage all across Australia. That may also impact things. Does anyone have any information on if it’s gotten worse through the pandemic?
Full disclosure, I have previously worked as part of the Greencross family of companies, although I can’t answer any specifics on this topic to be honest
I think they might be finally realising that people prefer to have the same vet at times. This has been a problem with Greencross - never the same vets.
It’s not great for the staff either - having to work at different surgeries all the time. I suspect it’s as good as hot-desking has turned out to be for staff moral.
I have also heard they don’t treat their staff that well in general, so they have a high turn-over.
I have now gone to an independent vet that encourages building a client/pet/vet relationship with continuity. The quote for the same service was well set out in plain English with all services clearly listed. The quote was for half the maximum quote I received last week. The consultation was thorough and I was there in the room not waiting outside the building! There were more staff including a dedicated front desk person. I agree that at Greencross they seem to minimise staff and make them do multiple services including busy vets sometimes having to field phone calls. In the end that is plain inefficient and takes them away from their core responsibility. Am glad I made the decision to seek a second opinion.
Ah now this one I can answer for. From my interactions with Greencross in the past there simply isn’t enough staff for the rapid expansion. Staff numbers have to grow rapidly to meet the demand for services created by the investment in new practices, and as I mentioned above the industry itself is sorely understaffed with a high number of people leaving the industry. Money can buy new practices but it can’t buy staff.
I should mention as well, I actually take my pets to a Greencross vet where I previously took them to an independent one. The reason is I once ran out of Meloxicam for my dog and took a shot at Greencross as they happened to be convenient at the time (my previous vet didn’t offer appointments and I was low on time). When I went in they asked when the last time was my dog had had their bloods run, as Meloxicam can put strain on the liver over time. Less than a day later blood results came back indicating partial liver failure in my dog. He has been on a capsule based anti-inflammatory for over a year now, and the last blood test showed his liver functioning normally again. I am 100% certain I would never have made this discovery if I had gone to my previous vet, they would have just sold me the Meloxicam like they always had.
So I guess at the end of the day the most important message is don’t shop on brand when it comes to vets. Looks around multiple in your area and get prices, as a vets really depends on having good staff most of all
Sounds like a fortunate pickup.
But you can look at it another way.
As soon as you walked in to the GC vet to get some usual medicine, they upsold you into a consultation, and lab blood test and analysis. Fair chance that the lab was associated with GC.
That would have cost money you were not expecting. As it turned out, there was an issue. But there may have been no issue, apart from the one your dog was already being treated for anyway.
It was all in house. You are correct that they definitely would have made more money that way. But it is a fact that the medication is known to be linked to liver issues when used long term. Now I understand that, a blood test is definitely wise at least annually when using Meloxicam, especially with an older animal.
Potentially my previous vet may not have mentioned it because they couldn’t do bloods in house I believe, and would have had to refer me to somewhere else. And once again, it could be just down to the individual vet or team of vets.
It is just a matter of taking some blood, and sending it off to a lab for analysis.
Having lost two cats to progressive age related kidney disease, I ask my vet to do this as a matter of course whenever I need to take one of my pets to be checked for something. And also give them some vaccine boosters too.
Yes there is a business conflict and up-selling is probably rife, but for perspective.
Not being a pet person, but have had a human in the family with severe negative consequences from the human medical system contributing to his death, should the customer/patient need to ask or should the provider offer/recommend? Sometimes both but it is not one or the other that is necessarily better.
Shouldn’t need to ask. This is basic annual screening (I am a vet)
