These small one or two man practices (usually with a spouse helping out) is almost obsolete, yet is one of my favorite kinds of vet care providers that I like for general pet care: They will provide necessary vaccines, worming, spaying, simple dentistry, abscesses, day to day cuts and bruises....you get the idea? also can do minor and a little more comrplicated surgeries...most likely pyometra, cystotomy, and possibly bloat.  No frills, down to earth...,their kids are probably grown so they don't have college bills to pay and they don't care about world travel. 

 

Animals are truly their family and so are you! "Diagnostics" they provide may be an old fashioned machine that takes x-rays, not 'radiographs' ...they may do minimal blood work,  urinalysis "in house" yet will send to a lab if they need more information to help your pet. They recognize their limitations and will send clients to a specialist or more 'techie' doctors when necessary. 

What are some of their diagnostic tools? Touch, (palpation or manually feeling the internal organs for irregularity), smell (certain diseases have a particular odor), good eyes (they can recognize certain common skin diseases by sight rather than needing to 'culture' everything,)  and experience!...they have been there, done that so many times, they don't always need extensive bloodwork .