My wife is looking to become a large animal veterinarian, and she's going to need a truck with a vet box. I'd like to get her a top of the line one that replaces the bed:



Company says it weighs 1400 lbs, I figure you can probably add a bit once you fill the hot/cold water tanks and add equipment. I'm not sure how much a truck bed weighs, but I was wondering if a 2500/3500 would be necessary, or if we could get by with a 1500. Seems like it would be at the load limit for a 1500. Would a 1500 with heavier springs and shocks be an option, or would we just be better off with a 25/3500?

I'd love to get her a 2500 CTD, but if we can get away with something less expensive I'd like to do that.

Thanks all.

 

Down here in Central Virginia, all the large animal Vets run 3/4 ton 4x4's. Its not only the weight but the need to get off road with the weight.

The only exception is my daughter, she runs a stripped 1999 Ford Ranger 2x4, but she does small animals, and rarely does house calls.

Wish you wife well when cold weather hits, thats why my daughter went small animals.

 

One of my vets runs a single rear wheel Ford F350 4x4 with a box similar to your picture. Another runs a little Ford F250, no box, just yards everything in and out of her back seat (extra cab) and the canopy. It's a pain but she's fairly young and can't upgrade quite yet. Another vet runs a 1998 Dodge 12v CTD, extra cab, canopy with sidelift windows and he puts his dental stuff in a little tagalong trailer. It's totally what you want to spend, and somewhat what the height of the person using the rig is!
Even a 3/4 ton 4x4 will wallow a bit if the weight is on it and the road is rough - and I'd personally advise a one-ton 4x4, as too often a horse vet will HAVE to get out in a pasture if there's an emergency call - lugging gear back and forth over a quarter mile in the dark just doesn't cut it. It's always Sunday night when they go down.... raised horses over twenty-five years, trust me, I know.
www.irishhuntersandjumpers.com

 

Thanks for the info! I'll definitely be getting a 2500/3500 4x4 when the time comes.

Your farm looks like a piece of heaven! I lived in Seattle for two years, and while I hated the rain, as soon as you get over the mountains it's a different country! One of these days I'm planning on getting a draft horse of my own (wife has two mustangs).

 

sorry to the other readers, but it's my personal mission to educate....

Our Irish Draught horses are NOT draft animals, they are bred to be jumpers-eventers-hunters. not plow horses. While the purebreds are BIG and HEAVY, they are far from the coarse slow critters that the term "draft" implies. We got into them to get the wonderful Irish temperament, and size and soundness on our TB broodmares. We also got bigger horses.... that meant bigger trailers.... and that meant a better truck!
So, back on topic, we got our '96 Dodge CTB 3500, and we've come full circle.

Thanks for kind comments on the website, it's been a labor of love.
http://www.irishhuntersandjumpers.com