We had all of our animals vaccinated here in Feb. 2017, and have made previous visits concerning our dog last Fall. This clinic was recommended by a neighbor when we moved to the area last year. The d... Read More
We had all of our animals vaccinated here in Feb. 2017, and have made previous visits concerning our dog last Fall. This clinic was recommended by a neighbor when we moved to the area last year. The doctors have both been good to our pets. We haven't had issues with this clinic except for its limited hours of operation during the week (no early drop-off and late pick-up during the week for example) and a couple of unanswered emails submitted via their website.
Today, I lost a lot of faith in this clinic after my experience with the vet tech acting as receptionist. I concede that I did not have an appointment when I visited at appr. 8:45AM on 4/8/2017.
The reason for this visit was a cat with an injured eye. I did not know how severe the injury was as the cat did not act differently as she had normally. However, the third eyelid was red, inflamed, and looked pretty gross, so I thought I could take her in so they could have a look. Upon arriving, I left the cat crated in the car and entered the clinic. There was one man with a dog in the waiting area, so the clinic was not full of waiting patients. I told the vet tech at the desk about the cat's condition. She said that there were no more appointments because today was a "short day" (meaning they were only open until noon) and there was only one doctor at the clinic. I told her I understood, but I mainly wanted someone to take a quick look just to see if the cat needed immediate care, or if the condition was mild enough that I could make an appointment within the next couple of days for treatment.
The vet tech replied that if it was something wrong with the eye, then the cat should probably be seen immediately. So I asked the vet tech if she couldn't take a look, then could she recommend an alternative clinic. I was met with silence. I waited for some sort of response for about 10 seconds before asking if there might be an emergency clinic they usually recommend. The vet tech replied that there were a few in the area. She did not offer any more information than that. I left the clinic, went to the car and Googled "emergency animal clinic near me" and received several results, as well as another veterinary office 1.7 miles away that also had Saturday hours (and who saw and treated the cat, even though their waiting room WAS full).
I don't expect a vet tech to have all the information I would find on Google, but I do expect a couple of things from a vet tech at an animal clinic:
1.When recommending that any condition involving an eye should be tended immediately, then at least ask to see the eye, especially if you are a vet tech. Even though there are no appointments available in the computer, the condition may be serious enough to warrant at least asking the vet to see if he would consider seeing the animal anyway--the more customer-centered course of action. If, for any reason, he could not fit the patient into the schedule somehow, he could make that clear. It isn't fair to a customer for a vet tech to suggest that a condition is serious and then not DO anything or offer any course of action besides suggesting the animal be seen immediately.
2. If you are recommending that an animal be seen immediately, but you can't see the animal yourself, then at least recommend one or two alternatives, and have an idea of where they are located relative to your clinic. Offer that information to customers instead of saying nothing. And if you are inclined to go the extra mile, CALL the alternative facility for the customer to see if there are any appointments available or just to see how busy the facility is so that another might be suggested that isn't as busy.
In the past, I've had the inkling of what was confirmed today: Don't expect more than minimum from these nice-enough professionals. Read Less