This is not meant to be a "trashing" of this particular vet, but rather an honest accounting of my family's experiences over the years we had been going to this establishment.
My wife and I are lovin... Read More
This is not meant to be a "trashing" of this particular vet, but rather an honest accounting of my family's experiences over the years we had been going to this establishment.
My wife and I are loving pet guardians. We waited a long time and let a lot of things - big and small - slide with them for the simple fact that this was our very first vet and we stayed with them out of a certain familiarity and even loyalty. This was a big mistake on my part and an incredible disservice to our beloved four legged family.
The first issues we began to have with our vet was an indifferent attitude about the lives of our kitties. The gentleman who operates this establishment - an older no-nonsense sort - is severely lacking in what might best be called a good "bed side manner." To wit: When explaining to him about health concerns we were having with our second oldest kitty we were told - and this is a direct quote - "It will be impossible to absolutely determine what the source of her eating issues are without performing an autopsy." OUCH. Now this might very well have been true, but come on, I think any loving pet guardian expects honesty, but there is a right way and a wrong way to impart thoughts and medical advice. Telling us to our faces that an autopsy performed on our little kitty is the only real way to solve a medical problem is lacking in the very definition of grace, compassion and class.
At another time we were told by this same "gentleman" that - and again, this is a direct quote - "owning a cat or a dog is like owning a car: sometimes you have to trade in a defective or faulty one for a brand new model with no issues." Really? This might fly with some of the more hard-lined and emotionless pet owners who view their animals as nothing more than patio furniture, but to any reasonable, caring and loving owner who views their pets as members of their family, this is not at all acceptable. Our animals are NOT property, but rather they are living and breathing creatures just like us that are capable of an unlimited supply of love. This vet owner's philosophies might be best kept at the local country club while he sits around and talks shop with the "boys." If you are in this line of work, compassion, understanding and love are the order of the day, NOT the exception.
The event that finally inspired us to depart this vet and find a new and more loving care giver for our family was the death of our little kitty cat. She was taken in for a routine dental cleaning. Prior to this visit she had been diagnosed by another vet in town as having stomatitis, a condition which can create moderate to severe swelling of your pet's gums. It is manageable if jumped on right away. Our kitty had just been diagnosed and put on a regimen of prenesalone. Along with that, she was given a shot of an antibiotic to combat this. The result? Her health took a MAJOR turn for the better. Dental cleanings are often recommended to help alleviate this condition. After a week on her new regimen, we took her to our old vet for the cleaning who we feel acted irresponsibly in the handling of her condition. The vet gave our little girl another shot of antibiotics, assured us that at the same time as all of this it would be perfectly fine to also give her her annual CVR/C and leukemia shots on top of all of this. The end result? We took in a relatively healthy and happy kitty that morning and, within less than 24 hours, she was dead. Coincidence? If you choose to believe that then you are entitled to, but we think otherwise.
Oh, and the vet who performed this cleaning and administered her shots that day? NEVER called us back to check up on things.
I know this particular institution has a LARGE number of supporters. Good. Again, you are entitled to your own thoughts and opinions. BUT...PLEASE...Keep our review of what has happened to our little family in mind if searching around for veterinary care for your doggy or kitty. If only one person takes this review under careful thought and advisement then our pet's death will not have been in vain. Read Less