Good vets and friendly staff, completely let down by poor and unacceptable communication.
We booked our Spaniel (Otis) in for castration a few weeks ago. Upon booking, we asked if there was a pre-op appointment or information, but were told by the receptionist everything would be explained on the day of surgery.
On the day of surgery when we came in at 8.30am, the first thing we were asked was whether we had fasted Otis in preparation for the surgery. We hadn't, because we had no communication to tell us this needed to be done. The vet then said we would have to pay £35 for an anti-sickness injection because we hadn't. When I suggested the vets should cover this cost due to their lack of communication, they refused.
Instead, the vet suggested that they would do the surgery in the early afternoon. I explained Otis had separation anxiety, so this option would not be suitable to prolong Otis's operation and stay at the vets, for his own wellbeing. Even with this information, they refused to cover the cost, so we reluctantly agreed to pay for the injection for Otis's sake.
The vet advised that the surgery would begin around 10.30am, dependant on whether any critical cases came through the door (totally understandable). The vet the explained if this does happen, at the worst case, the surgery would be started at around 12.30pm.
We then left Otis in their care and went to work. At 4.30pm, we had received no update at all (no news is good news, right?). We called for an update at 4.30pm and were told by the staff that Otis's operation had not even been started yet. I find this completely unacceptable, as we were categorically told that at the worst case, it would be started at 12.30pm. This meant that Otis was left without us for several more hours than needed, suffering from separation anxiety - something I had informed them of upfront.
The surgery was finished in the evening and we were requested to pick Otis up at around 7pm. When we had a consultation with the vet, I asked how Otis had been with his separation anxiety. The vet said that he was howling in the vets, so they gave him a sedative in the morning to calm him down. This was not communicated to us before giving him the sedative for our approval, but was still put on the final bill. In essence, they gave medication that was not agreed and charged us for it without prior consent or agreement to the additional cost. The lack of communication was just not acceptable in relation to this. Furthermore, if we knew that surgery wouldn't have been done until the evening, we would have brought Otis in the afternoon, saving him from needing to have this and also, to minimise the un-needed stress he was put under.
There is a lack of understanding from this vets, that when your animal is left there for surgery, as an owner you are worried and stressed until you know they are ok, out of surgery and back in your hands. It was so distressing and upsetting to find out that hours after the surgery should have been completed, it wasn't at all. This left us worrying for hours more and put Otis through stress, extended starvation and anxiety for absolutely no reason.
It's also disappointing that they are not willing to accept financial responsibility for aspects caused by them, including the need for anti-sickness medication because we were provided absolutely no information prior to the day of surgery, despite us asking for this weeks before.
It's very telling of their lack of care to communicate with owners, when you read all the various review sites and they do not respond to a single bad review. This is poor ethics for any business, never mind one that is in an industry of supposed care.
In summary:
- Friendly staff.
- Good vets.
- Abysmal communication.
- Give your animals drugs without prior consent.
- Charge you for their errors.
I feel really let down here and it's really sad, because the staff and vets are really nice, but they cause unnecessary suffering due to their inability to communicate effectively.
