Having worked for veterinarians for 15 years, doing grooming and managing their boarding facilities, I have a real good idea of how the different procedures go - whether it's just routine vaccinations or complicated surgeries trying to save a pet hit by a car. That was many years ago, but certain things just don't change.
Recently we took our dog in for a routine neutering. We dropped him off early in the morning and were called to pick him up about 4pm in the afternoon. While waiting for my turn to pay my bill before getting my dog, an employee came from the back with a small dog whose owner was there to pick it up from a grooming.
The poor little thing was obviously in some kind of distress; dragging it's little butt all over the floor; trying to reach around with it's nose and deal with whatever was bothering it, and having been a groomer myself for so many years, I couldn't believe that not ONE; not ONE of the 4 people behind the desk didn't take note of the poor little thing's angst and suggest maybe a vet should take a look and see if it wasn't nicked or possibly had impacted glands that needed to be addressed. The 4 personnel just finished the owners billing and sent him out the door with the little dog still struggling with it's backside. I was very angry and it wasn't even my dog!!
So, next I was called into a room to have a so-called 'vet-tech' explain my dog's procedure and go through my itemized bill. I was seething from the lack of treatment of the previous little dog, so I tried as calmly as I could to say 'I've worked for veterinarians for 15 years - I'm familiar with all this, and I just want my dog. Give me my bill so I can pay and leave'. She then proceeds to tell me, 'oh, by the way, I tried to get his hip joints to pop while he was under, and I couldn't, so it's all good'. I damn near went through the ceiling at that point, and said 'I didn't bring him here to have his hips checked, I brought him here to be neutered!!!! Go get my dog!!!'
I was so pi _ _ ed that they would deliberately try to cause harm to any dog, much less mine, in order to make an excuse for a very expensive cruciate ligament surgery. That act was nothing short of creating work and dollars for themselves! Cruciate ligament surgery is very hard on the dog and takes a long time to recover with very intense physical therapy!!
I was sick that I had even taken my dog there, much less left him to be deliberately, potentially greatly hurt by these jerks - on purpose!! I paid my bill and left, vowing NEVER to return and to share my story with as many as possibly.
They had absolutely NO REASON to even check his hips for anything; there was absolutely nothing wrong with him and I never gave them permission to try and 'pop his hip joints' under the guise of 'checking for bad knee joints'. This was a purposeful act to hurt my dog in order to bring themselves big dollars because even if he was a breed prone to having bad hips, I took him there to be neutered - not MAIMED!!!
They were doing nothing more than trying to potentially create work ($$$$$$$$$$$$$) for themselves, and after seeing how they didn't have any concern for the little dog with the problematic backside that had been in their care before I got there to pick up my dog, I had no doubt they were deliberately trying to ruin my dog's knees!
Ask yourself, why would they try to 'get his knees to pop' when I took him there to be neutered??
I'm having my dog's knees and elbows x-rayed for OFA certification next week (completely different vet practice), and if my dog was harmed by the previous vet's reckless and dangerous practices, I will never forgive myself for ever taking him there in the 1st place, and it won't be the end of this saga. read more