Our pets have been patients of Exeter Vet since 1998. First was Pearl (a cat), then was Tigger (a…read morecat), Sadie (a puggle) and now Taco, a chihuahua.
All was fine over the years. But...this past week...something happened which has caused me to leave Exeter Vet.
We adopted Taco (5 years old) in August 2024. We saw Dr Hill on our first visit and she was very kind. Taco is very healthy so we haven't brought her in for anything but nail clipping. We've brought her in at least three times for that without incident. The last two times, I have held her in a pack type carrier, where her legs stick out of holes. I hold a half cone under her chin and all is well.
On Tuesday, October 14, 2025, Taco had an appointment for a nail trim. My husband brought her. He was informed they were busy and there were no rooms available, so they'd take her into the back. He asked if he could accompany her and was told no.
Once they took her, she started screaming. She continued to scream for quite a few minutes. They brought her back out to him, told him she was turning purple, so they couldn't do anymore. (They did the two front paws, not the back, but charged us full price)
I went in on Wednesday or Thursday to make an appointment for them to do the two back paws. One of the techs walked by, looked straight at me, and said 'Your dog is VICIOUS!'! In that tone. I was taken aback by the statement and her tone. I said, 'She's a chihuahua!'. And the lady at the desk reiterated that Taco was BLUE when she was brought out to my husband.
I stopped by in person a few days later and ended up meeting with a female vet (shoulder length gray hair). I explained my concerns about how Taco was treated and all she said was 'I don't want my techs bitten'. Duh! I don't want anyone bitten either! But never once did she say 'Gosh, poor Taco.' Or admit that maybe the techs went too far in restraining her so long when she was obviously in distress. She did suggest we go somewhere else to get her nails trimmed?!!! We ARE going somewhere else. For everything.
While we were in the lobby, waiting for the vet, the tech who called her vicious walked by and Taco growled at her. (I loved it.)
Taco has had bloody stools since last Thursday. She has become weak and lethargic. She woke me up at 3:15 AM this morning and when I carried her off the bed, she went into the bathroom and had 100% bloody diarrhea. It happened again when she went outside around 7AM. We brought her to Brentwood Animal Hospital at 8. They did all kinds of bloodwork and xrays and, based on my explanation of what she endured at Exeter Vet, determined she was suffering from Stress Colitis. She has had blood dripping from her anus since 3AM.
We are going to treat her with probiotics.
The bloodwork and xrays showed she is 100% healthy in every other way.
And they trimmed her remaining nails at no charge.
Taco endured serious maltreatment at Exeter Vet. She's a chihuahua. She's anxious. The techs apparently had no knowledge or compassion for this. They continued to restrain her and clip her nails when she was SCREAMING and turning colors!!! If I had been there, I would have insisted they stop immediately. My husband is very soft spoken and has serious anxiety/depression. Taco is his unofficial psychiatric service dog. He has been beside himself this week worrying about her.
And the vet I spoke to!! No compassion or concern WHATSOEVER about the way Taco was treated.
It turned into a $1,250 nail trim due to the lack of concern or empathy of the Exeter Vet staff towards a 7 pound dog. Yes, we had bloodwork and xrays. They were necessary to reassure my husband that nothing else was wrong. That Taco didn't have a fatal issue. She is PERFECT other than the colitis.
I'm sure whoever responds to this message from Exeter Vet will say should have been medicated. WRONG!!! As her records show, her nails were trimmed without incident twice prior. And I will not medicate her when it's not needed.
The issue is, employees of Exeter Vet are NOT compassionate in the least. Do NOT bring your pet here if you want them to experience compassion.
After 24 hours of receiving meds to resolve the issues in her gut caused by the colitis, Taco is doing fairly well this morning. We look forward to her complete recovery, when she will be her SWEET, loving, fun, silly, active self.