We had an appointment and my wife and I had a miscommunication and got our times messed up. We were exactly 30 minutes late for our appt as a result. We just thought it was a little later appointment that it was.
When we got there, we were the only people at the vet. The receptionist told us our appt was at 3, not 3:30 but that she would check and see if the vet had time to see us. While she was gone, we saw the sign they have prominently displayed on the counter that says if you're more than 10 minutes late, you'll need to re-schedule. We were completely fine with that. It was our mistake and we understand that vets tend to have booked schedules.
The receptionist came back and said they had time to see us. She told us that they have an 10 minute late policy and we told her we'd seen the sign. She directed us to a room to wait. The assistant came in after a short time. We apologized for being late and she said she appreciated that. She did the pre appointment stuff, Weighing the dogs and confirming the needs for that visit. She then left and said they'd be back.
It was almost a half hour after we got there when she came back with an estimate for the appointment and then she told us that the next appt showed up and they'd have to move us behind them since we were late. That, on some level makes sense, since we were late. The fact that we had already sat there for a half an hour as the only people in the clinic made it feel a little hollow and punitive however.
We waiting almost another half hour for her to come back and say that they were almost done with that appt. I asked at that time how long it would be til someone could see us. She said she didn't know.
At that point, we got up and left. I got the dogs in the car with my wife and went back in to see if I owed anything for the visit. The assistant came out and said we didn't owe anything for that visit because they didn't do anything and then started to tell me about their 10 minute policy again. I told her it wouldn't be an issue since we weren't coming back. We were late, we were ok with rescheduling. It was our fault. What we weren't ok with was just being dumped in a room and left to wait endlessly. If they didn't have time to see us, that's all they had to say.
At this point, the vet came out with an attitude. Start chastising me for being late and, once again, lecturing me with their 10 minute late policy. I pointed out that my dog, her patient, has serious vet anxiety issues. I told her she knows that. She said no and her assistant shook her head yes and told her they did. I told her we wouldn't have to worry about that since I was never coming back. She then told me I was fired. haha. I've already told them twice i'm never coming back.... I fired you.
My dog has serious anxiety about going to the vet. They know that. they've treated him for it. If you're going to punish me for being late, fine, charge a late fee or something like that. What I won't stand for is punishing my dogs. Leaving our dogs in a waiting room for almost a full hour is unacceptable. Anyone that likes/works with animals know's better.
There are plenty of options in town for vets. I've heard there are some really good vets in town. This isn't one of them. She's more worried about her late policy than your pets well being. Any vet that would go this route clearly is in it for the money more than the animals. read more
