They need to educate their staff.
We brought our dog in because she wasn't acting like herself. Blood work was taken, and we were told her potassium levels were off the charts high, which we were informed could be fatal. The vet suggested it could be Addison's disease and ran a cortisol test, which came back normal. We were then told another test would be needed the following morning to definitively rule out Addison's.
Our concern was that if her potassium was truly that high, she might not make it through the night. After discussing this with my fiancé and the vet (who did not disagree), we decided to drive 2.5 hours to Cornell Animal Hospital for emergency care.
After putting our dog through additional stress, blood work, and spending another $400, Cornell informed us that all of her labs were perfectly normal. They told us she is a very healthy dog and explained that the original results were likely due to Northwinds using the wrong blood vial, which can falsely elevate potassium levels. The Cornell vet also stated that if her potassium had actually been that high, she would likely have been in cardiac arrest.
The next day, I contacted Northwinds and asked to speak with the owner. I received a call from Mike, who was rude and dismissive from the start. He called me a liar, repeatedly called me "bud" after I asked him not to, took zero accountability, and showed no sympathy for the 5-hour round trip, lack of sleep, emotional distress, or additional $400 we were forced to spend. He brushed the situation off as a "learning curve" and refused to offer any refund or resolution.
This was an incredibly stressful and unnecessary ordeal caused by incompetence and poor communication. I would strongly caution anyone against bringing their pet here--you may be given false information, put through unnecessary panic, and receive no accountability afterward. read more