By this summer we had been taking our pets to Eastside Pet Clinic for over 13 years. Like most…read morecats, ours hates to be in a carrier and to leave the house. She's terrified of the carrier, so we spend a couple weeks before a vet appointment putting treats in it so we don't have to force her in when the time comes. She was due for her shots, but had also been having vomiting issues, as well as what seemed to be other digestive issues.
We showed up on time with the stool sample they had requested. Our usual vet was on vacation, so one of the owners was our vet that day. From the start she was short, disinterested in our questions, and seemed to want to rush through the visit. And that's exactly what happened. She wouldn't take the stool sample (which, as stated had been requested), she was dismissive of our questions, and never even looked our cat's backside, or checked into anything related to our primary reasons for being there. She administered the usual shots, and sent us on our way with nothing more than the usual recommendations for the sensitive stomach prescription cat food they sell at the store, even after we had reminded them had not worked.
When our usual vet returned from vacation we called and asked her email so that we could explain our disappointments regarding the previous visit. We sent off an email, and two weeks later, had not heard back. I called to make sure the email had come through, and the assistant answering the phone confirmed that it had, but that our vet was particularly bad about answering emails. She said she'd try to get her to respond.
This was the beginning of what turned out to be a bizarre and wholly unprofessional cycle of labored communication. We sent another email, called again and were told the same- "she's bad with email, but we'll try to get her to respond." Over the course of 4 months, between many calls and email check ins, we received no phone calls, got two emails, the first with a one sentence apology for the disappointing service but no explanation, followed by a long list of info and questions. The second (after weeks of waiting and check ins) just another list of questions, which we responded to again, but then never heard back. To this day...two months later. No resolution, no final suggestions or plan, just a totally botched visit, two lists of questions and a pile of unanswered emails and calls.
In the end one of the employees apologized, volunteering that the whole thing was bizarre and unprofessional, and vowing to get the acting head of the franchise to email or call us. But that too never happened. We called one last time to make sure that this administrator had gotten our correct info, and this time the same employee told us that if it were her, she'd just go to a different clinic.
So...after 13 years we're looking for a new vet, and felt obligated to let any pet owners know before hauling your little one into East Side Pet Clinic that you may want to adjust your expectations.
