I had a very interesting experience at Union Street Vet Hospital. The receptionists were lovely and accommodating. Dr Hartman was polite. The vet tech or vet assistant, didn't get her name, was very rude and unhelpful. My bird left with a broken toe, that I still have no answers about.
I have a small green cheeked female conure. I waited about 40ish minutes to get my bird seen for a nail trimming. Honestly, this is an average wait time for most vets and even human doctor's offices, so I can't really complain on that front. It is always inevitable to wait upon arrival. A receptionist came outside to get my bird and brought her back out promptly. I was then told the amount, $18 and prompted to pay. The nail clipping was done however I noticed one of the nails was not clipped the same way as the others. I also noticed one of her toes was splayed sideways. I mentioned this to the receptionist and she took my bird carrier back inside. I was prompted to come inside shortly after by what I can assume was either the Vet Tech or Vet Assistant. She had my bird in a towel and was showing me the nail was in fact cut. Then the vet tech proceeded to say something like "and this is her broken toe" about a different nail. I was VERY taken aback at the casual mention of a broken toe. I would like to say, I am with my bird AT HOME for the majority of the day. She is with me 24/7 except when I am asleep. She is always supervised. I take a lot of photos/videos of her almost daily, and I looked back at them and saw nothing of the sort indicating the broken toe I am seeing now. I asked the vet tech if that had happened here and she said no. And then I asked her "in general, how would something like this happen? how would a bird break their toe?" I wanted to know how this injury occurs. The vet tech said "it could've happened in the car on the way I don't know, she could've been attacked by another bird." I don't have other birds or animals, and she was in a carrier on a perch in the car with nothing she could've got her foot caught on. I reworded my question and said "I'm asking in general how an injury like this occurs." And the vet tech responds with, "I don't know I don't know her history I don't know what she does." I then asked her what the treatment for something like this would be and she responded with "Nothing, I don't know" I was very clearly trying to understand and get more information on the injury and she was very rude and very evasive of the questions I asked. She seemed plainly angry that I was asking her questions. Dr Hartman ended up coming out and politely letting me know that a bird can injure their toe by getting their nails caught in things. He said that there is a possibility it could've happened because my birds nails were a little long. I said great, I understand and paid for the services and left. What concerned me with this entire situation was that the injury was not pointed out to me whatsoever. My bird was given back to me and payment was asked, and nobody gave my pet another look until I pointed it out promoted them to do so. My bird was treated by veterinary professionals, not groomers. Why would a doctor see an injury and not make sure that I am aware of it? Is that not in the best interest of the well-being of my animal? And then on top of that, the rudeness and aggressiveness with which the vet tech spoke with me just made me feel very all around uncomfortable. I'm giving the place two stars because Dr Hartman was polite. However, I'm disappointed that a veterinary doctor would not alert me to the fact that my bird has a BROKEN TOE and then allow the vet tech to act so unprofessionally and rudely to someone seeking answers and information. The entire experience made me uneasy, and I firmly feel that this is not an office I can trust with the well-being of my pets. I know this office is probably a great place for a lot of people, however my experience was not a good one and I wouldn't recommend this vet hospital at all. read more