Start with the three hour wait and go from there.
On the…read moresurface, this place is impressive. We walked in and were immediately placed in a "patient room". The room had no sink, water, etc, and the corners were hoary and hairy, so we were afraid to put our kitten on the floor. Try holding an 8 week old kitten for three hours?
We met three people; a vet (Dr. Lii), a medical assistant, and a billing specialist. We talked to the Dr. twice, once for perhaps 45 seconds, then for approximately 3 minutes. We talked to the medical assistant twice as well. Neither discussion lasted more than 2 minutes.
The Billing Specialist, we met five times, and spoke with her for easily 15 mins.
Our kitten was severely dehydrated. We knew this, and had expected to walk in, pay a boat load for fluids, and all would be well.
BEFORE THEY'D EVEN TALK TO US about his condition, we suddenly received an unexpected "quote" of $1300.00 to serve the kitten.
All he really needed was fluids. He'd gotten into his sister's food of cooked chicken, and it was too much for his little body.
No communication. No discussion. No questions about what may have led us to arriving in the ER. No discussion of what we might be doing for a treatment. Instead, this guy walks in with his cell phone, pokes and prods at the kitten for perhaps 10 seconds, all the while talking quietly into his cell phone (notes). No direct communication with us whatsoever. Then he says "We'll work up a plan and then come talk to you."
No one came and talked to us about a "plan." Instead, we're emailed a quote listing a boatload of treatments, most of which seemed absurd.
I said this to the Billing Specialist, who then had the medical assistant come in. We thought we might be talking about "the plan" with her, but instead got an attitude of "we're really effing busy and you shouldn't be complaining about the price.
Lady, the PRICE isn't the issue. The issue was three hours of no-contact, and still no information about what the "plan" was. Just a coupla minutes with two people in a room with no water and a dehydrated kitten. No offer to get the kitten water, and while we were told there is "coffee available" no one asked about how we were managing. We're nervous about losing a kitten. We didn't anticipate being there for three hours. We also didn't anticipate an attitude from medical assistant.
The cost wasn't an issue. If that's what was required to heal the kitten, that's fine. But they didn't know what was wrong with the kitten, or if they did, no one told us. They just threw a kitchen sink, and then when I indicated it wasn't acceptable (because of how we'd been treated, not because of the amount), the attitude quickly shifted to "let's get them the hell out of here."
Price didn't matter. We knew they were busy. We didn't expect three hours of near silence. We expected the kitten to at least be given water and fluids while we waited to discuss "the plan" whatever that was.
Why we'll never return? Staff attitudes, inattentiveness, no water for kitten nor us over three hours, dirty room, hair EVERYWHERE.
We did go to across the street after we left. We gained far more information from them in 15 minutes than we'd gotten from VEG in three hours. The vet across the street told us this was very common in Siamese kittens, and we needed to limit his access to food and for the time being, give him electrolytes and the Smalls kitten food we were already giving our cats. We WILL be returning to that location.
Veg gets two stars simply because the place wasn't a total mess, and the vet seemed like he has some ability, and while he didn't talk to us much, it was clear he was focused on the kitten. I just wish he'd shared his thoughts with US, the people they were trying to take for $1300.00 without telling us what was going on.
Terrible staff. We paid 180 for the visit, plus another bundle for a single shot of fluid. Works out to be about $100.00 per hour to visit, while leaving with nothing.
We learned where to find the electrolytes in the pet store, recommended the post-visit activity, and what to look for moving forward. Again, Banfield for the win. And for the folks at Veg, Banfield propped you up good, but nothing is convincing us that anyone at VEG actually care about animals. They're a money mill.
The folks across the street also recommended an Urgent Care for pets, and we visited them on Monday. They too, were terrific.
Kitten is very much on the mend.
