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| - Dealing with VCA has been the most excruciating customer service experience of my life. There are some good people there who are kind and helpful. Also some who are downright rude or uncaring. But the biggest problem is the almost total lack of communication between VCA staff. Procedures and answers to questions are different depending on who answers the phone. Sometimes it seems they are just making things up as they go along. And their lab is ridiculously slow and unresponsive to requests for emergency results. If you are considering hospitalizing your pet at VCA you may want to read about my experience first. The problems at VCA appear to be systemic, so I have to think what occurred is representative of what it is like to deal with them over a longer period of time.
My 10 year old standard poodle Charley suddenly became very ill last Fri., July 15, while I was out of town and my daughter was watching him. He had been to his regular vet the day before with a minor ear infection with no major problems noted. But on the 15th he could not stand or walk and had low platelet and white blood cell count, so it was obvious something was terribly wrong. Our primary vet recommended VCA among several other options. We chose VCA because of their 24 hour care and diagnostic capabilities.
My daughter was understandably upset when she brought Charley in to VCA. A little bit of human kindness and compassion would have gone a long way, yet she received none. The admitting doctor insinuated my daughter had not taken care of the dog, which was really quite cruel given how upset she was. And the girls at the front desk could not have cared less and were very poorly trained. This dog was my financial responsibility, not my daughter's, yet they refused to accept my Amex over the phone. They made my daughter pay $1877 of her own money, and when she indicated she might not have that much, they sarcastically asked if she needed financial assistance! I was very worried about how we were going to take care of this given that I could not get back to AZ until Mon., yet when I called the next morning they took my Amex over the phone no problem!
I spoke to several doctors over the week-end. I was told Charley was stable enough to be released Sun. I talked them in to keeping him another night so my daughter would not have to deal with this alone. We made arrangements to pick Charley up Mon. afternoon. I spoke to numerous people about this. Yet when I arrived no one had any idea I was planning to pick him up that day! He had not been transitioned from IV meds so I could not take him home.
While Charley was hospitalized I agreed to have him put under for an aspirate and bone marrow biopsy. There was some risk involved given his condition, but I was assured these tests were the only way to find out what was going on, so I agreed. Well, we are now 8 days post biopsy with no test results. I have been told twice the results were in, only to find out they were not. I was told numerous times they were having problems with their lab. They seem to think this doesn't reflect on them, but it does. Seriously, get a new lab!
Yesterday was the worst day. I received a call at 7 am. The long awaited biopsy results were in! I was assured Dr. Moyer would call me just as she finished her rounds, probably around 9 am. No phone call. I called again at 10:30 and was told she would call in 1/2 hour. No phone call. I called again a little after noon and spoke with Dr. Moyer. She informed me biopsy results were not in after all! She also told me we had only a small chance the biopsy would tell us more than we already knew, which is basically nothing. So why did we do the test at all I wonder? Dr. Moyer said they would waive the lab fee for the biopsy. She wanted me to bring Charley in for blood work, so we made an appointment at 3:30.
I got to thinking about all I had been through with VCA, and decided I didn't want to deal with them further under any circumstances. I called to cancel the appointment and to get the adjustment made to the bill for the biopsy that never came in. That time I was told the Director has to approve bill adjustments so I left her a voicemail. We'll see what happens.
So now we are $7200 in and I still don't know what is wrong with Charley. I appreciate that VCA kept him alive long enough that I could see him and bring him home. But honestly I would never take another pet there no matter what. Dealing with VCA is like going down a long dark tunnel from which you feel like you will never return. Just don't do it.
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