ComplaintsforSandy Paws Animal Hospital

• Initial Complaint

  09/30/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On March 25, 2021 I took my dog, *****, to Sandy Paws Animal Hospital for her annual check up, shots, & heartworm test/prescription. The staff told me that I was required to have services performed that I did not request and did not want done. An argument unsued between me & the staff member which resulted in the termination of our business relationship. I paid for the services that I requested and received. When my dogs heartworm prescription came up for renewal by my medication provider, *****, Sandy Paws Animal Hospital refused to give them the prescription that I had paid for. They suggested that I take my dog to another vet to get the prescription which will cost me again for the same service that I already paid them for.

  Customer response

  11/07/2021

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

   Complaint: ********

  I am rejecting this response because:

  I was not told in advance that my Vaccines for Life agreement was being amended to include a required fecal exam.  I do not agree with the need for an annual fecal exam and did not want the exam done.   Sandy Paws attempted to charge me for the exam but I refused to pay for that exam especially since it was not done, they wanted me to bring a fecal sample back at a later date to do it.  I did pay for the office visit, an ear swab (that I did not request), ear mite medication, and heartworm exam which should have been accompanied with a 1-year prescription for heartworm prevantative medication that I can provide to any veterinary pharmacy.  My pharmacy of choice is *****.   I did not receive the prescription at the time of my visit nor would Sandy Paws provide that prescription to ***** when it was time for *****'s medication to be refilled in September.  I only requested that Sandy Paws provide ***** with the heartworm prescription that was owed to me from March.  Flea medication does not require a prescription and I have gotten that from *****.

  Regards,

  ****** *******

  Business response

  11/10/2021

  Tell us why here...When ****** arrived for her appointment, she was informed of the revised agreement with the Free Vaccines For Life which added the requirement of having a heartworm and fecal test completed at the time of renewal. This was enacted to assure every pet is getting the best medical care each year. If an owner does not bring in a fecal sample at the time of their visit, the staff will offer the owner a pre-paid fecal kit to be sent home with them. This allows the owner to collect a fecal sample at home, and bring it in clinic for testing within 30 days. 
  
  During her pet's examination with **. ***** on March 25, 2021, ****** expressed her frustration about the requirement of collecting a fecal sample from her pet. **. ******** ***** understood her frustration and allowed her to decline the fecal exam but still be a participant in the Free Vaccines For Life program. ** ***** also provided a free nail trim for ***** at the time of the visit. 
  
  ****** stated in her rejection letter that she paid for the “office visit, an ear swab (that I did not request), ear mite medication, and heartworm exam which should have been accompanied with a 1-year prescription for heartworm preventative medication that I can provide to any veterinary pharmacy.” During every examination with the doctor, the animal is examined from head to tail. During **. ***** examine, she found that ***** had an ear infection. The practice at our clinic is that we do not run any testing without the owner's approval, which is this case ****** did approve for us to run an ear swab cytology, and that test determined that ***** did have an ear infection and needed treatment, which she also approved. Also, she believes the heartworm test should have been accompanied with a one-year prescription for heartworm prevention. However, at the time of the visit ****** did not request a refill of heartworm prevention had she, then we would have been able to give her a written script for a one-year supply of heartworm prevention to provide to her pharmacy of choice. It was not until September 30th, 2021 that ****** called in to request a refill of *****’s heartworm prevention. If at that time she was a current client of ours, we would have only been able to approve a 6-month supply of heartworm prevention, due to the law of a heartworm test is required once a year to prescribe heartworm prevention. Unfortunately, due to her behavior and interactions with our staff and doctor, we no longer will provide medical care to her pets and no longer have a client/ doctor relationship. Which is why the request for the heartworm prevention refill was declined. 
  
  We are more than willing to provide the veterinarian of her choice with copies of all pertinent medical records at no charge to her. Should her successor veterinarian need information beyond that provided by the medical records, our staff members will furnish her new doctor or veterinary practice with additional information by phone. We feel we have fully explained our stance and this is our last response in this matter. 

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