Dori's vet problems

Hey guys I haven't posted in a while, life has been hectic, but I need some advice and I know this is the best place to find it. Dori needs to see the vet in April for her annual exam. I want to get her teeth cleaned and a blood panel done at this time as well. The vet we see is good. She is actually in my neighborhood which is convenient as Dori gets quite stressed in the car.
Now for the problem... as good as the vet is, I really am not comfortable dropping Dori off and leaving her at this vet. I had to once before for them to collect a urine sample. When I picked her up, she was sopping wet from urine and water. I didn't notice it until I got home with her and let her out of her box. I was furious because not one person mentioned to me the condition she was in. I feel this was unacceptable. I questioned them about it and they basically told me she was uncontrollable for them. She hissed, spat, and bit every time they went near her. I am aware of her behavior at those times because she was awarded a big fat highlighter writing on the front of her chart that said "DANGER" the time she got spayed. When I call the vet to set up an appt they even remember her. They say "oh, HER, she is a tough kitty" She behaves perfectly when I am with her though, and even recently upon having a cystoscopy done, she sat very still as I pet her.
I have had a hard time finding a decent vet and hate to leave this one, but I am uncomfortable with the rest of the staff and can't drop her off.... I just can't. I found a feline only clinic in town. It is a 25 minute drive, bad for Dori's stress, and on top of that it's starting over with a new doc. I thought that maybe being a feline only clinic they would be used to dealing with kitty stress and might handle her better... I am not sure...What should I do? She will be sedated for the teeth cleaning, but I just hate thinking of them treating her as a "bad kitty" and not trying to calm her in any way.

Personally if it was me I would go to the feline only clinic. They would most likely know how to handle her better. I would rather her be a little more stressed getting there then the way she was handled. I had 2 ferals I brought in to mine and one of them was labeled THE WILD ONE on his folder. But he was never let to stay with urine or water on him like that. They new just how to work with his wildness, infact I had to laugh because he insisted on spitting at them when they were trying to give him liquid medicine and when he opened his mouth to spit they squirted the stuff on his tongue, you never saw a more surprised cat. Good luck.

I would see if you can tour the other vet's facilities. I personally think a 25 minute trip is much better than a longer stay where you are suspicious of the lack of care.

My vet is about 20 minutes away and fortunately, mine travel ok but Carly will talk the whole time there, while we are there and the whole way home so I think the trip is hard on me than on her.

Another vote for the feline only clinic. I drive 25 minutes with my cat and also my mother's cat to a feline only vet. Abby doesn't really like the ride and Roxie howls the whole way there. It's worth it for the care though.

I have changed vets for a lot less than what you described. That is inexcusable. A veterinary clinic should be prepared to deal with hostile/aggressive animals. And to let you take home a soaking wet cat (water and URINE? ughh!) without a word of explanation is unforgiveable, almost like they were punishing both you and your cat for her behavior.
Don't they have TOWELS around to clean up wet kitties??? Sad.

I would make an appointment for a basic checkup or something minor and see how both you and kitty feel about the place, and the people. Then if you feel good you can make an appointment for the harder stuff. IMO leaving her like they did is unacceptable.

Thanks for the responses. I was leaning more towards going to the new vet, but its so hard to find a good one. I think it will be best to take her in for her annual exam and then schedule the cleaning at a later date, this way I get to see the facility and meet the staff before having to leave her there for a procedure. I do hope that the new office is more patient and willing to work with her... She isn't due for an exam until April, but it is something that has been on my mind.

Let us know how Dori does with the new vet.

How about a vet making a house call ... this works great for me ( lol I can get 3 checked at once for different issues is a bonus ) and the semi ferals but I use house call s for all now since their now a group of six