Advice dealing with a horrid vet?

I am so irritated right now I could scream. Two weeks ago I took two of my cats to a new vet. They were suggested to us by a co-worker of my husband. It was the most horrid vet I have ever gone to. They were rough with my cats, I had to repeat myself a ton of times to get them to take care of the issue I came in for. They were disorganized.

My one cat was really upset after the vet had handled him so roughly and I was in a bad mood as we were leaving so I wasn't paying 100% attention i guess, but thought they didn't charge us very much. So when I got home I looked more closely over the receipt and saw that they had not included my cats rabies certificates or charged us for them.

I don't drive and my husband has horrid work schedule so getting to that vet was a pain anyways. So i just emailed them quickly about it. thinking no big deal.

I just got off the phone with them and the woman argued with me that they never got the shots... I was like yes they did I was right there when the vet gave them to them. Then she gives me an attitude that I hadn't told them I was coming in for shots, I did tell her that and the vet had even said it without me telling him!! So that made me even angrier.

I am like what am I supposed to do now? I need proof and can't very well give them another shot, could she atleast tell me if it had been a 1 year or 3 year? She tells me she has to talk to the vet and will get back to me and if he remembers I will have to come back down and pay for them.

I don't mind paying because obviously I would have anyways. I am just so annoyed and will never visit this vet again. I know I am partly to blame for not checking right away, I just never had any issues before and expect they know what they are doing ya know?

I am just worried that if they dont have the info....

Edit to add:

They called me back & said they don't remember doing it but that I can come back in and give them another shot! Is it safe to do that?? They said it was but I can't see how that would be safe at all.

I wouldn't want to get a second rabies shot.  There are always possible problems from vaccinations and rabies is one that has a higher level of problems.  I take it New York is one of the states that enforces rabies shots for cats I used to think Ohio was one that does as well but I found out that it isn't.  They only require it for dogs.  I have had some bad experiences with vets but none were as bad as the experience you had with this one.  I now take them to a cats only clinic.  They charge a little more than average but I think it's worth it. 

I would call back and ask to see your cats' charts, or at least have them read to you. Vets aren't like human physicians who have to worry about medical confidentiality - those cats are your property, and their medical concerns/treatments should not be hidden from you.

Do you remember who gave your cats the shots? The vet, you said, but do you remember a description, name, etc?

I'd call back and either ask to speak to that vet/person, or at least give the lady on the phone a description and say, "I was standing right there when so-and-so gave my cats the shots, and I was told that the shots were rabies boosters" - something along those lines.

I guess it's a possibility that the shots were something else and NOT rabies boosters - but there's no way of knowing.

If you really can't squeeze any information out of them, try a tactic I use with difficult employees who happen to be female - have your husband call in. I'm not trying to tout any kind of belief or attitude here, but I've noticed that when I'm having trouble with someone on the phone and they happen to be female, they're suddenly MUCH more helpful when I put my boyfriend on the line. He's not rude or mean or flirty, or even all that forceful, but sometimes really snitty female employees seem to be even snittier/ruder when dealing with another woman (namely, me). I know this might sound stupid, but if you can't get help from the vet any other way, it's worth a try.

I'd call another, more reputable vet in your area, and give them the story. Don't mention the other vet by name - you don't need to - but express your fears and worries and see if THAT vet thinks it's safe for your kitties to get another rabies shot.

I would go in person if at all possible. I know you don't drive but can someone besides your husband take you? Don't vaccinate your cat again. Go in person and talk to the vet who worked on your cats. Be nice, but don't leave w/o those vaccination stamps.

I agree to go back in and look at the records. When mine give my cats shots they put the sticker from the vaccine bottle right in their charts. It should not be a matter of remembering giving the vaccine.

I would find another vet and voice your concerns, as Lakota suggested. You could have a rabies titer test done (from blood test and sent out to a lab for analysis). That should show the level of protection your kitty has from the rabies virus. Not sure if that test, if it shows kitty has a high titer, would be acceptable to show to authorities (in lieu of actual vaccination record) though?

One thing, I would NOT recommend that the vet that gave the vaccination be the one that does the testing (or send out for testing). Too easy for them to skew the results of the titer test.
 

My concern would be VAS (Vaccination Associated Fibrosarcoma) with giving another rabies vaccination.

Our new vet's office (or I should say our new ex-vet's office) seems to have horrible communication issues between the office staff and the doctors too.  I was told to come in for a procedure that wasn't needed, billed an extra $60 for services included in an already overpriced package, the office visit took over two hours, my chart was lost, and now that I look at the latest paperwork, all the things done to my one cat are listed on the chart for the other one.  I'm guessing your Dr. will remember giving the shot and all will be well eventually, but what a pain!  (I'm also guessing if your office is anything like mine it will be somehow YOUR fault that you weren't billed properly.)  My condolences, hope we both find better vets. 

you guys should post this stuff to yelp or some other review sites to help others.

Wow how HORRIBLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I would definitely post a review on Yelp - warn others. :nod:

What you can do instead of getting another rabies vaccination is at some point, when you find a new vet, get the titre testing done. Honestly, this is what should be done anyway. The rabies vaccinations are usually good for 7 to 10 years. Instead of getting another vaccination that most likely isn't necessary, see if they've got the titres indicating they're protected against rabies. :nod:

This thread is full of excellent information and informative links (many science-based) on vaccinations: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/245463/do-indoor-cats-really-need-vaccines

you should have that vet pay for the titre test

What I would do, is something I cannot put in here, lol.  

Do not, get another rabies shot, since, you don't know and/or cannot prove, weather he had one or not, you don't want to get 2.

Is the vet a AAHA member, if so, ya got a place to start.  

Contact the Attorney General and tell them what happened, and since its NYS law, ask them what you should do. Wish I were closer, if I went in there, I would be coming out, with an anser, lol.  

Best of luck.      

CatNamedPanda said:

I agree to go back in and look at the records. When mine give my cats shots they put the sticker from the vaccine bottle right in their charts. It should not be a matter of remembering giving the vaccine.

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In the UK a cat has a vaccination card that the owner keeps, and the vet puts the sticker from the bottle on that and signs and dates it.  Of course we don't have to worry about rabies here, but the card has to be produced for cats being shown or going to a cattery.

BTW if they didn't record giving the shot did they charge for it?

OrientalSlave said:

In the UK a cat has a vaccination card that the owner keeps, and the vet puts the sticker from the bottle on that and signs and dates it.  Of course we don't have to worry about rabies here, but the card has to be produced for cats being shown or going to a cattery.

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Same here, owner keeps the card with stickers. Needed for boarding and also show cats. And no rabies here either.

What an odd situation, I'd be doing a titre test over re-vaccinating that's for sure. Would be good if you can get someone to take you over to talk to the vet in person.

Denice said:

I wouldn't want to get a second rabies shot.  There are always possible problems from vaccinations and rabies is one that has a higher level of problems.  I take it New York is one of the states that enforces rabies shots for cats I used to think Ohio was one that does as well but I found out that it isn't.  They only require it for dogs.  I have had some bad experiences with vets but none were as bad as the experience you had with this one.  I now take them to a cats only clinic.  They charge a little more than average but I think it's worth it. 

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   We use a "cats only" clinic and it is WELL worth the money! Our vet and her staff are awesome. They're very gentle and genuinely love cats. They also act as a rescue and shelter; it's where we got our Nicky. When we schedule an appointment for Nicky, the staff all try to arrange to work that day so they can see him.

wow!  that's crazy that they woudl be that unorganized.  I took my cat to a low-cost wellness clinic and they even gave me the serial number, etc. for his vaccines.  I would definitely keep at them, ask to see the records, ask what shot was given to your pet then if not rabies.  I also suggest trying to go in person and seeing the vet who gave the shot face to face while looking over his notes.  Unless you need the credentials right away, work first on trying to resolve this with the vet in question

Stop talking to the staff. Use the words 'negligent' and 'liability' a lot when talking to this vet. He should get the picture.

You can also file a claim with the state licensing board.  That will definitely get their attention.
 

aeevr said:

Stop talking to the staff. Use the words 'negligent' and 'liability' a lot when talking to this vet. He should get the picture.

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  I'm not sure how much impact that will have as the law treats animals as property, and she may well have signed a waiver at the vet's office.

Thank you all so much for your replies. This has me so stressed out right now and feeling incredibly stupid and guilty for not paying more attention.

There is just one vet in the office and when I called back they told me that the vet & the assistant that was also in the room have no memory of giving them the shots. It was on the 30th not that long ago even, not even two weeks yet. & don't they keep some sort of inventory of their shots? When they notice that they have some missing wouldn't that be a clue lol I just mostly felt like she was calling me a liar and that I was trying to scam them or something. Like I don't mind paying at all, I expected to pay obviously lol She was just so rude.

I brought in two cats, one who is 6 and then a 12 week old kitten. They both got rabies and the kitten also got distemper, no record of the distemper either. I remember clearly them getting the shots. The vet had asked if they had them and I told them no and he wanted to give them both distemper and I only wanted the kitten to get it. And then he forgot to give it to my older cat and the assistant had to remind him. They didn't charge me for any of the shots.

The assistant took all the notes and didn't do a good job of that as when we checked out I had to correct stuff, that should have been a red flag right there.
 

It is the law here but it isn't something I hugely worry about, my cats are indoors as well. But my kitten, I will need to get him neutered not too far off and while I will be going to a different vet they will want his record of having the shot or will want to give it to him.

lol I wish you were here too. I am very shy so this is just a tough situation for me. my husband does not get it & is fine with letting it go... I think I can take the bus down there in a few days and talk to them in person. If that doesn't work then I will call the other vet and see about that test that was mentioned and see what they think.

I will definitely review them on yelp and their facebook page too after this.

Send me a plane ticket, lol, and I will come up there, and walk out with an anser, lol.  

When it comes to my cats, I stand and fight, and do not, take no, for an anser, lol, as a few companies, found out, lol.  

Don't beat yourself up about it, we all make mistakes and we learn from them.  You also had the mis fourtune of coming across a really bad vet. 

If that vet, is a AAHA member, you can start with that.  I would find another vet.  

So, your husband doesn't think there is any reason for concern, well.... lets see......  in NYS, should a kitty bite you or someone else, the hospital or doctor will report it, to the health dept, its the law.  Said health dept, if you cannot produce a rabies certificate, will confiscate your cat, and quaranteen them, at your expense.  30 days, hope your husband gots lots of money, lol.  

Happened to me, was combing out one of my LH cats, she hates to be combed, was not paying attention, and she bit me. It was minor, but anyone who does not get a cat bite looked at, is insane, you can die from it, just in case you ever get bit, they put you on augmenten.  Got a letter from the health dept, my vet faxed over her rabies certificate.  I called them, they got it, said have a good day.  

Call an ER in your area, ask to talk to a internal medicine specialist, tell them what happened, ask them, in case he got one, when can he safely be given another one. Just in case he did get one, I would ask the kitty be pretreated with benedryl.  

If you don't mind me asking, where in western NY are you. I have a show friend who lives about 1/2 way between Rochester and Buffalo, I can ask her, who she uses.  And I know, she saw a specialist in Buffalo, for bladder issues.  I have show friends all over, I can find a good vet, in any area.