Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  11/17/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I took my cat in for an evaluation due to him throwing up & no bowel movement. The first visit was on 10/30/24, they examined him with an x-ray & found that he had a lot of gas build up in his stomach w/ stool. After we discussed the X-ray they asked if I wanted to take his blood to see if anything were to come up because they couldn't figure out exactly what the problem was & to that I said yes and I also provided a stool sample. Upon leaving they gave him cerenia for nausea and SQ fluids to keep him hydrated. ************* work came back good. Our next visit was the next day 10/31/24 I took him back b/c he had not improved & they suggested another X-ray which showed no improvement from the day prior with the same build up of gas. They suggested I keep him in the vets hospital to monitor him which I agreed to. They gave him more cerenia, an IV with pain *********************** I picked him up at 6pm hoping he would be in better condition the next ******** was not, he was a lot worse. I took him to another vet to take a look at him. I had contacted the vets office 11/1/24 to send me & the ** the previous findings/scans they took which they NEV** did which caused me to spend more money on NEW scans for him. I had to go in after I dropped him off to get them after hours of waiting. The ** did an x-ray, they immediately said he had gastritis & sent me home with medication to give him. The medication worked for him after a ******** was nearly back to normal. It's absolutely ridiculous that I can't trust my vet to KNOW what gastritis is and properly identify it after the first round of X-rays. They wanted me to keep coming back instead of helping me and my animal. I refuse to pay for this service due to the lack of professionalism and malpractice in that establishment. They poked at my cat, caused pain, and refused to treat him for his condition. I had to get a second opinion which was an additional 1k, I shouldn't have had to spend that if they did treat him properly.

  Business response

  12/02/2024

  Re: Complaint ID: ********
  Consumer: ****** *****
  
  In reviewing the complaint made to the BBB regarding services provided by Crawford Animal Hospital on behalf of ***** *****, we have the following response:
  
  For a complaint related to charges incurred by the client our legal team or liability insurance provider would be happy to provide a full medical/negligence review on behalf of the client. If she would like to have everything reviewed and a full response provided, she simply needs to notify the hospital, and we will submit all records for a malpractice review.
  
  Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to respond to these concerns expressed by the client. If a review of the clients case is requested, we will provide a thorough response.

• Initial Complaint

  04/26/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I brought my little Sheltie dog in for a dental procedure on 8.29.22. Everything seemed to go well until shortly after I brought her home and all the hair on her left shoulder fell out and a huge burn appeared. I brought it to the attention of the vet at Crawford during my girls post op appt. and they tried to pass it off as a harness burn from her struggling around/being afraid of the vets office. But I also showed the burn to my regular vet who told me that was no harness burn. It looked like a third degree burn and I have the photos to prove it. Not long after that, I filed a complaint with the ****************************** This vet was under investigation for months and the investigation just concluded a couple of days ago. The Board found that she falsified her course credits for licensure for the 2020-2021 license year and said she had 30 credits when she only had 27. The Board should have kept looking a lot deeper into this vets case because where theres smoke, theres fire. If shes falsifying one thing, could she be falsifying more? Was she even qualified to do my girls surgery? Is that why my girl got injured so badly? Or were they maybe experimenting on her? Now she has to go back and make up these credits within the next 90 days, has restrictions on her license until then, has to pay a fine of $167 and change, and this goes in her record. But no punishment whatsoever for whatever horrible thing she did to my girl. I cant even find out what it was so that I can get treatment for the problems she has now and may have in the future. This vet has to take a course in either anesthesia or hospital procedures. I paid $2099.04 including for the antibiotics that I had to give my girl twice a day for months. This was a horrific experience, never to be repeated again. My girl didnt get what she bargained for and I didnt get what I paid for. NOT AS ADVERTISED! Im asking for repayment in full because this vet wasnt qualified.

  Business response

  05/04/2023

  Please see attached document.

  I am writing on behalf of Crawford Animal Hospital ("the hospital"). Thank you for notifying us of this complaint and for allowing the hospital the opportunity to provide its viewpoint on the circumstances surrounding this complaint.

  On August 29, 2022, ******************************* ("the owner") brought her dog, *****, into the hospital for a dental procedure due to extensive periodontal disease. The dental procedure was performed by Dr. ************************** DVM, and went as expected with multiple extractions, but ***** recovered normally and returned home that evening.

  On September 17, 2022, the owner returned with ***** for an evaluation of the extraction sites and to have a skin lesion checked. On this occasion, ***** was seen by ****************************************** DVM, and ************************ was suspicious that *****'s harness was causing trauma to the skin as it was a linear lesion near where the harness would be rubbing. At no point after this second visit did the owner ever contact the hospital with any additional concerns. It was only after ********************** received a Board complaint that the hospital became aware of an issue.

  Owner Concerns

  Length of Time for Board Investigation

  As an attorney for veterinarians, Board complaints are one of the areas that I cover heavily. I can assure you that most routine Board complaints can take anywhere from 6 to 12 months. The prolonged amount of time had nothing to do with the Board having concerns about ************************** medical decisions but is related to the backlog of complaints and the limited number of review sessions in which the Board can review complaints. The Board found that the complaint filed against ********************** was unsubstantiated and that she had met the medical standards of care.

  Customer response

  05/04/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  I reject the response from the business because at no time did anyone at Crawford ever mention my girls burn being caused by her harness. I thought that might be a possibility because I couldnt think of anything else that would cause such a huge burn that ran the entire length of her shoulder, that is until I had my vet check my girl. And how does Dr. * know that my girl doesnt have any life long effects from this incident? They never saw her again after 9.17.22. They will never see my girl at Crawford again. She has permanent scars and is terrified of new people that come into our lives all over  again. And she has health problems from whatever happened to her. She made the mistake of trusting me and I made the HORRI*LE,HORRI*LE mistake of trusting Crawford! I hope my girl will be able to trust again some day.
  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************

• Initial Complaint

  02/09/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Event took place on Tuesday, 2/8/2023. The total cost was $79.00. Doctor visit was suggested by the front desk person without assessing the problem and without providing information on how to assess the situation with my dog. The business/manager didn't want to resolve the dispute, and doesn't take any responsibility for the customer service issues. My dog is relatively healthy but threw up a few times within a few days. I called Crawford Animal Hospital to get an idea of what's going on with my dog. They automatically suggested I come in for a doctor visit. They didn't bother to ask if he had any other symptoms and didn't inquire about his condition (i.e., eating habits, diet or unusual behaviors) to further assess what was going on with him. I didn't get much advice or answers during the appointment either. I was, however, given a list of additional (expensive) services to treat my dog.I called to discuss the situation with the manager, and the manager defended the staff. However, she said staff could have handled the situation differently - like providing more screening before making an actual appointment.I told the manager I felt like I wasted my time and money. She wouldn't reimburse me or credit my account. She didn't apologize for the lack of assessment of my pet's condition prior to his visit. I am not a dog health expert. I contacted a veterinarian for advice. These people didn't have any advice other than to make an appointment with a doctor. I feel they took advantage of me and the opportunity to charge for a service.

  Business response

  03/08/2023

  I am sorry you were unhappy with the service provided.  There are many potential causes of vomiting in dogs. Some of them can be relatively benign and handled without aggressive workup and treatment but others can be very life threatening.  Unfortunately, we can't differentiate between these different scenarios over the phone.  When a client calls us and asks for advice for their vomiting dog, it is very appropriate and expected an exam will be recommended.  This is not done to take advantage of the client or generate an opportunity to charge for a service, but rather to look out for your pet's best interest and diagnose the underlying problem causing your pet's symptoms.  It is not realistic or desirable to expect a receptionist to make medical decisions and recommendations.  These are only recommended by a veterinarian after a thorough physical exam.  Making these decisions over the phone exposes us (the clinic and veterinarians) to liability and can put your beloved pet at risk.  Given the vomiting seen, you called and an exam was recommended.  You elected to follow our advice and set this exam up the same day.  At that time, we discussed options for workup and treatment that would further diagnose the cause and determine the recommended treatment of your pet's condition.  A treatment plan with associated costs was presented and you declined all workup and treatment.  **************** representatives have no formal medical training and in this case, the decision to recommend an exam is definitely in the best interest of your pet.  We hope your dog has made a full recovery!

  Customer response

  03/08/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  I don't feel your business provided quality customer service. I understand front desk, etc. cannot diagnose anything and there is a need for medical procedures/processes. However, nothing was explained to me before or during the appointment! Doctor didn't give me possible reasons for the issues or ask questions regarding my dog's current health. Also, the front desk didn't ***** anything when calling to make an appointment. The service felt very cut and dry. I had no idea what was going on and no one bothered to explain anything to me or ask questions. 

  I believe much better service could have been provided by talking to me and trying and get as much information as possible. Or, advising me by providing some understanding of the situation - and asking questions! (No collective wisdom from years of experience?) 

  Customer service usually involves supporting, assisting and advising customers, and thinking of the customer first. No advice or support was provided. I was just handed a list of procedures, and told to make an appointment. I felt vey uncared for. When I spoke with the manager, she said the front desk could have done a better job at screening!

  Once again, through this complaint, you're not meeting the needs/concerns of your customer because you don't respect how the customer sees/feels about this experience - and don't care to reach a resolution.   

  Regards,
  
  ***********************

  Business response

  03/09/2023

  At the time of the appointment, you were led into the exam room and a veterinary technician took a thorough history regarding your pet's symptoms, duration, ***********.  This was relayed to the doctor prior to her coming into the exam room.  The doctor then performed a physical exam which thankfully revealed no concerning findings.  The doctor then discussed many potential causes of vomiting with you.  These differential diagnoses are all listed in the medical record she wrote up following your appointment. Based on the symptoms your dog was showing (vomiting), we discussed diagnostic tests that can differentiate between the numerous causes.  Typically (and in this case) bloodwork and radiographs of the abdomen are the most common tests to look for causes of vomiting.  You declined all testing.  Given testing was declined, the doctor then discussed symptomatic treatment to make your dog feel better.  This included medication to stop the vomiting and make your dog feel better.  These treatments were also all declined.  Based on all testing and treatment being declined, we discussed symptoms to monitor for and the next step to pursue if limited to no improvement were seen over time.  A report containing the history, physical exam findings, possible causes of the symptoms, and recommendations for testing and treatment was emailed to you following the appointment.  The doctor provided all the information that we could based on the information we had.  Diagnostic tests would have been the only way to give you more information. We wish you the best going forward and hope you can find a clinic you are comfortable with.

  Customer response

  03/10/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  The following was NOT communicated during the appointment: 

  - "a veterinary technician took a thorough history regarding your pet's symptoms, duration, ***********." (Vet tech and doctor didn't ask questions or communicate regarding his health/history.) 
  - "The doctor then discussed many potential causes of vomiting with you." (No, she didn't.)
  -"...we discussed diagnostic tests that can differentiate between the numerous causes." (No discussion took place.)
  - ...discussed symptoms to monitor for and the next step to pursue if limited to no improvement were seen over time. (I was not advised or provided any information on "next step.")
  

  Doctor or vet tech didn't explain ANYTHING! They just handed me a list of diagnostics test - with no details or specifications on what procedure is best/needed for circumstances. 
  

  Please believe me regarding the lack of communication. If what you stated was communicated during the appointment, I wouldn't have filed a charge and/or be this unhappy with the service! 
  

  Also, manager admitted front desk could have done a better job at screening (e.g., ask questions about the situation.)

  None of the communication you stated in your response took place. I'd appreciate a refund or at least half my money back considering I'm very unhappy with how the service was provided. 

  (If a customer is unhappy with services, usually business tries to accommodate them as best as possible!)   

   
  Regards,
  
  ***********************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩