Banfield
Numerous complaints about Banfield!

Where do I begin. We began our vaccinations with Banfield and we had to go back a few times until they were complete. As the weeks went on I noticed that our dog had extremely bad flatulence and acne, it was laughable at first but I became worried as this was not a good sign for his intestines. I brought this to the attention to the assistant who would come in before and ask us if there were any questions or concerns, I brought up the fact that our dog kept farting and what could we do about this symptom, I also indicated the acne. The assistant thought it was funny and did not even bring this up to the Vet. I then brought this up to the vet and her response was that some dogs just have flatulence and our dog may just have flatulence, the acne was just part of our dog being the color white. I was hoping for advice on how we could help our dog but this was the answer we got, which incidental I did not accept and did my own research on the web.

A week or so later my dog refused to eat his food and I realized that it was his food that was causing his problem. We researched further and found out that this particular breed may be allergic to wheat and or corn. We started cooking our dogs food. The acne went away and so did the flatulence. I felt that my concerns about my dog were not being addressed or even taken seriously.

The second issue with Banfield was when my dog was bitten at a dog park. He was a puppy then and we were worried that he might be in shock or the bite on his hind quarter might get infected, so we rushed him to Banfield. We brought him to our local Banfield which we knew closed at 7pm. The biting incident happened at 5.15pm or there abouts and we brought our dog in before 6pm for attention. I noticed our regular or inhouse vet was not there but another vet was still in attendance and mentioned it to my partner. We showed the puncture wound to the assistant at the desk and he said he would go to the back to check to see if the vet could have a look at him. I watched the assistant go to speak to the vet, the blinds to the rear office was still unshut and so I could see them talking. After a few minutes the assistant came out and said that the Doctor had just cleaned up and all utensils etc had been put away and that we would now have to take our pet to the emergency pet hospital, over 20 minutes away. I asked the assistant why could we not be seen, and pointed to their hours of operation clearly signed and displayed for all to see. The assistant seemed uncomfortable and said it was the Doctor's decision. My partner became agitated, but I was worried for my dog and we abruptly left and took our dog to emergency. It cost us nearly $100.00. I called Banfield Head Office and made a complaint, and only then was an apology given and an offer to have free xrays offered, the Doctor who was on site at the time called and apologized but did not take full responsibility for her actions.By this time Myself and my Partner had grown tired of Banfield and their treatment of us and our pet. On this occasion, we felt that they breached our contract to see our pet, the matter would not have been pushed or an apology would have never been made if I had not complained.

The third incident, our dog suddenly became lame. There could have been a few reasons as to why he started to limp, ie roughhousing with other dogs at the park, uneven ground at the park etc, and so reluctantly we took him to Banfield. We paid for the plan and had no alternative but to use it, if we wanted to get out of the plan it would have cost us more money to get out then to stay in. The vet said we would have to put him on an anti inflammatory, I asked what the side affects were, she told me liver and maybe kidney issues. I informed the doctor that this particular breed is known for such issues and was there another alternative, she said yes just to keep putting hot compresses on the area, but she strongly suggested the anti inflammatory, of which I kept resisting. The vet then suggested we go with the anti inflammatory first, she made us kind of feel we were not good owners as we did not want to put our dog on the anti inflammatory which would take less time to heal and if that did not work then continue with the hot compresses. I wanted to go with the hot compresses, yes it would have taken longer to heal but at least I would not need to worry if a drug was going to kill my dog. Finally we put our dog on the anti inflammatory, which cost us $149.00. I was not happy, Banfield seemed to be all about money. I should have trusted my own judgment, the next day or so, my dog became extremely ill, an allergic reaction to Rymadil. He had acne and vomited blood and bile, not to mention his stools being soft and bloody, our dog became depressed, clingy and weak. I was furious, we took him to emergency. While waiting in emergency our dog began to perk up and the vomiting and listlessness stopped. We took him home and he was well with no symptoms, we kept him on close watch. We reported this to our local Banfield, and to this day, we have heard nothing in regards to that incident. My feelings for Banfield least to say was now, not very good. I again voiced my complaints to Banfield head office. Again, my holistic view on treating my pet was ignored, the vet pushed the anti inflammatory knowing our dogs breed is sensitive to it. I did my research on Rymadil and this drug is lethal to dogs, but some vets still use it. The limping did not stop for sometime, so I researched and found a holistic treatment for him and the limping went in a matter of days.

Finally, we took our dog in for neutering, I asked my partner to take our dog as I just did not want to go into Banfield any longer, I just could not hide my disgust at that place and the vet. My partner dropped our pet off in the AM and we would collect our dog in the PM. Myself and my partner went to pick up our dog, he came out of the office, looking very shy and listless and a little depressed, similar to how he looked when he was on Rymadil. The assistant said that the surgery was a success and the Vet, (again the inhouse vet was not on site and did not perform the surgery) had given him Rymadil for the swelling and another drug for infection purposes. She then proceeded to tell us how much the drugs would cost, she then proceeded to tell me the drug they were sending us home with Rymadil and another drug for to ward off infection. I became agitated, and asked her why was my dog given Rymadil, and why was she sending us home with Rymadil... The assistant gave me a blank look and then went back into the office. My partner and I became agitated at the fact they did not look at my dog's file and see that Rymadil must not be administered under any circumstances. They did not check for allergic reactions. The assistance came out and apologized and I told her sternly that Rymadil is not for my dog and this should be in his file, did the vet not read the notes??? She had no answer. I complained again to Banfield. This time the inhouse doctor called me. I told her I was disgusted at the fact that my dog was given Rymadil and when I brought him home that night his stool was blood filled. She then explained that blood in the stool is due to the surgery, and that my dog was not given Rymadil, I told her that the information I was given on the night of collection by her assistant contradicts her statement. She did not reply, but yet proceeded to tell me that I was responsible for making sure that the vet knows what my dog is allergic too. I promptly told her I did and was told this was in his file by none other than herself. Again the vet did not take responsibility for her actions. We decided we wanted to take our dog and now our cat to a different Banfield, and so we did, as soon as our contract is up we will never use this service again. I would not recommend this place, they seem to want money and the welfare of the animals is secondary.

Company: Banfield
Country: USA

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