I had to pick up my dog from VRC (at their request) and rush him to UPenn so they could treat him.
I had to pick up my dog from VRC (at their request) and rush him to UPenn so they could treat him.
They literally made me wait before they brought out my "emergent" dog, so I could rush him to another hospital, just until they issued me a partial refund. They already had a $4500 deposit and that was the least of my worries at that time. But, money is apparently the #1 priority for them!
And, when I have asked numerous times to speak with Management, the only one who has called me is the "doctor" I have the problem with. What company escalates a customer issue to the person you have the issue with?!
No surgeons on staff the weekend of May 22nd, 2021. A "perfect storm" I was told as he had nobody to "cut my dog". (He referred to operating on my dog as "cutting my dog") I was told that all FIVE surgeons were out the same weekend and yet they still admitted my dog knowing they couldn't care for him if he got worse. What business does this?
The ended up kicking my dog out that Sunday and without consent, catheterized my dog while I rushed in to pick him up. The doctor reluctantly called Upenn while we frantically called other hospitals in the area to see which could quickly help Boomer. It turns out that UPenn disagreed with VRC evaluation and Boomer wasn't emergent enough for emergency surgery. Complete incompetence at VRC! Then, the Management doesn't have the courage to talk to me about the horrible treatment or how they can improve. The absolute worst business I have ever had to deal with!
For emergencies that occur with your pet, call Upenn, Not VRC!
Timeline of Events for Boomer at VRC
5/5 – Brought my dog Boomer to VRC after our local vet diagnosed for possible herniated disk. Our dog had extreme trouble with both hind legs and it was getting worse. He was in obvious pain.
VRC – Treated with pain meds and steroids
5/13 – Brought Boomer back to VRC as he was not improving as we hoped. I was deeply concerned as he got worse over the week and he was now falling over and seemed to lose almost all mobility in his hind legs. He was still in extreme pain and discomfort but was told he did not progress since his last visit. While on the phone with John Anastasio, he convinced me that we need to be more patient and ‘these things take time to heal’. He referred to the radiologist being away until July but said he had ‘others that can read MRI if needed”. I literally said to him, and I'm sure it is on your 5/13 call recording (please review), “If I am reading between the lines here, you’re telling me that we are jumping the gun to get Boomer an MRI and surgery?” He didn’t disagree and prescribed a muscle relaxer to see if that helps and discharged Boomer. We really only wanted relief for our dog!!
VRC – Treated with more pain meds, more steroids and now a muscle relaxer.
5/21 – Brought my dog back as he now could not defecate and would fall over if he tried to walk or get up. Was told by VRC they would keep him until Monday as he was still not an emergency candidate as Boomer did not lose all motor function in his hind legs. I did not want his condition to get that bad as I know his prognosis would be worse at that point. So, I entrusted VRC with my dog and provided a $4500 deposit and they finally admitted my dog on May 21st.
5/22 – VRC calls and said my dog was same as previous day. No improvement or regression.
5/23 Morning – VRC calls and said our dog is now critical and needs emergent MRI and surgery. He stated, “we have nobody here that can cut your dog...I’m sorry. It is a perfect storm that all five surgeons are on vacation this weekend and you need to pick up your dog and rush him to Upenn in Philadelphia for emergency MRI and surgery.”
Needless to say, I was very upset that VRC, a so-called “Emergency Veterinary Hospital”, could not perform the necessary procedure that my dog so desperately needed. How can you allow this to happen? Why couldn’t one of the surgeons cancel or reschedule their time off if another member has an emergency as John led me to believe. This was/is 100% unacceptable!
So, my wife and I rushed to VRC to pick up Boomer and when we arrived we were told Boomer is catheterized (I still don't know why) and he needs to be immediately brought to Upenn. While waiting out front of VRC, the receptionist asked me for a payment before they brought Boomer out. My immediate response was, “you already have a $4500 deposit from me”. She says, “Oh, hold on while I issue you a refund of $2833.71”. It took them about 15 minutes to bring out my dog while we waited outside. Now, under normal circumstances that would be fine, but to hold up bringing out my critical dog while you issue me a refund is ridiculous and lacks any compassion! I didn't want to argue any charges at that time, I just wanted to rush my dog to a real Veterinary Hospital that could actually help him.
Their staff's behavior truly demonstrated to me where VRC priorities are. They're all about the almighty $$$! And, to this day, I still have no idea what the $1176 was for. No invoice or details were ever provided to me.
So, we rushed Boomer to Upenn and we got him admitted right away. To add insult to injury, the estimated surgical charges from UPenn were over $1,000 cheaper than VRC!
Then, later that same day, we received word that Boomer was actually NOT in critical need of emergency MRI and surgery and UPenn would put off the MRI until the next day, 5/31. They stated Boomer still had partial mobility in his hind legs and was not emergent or an emergency. WAIT, are you kidding me!? We had to rush in to pick up Boomer and immediately bring him to Upenn, catheterized, and it turns out we really didn’t have to? Not sure about you, but it truly sounds like Dr. Anastasio was incorrect in his assessment on 5/23. I strongly feel he botched this case from the very beginning!
5/24 Morning – Upenn calls and said unfortunately for Boomer there was a more critical case than his and his surgery was pushed until the following day, 5/25. Again, how can Dr. Anastasio say he was critical on Sunday but another hospital said he wasn’t on the same day, and the day after??
5/25 – Dr. Black from UPenn calls and reports the MRI is inconclusive but shows a large legion below his spine. He performed the surgical procedure and proceeds to tell me, “It was the biggest disc herniation he has seen”. Unlike any other and it must have been very painful for Boomer.
5/25 - I called VRC and spoke with Joe to provide the feedback on the horrible experience we had with Boomer. I gave him an overview of what transpired and he said he would contact Hanna as she would be the one responsible to get the details/timeline from the doctor and she would call me back. Joe and I had a great conversation and I told him how angry I was but since I was also in the Customer Service industry, I just wanted to make sure my concerns were recognized and heard by Management.
5/26 - Joe reached out to me to say that Hanna would be in touch the next day, 5/27.
5/27 - I received a voicemail from Dr. Anastasio, not Hanna, asking how Boomer was.
6/1 - I called VRC again and asked to speak with Joe. He wasn’t available so I asked to speak with Hanna. She didn’t answer the page to pick up my call. I was told by receptionist they would leave a message for them both and they would get back to me later that day.
6/2 – I called VRC again. I asked to speak with Joe or Hanna. But, Dr. Anastasio gets on the phone and takes absolutely zero responsibility for any issues that occurred. This doctor delayed my dogs MRI procedure due to him convincing me to ‘wait it out’ AND making us pick up our dog when he was NOT in immediate need for MRI and surgery on 5/23. I still have no idea why my dog was catheterized. I suspect either my dog was not being cared for (being walked) or it was a money grab by VRC since they would not be cashing in on the over $9,000 in estimated surgical charges. Or, maybe it was both reasons. But, regardless of the reason, Dr Anastasios actions, or inaction, directly led to a delay in getting our dog the help he desperately needed...for weeks! And, since VRC couldn’t perform the necessary surgical procedure and Dr. Anastasio unnecessarily kicked my dog out of VRC that weekend, it is ridiculous that you still feel it is fair to charge me over 1k for a two day stay?
I have reported my miserable VRC experience to BBB.org, and filed complaints against both accreditation that are visible on your website. Goldman Sachs Bank is also now involved and will be in touch as well.
As I have shared with you all yesterday, I have written numerous posts online to warn others that this same situation could happen to them too. I am pointing everyone to my website I created just for VRC.
I am still waiting to speak with Hanna and I will continue to be vigilant in my daily online activities until this happens. So if Hanna or anyone else from Management would like to discuss this issue with me, as I was originally told by Joe, I am still waiting and available.
Thank you,
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