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The purpose of this mail is to express how upset and disappointed I am about Banfield's, lack of professionalism, lack of people touch and rudeness.

About eight month ago our Miniature Poodle named Bella, swallowed a rubber object that caused an obstruction in her intestines and was removed surgically by Dr. Zarestky at Banfield Boca Raton.

After the surgery Bella recovered apparently well, on Mother's day Bella started vomiting and not feeling well, symptoms that she develops previously and after the surgery that lasted one day. That Sunday night symptoms worsen and Monday I took Bella to the Hospital, they run blood test and they found nothing abnormal, so they decided to take X Rays, and they come back but Banfield doctors were not able to read them, and they send them to an Specialist to be read, after what they decided to operate to look at an apparent obstruction in her intestines, to what we agreed.

About three hours after the decision to operate and around 3:00 PM on Monday Dr. Hoot who was operating Bella this time call me to inform that he found a very large section on Bella's intestines black and, what he called dead, due to lack circulation of blood and oxygen and need it to be removed, and Bella will not be able to live too long on these condition, if she survives the surgery, so put her to sleep was the most Humane and painful decision that I had to made in my life so far.

I cry every day since Bella is gone, in just 20 short months lived she gave me and my family so much joy and happiness that the pain of not having her becomes unbearable at times, Snow, our Bichon Frise, her inseparable companion misses her and she not the same since.

When I asked the doctor, what caused the intestines to turned out that way, his answer was, I don't know, answer that was very disappointed, at that a realized that my mistake was put my beloved Bella in the wrong hands.

The very next day Juan Lopez, Manager of the Hospital started top call me to collect the $1000.00 that the whole ordeal cost us, I was in no condition to discuss that at that time.

I found that in less than 10 days the account was place in collection, I also found, in my research, and these are by far my most disturbing findings, that dogs that had surgery like Bella had, are more likely to develop a condition known as, Gastro esophageal (GEI) and pylorogastric intussusceptions, and they need special attention if change in their eating habit occur.

I took Bella twice after the surgery because she was not eating well or not eating at all, and to express my concern about her weight, and they told me every time: she's fine.

I went back to the hospital about a week ago and wanted to talk with Dr. Hoot, he was not in the Hospital at the time and I left a message for him to call me, next day Dr. Zarestky called me to explained what they found during the surgery, but once again she did not know the cause of the intestine strangulation as she called, Dr. Hoot never called me.

We consulted other Veterinarians about Bella's case and all separately, agreed that special care and follow up should had help to prevented Bella from dying, if the first time after surgery that she develops vomiting, and we were aware or advised that, that could be a symptom of an after surgery anomaly, and an endoscopy were perform it might changed the outcome of her disease.

Doctors at Banfield knew Bella, and her history why they did not took the X Ray sooner?, why they can't read it?, why they did not told us all the facts that I learned after Bella's death?, to me the answer is; because they are Incompetent, careless, and unprofessional, a complete opposite of the Mars Five Principles that Banfield brags about.

Banfield had the opportunity to change my feelings but choose to make it worst by placing my account in collection in less than two weeks, and revealing the true unprofessionalism and greedy philosophy, and by doing just nothing to find the causes of Bella's disease, causes that will help others to prevent to go thru the grief and mourn that our family is going thru.

It appears to me that Banfield is all about selling wellness plans to pet owners and then kill them, charge for it, and keep collecting on the wellness plans of the dead.

Continue to divulge about my experience with Banfield Pet Hospitals is entirely my decision, and I hope the final outcome is not as is now, and be able to turn a very negative to a positive experience at the end. Weather I get a response or not to this e mail is not up to me, deep in my heart I wish that I got your attention.

Location: Boca Raton, Florida

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Guest

I will NEVER, EVER take another pet I love and care about to Banfield Pet Hospital ever again. They don't care and are only interested in up-selling, they almost killed my dog; thank God I was able to take my baby to a real Vet in the area that was able to bring her back from the brinks of death.

Guest

After reading more then several horror stories about this vets organization, for the life of me, I can't understand why you folks are not standing outside their office with signs warning incoming people. I have never seen so many complaints in my life! Even if only half are true that would be enough for me to never step in their front door.

Guest

I wish I never put my beautiful beloved Pomeranian into the hands of Banfield too. They are truly incompetent.

I was in a sad position the last year of my baby's life and had relocated. I didn't know where to turn as the quality and choices of facilities were lacking. I don't blame them for her death. I chose to allow her to pass naturally in my arms.

But I can say with out hesitating that it is by far the worst pet hospital I have ever experienced. I would never EVER recommend them. I cannot place my finger on the exact problem there. They seem to have lack of experience, lack of competence, and lack of compassion for both dog and owner.

Also they seem very money hungry.

Please understand that my dog had top notch physician care prior to relocating to this area and I have no previous Banfield Pet Hospital experience because I always had a bad feeling about care for my baby in a store. I was right!

Guillermo G Iug
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-934342

Banfield is 800 hospitals strong across the country, their motive is money and they care about the bottom line$, that the truth behind Banfield

Guest

I think you should fight them tooth and nail on this one! Do not pay the $1,000 for a botched operation!

Guillermo G Iug
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-921354

James, I still fighting them, not as much for the money but to try to raise the awareness and boycott Banfield clinics, is a 800 clinics chain across the US, and all they care is their bottom line, there are Non-profit organization that offers good veterinary services far better than Banfield, In Palm Beach county is one call Paws 2 Help, they are great. I'm sure there is more like them everywhere just have to find them.

Thank you for your comment and support!

Majid Fno

I am so sorry to hear this about Bella. I am heart broken for you.

Wow, you should have had a second opinion and perhaps Bella would have been alive today. I think they exploit pet owners and pets in services and finances. I do believe you should contact a lawyer for pet owners. Animal lawyer or an attorney.

I stopped taking her there because they were never sure of what they were doing and I noticed that Princess Rose was afraid of them. She would shake uncontrollably. She is naturally anxious, but she was even more afraid than ever. I need to know she is well taken care of because she comes from an abused home setting.

I think she deserves better care.

They would always tell me we will let you know what she needs and would never give me a price. On one visit I had to take her in on an emergent matter as she was vomiting blood or bile. They wanted to do all types of exams amounting to 1,000.00.

I stated, what does she need now. I told them all with this statement. Thank God she got well with the antibiotics and I also took it upon myself to find things that will help clean out her digestive tract. Yogurt, rice, 100% puree pumpkin, etc.

She is well. I am so sorry for you and your family.

Seek an attorney.

My heart goes out to you. Hugs.

Guest

This is for all the people that say *** like "I have no idea why you are surprised not paying bill would lead to collections. I went to banfield 1 day after my 20 year old dog died because my cat was sick.

When they took her in the back it was to do a urine test and blood test. I can afford those two tests. 1 hour later they came out from the mysterious back room and informed me they did 8-9 tests and she has thyroid disease. I never gave permission for all those tests and then they laid it on me, I owed 700.00 for all those tests.

I didnt have the money so my ONLY OPTION was their wellness program of 40.00 a month for a year and 150.00 for the visit. I was so mad for letting this horrible institution that gets bonus checks for racking up wellness programs from clients.

So when you have the desire to make victims of scams feel like dirt just keep saying its all their fault. There is also the element of these people are dealing with the possibility of their beloved animal dying.

Michelle M Las
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-558924

Banfield in Deptford,NJ did all kinds of things to my 6 year old Pomeranian, Missy and they ended up stressing her out so bad they killed her. They handed me a dead dog and $300 in charges, not covered by my plan.

All they care about is money. My dog is DEAD because of their greed.

I am NOT paying them another cent, EVER!

banfieldkilledmissy.com

Guest

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am so sorry for your loss.

My sister in law brings her pets to Banfield and is doing okay, so far. She was telling me about how everything is included and I was tempted to go there.

I have a great vet that I have been using for the last 20 years. She has put down 2 of my beloved pets and is now taking care of my "Bella" - a 3 month old, malti-poo. It has cost me a fortune for her shots (1 more round to go) and preventive care but now I know that I'm better off with a vet who is smart, experienced and caring. There is no price on heartache.

God bless. Hope you open your heart soon to a new dog.

Majid Fno
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-501649

Can you tell me where you take your pet and if it is in NYC? I am a former Banfield customer and am looking for a good respectable vet who has a policy for accommodating disabled pet owners. Thank you.

Banfield P

Guillam,

We understand your grief and the pain of losing Bella; please know we are doing everything in our power to work through this with you. I have contacted our Client Advocate Team and they have reopened your file. The Client Advocate Team will reach out to you on Monday to confirm that they are looking into your concerns.

Thank you in advance for reaching out,

Sincerely,

Lisa

Banfield Online Community Manager

Michelle M Las
reply icon Replying to comment of Banfield P

Banfield are such LIARS! They dont do *** when you complain.

They just protect their own. I hate this company so bad for killing my Pomeranian, Missy. They wrote all kinds of lies about me and about what they did and did not do in my dogs records. I created a website to tell my dogs story and raise awareness to the public that banfield vets KILL or hard pets, every day.

Fight for your pets rights!

So sorry for your loss. I know how it feels.

Tomorrow is Christmas and the one month anniversary of them killing my poor Missy. banfieldkilledmissy.com

Guest

SteZeq, based on your comment I would guess that you never lost a twenty month old puppy,and you probably don't even have a pet, that's why you don't have any idea of what I'm talking about, you entirely miss the point.

I know my financial obligations, and how it work, Banfield seems to run a pretty good scam, they sell a wellnes plan that after the animal death they still collecting and they do not need to render any services on it, get the picture? while my family still mourning and missing Bella, I hope you never to go thru what we are going thru.

Guest

As with human medicine, there are unfortunate circumstances which can lead to the death of a person without any real way of diagnosing what the actual problem was. Complications are a part of the medical world.

I've taken my pets to that hospital before and I know for a fact that none of the staff that was there, especially the two doctors mentioned, were careless.

As far as having your bill sent to collections, I've almost had one of my bills sent there while I was going through a tough time, but I suppose it's protocol for it to be sent to collections after 10 days because that was the same time span I was given to pay.

All in all, you have to understand that they are Dr.s and, although they may not get the same respect as human Dr.s, they also have to make tough calls. As a matter of fact, they go to school just as long, make less money, and still find the compassion to try their best and take their time with cases. In most human hospitals, you see the Dr. for about 2 minutes or less, they make way more money, yet they get more respect and when they bill you, you expect it. Yet somehow it's the human Dr.s that get all the prestige...

I'm sorry about Bella, truly, but you're also not realizing that it is a business, it is medicine, and in neither of those worlds does everything have a happy ending. Horrible things may happen and you might not get all the answers...but sometimes you have to put faith in your decision. You placed her life in their hands and you made the call to have her humanely euthanized. In the end, you did everything you thought was right and so did they.

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-492514

Look..if you want to have a dog or cat, you have to spend the money when they get sick. I have 6 dogs all on the Banfield plans. BUT when it comes to more extensive problems, I spend the extra money on a specialist.

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-492514

Seriously?! You are sticking up for the vet that killed her dog with his incompetence?! "Corporations" have turned veterinary care and medical care into a joke in clinics like these. How can you justify it?

A vet from Banfield almost killed my cat because he refused to listen to me, and was in such a hurry he prescribed the same antibiotics my cat already had taken. I took her to a shelter which has discount veterinary services, and for a fraction of the price, and even though he was extremely busy, he listened, directed me on home care, hydrated my cat, gave her a antibiotics shot, offered a syringe to force feed her and had a vet assistant demonstrate it. Within three days our very sick kitten was better!

As for human clinics that are run like Banfield, it is all about volume, in and out. The doctors are so over booked I never saw my primary for illnesses and my children rarely saw their pediatrician either. We were forced to go to urgent care. Half the time, they refused to give decent cough medication so if my kids had bronchitis, they would cough all night long. There was a few times I took them to the ER, because they begged me for the cough medication with codeine they would get there. Their chests would hurt from coughing so much. How is that remotely ethical. I would always squirrel it away. I drank a lot at a family party and got pancreatitis since I never drank enough to have such a negative reaction to it. I was a young mom, partying and having a hang over with toddlers sucks. So I never drank heavily. I went twice to Urgent Care and to my primary, and those *** would not listen to my symptoms, ignored me, and told me I had a UTI. That also goes for my sad excuse for a primary doctor. He would not listen. He refused to prescribe pain medication. I had pancreatitis, I was in horrid pain. I almost died, if I had not gone to the ER. The nurses were surprised I was conscious. Oh, they also missed the endometriosis that was basically tearing up my digestive system. My obgyn refused to do a any internal testing or even a D&C. So, these type of medical facilities, which focus on volume and profit are not good for patients be it human or pet.

We have Kaiser now, and I like it so much better. At least the doctor's listen to your concerns and helps you, and does not force you to be in pain.

Banfield gives Tramadol after sterilization procedures?! My kitties were in pain, and given a derivative of morphine! WTF?! Someone said their dog got doggy Motrin, after major surgery?!

My cats would cry the second the pain meds wore off. How you can defend that clinic I unbelievable! So how many lives have you messed up?!

Guest

I'm so very sorry about your beloved Bella. Reading through your story, intussusception was indeed my first guess although I'm not in the medical field. I believe it would only be common sense that after such a surgery such as a bowel obstruction, special care would be absolutely essential to ensure complete healing. You did everything you could, you were right on top of Bella's post operative abnormal symptoms. I like that you consulted with other veterinarians and will no longer using Banfield's services. You're doing the public a great service by the telling your heartbreaking story.

The bill is a different subject however. It's not unreasonable to expect payment for services. Many times I've had to say goodbye to my pets and payment was required upon services rendered even though, as you were, I was in no mental condition to deal with it. When it comes to the business end of things, it's cold, but it's necessary. They are within their rights to turn your bill over to an agency.

All wellness plans are a joke. And from all I've heard about this business, good riddance to them. They need to be shut down for real, but apparently there are still enough clients to keep them open.

Guest

I have no idea why you are surprised that not paying your bill would lead to being in collections.

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