There have been alarming reports from pet owners who have found themselves in need of emergency out of hours help who have unwittingly had to attend one or other of these emergency clinincs.
As more UK vets are opting out of providing out of hours service, Vets Now are moving in to cover this gap. While the standard of care *may* be good, this is leading to VERY high costs for pet owner who need to use their services.
In some instances, pet owners have reported a less than efficient service, sometimes with dire mis-diagnosis and reports of pets being sent home still very poorly, often with drips still attached, when the regular veterinary clinic is due to open.
It may be a cost efficient option for the vet but the charges are leading to unneccessary delays in treatment as owners (and rescues) find it difficult to meet their over-inflated costs.
The movement for one surgery to provide care for a large geographical area also causes problems in getting the animals to the surgery.
There is now an online petition which anyone can sign to pursuade the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons to investigate and publish their findings on the out of hours veterinary service provided by Vets Now, particularly in regard to their pricing structure.
This can be found here:
http://www.gopetition.com/
FOR THE SAKE OF UK PETS AND THEIR OWNERS I hope as many people as possible can add their own stories and true experiences of Vets Now to this facebook. I also hope that with enough evidence and true stories that the media will become interested in this and also highlight the downfalls of this "service".
Everyone is encouraged to check with their own vet to make sure they still offer a regular out of hours emergency cover themselves and also to impress upon their own vet that you do not wish them to consider using this alarming "service" by Vets Now.
It has been reported that a group of vets from an area of Essex got together to all agree to use Vets Now in order that their clients could not simply switch to another practice !
Do not wait until you need emergency cover to be stung by this new venture, act now !
4 comments:
I was very lucky when my 14.1/2 yr old GSD took ill at 2.30 am with torsion, I phoned my vet and was told to hang on and I would be called back, within 10 mins I was, and told to bring him straight to surgery about 5 miles away, Unfortunately due to his age and severity of the torsion, he couldn't be saved. That was about 12 -13 years ago, I would like to think I would receive the same level of care should I be in similiar unfortunate circumstances again.
My own dog fell ill with a womb infection last summer. I phoned our local practice on Sunday morning and was seen less than an hour later. They put her on a drip and operated straight away. Thankfully, she recovered very quickly and I was able to take her home later that evening. I can't remember exactly how much it cost, but the total was less than £500.
Our local Vets doesn't treat horses, just pet animals... dogs, cats, rabbits etc. Also, they have their own emergency service, shared with other surgeries in the group:
www.riversidevets.com
I looked on the internet to find out more information on Vets Now and apparently they've just won some entreprenuers competition for making loads of money:
www.business.timesonline.co.uk
Well that's great news for them, not so great for all the unfortunate pet owners they've fleeced getting to this awards ceremony. :(
My advice... look for a traditional Vets, one which places more importance on your pets welfare than making huge amounts of money.
Jenny
My young Cavalier was unlucky to suffer an 'out of hours' pyometra and was referred to 'Vets Now' for surgery. She had to wait for 13 hrs before they even picked up a scalpel, and was then discharged while still virtually comatosed at 7.30 in the morning as all the staff had to leave the building by 8am. Hattie was carried to my car still rigged up to an IV drip which I pointed out to the vet was blocked at the cannula. She just replied that my vet who was over an hour away would have to unblock the drip. The charge for a spay at my vet is £95 but the bill from 'Vets Now' to remove the same uterus was £1,783.18p. As pensioners ( hubby is 70 yrs old) this a significant amount to suddenly find, but to save our beloved pet we paid up. Sadly our beautiful little Hattie died from septicaemia later that same day, and never regained any recognition of us who loved her dearly. We're heartbroken,and have officially complained to Vets Now, but to date all of 3 weeks later, we've heard nothing from them. Be warned. Vets Now are a money making franchise who 'loan' other vets premisis to practise overnight. They then leave at the crack of dawn, and the critically sick and dying animals are brought out to their owners car. That of course is AFTER you've paid their extortionate fee, because you dont get to see your pet until you've paid up.
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