Burlington Emergency & Veterinary Specialists

Reviews 3

LA

Laci Harmon

I see reviews saying that the writers surprisingly had to leave BEVS without their cat. I too surprisingly had to leave without my cat and I am utterly dismayed at BEVSs service! They may give more attention to dogs than they do cats. I will never trust them with a cat again. I recommend that you do not bring your cat here if it can be avoided! My kitty was 13, we brought her in because she was having trouble breathing. First they immediately took her into the back for an exam where we were not allowed to follow. I did not appreciate this! Ive always been allowed to stay with my animal! Soon after this, the vet came out (we still cant see our kitty) and diagnoses her with either cancer or heart disease, but she couldnt see anything that could prove it! She gave us some options, but firmly suggested we put her down. We went with the other option of doing a minor surgery to get rid of some fluid build up, which could act as a temporary help to alleviate her heavy breathing, and then the vet would be able to find what the underlying problem was. This is where things went very wrong! We sat in the waiting room (because again we are not allowed to be with our cat), when the sound of loud, startling barking of dogs erupted. Very soon after, the vet came back in and said our cat got spooked and jumped off the table and ran. She said she was turning purple, (lack of oxygen due to extra stress paired with already not being able to breath well), and was drooling (a sign of panic), and the operation was failed. If they were to make a second attempt, they would have to sedate her more and in her condition she would likely not survive... so they said. When we went into the back to give kitty a goodbye, I saw that their operatory is completely open, meaning, that they were going to operate on my kitty while handling yapping puppies and dogs in the same room. Any cat would have already been spooked in this situation, but they were handling barking dogs in the same area?! Of course the cat will freak. Of course the operation was a failure! I dont believe they know how to handle cats! I find this totally and completely unacceptable. The vet then said the only thing left to do was put her down. We knew that either way our cat most likely would die soon. The vet gave us lots of deciding time, which was nice, but every time she came back in and we told her that we really wanted to take our cat home she was very insistent that we shouldnt do that and that she should be put down. I felt so coerced! My cat was in MUCH better shape before we brought her into the clinic. I wish more than anything that we wouldnt have brought her in at all and would have just kept her at home giving her peace to do what she needed to do. We just went in to see If there was anyway we could help her, Being in this situation and seeing the bill escalating extravagantly, and nothing being done but making our cat worse, was not the way I wanted her last moments to be. I know we could have insisted on taking her home, but the vet kept repeating very ugly possible scenarios that may have made it harder on our cat, but what our cat had gone through at the clinic was far worse. We were so confused and I still feel awful! I will allow the vet her opinion, but I do not believe she was at all adept at handling cats. Afterwards my mother and I stepped back into the private waiting room, we burst into tears and a nurse sticks her head in and goes "uh, you know you can leave now right?"... I will NEVER step foot in BEVS ever again.

EL

Elizabeth

BEVS has repeatedly severely misdiagnosed my dogs. I have been unfortunate enough to need emergency vet care a few times over the past couple of years as I have 5 rescue dogs and frequently foster. I have submitted complaints to the hospital to no avail. It amazes me that this place is allowed to operate with such low standards of care and charge the prices that they do. The TV Board of Veterinary Medicine really needs to step in here - no other organization (including the BBB, American Vet Med Assoc, or even the governor) have any jurisdiction. A few examples; my French Bulldog was born with IVDD (as many are) a degenerative genetic diseases that causes their spinal discs so spontaneously rupture leaving the dog paralyzed and in excruciating pain. The first time this happened to our Frenchie we brought her to BEVS because immediate treatment of pain meds and steroids is essential to avoid lifelong peralysis. The vet took xrays and examined our dog but wouldnt listen to us - instead, the vet insisted our dog had an upset stomach and would only give her pepcid. We had no choice but to wait until our vet office opened 2 days later where she was immediately diagnosed with the shattered disc and underwent spinal surgery 6 hours later. The delay due to BEVS misdiagnosis caused our dog life long nerve damage. Another time, our male American Bulldog ate a chewed and injected a stick he found in the yard. Almost immediately he began vomiting, which he did 6 times and then he lost consciousness. I ran to the car and called BEVS on my way (its a 10 min drive). I get there and they immediately take my dog into the back. I wait for 45 min and the vet comes out and says my dog has somewhat regained consciousness and that his blood tests show he had high levels of toxins in his system. I asked if they were going to give him activated charcoal and the vet refused stating no, we are not going to trest the toxins because we do not know what caused him to be poisoned. The vet did not believe that trees can be poisonous to dogs. There are over 200 kinds of trees that are poisonous to dogs, including blue spruce and box elder - both very common to VT. Again, because of the veterinarians low level of knowledge and refusal to treat the toxins, my dog suffered and we had to keep him hospitalized on fluids for 2 days (cost of over $1,000).

EM

Emily Lalone Ianuario

We cannot thank the ladies at BEVS enough for fixing up our little pup (9 weeks old!) yesterday after a nasty run-in with an adult dog who bit him. Its Memorial Day weekend and we were in town for my fiance to run the Burlington Marathon. When he got bit, I immediately searched online for any place nearby that was open. These ladies had a great website and great reviews.... answered the phone and were so nice. Talked me off the ledge about what I could/should do before getting to them. When we got there, we walked right in and the lovely girl at the front desk (who was also the person on the phone) was so nice. As were the two doctors (Amanda Rutter and Emily) who took his vitals, gave him a shot to numb the pain, clipped and cleaned his wound, gave him an exam to make sure everything else in/around his mouth was ok, and gave us meds for the next week. We really liked that they did everything they could to make sure it was a non-traumatic experience for him because hes so little--so he wont fear the vet in the future. They talked us through everything and were incredibly patient and communicative and kind. And, in terms of pricing, we were pleasantly surprised that it was just $200 for two courses of meds, the injection, the emergency visit, and the clip/clean! We wish we lived in Burlington! Thank you, BEVS. Hueco is feeling much better today and is getting back to his rambunctious self. Emily + Doug