ComplaintsforPekin Animal Hospital, Ltd.

• Initial Complaint

  01/12/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On January 12th, 2023, my wife took our dog to the vet. Upon arrival everything went smoothly. However, when it was time for my dog to go inside the clinic, he was refusing. All attempts were made to get him inside, and nothing worked. Since the doctor was unable to examine my dog, we were given anxiety medication to give him, and return in a week to try again. We paid for the medications we were given, however we were also charged 59.40 for an examination fee, and my dog never entered the clinic, let alone got examined. I attempted to contact the veterinarian clinic for a simple refund, thinking they would see this error, and it would be refunded. Unfortunately, that did not happen. The head secretary explained to me that since the vet tech and the doctor both attempted to assist my wife in getting our dog inside, that is considered a visual examination, and they would not be issuing a refund. My dog did not get an examination and his health issue remains.

  

  Business response

  01/13/2023

  The patient arrived at our facility on 1/12/23 and would not enter the building.  It is noted that as soon as the pet came out of the vehicle, it began to roll while on the leash.  The owner who brought the patient was unable to hold the pet.  Since the patient was not cooperating, our medical staff went out to see if they could assist the owner.  This included one of our veterinarians.  They were unsuccessful.  The patient was snapping and lunging.  This patient has not had a rabies vaccine according to our records and the owner would not have been able to place a muzzle without injury to herself.  So, in order to prevent the staff, owner and pet from any serious injury, the veterinarian had to change gears.  She was able to do an observational exam as noted in her records, as well as a gait analysis to assess the patient.  She then proceeded to prescribe medications for the pet to treat for pain and medication to help reduce the anxiety and mildly sedate the animal for the next visit to facilitate a hands-on exam.

  The owner who presented the patient questioned the exam/consultation fee prior to leaving.  We explained our charge policy and that the charge was for the doctor's observational exam, gait analysis and her time and consultation about this patient's condition and behavioral assessment.  We explained that in this instance a physical exam was not possible, but that charge is also covering what exam the doctor was able to do and for the consultation.  This owner then left and went home.

  Not long after, the other owner, who was not present for the visit, called to ask for a refund citing that because a Physical Exam was not done, they should not have to pay.  As we tried to explain the policy on our charges, the Client Care Coordinator was unable to get through to the client due to her behavior to the staff on the phone.  The client was yelling and berating the staff member the entire phone call and would not listen to our explanation.

  Our exam/consultation charges are designed to not only cover a physical exam, but to also cover for the instances when a patient cannot be physically examined.  We do occasionally have to go outside in our parking lot and grassy areas to accommodate an anxious or aggressive patient.  The fees encompass all aspects of the consultation from visual exam to providing a treatment plan for the patient.

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩