When your pet gets sick and you don’t know why, you panic like never before. You take your beloved animal to the vet and hope for the best. And, at the end of the day, you trust the vet to do their job and keep you informed.
But has your vet kept you informed of the situation?
TikTok user Summer Jones (@901sumo) from Memphis, Tennessee claims that when she took her cat, Tommy, to VCA Aventura Animal Hospital & Pet Resort in Aventura, Florida, she ended up being misinformed about his issues.
Jones She documented her frustrations in a video Tick tock This month’s account. shout It has since been viewed over 1.7 million times.
“Do not take your pets to this veterinary clinic,” she told viewers, showing a Google screenshot of a VCA Veterinary Clinic with a Florida address.
Jones claims that she took her cat, Tom, to the vet, where he was diagnosed with an ear infection. Jones says she followed the suggested treatment plan, but then took him back because “Tommy wouldn’t use his ears.” [his front feet]”It was like he was crawling, not walking. I said, ‘That’s not normal.'”
the Website “VCA Aventura Animal Hospital and Pet Resort is a full-service veterinary medical facility.” The hospital offers multiple services, including: chemical treatmentelectrocardiograms, ultrasounds, and other “diagnostic images.”
Veterinary visits you’ll want to forget
Jones has a series of X-rays The test costs $600 and takes two hours to complete, but she says she never received a call from the hospital.
She claims she called the clinic an hour before closing time, saying: “I dropped Tommy off at 12 o’clock. [or] One, anything goes, I called them.”
She claims the receptionist asked her: “Was he alive when you brought him in?”
Jones reportedly looked into the camera in disbelief and replied: “Yeah, I did. When can I pick up my baby?”
Jones claims he handed Tommy over to her and said he would get back to her once he had information about the x-rays. Jones then spoke to a veterinarian at the hospital, who said: Neurologist.”
But despite assurances that the vet would contact her through reception, Ms Jones gave him the neurologist’s phone number.
She claims two days passed before she contacted him again: “I’m not going to destroy their phone on the first day, I’ll wait and see if they send it on the second day.”
Jones claims she contacted the office two days later and was told to “take down my number and have a manager call me immediately.”
“And if I don’t hear from a manager within a certain amount of time, I’m going to be there,” she allegedly told the front desk.
Jones says she didn’t receive any messages, despite the messages being sent, but claims an explanation for Tommy’s behaviour arrived unexpectedly from the internet.
Diagnosed on TikTok
“A group of people on TikTok saw Tommy and knew exactly what he had,” Jones said. “I’m not 100 percent sure, but he was definitely showing signs of FIP.”
Feline infectious peritonitis is a “viral disease of cats caused by certain strains of a virus called feline coronavirus.” Cornell Feline Health Center. according to VCA website“Early symptoms of the disease can be very vague. Lethargy, lethargy, reduced or absent appetite, weight loss, and fluctuating fever are the commonly reported clinical symptoms.”
The site also points out that FIP is “particularly difficult to diagnose; although routine blood tests may reveal abnormalities, there are no abnormalities specific to FIP.”
Jones argues Rags to Riches Animal Rescue We reached out to her through social media and offered her some medicine for Tommy free of charge.
Cornell University Feline Health Center It states that FIP ”is usually progressive and almost always fatal if untreated, but treatment has been available for several years in Australia and the UK and has recently become available in the US as an oral combination formulation.”
“How was it that a TikTok page was able to see Tommy’s video, figure out exactly what it was, point him to resources within hours, and get him medication within two hours of speaking with them?” Jones asks viewers.
“But when I take him to your vet you don’t know what’s going on? Then you immediately send him off to a $5,000 neurologist?”
Jones’ video claim garnered a lot of support in the comments section.
“I’m so glad I found an organization that can help! Unfortunately, not all hospitals and clinics are good,” says introvert Jack (@Introvert Jack) I have written.
Another viewer commented: “As a vet receptionist this is heartbreaking – it’s so important you take notes and get in touch with customers as soon as possible.”
“My shepherd was acting differently so I took him to the emergency vet. He was there for 2 days, I paid and still no response. I took him to my regular vet and found out he had cancer that same day. If they had treated him he would still be alive.” Sunflowerlover (@Sunflower Angel).
The Daily Dot reached out to VCA Aventura Animal Hospital & Pet Resort for comment and received the following response from Misty Holbert, senior director of external communications, on behalf of the company:
“Pet care is our top priority and we take any client feedback, as well as harassment, extremely seriously. The findings of our initial investigation are not consistent with what was shared with us. We have zero tolerance for threatening behavior. We always strive to have a client-hospital relationship based on mutual trust and respect, but unfortunately that trust was violated here and staff felt uneasy. The pet’s diagnosis we shared with our former client was thorough and while updates were not immediate, we always prioritize due diligence for the quality of our care.”
We have sent the VCA a follow-up request to address the accusations of harassment and threatening behaviour.
in video In a post the day after the incident, Jones said Tommy was “doing well and fighting hard.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Jones via TikTok Messenger and comment for further comment.
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