I have had problems with my eldest boy all year and he's been unable to walk for about a month. So I took him urgently to the vets as he was barely able to lift his head.

I told the vet his stomach was distended but he said it was fine. I said he had arthritis he said he would give him some metacam and if it didn't help, come back and they'd do some X Rays

So I left with a really sick dog.

48 hours later he was unable walk, and was crying all the time. He was in a real state. Took him to another emergency vet who said: this dog is too sick to go home.

So he stayed in for five days while they treated the eleven (11) different things wrong with him.

Now I have a bill from the first vet for, admittedly, only 40 quid, but I'm hugely resentful of paying it...

What should I do? Do I pay a bill for a vet that let so many conditions pass, or just pay it and move on?

Advice really needed...

I wouldn’t want to pay it either, it depends if you have the energy to put up a fight. You could maybe write a letter detailing everything that was wrong with your dog and that you don’t feel that you should pay due to his mis-diagnosis.

Hope your boy is on the mend.

How old is your dog? I'd be VERY concerned about a dog that hadn't been able to walk for a month. I might have more problems with the vet treating him for 11 different things, depending on the circumstances. Pay your vet bill.

First off, if he was unable to walk for over a month, and could barely lift his head when you took him, I would have definitely taken him sooner. Like the very first day he couldn't walk suddenly for no apparent reason. However, I would not be at all happy with a vet who said the dog was fine and shoved some metacam at me, and was then in such a state hours later he had to see an emergency vet, as he was clearly not fine. A badly distended stomach is normally the sign of either worms or bloat, both of which need urgent treatment. Having said that, I would just be extremely glad that my dog was still alive (he could so easily not have been), and thankful that the first vet had only charged £40 for an emergency appointment and medication. I would probably go and pay but make sure they knew how ill the dog had actually been, that it had to go to another vet as an emergency etc ( if your lucky they might waive or take something off the bill at that, especially if you have a receipt note off the other vet stating the problems) , and make a mental note not to take my pet to them again. It really depends on how far you want to go, but I'd just thank my lucky stars that I still had my dog.

This is difficult, it's easy to look at what you say and decide the vet was wrong but when mine go to the vet no matter how ill they always seem to perk up and they can go down hill so fast the vet may not have seen the situation quite how it sounds here.

Also if the dog had been suffering as long as you said perhaps the vet didn't expect you to want lots of tests etc.

We have to take some responsibility for how we communicate to the vet too, I have been just as guilty on occasion of either panicking or thinking the best when that just wasn't exactly what the vet was saying to me.

My vet now knows me enough to know how much treatment I want for my dogs, when I was with my last vets they would assume I would consent to everything they suggested now this one knows we don't want intrusive or painful treatments so rarely suggests anything like that.

It could just be a miscommunication or the dog may have become suddenly worse.

Personally I would pay up but also write a letter just outlining my concerns, not a complaint but just seeking clarification of what the vet actually saw when examining the dog because if it was an honest diagnosis but just went very wrong later it would be a different thing to a direct misdiagnosis.

Some good posts here. I agree with molliepops. It's hard to know reading here whether it was wilful misdiagnosis or the vet going down the route of 'let's try one thing at a time to rule out' rather than going with a whole battery of tests, which some owners might not be thankful for.

I reckon your gut will tell you if your vet was out of order and you have reason to doubt him, and in which case you should change vets. Perhaps ring or write saying you've got the bill and would ordinarily pay but you have some misgivings you'd like to discuss. Personally speaking, I would pay and seethe for a while but would be more concerned with getting my dog the treatment they need from a vet I had faith in. As much as it would pee me off letting him 'off the hook'!

Whatever you decide I really hope you and your dog are ok. It sounds like you're both having a terrible time.

Don't pay.

You had a really sick dog, and they couldn't diagnose his problem, so what are they charging for?
Unfortunately they get away with this sloppy incompetence too often because people are too embarrassed, or to afraid to stand up for themselves against these so called professionals.

My cat was itching like a mad thing not long after I had him from the RSPCA and breaking out in sore spots all over, so I took him to their vet. First they thought it was an infection and gave me antibiotics, then they thought it was ringworm and made me shower him several times a week and sold me shampoos, then it wasn't that so they tried something else. Finally after much internet research, I discovered it was a kind of mite that could be killed with Advocate. I asked for Advocate and it worked. I then told them what they could do with their £120 bill for using my cat like a guinea pig, and that I was not going to pay for their mistaken diagnosis, but I would pay for the Advocate.

I would be sending a very sharp letter to your vet if I were you.

You have to pay the bill, unless you make a complaint and they agree to write it off, you owe them and they will pursue it.

It because of people who find reasons not to settle their vet bills that so many vets refuse to treat without cash up front.

Next time don't dither taking your dog to the vet, I shudder to imagine how he suffered all that time, you're lucky neither vet reported you if he'd been that bad for that long

I agree muse.
When my max jumped up and hurt is leg realy badly and was screaming he was in the vets within 20 mins, I would have been irrisponsible not too take him. An injury left can cost far more than taking your animal in straight away money wise but for an animal too be in pain that's wrong

You do realise dogs cannot speak and are unable to state what is wrong with them ? because it must be extremely difficult when presented with a patient who cannot say exactly where the problem is, almost a guessing game when they are trying to diagnose. They normally start with the most common thing it could be working up to the more serious or odd things.

I agree a letter is needed but a polite request about what went wrong is all.

If we all did what you suggest I wonder how many vets would be charging before they even see the dog, ours is lovely we can pay at the time or before end of the month. But start refusing to pay on a whim and he would be unable to offer that choice to his patients.

That is intensely, INSANELY offensive to me.

I spent hundreds of pounds and went to three vets over six months to try and get him sorted. And none of the first three gave any kind of proper diagnosis and were content to take my money without taking my concerns seriously - even when I told them what I thought was wrong.

It's only great fortune that we found a really decent vet when he was on death's door that his issues were resolved, or he wouldn't be here now. And it cost me 1500 and counting, so DO NOT presume to judge me or my parenting style.

Well done, it takes a HUGE amount to piss me off, but you managed it with your outrageous and ridiculous scathing judgments that you pass off with such ease.

Of course, it's just the Internet so you're really not worth my concern and I very much doubt I'll get an apology but you have seriously crossed a line here with this flippant comment.

Karis, I understand why you're pissed off but re-read your OP - you stated after a month of your dog not being able to walk you took him to the vet... That does sound a bit bad tbh. If something is wrong with my cats I'm at the vet the same day. Why did you wait a month? If you didn't, then you need to rephrase your OP.

I agree I didn't leap to that conclusion because I have seen Karis posting around the pets forum many times and know the dogs welfare will always be high priority so assumed it was just badly explained but can't assume everyone will know that so do understand why some people may not see it like that.

How is your boy today Karis ? any better ?

To clarify: this is the Internet. It's not the place for me to have to explain myself in minute detail. If someone has an issue (which is typically irrelevant to the original point - as in this case) it's for them to message ME and ask. It's certainly not anyone's responsibility to attack me or make scathing judgements which aren't even remotely true. I utterly deny those comments and the mindset behind them.

I don't have to change anything here. I was asking for advice and instead, again, I got nothing but judgments from people who really should know better. But don't.

For the record: the last two paragraphs are REALLY good advice for anyone reading this. The last thing anyone should be doing it making judgements about a person they don't know (unless it's Katie Price).

Heya

I'm so angry about this because, what I didn't say here* was that I'd seen three separate vets over the course of that month, none of which gave me any even remotely helpful diagnoses.

I didn't say that because it wasn't relevant to my issue - which I am also very cross about*

To cut a very long story short... Finding the new vet was a GODSEND!!! Two months later, a week in the vets being given lots and lots of care, a month at my parents house with lots and lots AND LOTS of rest, and a £1500 vet bill - a weekly Cartrophen injection - and he's loads better. He's back to wagging his tail endlessly and snuffling for foodies and while he's still a bit creaky and needs carrying upstairs, he no longer has colic or any infection and his arthritis has faded to a pale memory of what it was. He even chased a squirrel the other day and was very pleased with himself!

So I thank the powers every day I found this new vet, who has saved the life of my boy when THREE others just fobbed me off with crap medicine and ignored my comments.

But no one can possibly tell me I shouldn't be exceptionally angry when I say 'my boy's stomach is distended' to be told 'you're imagining it...'

*But I've decided to settle the bill even though I'm so angry about it - I just don't have the mental energy to go through all the bickering involved for just £40...

Edit: I'm no longer angry and I love everyone again! xxx

Hi Karis

I'll admit when I read your first post, I also thought your dog hadn't seen a vet in that first month, sorry. Now you've said you'd actually seen THREE, and none were any use whatsoever and even ignored your comments / concerns, well if it was me there's no way I'd be paying the bill without a fight first. The fact you had to see three separate vets in one month, who all rubbished your concerns and did nothing to the point you had to take your dog to an emergency vet in the end as he was in pain, and they found eleven things wrong, does not bode well. I would be seriously tempted to report it to the British Veterinary Association, as if nothing else, it could prevent someone else's pet not being so lucky with them. A vet should not shrug off an owner's concerns, they might be able to diagnose things, but nobody will know your own animal inside out like you would. Who knows your pet better - a vet who sees them once or twice if you stay with the same one, or the person who lives with them 24/7? Listen to yourself and listen to your pet.

I'm so glad the treatments are working hopefully now you have found a good vet nothing like this could happen again. We had problems with our last vet so know how difficult it is when you know something is wrong but can't get them to take it seriously. Luckily we found a good vet and I recommend him to anyone I meet. They are worth their weight in gold when you get a good one !

Our vet charged £42 the other day for less than a 5 minute visit, all she did was give us a sample pot I'm wondering if the price will include the sample analysis.

Ours usually charges for the consultation and the test at the initial meeting, so hopefully that should cover it !

Lets hope so!!

Well then you need to look at what you wrote because your original post made it look as if you let the dog suffer for a month. 'Dither' was what came across. People aren't mind readers and most don't know you. We can only go by what we read. So you can throw a paddy and use as many caps as you like, but no one has any apologies to make. Except perhaps you

Tragic comment. But I'm not going to get drawn into an argument on the Internet with people who should know better. And who think they're being clever.

Have a lovely week.

You see, I think that's outrageous. But they don't seem to be properly regulated and seem to be able to charge what they like.

It's insane

Karis Try not to let “invisible” people in this page upset you. I’d already guessed you’d taken your boy to the vets. I didn’t think for one minute that you let him suffer for a moment .

Well done for getting things sorted out and paying the first vets. You can now forget about the first vet's mistake, and concentrate on your lovely boy once again.

Your experience is one of the reasons I have never, and won’t ever, start an advice thread on this forum. I’ve seen what happens, time after time.

Forget about the bad replies, and enjoy your boy. Life’s too short….

P.S. I am out of this thread before I get lynched.

Best Wishes.

Thanks for the lovely reply. People are in general really lovely but there are some really sad people out there which is truly a bit depressing.

I'd never normally rise to the bait, but my boys are my Achilles Heel and I've been through so much with them; I think some comments on here really penetrated my armour.

I cannot fathom why anyone would jump to conclusions about something, No one would ever say these things to my face, so why are people so eager to have a go online? I don't do it. I think we should spend our time being nice online and offline, and I truly hope I'm not in the minority!

Anyway. Everyone enjoy Bonfire Night!