Machinations at the VEC clinic in Toronto - try to evade it

[starrgorin]

I have had a very bad experience recently with one veterinary clinic in Toronto, specifically the Veterinary Emergency Clinic. I have heard some similar stories from other people, but I did not believe that until I have found it out myself.
I have a dog, and it felt quite bad, have a diarrhea, and did not want to eat. I brought her there, they made blood tests, and said that the dog has pancreatitis and the first thing they suggested is to kill the dog, before even estimating the price for treatment. I have convinced the doctor that we shall pay as much money as necessary to save her. The doctor then agreed, and estimated about 10000 for the treatment. He said the situation is very dangerous, and they will put the dog into the intensive therapy room. He also said that everything will depend on the blood test that he will take the next day. The next day he called us and surprisingly said that the dog is doing well, but "does not not walk yet". He said that the god needs to stay in the hospital for about 5 days. However the blood tests he said were vital and the ultrasound (we have paid for the both) he hasn't took in 3 days, whereas the first time he's done it in three hours, and said that they will do it again in 8 hours. The same thing with the ultrasound - he said himself it was necessary to do, but for some reason they did not do it for three days. When we wanted to take the dog after the three days to another doctor, to another clinic, where they could finally do the tests and the ultrasound, the doctor said that the dog is suddenly in pain, and he would not give her back or give her to another clinic. The doctor for some reason could not explain why the tests were not done and what further treatment is necessary. He said that if we won't pay for the dog for the 4 more days, he will kill the dog. Finally after talking much, I rescued the dog from there, and the same day and the day after I saw three other different specialists from different clinics in Toronto. They said that indeed the dog had pancreatites, but is was curable, and that she did not have any pain. In fact, the doctors at the VEC, the very last day said that the dog has pain because when they touch her she groans. When I took the dog, I touched her and she did not groan at all. She always groans when strangers even approach her, not even touch, so it is impossible to say that she is in pain because she groans when they touch her, when I came she did not groan at me. So, the other specialist also said that it was madness to kill her then, and that she could have been definitely cured, or at least attempted to be cured. They also said that at the VEC they did not give her the right medicine, and it was surprisingly unprofessional that they did not do the blood tests that were indeed important.

It seems that the clinic there takes your pets as hostages, like a terrorist with a gun pointing at you and saying that either you pay him 10000 or he'll kill you. Moreover, they did not do the necessary treatment, just like that, she could have slept in any other clinic, they were just giving her IV fluids, and as the other other doctors said that hey did not put the necessary medications in there. They did not do anything except for that, in 3 days, they should have already don the tests the second day, as they promised at first.
I have talked to some other people then, and found out that for some reason indeed, in that clinic the doctors first of all are trying to convince you to kill your pet, even if it is very much curable, and even if you have the money to do all the treatment. I have read several stories where the keep an animal for several days, doing nothing, and charging you with lots of money, and then saying that they have to kill her.
Unfortunately many people are very gullible and believe everything these nazis say, and agree to their pet. I think people should stop doing that - please never see just one specialist, especially in such a clinic - see at least 2 or three different doctors from different places, and only then decide on where you want to treat your pet. I am still very confused? why is the first thing they do is trying to convince the owner that the dog needs to be killed... Is not it more profitable for them to say "yes we will treat your pet, just pay us" and on contrary even if the pet's life is questionable, try everything they can to help your pet, for the owner will pay anyways. I think it is possible that they might kill them for organs and that will get them more money. It is still a mystery to me.
I was disgusted by their unprofessional, negligent attitude, they contradict themselves every minute, and the one thing they make clear is that they want to kill your pet.

If someone wishes to read some details, then I shall post a more complete report I have regarding this case.

[starrgorin]

The purpose of this message is to warn everyone who has pets, to be aware of the fraud and machinations practiced by some veterinarians in Toronto, which may lead to your pet's death and thereto unnecessary payments of extensive amounts. I myself have recently had a highly negative experience with the Veterinary Emergency Clinic (VEC) in Toronto, who are located at 920 Younge Street. I shall tell the story from the beginning now.
For two days my dog had diarrhea, and on the third day she started vomiting. Then we brought her to our local veterinarian clinic. The doctor there made an examination of our dog, but told us that it is impossible to say anything until blood tests would be taken. However he said, since it was Saturday the blood tests if taken would be ready only by tomorrow. Also, we have inquired if it is possible to do place the dog under IV fluids for a day, but he said that the clinic will be closed in the evening and on Sunday. Thus he has suggested that we go to the emergency clinic, where the blood tests may be done immediately and the dog may be given a dropper. Agreeing with the doctor's advice we right away went to the Veterinary Emergency Clinic (VEC), whither the doctor has already called, informed them of our coming visit, and sent them the description of his examination.
Immediately we arrived to the clinic, registered there, and a nurse came out to take our dog for an examination. Interestingly, we were not allowed in, to where the dog would be examined, whereas other people with their pets did go in together with them. Furthermore, in all the clinic we have ever been in before, including the one we just gone in earlier that day, we were together with the doctor all the time, while he examined the dog, and communicated with him regarding any question either he or we asked, and making comments and explanations to each other as the examination went. However in this clinic we were not allowed in for the examination for some reason (though there were other people with their pets going in and out). After some time we were finally called in, and a doctor brought us to a small office to talk. The dog was not there. He said that he had examined her, and that he can’t tell anything unless blood tests, X-rays and ultrasound are done. He had spent some time explaining to us that all the three procedures were very necessary, and we have agreed that they all should be completed then.
There was another detail that later will prove important. The doctor said that during the examination he was unable to tell whether our dog experienced any pain in the stomach or anywhere else, because as soon as she was taken away form us by the nurse, she started crying and barking at the personnel constantly, when he did not touch her and when he did. In fact, and we also explained this to the doctor, our dog is very emotional when she is alone and moreover when there are strangers around. She always whines and barks when we leave her alone for a long time (meaning several hours) at home and especially outside, when some time we left her outside a shop, she immediately started crying and whining. And most definitely when there are strangers around her, or even when we have guests she start barking and groaning. It was no surprise that in this case she was very much stressed and cried and barked at the personnel. We told this to the doctor and he said that he understood it.
Please no pay attention to all the details the doctor says, for later you will find that will be a lot of contradictions between what the doctor himself will say later, and what he will right in the report. Moreover between what other three specialists form other clinics would say later.
We went to the reception and paid there for all the things the doctor had estimated. Then we went home, and in several hours the doctor called us. He said that he had received the blood test results (important – it took no more then 3 hours for him to make the blood tests, including the CBC test). He said that the dog had severe pancreatitis and strong anemia. The first thing he has suggested is that he could euthanize her. That was even before he outlined any possible treatment. He told us to arrive, and we did so immediately. The doctor explained to us the two problems the dog had, and said that it would be very difficult to treat her, that it may cost to us about 10 000, and even then he could not guarantee that the dog will survive. Regarding the pancreatitis he said that it was very severe and that lots of dogs do not survive, even when the treatment is done. Regarding anemia, he said that immediately multiple blood transfusions will be necessary, and that the dog might still die. Moreover he told us several times that even if he will treat the dog and she will survive these problems, it is very likely that other consequential diseases will appear that would kill the dog anyways. So, all the time still constantly insisted that we should agree on euthanizing the dog. Of course we have not agreed and without any hesitation paid everything that was necessary for the next day, what included blood transfusions, medications, blood tests etc. For the first two days it was about 3000. The ultrasound was not done yet, the doctor said that the specialist has not come yet. The doctor has very much emphasized as well that it is important to make another Complete Blood Count test, which will be done in 8 hours. There was another important detail. Before the doctor’s estimation, we told him that at this particular moment we have only about 4000 on our account. We paid about 3000 for the next two days’ treatment, including all the procedures that may be necessary in any incidental case. However, we did say that we are ready, and we were, to pay as much money as necessary for any further treatment after these two days, even if it will be more then 10 000. We did have access for more money that at the moment were not on this particular account. The doctor also suggested that we should contact our relatives, and we said that our relatives in particular do not have big savings, and that for example my mother lives in Europe and has a pension of about 200$. Nevertheless we stated that the money was anyways not the problem to us, for we had other sources from different accounts and loans.
Then we have asked if we could see the X-rays. The X-rays the doctor said were fine, all the organs we perfect and one could not see anything unusual there.
Then he as usual offered euthanasia, but we again resolutely declined it. Then he asked us to sign a document, saying that if the dog would have a cordial arrest in the intensive therapy room, where she was to be placed, they should not give her CRP and let her die. He persistently suggested we sign it. We refused, and said that they should help her anyways. Then he started telling us that only 10 percent of the dogs that are rescued from a heart attack are normal, and most likely the dog will have brain damage and multiple disabilities if they do her CPR. For some time he still insisted we sign it, but we refused. He still reiterated that the dog might not survive even till the morning.
Then we at the reception we have paid all the doctor had asked for for the first two days, and went home, waiting for his calls. He said that the treatment should all be done in steps, and that it is vital to do the new blood tests, and the ultrasound to decide what the further treatment will be.
In the morning he called us, and said that the dog was doing better, that according to some preliminary centrifugal blood test she was better. But he said that the CBC blood tests still must be done for they are very important and decisive anyways. Note, at first he said that CBC would be done in 8 hours, but it was not done yet in about 12 hours.
During the day we went to see our dog. At the registration desk, we were called in, and the person there made a call to our doctor, and has informed him that we were coming. We went through the room where all the dogs were, to the intensive therapy room. The dog was not sleeping, she had her eyes open, looked at us, and slightly moved. However she was put on very strong analgesics, in fact three kinds of drugs at the same time. There was a label near her cage saying that her pain level was 1-2. There were other dogs whose pain levels were higher, but who were more active, and had fewer drugs injected, according to the labels that indicated all the medicine they were given. Most importantly we have seen the doctor nearby several times, and he as well looked at us too. He did not look extremely busy, just walking and talking to other personnel, but he never approached us, and he did not even greet us or say anything in any way. It was very strange, that the day before he was telling us all those horrific stories and prognoses, but now he did not even approach us to say anything about the treatment and the dog’s health.
At the registration desk we were told that our doctor’s shift will end today in the evening, and that another two doctors will be instead –the first one during the night, and the second one would be in the morning.
In the evening of the same day, we had telephoned ourselves to the new doctor, who said that the dog was doing better, but had pains. We asked when the ultrasound will be made, and she said it will be done in the morning when the specialist will come.
The next morning we received another call from the same doctor, who said nothing new – the dog was doing better but she had pains.
Sine none of the necessary procedures promised were made, and since it was already Monday, we have decided that we may take her no to another doctor. When we came to the clinic to take our dog, they refused to give her to us. They say that if we don’t pay more to keep her there for another several days, they will kill her. They said that we have no right to take the dog, and that if we will make an attempt to do so, they will immediately euthanize her. Because this looked so suspicious, we have decided upon calling the police, and said this to the doctor. The doctor did not believe at first, but then when we had reiterated it again, the doctor has given her back to us. The dog was on drugs, and was very sleepy, she could not even walk. As soon as we got home, as soon as we have opened the door, the telephone had rung, and it turned out to be a person from the OSPCA. He told us that he had received a call from the clinic saying that we had taken a dog in severe pain from the hospital that needs immediate euthanasia, and most importantly he said that he was told that we have officially refused from any further treatment whatsoever because of financial deficiencies (what was a complete lie). In fact the first day, on Saturday we told the doctor that at this particular moment we have on the account, the one that we were going to use today, about 4000$, and that for today and tomorrow we should proceed with all the necessary treatment. Moreover the doctor had estimated that just for the first two days it will be about 3000$. Then we have stated that we are going to pay as much as necessary even if it goes beyond 10 thousand, the next day, from other bank accounts we have.
We have explained the situation to the officer, he seemed to have understood it, and gave us time to see another doctor during this day, to assess the dog’s condition. As we made an appointment and came to another specialist (not in an emergency but an ordinary clinic) the same day, the dog recovered from the anaesthetics, and did not show any signs of pain or discomfort, her behaviour was very normal. The new doctor said that indeed the dog had pancreatitis, according to the blood test from the clinic, but that now she was doing a lot better and did not have any pains at all. He made a very thorough examination, and did the CBC blood tests. Right away we went to another clinic where we have signed up for ultrasound and saw another doctor to do blood test and examination. The results were good. The other day we went to a third clinic and saw another specialist, whose conclusions were the same as of the previous two.
Moreover in other clinic we were told, that at VEC they did not treat the dog properly, they did not give her enough of some medicine, and that that it was highly unprofessional that they did not perform the necessary tests and the ultrasound. Moreover they had no right not to give us back the dog, and that calling the police was indeed the right measure, and that what the doctors were saying was illegal. It is suspected that perhaps the doctors wanted our dog for organs, for the most the treatment would have cost about 8-10 thousand, and since the x-rays shown that everything was in very a good condition, they would have earned a lot more by killing her. That is perhaps why the doctor made a very big effort trying to convince us to sight the document saying that in case of a cordial arrest, they should not try to recover her. In that case they could have easily made an injection that causes the heart to stop, and then cover it up as if the dog had a heart attack.
Also, the other doctors told us that they have noticed that there had been done some work on the dog’s teeth very recently, (some mechanical processing) and they have concluded that it could have been done at the clinic, because we did not do anything like that in the last several days. One of the doctors said that it is possible that they have students working there and practicing on the animals. They may do anything they want, something that is not required and is not officially listed or charged for, and thus they don’t take the responsibility for it. If they make an error, the doctors will not take the responsibility for it is not officially listed anywhere that such a procedure was performed. In fact, I have realized later that just working with teeth was not that bad, for I have found a story from a person who went to this clinic, and who said that they indeed have students there and that to his dog they have been practicing some chemical injections that nearly killed him. Unfortunately the person could not do anything legally wise regarding this case.
Furthermore, in spite of the fact that the doctors and the employees in the clinic are very much acquainted with the law, for it is a tremendously important aspect of their job, for them at least it is perhaps even more important than medicine, and thus they avoid making any obvious fraud and put everything in such words that from the legal point of view it is impossible to object, in this case there was some rather open garbling, including changing facts in the report, and removing some thing the doctor said, adding thing that we have never said, and copy-pasting and changing dates and times for some of the points in the report.
Here I would like to include some of the points that were machinated in the official report they gave us. This is the message that had been communicated to the officer from the OSPCA, regarding the discrepancies in the report

1. In my first visit I mentioned that I possess about $4000 right now on one specific account available to us at that particular moment, and it should be first of all spent on the most important treatment. However, I have never said that I will not pay more than that. Furthermore, Dr. *** calculated the biggest estimation possible, which was approximately $10 000, and we were ready to obtain such an amount of money through other accounts. We were asked to deposit $3,319.71, what we did the same day without hesitation. And we gave our permission to do multiple transfusions if necessary (the doctor said that it is very likely that she would need several blood transfusions), and the ultrasound in any case. In fact, we insisted that the ultrasound must be made as soon as possible, but they have never done it throughout the three days.

2. On page 3, in the medical report of 6/12/2010, at 18:40, Dr *** states that “He [me] started that he has not worked in two years and had an income of $200 per month.” Actually, I told that almost for two years I have no permanent job. As a matter of fact, I had part time jobs, and my wife has a full time job. In fact, when Dr. ***, told about consulting with our families, I said that they are not in Canada, and my mother has an income of $200, not me.

3. Most importantly, Dr. *** during his call on Sunday morning, said that he was going to make the Complete Blood Count (CBC) blood test approximately at 10 PM on Sunday, and that the results will be ready at about 6 o’clock of the next morning.
Also, he said that this test was decisive and it will show what further treatment will be necessary. In fact, for some reason this is not included in the report, and moreover, the fact of the call by Dr. *** on Sunday 13th, at about 9 AM is not mentioned at all. According to Dr. ***, his first diagnosis was based on CBC test that took place on Saturday, when the dog arrived, and thus told that further actions will depend on the result of another CBC that shall take place on Sunday.
The test has never been made. Since the decisive test, on which, according to Dr. ***, depended the treatment, was never done, we have decided to take the dog to another doctor.

4. From the beginning, and after the X-ray was done, we asked to do ultrasound, for Dr. *** said that it was very important. However it was never made as well.

5. The last paragraph, on page 6 of the report, relates to the conversation that happened not on June 14th, as it is shown, but on Sunday 13th at around 11 PM.

On Sunday and henceforth, we received information from Dr. *** and Dr. *** that the dog improved, that her urine was normal, the heart, breath were normal, and that the dog needed no transfusion so far. We have compared these results to the dreadful prognosis made by Dr. *** (see page 3, in the medical report of 6/12/2010), and thus have decided to go to another clinic, to get a different opinion that may resolve this contradiction. For us, the health of our dog is most important and we are capable of finding and spending more money to find better treatment.

This message is not purposed to condemn all the veterinarians, but to warn people to be careful and if possible not to use that specific clinic the VEC, the Veterinary Emergency Clinic in Toronto. In fact there are a lot better doctors elsewhere, but at the VEC they have dishonest personnel working, whose main objective is to profit, they don’t even care about the health of your pet. Unfortunately that is what business makes to people, and in such an environment as an emergency clinic it is possible for a decent person to turn into a criminal, for some of such clinic are built not to help animals but to make profit of them and their owners, even if it takes killing the pets.
Legally such clinics are very much protected, and it is very difficult for an ordinary person to somehow try to legally complain or do anything about it. Moreover it is dangerous that a lot of people do not understand themselves what indeed happens to their pets. I have encountered some people who went to the VEC, and who have voluntarily committed their pets to euthanasia, not knowing the true nature of their problems, and not contacting other specialist. In such cases one must consider at least two clinic’s opinions before making decisions. The veterinarians at the VEC possess very exquisite and very impressive literary and oratory skill that are capable of convincing even a very incredulous person. They try to profit from the fact that they are a 24 hour emergency clinic, and that people go there only once, in case of something urgent, and particularly on weekend, or holidays. If they want something, if they find something more worthy they will be able to convince you at once that what they say is the most correct thing, using the fact that you cannot consult another doctor.