I was incredibly disappointed by our experience here. We found a stray dog only about five minutes from this clinic who appeared to be in very poor condition. Her eyes were completely crusted over, she looked malnourished, and she very clearly appeared to need help.
We are from about three hours away and brought her to this clinic hoping they could at least help us figure out what to do. They did scan her microchip, but because it was apparently not through the microchip company they typically work with, we were essentially told to look up the chip information online ourselves and figure out how to contact the appropriate company. We were also told that we could try reaching out to the Humane Society ourselves, although they said it was probably closed.
And that was basically it.
There was no meaningful attempt to help us identify who to call, no phone number or local resource offered, no effort to help determine whether there was somewhere this visibly unwell dog could be taken, and very little concern shown for her condition. The overall interaction felt extremely cold and dismissive—essentially, “you can look it up yourselves and try the Humane Society, but they’re probably closed. Good luck.”
What made this especially frustrating was that the clinic did not appear busy at the time. There were several staff members at or around the front desk, and we were not asking them to personally solve the entire situation or function as an animal shelter. We were asking for basic guidance and compassion for an obviously vulnerable animal.
We later learned that this area is apparently known for dogs being dumped, which made the lack of local resources, infrastructure, and guidance from a veterinary clinic in the area even more shocking. If abandoned and stray dogs are a known issue locally, I would expect a veterinary clinic—whose work is centered around animal health and welfare—to at minimum know one local shelter, rescue, animal control agency, emergency resource, or phone number to provide to someone trying to help an animal in distress.
Even if they could not take her themselves, it would have taken very little to say, “Here is who you should call,” or to help point us in the right direction.
Instead, we were strangers from three hours away who ended up doing the research, making the calls, looking into the microchip ourselves, and trying to figure out where this sick dog could safely go.
I completely understand that a veterinary clinic cannot accept every stray animal that comes through its doors. That is not what this review is about. It is about the lack of compassion, urgency, collaboration, and basic guidance shown toward an animal who visibly appeared sick and in need of help. I expected much more care and concern from a veterinary clinic.
