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My dog Jesse had his first appointment at Small Door on September 18. He was diagnosed with Anaplasmosis and moderate anemia and treated with antibiotics until the PCR confirmed that he did not, in fact, have Anaplasmosis. He was treated for anemia, and when this did not improve, he was subjected to x- rays and then a sonogram that showed ulcers in his duodenum. He was the subjected to a two hour Addison test protocol which included two blood draws and an injection of cortisol. I had to ask the vet after a visit to go back and look in his ears because I noticed that they smelled. It was only then that she discovered that he had recurrent ear and eye infections for which diagnosis was delayed
but eventually treated.
He developed congestion in his nose. I brought him in and was told he probably had allergies and to add Benadryl to his medications. There was no improvement. In fact, there was a worsening of congestion so brought him back in. It was at that time that the vet finally looked in his nose and felt his face. She determined that he had a mass ( which they had seen on the first exam but assured me it was just gum overgrowth, “common in older dogs”.) They referred us to AMC for a CT scan. At AMC, the specialist, physically examined his face and determined that he had mouth cancer which had spread to his cheek, face, light eye and nose. A CAT scan was not necessary for her determine that they were cancerous. She was able to diagnose based on a physical exam

He had a total of 12 visits at Small Door, blood tests, x-rays, a sonogram and a test for Addison’s disease. At no time until his last visit on November 17 did anyone examine his face. He has been subjected to so many unnecessary visits and procedures and I have spent thousands of dollars on unnecessary care. Jesse passed away on December 15, 2023, less than three weeks after he received the correct diagnosis from Animal Medical Center. We never know if he would still be alive had we never walked into Small Door. I do know that he would’ve been spared the anxiety and the pain of multiple unnecessary treatment.

I believe it is important to convey this information so that no animal or owner is subjected to this kind of inept veterinary treatment. The failure to perform a comprehensive exam and follow up on many symptoms is inexcusable.

The single star is solely for Riley, which I believe is the name of the person who answered my initial call and helped book my appointment. My senior cat was having a concerningly low appetite and other symptoms, and Riley was calm and caring. He reassured me throughout the call and I truly do sincerely appreciate him for that.

Because of my anxiety as a pet mom, I took the opportunity to check in about my cat by using the virtual chat option twice more throughout the day. The two people I spoke to in those interactions were cold, robotic (clearly using canned responses), and even shamed me for getting my cat to eat even a small amount of something that actually interested her. In the moments of crisis in which I reached out to them, they made me feel worse. I’ve heard wonderful things about the kindness and compassion of SmallDoor staff, but unfortunately that is the complete opposite of my experience. I would never recommend them to anyone.