Upstatevet

PLEASE READ... LONG BUT IMPORTANT! I brought my 7 week old puppy to the emergency clinic who did have a heart murmur to be looked at because she wasn't eating and seemed as if she were dehydrated. First off, he wait was a ridiculous 4 hours for a place where you need immediate care, and then they make you wait in parking lot and don't communicate anything to you. After 4.5 hours I demanded to see my puppy after being told she still had not been assigned to a doctor. Dr. Traynor came in first and said her condition had worsened and she recommended euthanasia. I was shocked because I had not brought them a dying puppy and never intended to euthanize her! She said she had done a sonogram and she had heart disease. She shot down any idea of surgery saying it would be too expensive and when I said I wanted to bring my puppy home, she further argued with me that she was suffering too much for that. Finally, I reluctantly agreed to euthanasia. When they brought my Olivia into me she was already dead. I pointed out to Dr. Traynor that she wasn't breathing, was cold and her eyes were glazed over and she immediately checked for a heartbeat and said there was one so she had to get the medicine in her before I would object. I was so overwhelmed with grief at that point that I couldn't even function. Later, I thought about the whole situation and it just didn't make any sense. It became obvious to me that they put her in an oxygen cage and simply forgot about her, leaving her to go down hill with no care. I later met with Dr Traynor and the Administrator and got more unsettling news. Apparently they don't document when their patients are treated and could offer my no more than a document that said she was sleeping when I asked for proof that they were monitoring my puppy. The sonogram was never noted on her chart and only diagnosis was heart murmur and suggested treatment was euthanasia, which was the only thing on my bill. Dr. Traynor further admitted that when she was initially admitted to the hospital, someone looked at her and decided euthanasia was the treatment. They further agreed that I should have been communicated with and told 4 hours earlier of their plan, so that I could have made a decision earlier on which would have been to take my puppy home. I drove an hour to their facility because they are supposed to have specialists to take care of heart issues but instead they have vets just out of vet school! Lastly, I had a conversation with Dr. Rob Presley, the Chief of Staff, who assured me that they had always had the best interest of their patients at heart but eventually just wanted to pay me off and have me sign a gag order for his insulting offer! I suggested many changes in order to benefit future patients and ultimately clear up problems but apparently he is not really interested in doing that. I have spoken to many of the negative posters here and they are willing to join my crusade to get Upstate to take notice of their short comings and join in the voice to be heard. I will be taking to the media and animal rights groups to get my story and all of the others out there in hopes of Upstate finally taking notice. Please contact me if you want to also partake in facilitating some change so that you beloved pets will get the proper care they deserve! And please do comment if you've had a bad experience so that others will know of the cruel and sub-par service Upstate Emergency clinic offers!