Local Guides World
Jordan S
1 reviews on 1 places
I took my dog to Charm City on November 18th 2024 for a persistent rash where they conducted a “physical exam” as part of her appointment, they gave me some medicine for her rash and said that she otherwise looked normal.
On December 31st, 2024 I was petting her when I felt a lump underneath of her skin on her right side by her ribs which was a little concerning so I again scheduled an appointment with Charm City so they could have a look at it. When booking the appointment I made them aware of the issue that I was bringing her in for. The earliest available appointment they could give me was on Thursday, January 9th, 2025 at 3:20pm and because it didn’t seem to be causing her pain and her personality was normal, I was okay with waiting a few days for the appointment.
On the day of the appointment, I left my work early so that I could get home, pick her up, and take her to the vet, but, unfortunately, I ran into some unexpected city traffic causing a delay in what would normally only take me ~10-15 minutes to get to Charm City Veterinary. Around 3:17ish I knew I was going to be late, and even though it was only going to be by a few minutes I gave them a call anyway, I apologized and informed them I was running a little behind. The person on the phone told me they would have to put me on hold so they could speak with the vet I was seeing about the situation. I was put on hold for a few minutes, during this time I was able to get through the traffic and I knew I was only ~4 minutes away, when the person finally got back on the phone with me it was exactly 3:20pm and I was told that I would have to reschedule my appointment since I was going to be late. I again apologized that I was running late but I also let them know I had gotten through the traffic and was now only a couple minutes away. And again I was told that the vet wouldn’t be able to see me because of the other patients they had scheduled and that I would have to reschedule. But the earliest option they could give me for a new appointment was another 5 days later… at this point I was upset and extremely frustrated and I didn’t want to wait any longer for an appointment for the issue I was bringing my dog in for and so I told them I would find another vet.
Now, I know I was running late, and I know that’s on me, but all I was asking for was a 4 minute grace period which I don’t think is unreasonable and I think it’s a fairly common practice to give a person a few minutes past their scheduled appointment (for any type of appointment) for unforeseen situations like this that are out of their control. Also, hypothetically, had I gotten there at my originally scheduled time of 3:20, I imagine that I would still be sitting in the room, talking with the vet, for at least 4 minutes so I don’t know what kind of appointment windows they book that they are concerned with even just a few minutes causing such an interference between schedules. But it doesn’t exactly instill a sense of time and care that I think would be needed for your patients as a “dedicated” veterinary hospital.
What frustrated me the most with this entire situation is that, as I mentioned before, I took my dog to this same vet a few weeks prior where they charged me $80 just for the “physical exam” they performed and they didn’t notice anything. So you’re telling me, after that visit, in a matter of a few weeks, my dog developed a growth underneath of her skin, so much so that I was able to feel it just by petting her… All I was asking for was a couple minutes of grace period to make it to my appointment so that they could look at this growth, an appointment I wouldn’t have even had to schedule had they done a thorough job the first time. I’m paying you a pretty penny, which I will gladly do for my dog (and you know that), so that you don’t miss things like this when examining my dog and don’t force me out of an appointment because I was going to be 4 minutes late.
On December 31st, 2024 I was petting her when I felt a lump underneath of her skin on her right side by her ribs which was a little concerning so I again scheduled an appointment with Charm City so they could have a look at it. When booking the appointment I made them aware of the issue that I was bringing her in for. The earliest available appointment they could give me was on Thursday, January 9th, 2025 at 3:20pm and because it didn’t seem to be causing her pain and her personality was normal, I was okay with waiting a few days for the appointment.
On the day of the appointment, I left my work early so that I could get home, pick her up, and take her to the vet, but, unfortunately, I ran into some unexpected city traffic causing a delay in what would normally only take me ~10-15 minutes to get to Charm City Veterinary. Around 3:17ish I knew I was going to be late, and even though it was only going to be by a few minutes I gave them a call anyway, I apologized and informed them I was running a little behind. The person on the phone told me they would have to put me on hold so they could speak with the vet I was seeing about the situation. I was put on hold for a few minutes, during this time I was able to get through the traffic and I knew I was only ~4 minutes away, when the person finally got back on the phone with me it was exactly 3:20pm and I was told that I would have to reschedule my appointment since I was going to be late. I again apologized that I was running late but I also let them know I had gotten through the traffic and was now only a couple minutes away. And again I was told that the vet wouldn’t be able to see me because of the other patients they had scheduled and that I would have to reschedule. But the earliest option they could give me for a new appointment was another 5 days later… at this point I was upset and extremely frustrated and I didn’t want to wait any longer for an appointment for the issue I was bringing my dog in for and so I told them I would find another vet.
Now, I know I was running late, and I know that’s on me, but all I was asking for was a 4 minute grace period which I don’t think is unreasonable and I think it’s a fairly common practice to give a person a few minutes past their scheduled appointment (for any type of appointment) for unforeseen situations like this that are out of their control. Also, hypothetically, had I gotten there at my originally scheduled time of 3:20, I imagine that I would still be sitting in the room, talking with the vet, for at least 4 minutes so I don’t know what kind of appointment windows they book that they are concerned with even just a few minutes causing such an interference between schedules. But it doesn’t exactly instill a sense of time and care that I think would be needed for your patients as a “dedicated” veterinary hospital.
What frustrated me the most with this entire situation is that, as I mentioned before, I took my dog to this same vet a few weeks prior where they charged me $80 just for the “physical exam” they performed and they didn’t notice anything. So you’re telling me, after that visit, in a matter of a few weeks, my dog developed a growth underneath of her skin, so much so that I was able to feel it just by petting her… All I was asking for was a couple minutes of grace period to make it to my appointment so that they could look at this growth, an appointment I wouldn’t have even had to schedule had they done a thorough job the first time. I’m paying you a pretty penny, which I will gladly do for my dog (and you know that), so that you don’t miss things like this when examining my dog and don’t force me out of an appointment because I was going to be 4 minutes late.