Vets Now - Salisbury Reviews 114

Our dog needlessly suffered following a very traumatic visit to the out of hours vets practice in Salisbury. An extremely unprofessional vet made us feel terrible for suggesting that it was time to put our 15 year old dog to sleep. She was euthanised the following day by our own vet.
We raised a complaint with Vets Now who denied any wrong doing so we engaged in mediation and were awarded a small amount of £168 compensation which was far less than the original £625.79 bill (our dog didn’t even receive medication!).
The compensation was awarded on 23 March and it’s now 19th May and we still haven’t received payment!

They were extremely helpful and professional

I don't know the name of the lady Vet we saw but her name may have began with a G. Had to visit Endless Street out of hours as an emergency with a dog vomiting and pooing blood. My normal vet is not in Salisbury and doesnt have out of hours service so my dog was always going to end up at this vet surgery. My rescue dog is incredibly scared of the vets despite attempting to rehab this fear and has to wear a muzzle at the vets. The lady vet was kind and very understanding of this situation. I feel my dog got very good treatment and care, great pain relief and I came away feeling everything had been done that could have been and that my dog would recover. Two days later dog is much better and returning to old self.

My only slight - is the cost which was alot. I would pay no matter what (being a responsible owner) but the bill was more than my monthly rent (over 1k) I am insured but not everyone is, deciding on medical assistance for animals is always a balance of not over reacting /worrying / going when something that could be minor is wrong and trying to work out when to act. Cost does definitely play a part in this decision making. However for me bleeding was obvious urgent treatment needed in my dogs case and I didnt hesitate to go. I don't fault the vet or staff at all they were great and very kind, it was just a rather costly experience for me probably because my dog had to be sedated due to their anxiety / grumpiness and that made it expensive.

Excellent vet and nurse. So very impressed and relieved by the level of service I received. Nothing was too much trouble and I could sit with my dog while she was being treated which helped me and my dog.

As an emergency vets you need people that care and that can be trusted, The team at Vets Now tick both those boxes. Couldn't be happier with the care my dog received

I was ale to get an emergency visit for our cat straight away on a Saturday. Very caring and professional staff

Really helpful, prompt and friendly. Thank you.

Good service but really expensive, I'm lucky I could afford the treatment, I'd hate to think an animal suffered if it's owner could not afford the emergency Vet.

The vet and team were friendly and the place was clean tidy and welcoming!

Reception very welcoming given we were in a crisis situation with our dog. Assessed and admitted quickly. Diagnosis of HGE and treatment explained clearly. On the following day the plan was to take him home as he hadn't had more episodes of vomiting or bloody diarrhoae, however, after we arrived he had another episode of diarrhoea so had to stay for another night. That evening and on chatting with the vet I asked if any more treatment was needed as he hadn't turned the corner after 24 hours (no antibiotic had been given at this stage). The vet said his temperature, heart and lungs were normal, no indication of infection, so no antibiotic given. Told me it was my decision if a blood test to give a white blood cell count should be done, but I argued that it actually wasn't, it was a clinical decision to make. The vet called back an hour later and said she'd do the test as he'd had 2 more episodes of bloody diarrhoea. It transpired that his white blood cell count was high, so he was started on antibiotics, and this did enable us to collect him and bring him home the following day. Although communication and treatment was good, the fact that I had to push for the white blood cell count has stopped me from giving 5 stars. I agree that antibiotics should not be given unless there's clinical need, but this particular test could have been done earlier and possibly we could have brought him home after 24 hours thereby reducing cost for us and the massive stress levels that he was clearly experiencing himself. Thankfully he is well on the way to recovery now.

Very sympathetic caring & professional
Service provided by everyone

The staff were welcoming, prompt and understanding. They explained the steps and the cost clearly, making it a hassle-free experience.
Email follow-up was also excellent.

So I brought my cat in on Boxing Day with a urethral plug, which they managed to treat but they had to discharge him early due to him being very stressed and pulling his front catheter out. Now I know that they are busy, but they obviously didn’t have the capabilities to look after him properly and soothe him given how stressed he was. Bearing in mind also that they hadn’t even managed to keep it in twenty four hours. Where he pulled the catheter out, his front paw was double the size of his other paw and his penis was swollen from the urine catheter. We then had to bring him in again as he deteriorated and I was told in no uncertain terms, if it happens again then there might be the option of euthanasia. Roll round 24 hours later, when all I’d been told was that he was fine and was doing well, and I go to pick him up and he’s in an even worse state. I’m then told again that if it happens again and he is this stressed, is it really worth him going through all of this? Obviously I understand that in some circumstances, this is the only option but he’s been eating the whole time and I was told was settled as long as they left him alone. He pulled out his front catheter again whilst I was waiting for them to bring him out and because of all the trauma, had diarrhoea. After waiting over half an hour for them to make him comfortable, I was then made to wait whilst they very slowly checked the paperwork was all up to date bearing in mind that every time the vet door opened, my cat was flinching and hissing because he just wanted to get out of there. Roll forwards to when I got him to his own vets and the attitude and advice couldn’t be any more different. She seemed to believe he was over the worst of it, she prescribed antibiotics due to him being on the catheter for a few days (something the emergency vets didn’t even suggest!!) and they were happy to let him go by the end of the day. I wouldn’t recommend these people to my worst enemy. They are cold, non-compassionate and they obviously cannot work with their workload given how stressed and worked up they let my cat become. He was far more relaxed in his normal vets. And for their go to response to be just to put him down is in my opinion, disgusting. I feel like they need to change things a lot to make this much more adequate for pets and for owners.

So kind, so patient. Did everything to put me at my ease and treated my dog so lovingly.

Very understanding and helpful.
Pricing questionable.⁷

Staff helpful and friendly
Treated Wilma promptly

It would be helpful if there was a better may Vetsnow linked with Petpan insurance to linger costs back quickly

We arrived at the vets about 9.30, and since being there at that time and leaving at 12 the nurse and the vet were amazing! (Sorry I can’t remember their names, was Monday evening 13th October)
They were so caring towards Cali (our dog) and we’re generally so understand and lovely towards me and my partner, explaining everything and going through all the options with us.
They were caring for Cali throughout the night while she was on IV fluids and ABs, and when we collected her in the morning she was looking better. We then took her to her vets where she had the surgery and now 2 day on, she’s cuddled up on the bed recovering well.
Without the help of the lovely nurse and vet I don’t think she would be here now, I am honestly so greatful for them and for their kindness.

We were very pleasantly treated and with sympathy for our dogs problem .
The instructions to find the practice were excellent. Our dog was frightened and unfortunately not well behaved but the vets were wonderful with her. The area was spotless. Our dog is now fine having eaten dried fruit.

I think this is a complete rip off of a service. There is no alternative, they have you over a barrel, when you’re desperate and in need of help. It made me feel physically sick trying to weigh up the exorbitant costs versus trying to get care for my cat when he had been hit by a car.

Very responsive service. Will, the vet, explained everything and the whole team were very kind in a stressful situation. I was kept informed throughout.

All the staff were so warm and friendly and very reassuring, which was exactly what we needed when we were worried about out dog. We were seen really promptly and were given great advice and support. Excellent service and a really positive experience especially considering our anxiety.