ALL CARE ANIMAL CLINIC

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Please avoid Dr. Ruth Lee, DVM at the Veterinary Care Group (VCG)-Forest Hills location if you can, as she tends to be unavailable, unprofessional, and unreliable and you are almost certainty guaranteed to be treated with suspicion and sent elsewhere should anything happen out of the norm and/or if complications arise post-surgery. Dr. Lee performed neutering surgery on my pet and my pet developed post-surgical complications (infection at the incision site). I called Veterinary Care Group on June 30th, 2020, as per the post-surgical instructions provided to me by VCG in the case of any complications, hoping to either make an emergency appointment to have my pet seen or to speak to Dr. Lee. Dr. Lee was present at the clinic that day but unavailable and I had to call 3 times on my own before anyone at VCG took my concerns seriously. Even then, I was interrogated and treated with distrust and suspicion when asked questions about my pet’s surgical complications by a staff member rather than offered aid or a chance to come in to have my pet looked at. I was told at first that Dr. Lee could see me same day by the receptionist but was then told that I would have to go elsewhere, after a 10 minute wait on the phone after 2 additional prior phone calls made. I was also informed that if I chose not to go somewhere else, my pet and I would have to wait until July 10th to be seen at VCG. I wish I was told that I would have to go elsewhere from the first time I called, very unprofessional of VCG and Dr. Lee. Additionally, nowhere in the post-surgical instructions did it mention that if any complications arose, my pet would be denied care at VCG during regular business hours and I would have to go elsewhere. I am still stunned by Dr. Lee’s lack of ethics and reckless disregard for my pet in this situation. VCG only offered to see my pet after another family member called and insisted, but even then VCG acted as if they were doing us a favor and dictated that the visit would only include a vitals check and a referral to another place as my pet would require anesthesia and surgery (as my visit to an emergency clinic later determined, my pet did not require anesthesia and surgery in this case). Ultimately, if Dr. Lee and VCG were set on me going somewhere else with my pet, I did, as there would be no point in going to VCG and Dr. Lee if they were determined to only do the bare minimum for my pet.
I understand that veterinarians are busy but never once did I hear from Dr. Lee or get to speak to her when I called about my pet’s surgical complications, although she was present in the clinic that day and a receptionist was able to speak to her about my situation only to then have Dr. Lee deny my pet emergency care at VCG during regular business hours. Good to know and I am glad not to have to worry about taking my animals here anymore, it would do them more harm than good given how unavailable and unreliable this place has become and the distant, unethical, and unreliable behavior of doctors like Dr. Lee.
My pet is thankfully doing well after I took him to an emergency clinic the same day. Reliability, professionalism, and availability in a veterinary practice is very important and I am glad that I was proactive and did not wait for someone from VCG-Forest Hills to call me back after the first phone call as I doubt that they would have and my pet would have suffered even more. Take your pets elsewhere if you expect your vet to be reliable, ethical, and professional.