# Medivet - oh my God!



## Sianne5 (Nov 1, 2010)

Ive just read the posts about Medivet and feel sick because they are my vets!! Are all their branches like this? Now Im too scared to send my kittens to be vaccinated (they have appointments next week). I chose them because they are near me - I have to walk/go on the bus with 2 cat carriers!


----------



## catbird8 (Jan 30, 2010)

Whats happened?


----------



## Val001 (Aug 25, 2010)

If you value your pets never ever go to Medivet


----------



## dougal22 (Jun 18, 2010)

There was a programme on TV, Panorama, about Medivet. Panorama placed someone undercover in some of their surgeries. The undercover reporter had a secret camera and uncovered some pretty horrendous stuff. It was very disturbing viewing.
See link
BBC News - Panorama - Secret filming raises questions about pet care


----------



## Val001 (Aug 25, 2010)

OH is a carpenter and years ago did some carpentry work for the Medivet in Watford and saw some unpleasant things and vowed he would never go back. Dogs had been PTS and were lying in black bags on the floor with legs sticking out. No dignity at all for someone's beloved pet.


----------



## Sianne5 (Nov 1, 2010)

catbird8 said:


> Whats happened?


There was a programme recently that showed they are cruel to animals in their care, I didnt see it, but read the posts on this forum. I registered my (now 10 week) kittens there, not knowing anything because they are near me and I dont drive. 
They have seen my kittens once when I got them for a check up, and I thought they were nice. The vet spend time explaining about good feeding and playing and I had no reason not to think otherwise, but after reading all the posts I now feel ill!


----------



## dougal22 (Jun 18, 2010)

Sianne5 said:


> There was a programme recently that showed they are cruel to animals in their care, I didnt see it, but read the posts on this forum. I registered my (now 10 week) kittens there, not knowing anything because they are near me and I dont drive.
> They have seen my kittens once when I got them for a check up, and I thought they were nice. The vet spend time explaining about good feeding and playing and I had no reason not to think otherwise, but after reading all the posts I now feel ill!


Because of the high negative exposure,they could have altered their unethical practices? 
I had the misfortune of watching that programme. It was deeply disturbing and very upsetting. After watching it, I do not think I could entrust them with the care of my beloved cats. Even if they have taken major steps to change the way they do things, mud sticks. Rightly so in this instance.


----------



## Val001 (Aug 25, 2010)

dougal22 said:


> Because of the high negative exposure,they could have altered their unethical practices?
> I had the misfortune of watching that programme. It was deeply disturbing and very upsetting. After watching it, I do not think I could entrust them with the care of my beloved cats. Even if they have taken major steps to change the way they do things, mud sticks. Rightly so in this instance.


I agree I could never trust them


----------



## luvmydogs (Dec 30, 2009)

Surely they will have cleaned up their act now though. It wasn't all the branches either.


----------



## dougal22 (Jun 18, 2010)

luvmydogs said:


> Surely they will have cleaned up their act now though.


That's what I said in a previous post. But it's whether people will trust they have changed for the better? After that programme, it will take a lot for them to win back any customers. Their treatment of pets was appalling


----------



## Taylorbaby (Jan 10, 2009)

hiya i had problems with them wont go into it but it wasnt good

can you get to your vets in rayleigh? they are good and good prices


----------



## archielee (Jan 30, 2009)

Sorry but my vet will go out of his way to help you

I will be staying with Medivet


----------



## HannahKate (Jun 6, 2010)

One of the vets I go to used to work in London in a place just round the corner from a Medivet and he used to get massive amounts of business from their dissatisfied customers coming to him. 
Not all their vets will be bad, in fact I'm sure most are good, but from what I've heard the company is generally more interested in money than your pets (the people running it that is).
If you have found a branch you like with vets you trust then I wouldn't be too worried. Some of the things in the program were made out to be worse than they actually were and the worst thing was one particular vet who was later struck off.


----------



## simplysardonic (Sep 1, 2009)

archielee said:


> Sorry but my vet will go out of his way to help you
> 
> I will be staying with Medivet


Have to say I agree, as with any nationwide company there will be good & bad branches, I don't use them myself but I'm sure they're not all like those portrayed on the TV, I didn't see the documentary is it available online?


----------



## Tje (Jan 16, 2010)

simplysardonic said:


> Have to say I agree, as with any nationwide company there will be good & bad branches, I don't use them myself but I'm sure they're not all like those portrayed on the TV, I didn't see the documentary is it available online?


it won't be avilable via the bbc i-player anymore as it was aired a good couple of months back.... it might be on youtube though (although be warned, that normally involves watching them in like 6 x 10 minute segements)

I think this particular Panorama was called "It should never happen at a vets" (or words along those lines)


----------



## dougal22 (Jun 18, 2010)

simplysardonic said:


> Have to say I agree, as with any nationwide company there will be good & bad branches, I don't use them myself but I'm sure they're not all like those portrayed on the TV, I didn't see the documentary is it available online?


Here is the link:

BBC News - Panorama - Secret filming raises questions about pet care


----------



## Sianne5 (Nov 1, 2010)

Thanks for the advice, guys. Ive spoken to other people who have used this particular branch, and they said they've had no problems. I will take the kittens for their vaccinations as planned, as the appointments are already booked and I wont be leaving them alone there. 


Then I will look for another vet when it comes to neutering time


----------



## thelioncub (Feb 9, 2009)

It's very easy for the media to target a big chain like Medivet, but it doesn't mean that all the branches are like this. It's just easier (and more of a story) for a TV company to 'latch' onto a name that we've all heard of.
The thing is, I'm sure there are just as bad little local, independent vets out there. I know for sure because I lived with a vet nurse who worked at our local, and she came home with horror stories every day. It was actually a vet that we used to go to many years ago, only I changed to another one after they started telling me things which I suspected were untrue. Fast forward some years to when this girl moved in with us, and we finally had proof on our suspicions about him.
To be honest, sometimes you can even get fantastic vets working alongside not so fantastic ones, all in the same practice (as we have at our current place)
I would say that if you've found someone you feel you can trust, continue to see them and make sure that you book appointments with them by name. We always ask for the same guy when we have to take our boys in, as we know he is fantastic with us. What goes on behind the scenes we can rarely know for sure.


----------



## Themis (Dec 18, 2009)

It was a very small number of branches that they visited. My branch of Medivet are very good. I would trust your own experience/judgement and those of other customers over a TV show.


----------



## alisondalziel (Oct 8, 2008)

I didn't see the documentary but can imagine the sort of things it would contain and how angry i would feel watching it 

There isn't any Medivet in Scotland, i've never heard of it before now actually but like someone said before, i agree that not every practise will be bad, and there will be lots of other practises that are not part of this chain that will be bad, there's actually one in the town next to mine that was investigated a few years back with shocking results. 

I just can't understand who could be cruel in any way to an animal.


----------



## MatildaG (Nov 8, 2010)

I saw the documentary too and since I have no experience of a particular vet, it has made me extremely paranoid about the whole vet choice thing. I'm currently looking for a vets to neuter my persian but other than googling those in my area I'm not sure how else to check up on their reputations. Is there a way of doing this? None of my friends/family live nearby so I can't really go on word of mouth from people i know.

MG x


----------



## Guest (Nov 8, 2010)

MatildaG said:


> I saw the documentary too and since I have no experience of a particular vet, it has made me extremely paranoid about the whole vet choice thing. I'm currently looking for a vets to neuter my persian but other than googling those in my area I'm not sure how else to check up on their reputations. Is there a way of doing this? None of my friends/family live nearby so I can't really go on word of mouth from people i know.
> 
> MG x


I would phone or visit the vets in the area and see which ones I like, or you could always ask on here and if someone is in your area they could pm you where they go.


----------



## Tje (Jan 16, 2010)

MatildaG said:


> I saw the documentary too and since I have no experience of a particular vet, it has made me extremely paranoid about the whole vet choice thing. I'm currently looking for a vets to neuter my persian but other than googling those in my area I'm not sure how else to check up on their reputations. Is there a way of doing this? None of my friends/family live nearby so I can't really go on word of mouth from people i know.
> 
> MG x


I have moved around quite a bit, so have been in this situation a lot. I don't have dogs... but when I see a dog owner out walking his or her dog, and the dog (and owner!) seem approachable and friendly... well I just ask out right something along the lines of "heyy I just moved here, I can see your a dedicated pet owner, would you mind me asking what vet you use and if you're happy with them". One time (strangely enough) ... I asked about 5 random starnagers this very question... got 5 different recommendations. But I got 4 "well as long as you don't use MR XYZ, he's as a butcher" kind of replies. I'm not shy when it comes to animals though and will ask anybody anything.

Asking around at your work place is also a good idea... or sports clubs... or anywhere really where a lot of people come together.


----------



## MatildaG (Nov 8, 2010)

Great ideas, thanks! I'll try all those things.

MG x


----------



## kellyrich (Jan 8, 2009)

I went to these vets one night as an emergency with my rabbit and i wish id never entered the place, they tried charging me £700 and in my opinion they killed my baby! I hate them and wouldnt recommend them to anybody! Sorry it seems strong but they didnt have a clue what they were doing and didnt care and i ended up losing my baby. 

Do not use Medivet in Enfield!


----------



## jfeb (Nov 9, 2010)

The best questions you can ask are "What are your pain management protocols?", "Do you use IV surgical fluids during surgical procedures?", "Do you advocate preventive medicine?" "What diets does your hospital recommend?" "Is there a way to reach a veterinarian afterhours?", "What are your clinic's hours?"

Not only is important to like a clinic on paper, it's also important to have a good rapport with the doctor that will be looking after your pet. Don't be afraid to ask to meet with the doctor without your pet and 'interview' them. You can also request a tour of the facilities -- this will give you a chance to see what goes on behind the scenes and maybe even see some of the staff that will be caring for your pet.


----------



## Sianne5 (Nov 1, 2010)

Just to let you all know. My kittens have just had their vaccinations and the vet couldn't have been nicer. This branch is a very small practice and the vet lives there too, and didn't mind answering my questions. The veterinary nurse, I discovered, is one of my friend's daughters and I feel so much better now. Thank you all for your advice, it does help to hear different peoples opinions.


----------



## Valerie Marshall (Feb 5, 2016)

Sianne5 said:


> Ive just read the posts about Medivet and feel sick because they are my vets!! Are all their branches like this? Now Im too scared to send my kittens to be vaccinated (they have appointments next week). I chose them because they are near me - I have to walk/go on the bus with 2 cat carriers!


I appreciate this was written nearly 6 years ago but Medivet has not changed in my experience!
When I took my cat to see them recently they were quoting prices ahead of care, it was a very traumatic experience in the end I felt pushed into a corner and had my cat put to sleep,


Val001 said:


> If you value your pets never ever go to Medivet


----------



## moggie14 (Sep 11, 2013)

Oh so sorry to read this. For people to make an informed choice would you be prepared to give some detail about what happened?


----------



## Valerie Marshall (Feb 5, 2016)

Valerie Marshall said:


> I appreciate this was written nearly 6 years ago but Medivet has not changed in my experience!
> When I took my cat to see them recently they were quoting prices ahead of care, it was a very traumatic experience in the end I felt pushed into a corner and had my cat put to sleep,


By and large I'm sure they will be fine, however they on the high end of eye watering prices, because they are part of a chain


----------



## Valerie Marshall (Feb 5, 2016)

moggie14 said:


> Oh so sorry to read this. For people to make an informed choice would you be prepared to give some detail about what happened?


Yes ! My cat was straining to go to pee and when I took I him in I was informed that he may have crystals or bladder stones, so I asked if he could have some antibiotics and was told that this would not be effective therefore he would have to be "blown through" to see if the stones crystals would come out, This may have to be done twice, the estimate being £1698.00, I inherited my cat who was 14.5 years of age and didn't have insurance which I informed the vet, who then told me that the cat had to be transported to another venue for more treatment and if that didn't work he would have to have an operation that would cost another 2k However there is no guarantee that' the stones may not come back, he would have to go on a special diet etc. So I asked if there was any way that I may spread the payments, however was told not really, so I asked if I could pay half now, £829.00 and half at the end of the month for the first part of the treatment, this was agreed.. So I left him there, the next day I was told that the initial treatment had not worked locally and he was now being transferred to the other venue to possibly have more treatment and I then
decided to talk to my family to make some tough decisions. I headed off to see my cat to decide on his future by his
Time I was in quite an emotional state! Got there and saw him his bladder was apparently in a bad way and operation
Imminent. I stroked him calmed him down, asked about options,costs said I needed help as didn't know what to do bearing in mind his age, and the high cost of treatment. I had been in tears for 2 hours and felt dreadful so I kissed him goodbye and went home to talk to family members and make a decision. We decided to not put him through any more trauma and gave my consent to have him put to sleep. All very sad and distressing. Went back to settle bill which totalled to over 1k for my dead cat. Very sad - tragic tale.


----------



## Valerie Marshall (Feb 5, 2016)

Valerie Marshall said:


> Yes ! My cat was straining to go to pee and when I took I him in I was informed that he may have crystals or bladder stones, so I asked if he could have some antibiotics and was told that this would not be effective therefore he would have to be "blown through" to see if the stones crystals would come out, This may have to be done twice, the estimate being £1698.00, I inherited my cat who was 14.5 years of age and didn't have insurance which I informed the vet, who then told me that the cat had to be transported to another venue for more treatment and if that didn't work he would have to have an operation that would cost another 2k However there is no guarantee that' the stones may not come back, he would have to go on a special diet etc. So I asked if there was any way that I may spread the payments, however was told not really, so I asked if I could pay half now, £829.00 and half at the end of the month for the first part of the treatment, this was agreed.. So I left him there, the next day I was told that the initial treatment had not worked locally and he was now being transferred to the other venue to possibly have more treatment and I then
> decided to talk to my family to make some tough decisions. I headed off to see my cat to decide on his future by his
> Time I was in quite an emotional state! Got there and saw him his bladder was apparently in a bad way and operation
> Imminent. I stroked him calmed him down, asked about options,costs said I needed help as didn't know what to do bearing in mind his age, and the high cost of treatment. I had been in tears for 2 hours and felt dreadful so I kissed him goodbye and went home to talk to family members and make a decision. We decided to not put him through any more trauma and gave my consent to have him put to sleep. All very sad and distressing. Went back to settle bill which totalled to over 1k for my dead cat. Very sad - tragic tale.





Valerie Marshall said:


> Yes ! My cat was straining to go to pee and when I took I him in I was informed that he may have crystals or bladder stones, so I asked if he could have some antibiotics and was told that this would not be effective therefore he would have to be "blown through" to see if the stones crystals would come out, This may have to be done twice, the estimate being £1698.00, I inherited my cat who was 14.5 years of age and didn't have insurance which I informed the vet, who then told me that the cat had to be transported to another venue for more treatment and if that didn't work he would have to have an operation that would cost another 2k However there is no guarantee that' the stones may not come back, he would have to go on a special diet etc. So I asked if there was any way that I may spread the payments, however was told not really, so I asked if I could pay half now, £829.00 and half at the end of the month for the first part of the treatment, this was agreed.. So I left him there, the next day I was told that the initial treatment had not worked locally and he was now being transferred to the other venue to possibly have more treatment and I then
> decided to talk to my family to make some tough decisions. I headed off to see my cat to decide on his future by his
> Time I was in quite an emotional state! Got there and saw him his bladder was apparently in a bad way and operation
> Imminent. I stroked him calmed him down, asked about options,costs said I needed help as didn't know what to do bearing in mind his age, and the high cost of treatment. I had been in tears for 2 hours and felt dreadful so I kissed him goodbye and went home to talk to family members and make a decision. We decided to not put him through any more trauma and gave my consent to have him put to sleep. All very sad and distressing. Went back to settle bill which totalled to over 1k for my dead cat. Very sad - tragic tale.


----------



## maisiecat (Jul 27, 2011)

I refuse to use Medivet even though there are a few branches within a reasonable distance. Some years ago I had various experiences with them, some were OK, some not, but never managed to see the same vet more than once on any of these occasions so was not pleased about that.

I took my epileptic bunny there, they boarded him while I went away and within a day he was dead, I had been medicating him carefully for a long time, they had him for one night.

I also found that, some years later, they would happily treat an old and sick cat and keep him alive after the point where he should have been allowed to pass away and charge a fortune for it, then send me a reminder for flea treatment when they had PTS which was very upsetting. 

I also saw that programme and was not surprised by it, however the stacking of dead pets is common apparently and they are just loaded into the vans for collection to the crematorium, usually along with the clinical waste if they go with the vets contracted crematorium service. 

If you do some research on pet cremation you might think again about using the vet recommended one, and choose more carefully.


----------



## Valerie Marshall (Feb 5, 2016)

maisiecat said:


> I refuse to use Medivet even though there are a few branches within a reasonable distance. Some years ago I had various experiences with them, some were OK, some not, but never managed to see the same vet more than once on any of these occasions so was not pleased about that.
> 
> I took my epileptic bunny there, they boarded him while I went away and within a day he was dead, I had been medicating him carefully for a long time, they had him for one night.
> 
> ...


Thank you Maisiecat, lesson learned, maybe they have KPI's...will try and find a private vet as still have another cat to care for. V


----------



## Bilai (Jun 3, 2015)

This thread has freaked me out but I don't really know what to think. My Medivet has two vets and both have always been lovely and really kind and they've never pressured us to spend money so I'm just hoping that they're a good branch.


----------



## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

Does anyone have a link for the probramme?


----------



## buffie (May 31, 2010)

carly87 said:


> Does anyone have a link for the probramme?


@carly87 This is an old thread from 2010 resurrected,so I dont think the link is still active ,this is it but it says page not found...BBC News - Panorama - Secret filming raises questions about pet care


----------



## buffie (May 31, 2010)

@carly87 found it ,here's the link to it.(hope this works)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_8843000/8843964.stm


----------



## kimthecat (Aug 11, 2009)

Bilai said:


> This thread has freaked me out but I don't really know what to think. My Medivet has two vets and both have always been lovely and really kind and they've never pressured us to spend money so I'm just hoping that they're a good branch.


Its not all branches, if you are happy with them , you might as well stay with them.
You could move to another vet and they might be worse.


----------



## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

This looks like a news report rather than the actual programme. Thank you though.


----------



## buffie (May 31, 2010)

carly87 said:


> This looks like a news report rather than the actual programme. Thank you though.


Oops sorry carly ,that'll teach me not to think I was being clever


----------



## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

I can't find it anywhere!


----------



## Pear (Dec 8, 2014)

I use medivet for the basics worming, flea treatment, vac etc.

But I wouldn't let them operate or do anything evasive I have a exotic vet I trust for that about an hour ago.

That being said my older chi is having his dental and heart scan next week with Medivet but I only felt okay with the plan as the female vet is the cardio scan specialist in my area and I observed her and the staff at the small practice to be kind and caring with my anxious dogs.

It's difficult as you entrust their lives too these people.


----------



## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

carly87 said:


> I can't find it anywhere!


Me neither!


----------



## buffie (May 31, 2010)

carly87 said:


> I can't find it anywhere!





Ceiling Kitty said:


> Me neither!


Looks like it isn't available ,probably because it was on nearly 6 years ago

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00t66pb


----------



## Ceiling Kitty (Mar 7, 2010)

I was expecting it to be hanging around on YouTube still. Oh well!

I did see it at the time.


----------



## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

I was also thinking it would be on YouTube somewhere, but no joy! Can't even get it on any of the more, erm, interesting website.


----------

