We lost the sweetest, happiest, funniest, and most lovable dog during a "routine" spay surgery. Dr…read more Stancliffe told us her heart stopped during the procedure. When we went to go pick her up, we, of course, were distraught and had questions about what happened. Dr. Stancliffe did not even have the human decency to be the one who took us back to her or at least be waiting to talk to us and answer our questions. The vet tech asked if we needed help getting her to our car. When we asked again what happened, she went to get him. All he had to say was, "Sometimes this just happens" A perfectly healthy dog doesn't just die during a routine spay. And never once was this outcome mentioned to us before surgery. In fact, before the surgery, we did not even get to see or talk to Dr. Stancliffe like they assured us so we could ask questions and go over everything. Instead, the vet tech hurried us back. It was apparent HoneyBear was scared and stressed. And at 125 lbs, the only way to handle her was with her harness, plus it helped comfort her, but the vet tech hurried her out of her harness and into a slip lead, which stressed her out even more. Then she hurried us to sign the paperwork and hurried us to leave while HoneyBear was trying to run and follow us out the door, and the vet tech was trying to hold her back by the thin slip lead around her neck, now choking her... And that is the last time we got to see her alive.
And not one ounce of EMPATHY or COMPASSION from Bryan Stancliffe. Instead, he actually smirked and scoffed when we reminded him we lost our other Saint, Maybelle, at this clinic as well... his response "Your other dog had a tumor, and that's somehow our fault?" No, not at all, and never once did we think or claim that. If we did, do you think we would have brought another dog here? In hindsight, we shouldn't have, and I wish every day that we wouldn't have. But we were trying to explain our heartache that we have now lost two dogs during surgery here at this clinic within two years. Not to mention we had just lost Maggie, our other Saint, three months prior to HoneyBear. So we now, just like that, had an empty home, so if he could please spare a little understanding or empathy. But that was apparently too much to ask of Dr. Stancliffe because instead, he tried to square up, and his wife had to physically push him out of the room as he yelled at us to "get our dog, and get the f*** out." Twice.
Honeybear was a year and a half, and she was more than just a dog. She was our baby. She was the 4th Saint Bernard we had rescued and was only a few months old when we brought her home. She quickly stole our hearts.
We had just bought our first house and were looking forward to the future we thought we had with our healthy puppy.
We'll never forget the way this place treated us... and, more importantly, the way they treated HoneyBear.
They may be able to give yearly vaccinations and trim nails. But when something goes wrong, or on a bad day, these are not the people you want on your team caring for your most beloved family members. And I think your actions and attitude on a bad day say a whole lot more about you as a person than on a good day.