Do Not Trust This Clinic With Your Pet's Care -- Discriminatory, Unprofessional, and Dishonest…read more
1. Blatant Profiling Around Affordability
We came in for an emergency evaluation after my dog was injured. We called ahead, explained the situation, requested X-rays, and asked for an estimate. When the doctor got to discussing treatment options, he did not simply lay them out and let us decide. Instead, unprompted, he repeatedly said "if you can't afford it... if you can't afford it... if you can't afford it," even though we never indicated cost was a concern. NOTE: I WAS ON THE PHONE AT THE TIME AND HEARD THESE COMMENTS DIRECTLY. We had already made clear we wanted repair over amputation if possible, yet the comments persisted. A provider who assumes a client can't afford care, and says so repeatedly and unprompted, is making a judgment call he would not make about every client. This was flat-out profiling, and no pet owner should have to sit through it while trying to get their injured animal help.
2. Broken Promises, Zero Accountability, and Abandonment of an Urgent Case
We asked for medical notes, X-rays, and a treatment estimate to move forward with surgery quickly. Every deadline they gave us was missed -- noon the next day, then "by the end of the weekend," then a closed office on Sunday despite promising otherwise. By Monday we still had nothing and had to call ourselves. The receptionist apologized for the delay; the doctor's excuse was a "SYSTEM GLITCH" that was "NOT OUR FAULT," and he got angry that his own employee had apologized on his behalf. My partner, who works overnight shifts and set an alarm specifically to catch this call, woke up to a voicemail from the doctor refusing to treat our injured dog. When my partner called back, the doctor talked over him, threatened to report us to the Humane Society if surgery wasn't done within 7 days, then hung up. He set that 7-day ultimatum himself, acknowledging the urgency, yet CUT OFF CARE entirely with NO REFERRAL to another provider or emergency clinic. Walking away from an active, urgent case with nowhere for us to turn is not poor service -- it's ABANDONMENT, by the same doctor who caused every delay and then punished us for following up on what his own clinic promised.
3. Failure to Perform Promised Services, Then Withholding Records
The doctor also told us, both over the phone and in person, that our dog needed a specific service performed. That service was never actually completed. When we asked for vaccination records to confirm this, he claimed the dog "did not get vaccinated" and told us to stop contacting them. We then asked for an itemized invoice to verify we weren't charged for services never rendered. He refused, and hung up on us repeatedly when we tried to follow up. The Sheriff's Department got involved and were the ones who finally retrieved the records we'd been requesting all along. It is absurd that it took police involvement just to get basic medical and financial documentation from a facility we paid out of pocket.
Bottom Line: This practice showed apparent bias around affordability, zero accountability, failure to deliver services promised, and a doctor who behaved unprofessionally and vindictively abandoning an injured animal mid-treatment, withholding records, and requiring police involvement just to get basic documentation. If Dr. Owen were genuinely concerned about our dog's welfare, that would have looked like urgency and cooperation, not refusal to treat, stonewalling, and threats. We were the ones trying, at every turn, to get our dog proper care. He was the one standing in the way.
This will be reported to the Maryland State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners. This dog is fun-loving and well cared for. We're lifelong pet lovers with other animals in our home, and recently took him in from a family member who could no longer care for him. I am APPALLED.
