My 15 year old cat has been a customer of Rocky Gorge since I adopted him from WARL as an…read moreadolescent. He has used every department of Rocky Gorge - boarding, veterinary care, traveling papers, er, grooming... I've always felt Rocky Gorge was a nice place, and appreciated the care, diligence, and gentleness that Dr Farnam demonstrated on many vet visits across the years.
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EDIT: I have revised the rating to reflect the overall service provided by Rocky Gorge Animal Hospital across the years Mr Monster has been a client there. The only time I had a problem was with that ER doctor, and my inability to speak with anyone following the ER visit.
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Recently Monster's health has taken a turn for the worse. He is in great discomfort, and has stopped eating. I took him to the ER and saw Dr Bricker, who was amazing. Thorough, patient, informative, and as effective as possible, given the situation (Monster is an elderly cat with complex health issues, making diagnosis difficult). He provided a week of medications, with instructions to come back the following week for blood work, and call regarding changes. This included pain killers, which are key for keeping Monster feeling OK.
Well, Mr Monster seemed to do well, and stated eating. Then he stopped. Suddenly hated the smell of his own food. Ran downstairs when and hid I tried to give him breakfast.
Last night, I brought him in (6 days after prior visit). Hoping to see Dr Bricker again on the overnight shift. But it was a different doctor, a black doctor whose name I can't remember.
She ran the blood work, then said that she could recommend two options: Taking Monster to another hospital that can provide cat blood transfusion, IV, and ultrasound to inspect his organs, which were swollen. This visit would cost $3000-5000, payed up front.
The other option was giving him steroids, she said. She reasoned that he could potentially benefit from them because his white blood cell count was disturbingly high, a clear sign of a problem that might be inflammation. However, she said the steroids could cause great harm, and it would be a gamble.
SHE DID NOT MENTION NOR OFFER PALLIATIVE CARE.
Presented with this false dilemma, and not wanting to gamble with my beloved pet's well-being, I opted to try to find the money for the hospital admission. But I couldn't find it at 2:30 AM. So I told the Dr I'd need time to find the money. I pointed out that Mr Monster was done with his pain medication which was prescribed by Dr Bricker. Only after I directly asked her to provide him pain medication did she agree to give him a shot. This was a cat who had been on heavy pain medication a week, whose conditioned worsened!
Upon getting home and discussing the situation with my husband, as well as researching potential diagnoses given his symptom, we came to believe (based on his symptoms) that our beloved Mr Monster was most likely facing a serious health problem, and the ultrasound would likely show something like lymphoma, something horrible. Which meant he has very low survival options. So he could go through all these tests only to find he needed treatment which was too painful and hard on the body for him to endure after literally STARVING for a week. We came to believe palliative care was the responsible and kind solution.
But here's the problem. We don't want his last hours to be at Rocky Gorge animal hospital. I want to schedule it at home. I have asked Rocky Gorge to please call me to discuss whether palliative care is possible. It's been 6 hours. They haven't called back. He has no backup painkiller. He is due fro another dose. My heart is breaking because my baby is in pain. All I want is to make him comfortable! I AM HORRIFIED THE ER DOC FAILED TO OFFER PALLIATIVE CARE AS AN OPTION. I AM HORRIFIED SHE IGNORED HIS PAIN. I AM HORRIFIED THE ONLY CHOICE I WAS GIVEN WAS $3000-5000 DIAGNOSTICS OR A SHOT OF STEROIDS.
My poor baby deserves comfort. He hasn't been eating for over a week, except tiny bites here and there. He is in great pain from his organs, which are swollen. He is anemic. His white blood cell count is high.
ROCKY GORGE IS FAILING MR MONSTER IN HIS GREATEST TIME OF NEED AFTER 15 YEARS AS A LOYAL CUSTOMER.
Edit continued: I took Mr Monster to the ER a third time, and spoke with Dr Weller. She was much more sympathetic and helpful. She understood the need for palliative care, and said that if Mr Monster were her cat, she would not put him through the painful and frightening hospital stay. He was elderly, and not in good health. Quality of life is important. It helped me a LOT to hear a vet say they agreed with palliative care and ultimately euthanasia. We discussed the signals to watch for to end it. Dr Weller gave us the pain meds needed to keep Monster comfortable until he was euthanized at home. I appreciated her assistance.
He showed some neurological symptoms in the end, which I read suggests either stage V lymphoma, or stage IV renal lymphoma.
