Reviews of Healthy Paws Wellness & Animal Clinics in Greenfield

Zero stars actually. A deplorable veterinary practice -- which is saying something because I have defended Healthy Paws Clinics in web pages in the past.

The story:

Having entrusted the Greenfield Healthy Paws clinic recently with 2 (two) separate cancer surgeries on our dog Zoey in LESS THAN A YEAR and at a cost of over $2000, I was hoping and expecting that when Zoey's more recent incision had abscessed seemingly overnight that Dr. Mike and his team at Healthy Paws -- who did the operation -- would mercifully agree to see Zoey for quick medicinal relief of what was clearly our loving canine friend's significant and sudden pain and inflammation.

Quite simply, Zoey needed an expert eye on the condition, and a quick scrip to deal with it -- all of which might have taken ten minutes or less.

But Zoey didn't get that level of care.

We were instead stopped at the clinic's phone wall by one of Healthy Paws' seemingly post-adolescent office staff.

I had asked this youngster for a five minute look that very day at the most recent incision -- and a prescription drug to alleviate Zoey's obvious pain with all-of-a-sudden beet-red incision inflammation in the recent surgical aftermath. After insisting on same and after the staffer's inquiry with Dr. Mike, I was told, in rather vindictive tone by the young woman on the phone: "Well OK. You can bring her in but Dr. Mike wants you to know there will be an emergency office fee of $89.00." Again, after spending in excess of $2000 with the clinic in recent weeks for the two surgeries undergone. Appalling.

Verdict: An incredibly shortsighted and perhaps dishonest way to run a veterinary practice.

The aftermath: I found another vet that same day. A prescription and a shot was mercifully administered to Zoey a few hours later -- for the cost of the shot and the penicillin pills. She seemed swiftly delivered from the weariness and apparent incision issue of earlier in the day. She remains on the meds with her misery factor seemingly significantly reduced.

The vet who showed us that mercy is now our new vet -- for the German Shorthaired Pointer pup that has just joined our family. (Dr. Mike knew of the pup and very foolishly has now deprived his clinic of hopefully 12 or 13 more years of revenue for her care. Talk about shortsighted and a terrible business model! Perhaps Dr. Mike and Dr. Denise should have a long talk if they get to read this. If only that their business style seems incredibly lacking.)

Zoey, incidentally, will be put to sleep in a matter of days. By our new veterinarian. For the very, very aggressive mast cell tumor that our new veterinarian has revealed has already entered her lymph nodes.

"Healthy" Paws, take note. And perhaps be ashamed.

(Oh. And had the Healthy Paws doctor been astute enough to recommend a needle biopsy b e f o r e the surgery, all of this might have been avoided. His conclusion, if an ethical approach, might have been "Very sorry, but this is very fast growing mast cell tumor. Surgery in Zoey's situation will buy very little time. I recommend you make her comfortable for the days remaining"...foregoing, of course, a surgery fee. The right thing to do. But right and ethical are apparently not cornerstones of this practice.