We have just had the misfortune to take our 18 month old Rottweiler to a certain Vet on Halifax Road.

Our dog had developed a large swelling in the back of his kneck,fom the minute we walked through the door we recieved nothing but attitude (Reception Staff Excluded).

After the vet poked and squeezed at the lump,the dog started to growl and bark,as is obviously caused him some pain.

This promted a lecture from the vet about how it would be nice if we had told him the dog would snap.
Well excuse me for not being a mind reader,but how was I meant to know he would snap,,because he is normally a calm dog.

Anyway 10 minutes and £28 later we left for home armed with our antibiotics.
The following day the dogs condition became worse and we had to call the vet to take him back.
He went back the following day and they put him to sleep to do a biopsy on him.

We went to pick him up in the early evening,to be greated by a vet that was very difficult to understand due to her badly spoken english.

They claimed they had found the dog very difficult to treat due to his nature, he had three deep cuts in the back of his kneck,these were packed out with wadding and the wounds left open.
There was a large amount of blood comming from the open wounds,this left a trail of blood across the surgery floor.
My wife comented on how she didnt like blood to which the vet replied "you better get use to it".

We have been told that we have to remove the wadding from the open wounds and flush out the wounds with salt water.

We were also told "next time we visit the surgery the dog must be muzzled" then given some more antibiotics and away we went.

its now late in the evening,our beloved dog is absoloultley covered in blood and the back of his head is completley bald,the wounds are still bleeding and he seams somewhat peed off with the whole ordeal.


Thankfully we have Insurance from Swinton so the vet will get their dollars (mystery amount) or as the vet put it "its going to be expensive".


The question is would you become a vet if you were afraid of dogs and didnt want to handle them?.

Is it common practice to leave open wounds without any stiching or any form of dressing?.

How can a dog be difficult to treat when put to sleep,then shoved in a cage that I fealt was nowhere near large enough?.

The dog has had 4 visits, 1 for his booster,1 for a broken nail and two for present condition.
My wife wass accompanied by different people on some occassions and the feedback i got from them was the same.
This was an attitude of arrogance, and the feeling that they want to actualy do as little as possible.

Are vets regulated by any form of official body ?

If I was you next time your dog gets sick, take him to a small individual practise rather than a chain of Vets, they get to know your pet and they need your custom.

I wouldn't be happy with this situation so I would want a second opinion.

From the symptoms treatment you describe mu guess is that the dog has an abcess on his neck. If this is the case then leaving it open and packed with gauze is the best treatment, if the wounds are allowed to close too soon then another abcess will form.

As for the vets attitude well what can you say, vote with your feet and Cheque book

used to go to" A " vet on halifax rd, I now go to hallam and martin on holme lane, still costs the earth but they ARE VERY GOOD.

I can thoroughly reccomend the vets on stubbin lane at firth park. Friendly caring staff and reasonably priced too.

Originally posted by roughy101
, I now go to hallam and martin on holme lane, still costs the earth but they ARE VERY GOOD.
Will second this,but all vets are expensive.
PS. don't go in some massive people carrier as parking is quite interesting at times.

This thread didn't unfold quite as I'd expected. :suspect:

I hope your dog isn't suffering too badly now, and is soon on the mend.

I hope your dog is feeling better.

If you have a complaint, you should speak to the practice manager first. If you are not satisfied you can complain to RCVS (http://www.rcvs.org.uk/Templates/Internal.asp?NodeID=89916&int1stParentNodeID=89655).

Also move vets.

They seem a bunch of amatures who are not worthy or able enough to look after your four legged friend.

If I were you I would change practices without a doubt.

My doggie, Chester, is 6 yrs old and has always been to the Hallamshire Vetenary Surgery on Holme Lane, Hillsborough.

From reception to surgeon, this practice is a pleasure to vist.

If my memory serves me well, they even sent him (Chester) a little reminder card when his booster was due.

Just goes to show, going that extra mile makes all the difference.

Highly reccomended, we wouldn't go anywhere else.

Well the little minx is getting back to his usual self despite the fact he has a hole the size of sheffield in his head.

We removed the gauze as instructed,to find the three (yes three) holes the sliced into the poor lads melon were not packed with three bits of gauze.

They infact had one piece in one hole and another piece place in a hole threaded under his skin and out of the other hole in the side of his head.
This piece was about 2 and a half inches long.now in the centre of his neck he has a hole about 1.5inches long and about a quarter of an inch wide.
Its also possible to see right into the hole a good quarter of an inch.

Now im no scientist,but as this wound has started its healing process there is no sign of the hole closing up.

This is a pedigree dog as well,and he now looks like a moneybox.
We are in the process of liasing with the insurance company,as we feel the treatment has been inadequate so far.

Its almost like taking your car to mended and finding loads of bits in the boot with a set of instructions.

In future it will be back to stubbin lane as they were brilliant with our last dog.


My advice is,if you have a pet larger than a hamster dont go to the one ive just been to.

Small pets are by no means easier to treat than cats and dogs, in fact quite the opposite.

Go to Hallam vets in Hillsborough/Crookes in future. They're nice.

Wouldn't it be a good idea to get a second opinion from another qualified vet before forming an opinion about whether treatment is adequate?

If you're worried about the holes not closing up etc. the dog needs to go back to a vet so they can either sort it out if there's a problem and/or put your mind at rest.