Vet wrong...anyone ever gotten any money refunded?

[Joyrider]

Ok, so I can't sleep and am asking a hypothetical...sort of. Two cases involving the same veterinary practice.

Horse #1 - non-consistent slight head bobbing lame when tracking on right hand circles/turns. Vet #1 from practice "X" does a lameness exam and determines the horse is actually off left hind. Prescribes bute and rest with the suggestion of getting hock injections. Vet says light riding is ok after a few days rest. Owner has to talk to parents before agreeing to hock injections. Horse has 2 weeks off of serious work with managed stall rest, handwalking and light riding. Horse not getting better. In fact getting worse. An appointment is made with the veterinary practice to do the hock injections. Vet number 2 from the same practice comes out to give hock injections but does a lameness exam first to see what he is dealing with. Horse shows even worse head bobbing lameness when tracking right. Definately looks up front. Vet says hocks are fine and that the lameness is actually a right front high suspensory (blocks the limb to find it). Vet recommends an ultrasound, wrapping, stall rest, bute for at least 3 months. The injury is now quite severe he feels.

Horse #2 - pony doing a weird thing at the left lead canter. Same vet # 1 does a lameness exam with hock flexions, back palpations, teeth/mouth exam, hoof testers etc. Cannot find anything definitive. Hocks tested very slight positive - equal on both hind legs. Bute is prescribed for 1 week 2x per day to see if any improvement. No improvement noticed. Vet # 2 takes a look two weeks later. He blocks out her hocks and we see noticeable gait improvement (went from a 5 mover to a 9 mover - no kidding). Vet recommends hock injections (can't do it that day). Owner is not completely convinced weird left canter thing is solved and neither is vet. Vet suggests it could be a training issue and perhaps over time with hock injections, pony will stop doing weird left lead thing.

So, it would seem that although vet # 1 performed a service and I agree paying for that, vet #1 was clearly "wrong" in her assessment of horse #1. Horse # 2 is less clear cut. Neither vet really found the magic bullet and I understand that is often the case ...certainly without further diagnostic tools such as ultrasounds, xrays, thermography, bone scans, MRI etc. Just wondering if anyone has ever called a vet on their diagnosis or asked for partial refund?

[dalpal]

No. I have had worse experiences with small animal than large animal and never asked for or offered a refund. Believe me, there was a couple times I did feel entitled.

BUT.....vets are human, they are not right 100 percent of the time..which is why, as with any medical dr, a second opinion is sometimes warranted.

Next time, I recommend blocks...that will show you if the hocks are the culprit or if something else is wrong.

I always chalk it up to an owner education, I'll know better and ask better questions the next time.

In the two incidents that left my blood boiling (one misdiagnosis sent my dog to the vet school where he crashed, almost died, cost me 3K) I never used the veterinarian again.....lesson learned.

[MissCapitalSplash]

Hey Joy,
I sent you an email. :)

[Highflyer]

Nope.

[buck22]

nope and I've had plenty of vets be wrong :lol: over and over and over again :lol:

I actually had a great experience with a general/small animal vet that used to do farm calls... he was a whiz when my horse impaled himself in the coronet, and was fabulous at floating teeth... he was just a great vet.

[horsegirl123]

I had a situation where my small pony went lame after jumping a fence from one paddock to another. She could barely walk. She was diagnosed with an abscess. I asked for x-rays that day and was told not needed. I treated her for three weeks while she was turned out. No signs for an abscess so I called to schedule x-rays because I felt it were more serious. I was told that it was a waste of time and be patient. I was persistent and low and behold she had broken her coffin bone.:eek:
I spoke with the owner of the clinic and after going round and round they did refund the cost for the x-rays and our visit to their clinic.
It can happen but I think this was an extreme case. An abscess is a far cry from a broken coffin bone.

[Tamara in TN]

[QUOTE=Joyrider;3969489]Ok, so I can't sleep and am asking a hypothetical...sort of. Two cases involving the same veterinary practice.


twice...once we had a VERY nice reining stallion here from OKLA....he had broken his hock as a 2 yo and was now maybe 12 or 13....so he goes and hurts himself on the first mare he breeds:no:...take him to the vet who says his old break is re-broke...lets put a cast on him...

one week later he's not better and the worst smell is coming out from under the cast...back to vet it's some kind of infection that had settled in the hock and has nothing to do with the old break...he gets put down...Doc feels terrible,says he should have known and waives all the fees for that visit...

second time another vet came and castrated a colt and left some bit of cord <??> in there that kept it from healing...came back in two weeks re opened and removed offending bits and waived all fees for castration and the followup...

for us in both places we had no hard feelings....vets are human and sometimes bad things happen to good horses....neither time did we demand refunds or bitch about it....

best

[luvmywalkers]

I had a situation where my small pony went lame after jumping a fence from one paddock to another. She could barely walk. She was diagnosed with an abscess. I asked for x-rays that day and was told not needed. I treated her for three weeks while she was turned out. No signs for an abscess so I called to schedule x-rays because I felt it were more serious. I was told that it was a waste of time and be patient. I was persistent and low and behold she had broken her coffin bone.:eek:
I spoke with the owner of the clinic and after going round and round they did refund the cost for the x-rays and our visit to their clinic.
It can happen but I think this was an extreme case. An abscess is a far cry from a broken coffin bone.

It is, but their symptoms are very, very similar. Also, a fresh coffin bone fracture may not immediately show on an x-ray and may indeed take 3-4 weeks to show.

[mkevent]

Interesting question. I too believe that vets are human and can make mistakes-all of us can in our careers! I recently left a practice that I had been with for 16 years not because of human error(that I can forgive and as previously mentioned, always get a second opinion) but because I think the practice started to veer more towards making money and less towards trying to work with the client and listening to the client. One misdiagnosis was because the vet didn't listen to an important piece of information I was telling him! Of course, it is hard to argue with a vet when you don't have a DVM(or VMD) after your name-I guess I should have pushed harder but I didn't, so lesson learned.
I tend to view vets like I view doctors-there are general practitioners(family doctors) that take care of the basics to keep you or your horse healthy. Once things get more complicated, you go to a specialist-I have a vet that is my lameness vet-more expensive to use, but that's all she does, so she has seen more cases than a vet that does general practice. I would think most vets would understand wanting to use a specialist if you explained it in those terms-no one person can be perfect at everything. JMO

[luvmywalkers]

Just wondering if anyone has ever called a vet on their diagnosis or asked for partial refund?

There's a resason so many books are dedicated to the subject of "equine lameness" ;)

To answer your question: No, I never asked for a refund while it took 3 months for my mare to be correctly diagnosed. However, vet gave voluntarily huge discounts on x-rays and waived farm fees when she came out for the mare, which I didn't expect and hugely appreciated.

[trubandloki]

For both examples the OP listed I can not imagine asking for a refund. Sometimes figuring out what is wrong with our animals means trying things until 'that' problem finally shows. Heck, even human medical doctors have to do that at times and their patients can talk.

[Bayou Roux]

No, no money back guarantees on lameness evaluations. It's still a mystery science, vets are human, horses are stoic and don't speak English, and there are just no guarantees.

There was no "gross negligence" or whatever other legal term we use when dealing with doctors of human patients. Vet #1 made a diagnosis; it turned out to be wrong. It happens.

[deltawave]

If you're looking to pay someone to be perfect, maybe the Pope is looking for an additional source of income. :)

Medicine is not, even under the BEST of circumstances, a proposition where getting the "right answer" is always easy. The fact that it's practiced by human beings has more to do with that than anything. ;)

[trubandloki]

If you are so not pleased with vet #1 that you are expecting him/her to be wrong on the second diagnosis why exactly is vet #1 still being used?

[Blinkers On]

I couldn't imagine it either.
Vets and Dr's are, as several have said, human. And they all aren't created equally. when you see two different vets for the same lameness issue it is quite possible that you "could" get two differing opinions. I have had that experience as well as Dr "Hot" sometimes takes a day off. Then I deal with someone else in the same practice that doesn't necessarily have the same history with me or the same working knowledge of the horses and their recent or former, or chronic issues. Fortunately, I have worked long with Dr Hot and have learned exactly how he would palpate and 9x out of 10 I have a fairly good idea of what we are going to be looking at.
I had a filly that was ran and came out of the race so so. I really could find nothing. Her feet were hot there was a pulse, positive reaction with hoof testers, found nothing else. We went to work on her feet, got her good and went back to the track with her. She started tying up. Dantrium, ace, bute, banamine. A few days later my then boss ( I was the "travelling" assistant)who is aware of the filly battling a foot. comes down and watches her jog. Of course she hits quite well jogging on the cement. He says she needs to work, work a 1/2 mile out of the gate in company. So We work, she suffers a rather significant fracture of her cannon bone which requires surgery, pins and a plate. So I am going with it wasn't the foot. She is now a broodmare, and it was a costly mistake. She was a well meant filly.
I have had small animal clinics comp a second surgery when their work failed to stand up.
And as a result of that, I refer any and everyone to that clinic. It was very good business on their part!

[Carolinadreamin']

Value getting a second opinion when something doesn't seem right.

When my then 5-yr old gelding started hopping into a canter while trotting him in a 20m circle, first vet diagnosed severe DJD in front fetlocks (surprised the heck out of me as I thought it was his back end). Month goes by and still not right. I took the horse to a different practice. Just as I was walking him after getting him off the trailer, vet took a look at him as I was leading him and said based on my descriptions and watching him, it was a classic case of OCD lesions in both stifles. X-rays confirmed diagnosis, he had surgery the next day.

Can't understand how first vet completely missed it was in his back end, but that's how it goes. Glad I listened to my gut and got that second opinion.

[deltawave]

With as often as a very accurate and thorough description of symptoms, from a perfectly articulate, well-informed and thoughtful patient, turns out to be completely inconsistent with the diagnosis that is eventually made, I can only stand in awe that veterinarians can so often get the right answer from patients who say NOTHING! :eek:

[MistyBlue]

This is why they call it "practicing" medicine. There's no 100% in any medical field...human or animal.
If it's coming across as extreme stupidity on the vet's part, I change vets. But I do understand it's common to nnot get the diagnosis right the first time every time. And yes, it is frustrating as hell paying vet bills if they haven't "cured" the animal, but that's part and parcel of owning animals that can get sick or injured and can't talk.

[findeight]

Not only does the patient not speak up...sometimes the owners do. Too much.

In this case...what was the "lamness exam"-did it include blocks and x rays? Or was it just a look see for a kid owner on a budget?

If you want specific answers, you need decent diagnostics. They cost. Many general practice vets lack the equipment and work for clients that cannot afford a full work up.

So, in this case, without knowing what diagnostics were specifically done? Can't say who was right or wrong or even if right and wrong are the correct words for making an educated guess.

But, no, you don't get a refund if the educated guess is not what's wrong.

[JSwan]

I don't ask for refunds.

I have run away, screaming, from a vet that insisted a mild impaction was really a case of PHF. I paid the Bill but will never use that vet again. Hopefully she's in an air conditioned small animal practice giving overpriced rabies shots. (she didn't seem very fond of large animals - even a little afraid of horses.)

I think human doctors could learn a lot from vets. Especially about listening to their patients, (including listening to owners describe very subtle changes in their horses that may speak volumes to the vet)

(deltawave - no offense intended to your profession but I just think good vets are absolutely amazing - especially large animal vets)

I consider my vet and farrier part of a "team" - and teams don't play blame games. It's a cooperative effort to ensure the animal is healthy, sound and happy in his work (or retirement). So my vet and farrier get pats on the back, a hot drink in the winter, and a cool one in summer. I pay my bills on time, don't bitch about costs (well maybe a little).... and if I'm displeased with a treatment or have concerns - I just talk it over with the vet or farrier.

Never had a problem - and we're all friends. Well... except the one vet that didn't know the symptoms of PHF. That one I waved bye bye to.

[webmistress32]

I had a pony with some challenging symptoms and had three different vets look at her. two were wrong one was right. I never did go back and try to get my $400 from the two that were wrong.

unfortunately Veterinary science and diagnosis is as much an art as science. there is no black and white. so no one can be right 100% of the time.

[classicsporthorses]

I have asked for charges to be backed out for us when the vet, on three ocassions missed a pregnancy on our mare-this entailed ultrasounds, palps and blood draws. The second set of ultrasounds and palps were at 8 months along and I was told she was not in foal. She gave birth right on time and I knew she was even in foal, and treated her as such, when I was repeatedly told she was not in foal.

The second was sadly an vet accident that resulted in the death of one of our horses-another foal and we were never charged for that incident of her time and efforts. It was sad all the way around and our vet was devastated and does not use the procedure any more.

[deltawave]

(deltawave - no offense intended to your profession but I just think good vets are absolutely amazing - especially large animal vets)



I very heartily agree with you, and no offense taken. What vets are able to do simply astounds me. I don't think I'd last a day without beating my head against a wall. I feel that way sometimes even dealing with humans. ;)

[Petstorejunkie]

You are paying for the vet's opinion based on their more advanced medical knowledge of the creature than yourself, nothing more. You unfortunately are not paying for the vet to be right.
It sounds like you vaslue the opinion of vet 2 over vet 1, so request vet 2 from now on and consider it lesson learned.
I use a multi vet practice myself with 4 vets, 1 I will not let come near my horse, one I don't particularly care for (poor bedside manner), but the other 2 are fab. Even in those 2 I have my favorite ;)
Don't feel bad about requesting a particular vet. Its your money and your right

[grayarabpony]

I've never asked for a refund. I have called back and told a vet when he or she was wrong -- and sadly, gotten a snotty response both times, even though no ponyfixer, I was not rude. Which of course left me wondering about those vets, do you really want to learn anything from practicing? It's not as though a vet learns everything in vet school.

Vets can make mistakes, or miss a diagnosis. After all, they don't see the horse for very long. Clearly some problems take more than one visit to diagnose. It's how the vet goes through the process and/ or handles a diagnosis, if it is missed, that makes all of the difference.

[bambam]

To answer your question- no, I have never asked for a refund. I might if it were a case that I thought was gross negligence but the scenarios in the OP do not come even close to a situation where I would ask. I have in the past changed vets after errors but that was because between a series of misdiagnoses of my horse and my friends' horses, I did not think he was a very good vet and, even if he was, I had no confidence in him and so having him as my vet was simply not going to work. My current vet, who I like and respect and have used for years, is not always correct . . . because that is not possible.
Being a vet is not an exact science and figuring out what hurts because it is the root problem and what hurts because your patient has been compensating for the root problem is not easy and it is not possible to get it right on the first try every time.

[bludejavu]

Good grief - I can't believe the OP is even asking this question. I've certainly been diagnosed incorrectly before with my own ailments and I assure you, my doctors don't give refunds. My horses have had some missed diagnoses and I never would even think to ask for a refund. Medicine is not an exacting science. It is determined by the amount of experience, education and occasionally, lucky guesses a vet might have. I've had an ultrasound miss a pregnancy in a mare more than once, differing medical opinions on lameness issues, and differing medical opinions on strange illnesses. If you're looking for a vet to be 100% accurate 100% of the time, you are in for some big disappointments in life with horses.

[trubandloki]

There is always the angle that, there could be something wrong in the front end too. Just because it is not what you called the vet for does not mean the vet did not actually see something in the front end when you were insisting it was in the back (or back when you said front). :yes:

Different does not mean wrong.

[BuddyRoo]

I managed a veterinary practice for a few years, and for several years before that, I worked as an assistant and/or receptionist as needed.

LOTS of people ask for refunds. LOTS of people choose to go the cheapest route possible rather than doing the diagnostics that could definitely rule something out or point us in the right direction. Lots of people wait too long before getting a vet involved and then wonder why the prognosis isn't good--and of course it's the vet's fault! Lots of people have dogs, cats, horses, etc that have subtle issues and you have to use the process of elimination to get to a diagnosis--which can take time and often have several running theories along the way.

There are certainly cases where a veterinarian is just not that good though. Sloppy. Does a poor job interpreting rads or ultrasound or bloodwork. Has a standard "plan" for every lameness and does not diverge from that even if the situation warrants it. Can't "see" lameness well. Etc.

I think in those cases, you just don't USE the doctor again. Their work/actions aren't necessarily actionable as far as malpractice, but they're just not that good and it's a waste of money to keep using them.

If there really was some malpractice involved, I'd certainly follow up and expect to be compensated.

In the case of the OP though, it just sounds like "practicing medicine"....if you're not pleased with the outcomes when you deal with Dr. 1, stop dealing with Dr. 1.

[kcmel]

My small animal vet told me my cat was severely anemic, so he had all kinds of tests and x-rays done. I finally decided to seek a second opinion and the next vet took one look at the cat and said he's not anemic but we will do the bloodwork just to give you peace of mind. His blood count was fine. I regret not asking for a partial refund from the first vet. This was clearly incompetence: doing blood cell counts is something that is hard to screw up!

[ponyjumper4]

I have never asked for a refund, but I wouldn't hesitate to if the situation were right. By that I mean probably something along the lines of gross negligence. I almost asked for a refund on a vaccine that my dog was given that I specificially said not to give--I should have and that's another situation where I think it is ok to ask for it.

[foggybok]

With as often as a very accurate and thorough description of symptoms, from a perfectly articulate, well-informed and thoughtful patient, turns out to be completely inconsistent with the diagnosis that is eventually made, I can only stand in awe that veterinarians can so often get the right answer from patients who say NOTHING! :eek:

At least by saying nothing, they don't lead us down the wrong path...:)

[ivy62]

I have never asked for a refund and with a horse that it has taken 2 1/2 years to figure out what we "think" happened a lot has been spent..My horse all of a sudden one day was lame in the RH..Thought he fell in the field treated with rest and bute seemed okay to return to work...After working for a while he was off and bad again...very long story short..I had 2 field vets look at him and 2 vet clinics and they couldn't agree on anything! We treated everything from Kissing spine to Lyme...The only thing that seems to work is work and strengthening exercises! I never asked for a refund on the bone scan, ultra sounds, scoping for ulcers, special shoes, nerve blocks etc....and a new saddle!
I know my horse well and my vet listens to me so we work as a team and when she cannot figure it out she sends me to a specialist...(Cornell and Fairfield Equine next was Brendan Furlong!)
Vets are like pediatricians or rather neonatologists...the patient cannot tell them anything and I stand in awe of most of them....

[CosMonster]

Nope, I've had horses misdiagnosed and it was never a problem--I've never even switched vets over it (well, actually I did once but it was sort of the straw that broke the camel's back and the other issues I was having with them were much more important to the decision). I did work for a farm that sued a vet over a misdiagnosis that resulted in the horse's death, but in that case the vet was clearly negligent (and had been drinking, although we didn't find that out until after the suit was filed!). If he had made an honest mistake they would not have sued.

I've never asked for a refund, either, but in most cases I've had the vet offer to do any additional treatment resulting from the misdiagnosis either free or severely discounted. It's appreciated.

[Fharoah]

I had a horse wrongly diagnosed for a year. Spent thousands on reputable vets and specialists. Finnally got the MRI and diagnosed a collateral ligament injury. Nine months later and over 10k in diagnostics and treatments and two years my horse is sound, nock on wood! No insurance on my horse. Never worried about a refund just glad my boy is sound!

[purplnurpl]

I have two vets do work for no charge.

the first time the vet got excited with some issues we were checking out and just started doing lots of diagnostic work for fun. He looked over at one point and said, don't worry, you won't be charged for this...but lets radiograph his entire neck spine.
Basically I got 1/2 a bone scan, full radiographs of neck and knees, an over night stay and lameness exam for no charge. nice eh!? (1500 dollar value)
I made a large fancy wine/cheese/cookie/fruit basket for them.

Just recently my horse was not mis diagnosed but the area was just slightly off. I talked to my vet and he asked me to come back in for another block/injection and full exam at no charge. (300 dollar value)

Both vets see me often and they are sister clinics. I've been working with them for 8 years now and my horse is accident prone. Which is probably why I've gotten so help.
That and I entertain them well with my retarded theories and diagnosis.

[Milocalwinnings]

I had TWO vets completely blow us off and completely misdianose my horse, leading to the mare having to be euthanized. The first vet argued with me beause she didn't want to come out and told me I was "over dramatic and wanting attention"... and then spent not even 10 minutes in and out, said the horse was fine.
The second vet came out, again- rushed around because he had other calls (would I have called him out on an emergency basis if it wasn't important?!) and refused to look at things such as how much blood was lost (it was all over her stall) and said she again was fine, probably just a tooth root abscess and to have my normal vet out when he got back from vacation.

The next day my normal vet called me, as someone got in touch with him while he was on vacation, and told me not to wait for him to get back, but instead take her to the medical center asap. The mare had to be euthanized when we walked in the door, because she hemorrhaged on the trailer. The vet clinic said that if the first vet had sent us there, she could have had a chance at recovery.


The EMC sent both vets, as well as my normal vet, a report of what happened. We didn't receive a bill until a month later from vet #1... vet #2 worked with my normal vet and my normal vet refunded our money for the meds that were given to us for the mare since they weren't used. We told vet #1 that we weren't paying the bill and explained why, but she argued again and it was just easier to pay it.


Something we did do after this all happened, was we talked to my normal vet and he put a note on our file and in the computer that the vet #1 is never to treat my horses again. If I can help it, I also won't have vet #2 out again, as he didn't know how to do simple things (I actually had to show him) and I was not thrilled with how he approached the job.
I understand that vets are people too and mistakes happen, but neither vet, IMO, did a thorough enough exam and they blew us off, so because of that, their mistakes are hard to forgive.

[LSM1212]

Nope. Sorry.

I know how my horse originally hurt himself (dropped hip) but he was supposed to only be laid up for 3-6 months.

A year and $10,000 later? Still NQR.

I did just about every diagnostic test available (x-rays, blocks, injections, bone scan, muscle scan, etc.) and multiple alternative treatments (chiro, special shoes, PT (accu), etc.) he still wasn't sound. And I went to one of the most well known equine facilities. 3 vets later... and we still didn't know why.

So how did I fix him? Moved to another barn... got a new farrier, got an MT out to work on him, and he's turned out everyday except for ice. Unlike the other location where he could be locked in for 5 days if it sprinkled. :)

And then I slowly started to bring him back. He had good days and bad days that first year. The start of the second year, I started the loading dose of Legend and then went to monthly. And except for the occasional day here and there (can count on one hand in the past year), he's sound.

Can now push out the MT to every 6-8 weeks (was every 3-4), Chiro every 2-3 months (was every 4 weeks) and the Legend "as needed" (about every 2-3 months).

I lived and learned. Thankfully, my horse is insured so most of those costs were covered. And now I know... always check the feet. None of the vets thought of that. I think that was one of his core problems of why he wasn't getting better. The old farrier was horrible and I was too stupid and naive to know it back then. I know it now and will never forget it. :D Once I could get him comfortable, I was able to build him back up so he can self-sustain.

[horsegirl123]

It is, but their symptoms are very, very similar. Also, a fresh coffin bone fracture may not immediately show on an x-ray and may indeed take 3-4 weeks to show.

I guess I didn't make myself clear. I didn't want to get to long with an explanation. I choose the short version. The pony was fine until she jumped the fence from one field into another. It was clear at that moment she had injured herself. This happened during the spring foaling season so the two vets that I normally use were out on calls. I had no idea the vet that came was new and mainly dealt with small animals. I asked for x-rays that evening and was told they were not needed. When I finally spoke with the owner of the clinic which I normally request about my concerns he came out to take x-rays. He understood why I would want to x-rays on the spot. When the results came in he made the offer to pay for the clinic fee and x-rays. He felt terrible about what had happened. It was not a matter of me not wanting to pay I think it was the principal.

[yellowbritches]

The only time I've come really close to wanting to really kick some bad vet booty was when a PPE vet took such HORRIBLE x-rays that it cost us a sale. He was seeing all sorts of bone chips (including some he thought needed to be removed) that he scared the buyer off. Thankfully, the buyer gave us the x-rays, which we had read by our vet. Confirmed that they were very poorly taken and that the "bone chips" were shadows and artifacts, and weren't really sure how anyone could read the x-rays and know what was going on. I was there for the PPE and was shocked at the vet's lack of skill in taking the x-rays.

Of course, I could tell many more real horrible stories about this particular vet who really shouldn't be in practice. I would never let him touch any of my horses and we will never let a buyer use him as a PPE vet ever again. He is just really bad, and backs up his badness with a total lack of "stall side" manners. :no:

Otherwise, especially in the cases the OP describes, I wouldn't consider a refund. They were just wrong. I wouldn't use vet #1 again, since that one has been consistently wrong now...and I'd question vet #2's suspensory diagnosis if there was no ultrasound done to confirm.

[Horsegal984]

I had a vet out from the clinic I was working at at the time, because I went out to find my horse swollen from mid cannon down to fetlock on the inside. Looked like a scrape right in the middle, but not all the way through the skin. Walked off sound, a little iffy at the trot, and totally refused to pick up the right lead canter. I suspected splint, vet plled up while I was hand grazing him, spent 2 min looking at him, said cellulitis work him more, and left.
I called my old vet who had just moved back, she couldn't come out for a couple days, so I went with my gut and put him on stall rest with standing wraps. She comes out, said well it doesn't really look like a splint, but we'll shoot the film to see. Comes up on the screen(gotta love digital) and his splint was cracked clean through. Her response? "I really hate you sometimes" ;)
He healed up totally sound, no complications in 6 weeks. Makes me really glad I went with my gut instead of trying to work him out of it. I think that's the lesson though, vets are really great, but we have our gut feeling for a reason!! I let the first vet know she missed the diagnosis the next time i saw her, but only as a curtosey. I would never have expected to have any of the money refunded.
Nobody's perfect, and the real difference between a good vet and a great vet is how much it bothers them when they are wrong. ;)

[sisu27]

I have only once ever heard of a vet offering a refund. In this case it was small animal and the vet had left a heating pad on the dog throughout a surgery and then overnight and it burnt the dog to the bone. Even then, in a clearly negligent case, he had to be threatened to admit fault and give the woman her money back. That isn't a misdiagnoses...that is negligence.

I have had cause a couple of times to pursue some sort of retribution and have chosen not to. I don't feel it is worth it and it just isn't my nature to ask for money back. I just don't go back and certainly do not refer anyone there. The only thing that bothers me is that I hope the offending vet learns something from their errors and doesn't make the same mistake again. I understand that we all make mistakes but learn from them dammit! Fool me once, shame on you...

[Patty Stiller]

Only one vet I have known personally gave a refund.
In fact he bought the horse. It was a pre purchase of a retiring race horse mare for a show prospect.
The PP vet took routine radiographs and missed a small chip in a fetlock.

The horse came up lame a day or two after arriving at the new owner's barn.(probably after all the meds wore off:yes:)
PP vet took another look at everything, including the radiographs, and saw the chip. He admitted the error and because the deal was done, he bought the mare. ( She had nice bloodlines and conformation so he added her to his own broodmare band.
Owner eventually found another horse and because the vet was so honest about the error, and offered to make it right without prompting, kept him as her vet.

[eqsiu]

An abscess is a far cry from a broken coffin bone.

And both will produce sudden extreme lameness in the same area.

[Janet]

It is, but their symptoms are very, very similar. Also, a fresh coffin bone fracture may not immediately show on an x-ray and may indeed take 3-4 weeks to show. And conversely, you can have a coffin bone break (old or new) that shows up on Xray but has nothing to do wih the current lameness.

[Daventry]

I tend to view vets like I view doctors-there are general practitioners(family doctors) that take care of the basics to keep you or your horse healthy. Once things get more complicated, you go to a specialist-I have a vet that is my lameness vet-more expensive to use, but that's all she does, so she has seen more cases than a vet that does general practice. I would think most vets would understand wanting to use a specialist if you explained it in those terms-no one person can be perfect at everything. JMO

:yes: I agree! It would be so much easier if our horses could talk...or at least only have TWO legs! :D