Stand Down: Caring for the pets of our military heroes 

Thank you for looking out for the Vets. Awesome!!

Dear Banfield, I’m writing to let you know about my journey over the decades and to ask for reasonable accommodations for my pet and explain the misery. Wellness Plans: Paid for monthly for decades Locations: Maryland Largo: It was too crowded at all times during all seasons: · Not enough Vets or Techs or Support Staff · Not enough training in customer service (the rudeness was real at this location) · Limited appointments and even more limited services based on staffing. · The only thing that happened here was hurt feelings and bad energy shared from employee to pet owners. Waldorf: Things were best here with a few bad experiences waiting and once with a service but in the long run we were best served here..until changes in staffing occurred in 2021-2022 with the vet (s). · With the new Vet we experienced their lack of experience in the work place versus the very well-seasoned staff we had grown accustomed to from 2011 until 2021. · We felt very uncomfortable with the new inexperienced Vet asking for EVERY conceivable permission to perform lab or other test to continue to Practice Vet Medicine at a cost to my pockets directly without concern to my financial status. · We felt previous Vets had decades of experience in diagnostics that the new vet lacked so the lack of experience started to cost us money directly. · Needle aspirations to determine if a lipoma was a lipoma was going to run about $150-200 and needle aspirations have not been added to any wellness plans known to us. · Dental cleaning and Treatment was denied at this location because our pockets were not deep enough to cover the inexperienced Vet’s desire to test the inside of masses before removing them from our pet. · Mass removals is not new to Vet Med so visual and physical exams have been standard fair for as long as Vet Medicine has been around. · With advancements in Vet Med and Diagnostic Tools many Vet Hospitals/Clinics have been able to offer these new tools to the customers which is greatly appreciated but who allowed the Vets to determine they would replace physical examinations? I can’t argue with experience but inexperience I will argue with all day long. · Our previous Vets at this location could visually see and physically detect the mass (s) and schedule them for removal while our pet was under anesthesia without incident until the new vet arrived and started demanding and requiring needle aspirations before services would be provided. · That Vet went unchecked and threw our family out the door to another hospital 15 mins further so this change went from a 30 min ride to a 45 min ride. · I agreed to change the location because I did not trust the inexperienced Vet at that location. I do not think the Vet at this location is really appreciating the DIVERSITY of the clients that walk through those doors nor the pets of those DIVERSE clients. Bowie: He was happy here even with the 45 ride. Service Abilities hit the hardest here. · They lacked the Staffing for the growing population around them so services that normally could be provided in a normal time range went from acceptable to outrageous. · Due to the lack of staffing I saw changes implemented that were irritating at best such as the Techs performing the annual physical exam and recommending nothing at the end just to make sure your appointment was scheduled and pet seen. I was a little taken back by that and I paid attention moving fwd very closely. · I noticed as time grew close to our Pet receiving services for cleaning that we should do some blood work and concern ourselves with his test results for about a month (this delayed services buy 30 plus days…good distraction). After the 30 days of medication the results were barely registering but we were now able to schedule him with a cleaning. I had to cancel his last appointment due to a surgery I was having on that same day and since Charlie does not drive I thought it would be okay to reschedule him for another date but it was not. · The next available date was very short fused and I had no way of changing my work schedule in such a short notice so I asked for the next date and we left Dec, Jan, Feb and ended up in March of 2023. I explained to the Clinic Manager that Bandfield has to do better with covering Dental Services and she told me there was a shortage of Vets. o I asked why and she said their numbers were low due to depression and suicide and sadness with caring for our pet companions. o I worked in the medical field for decades in the military so I can relate to the sadness one feels when death occurs with pets, family and friends but to continue on is the path forward. o I told the manager I would recommend more money for the Vets so they can get more Mental Health Care coverage and speak to therapist about their feelings or find another career but my issue is more with Bandfield because it is Bandfield who collects $55.00 a month for 12 months nonstop regardless of sadness or sorrow to the tune of $660.00. o What services he has access to and uses out of this plan is of concern. He really gets a lab panel and with each visit they offer Ear Cleaning Solution, Nail Grinding and good old Anal Gland Expression. o I was told by the manager that she had offered me another date and I could not accept it so best she could offer is an appointment sometime in March of next year. o I told her that was unacceptable to go a whole year without dental to my Death was UNACCEPTABLE and she advised me I could call around to other locations where I countered with another suggestion of her doing that from within Bandfield and not send me chasing locations and staff while I’m already stressed about the lack of services available at the Bowie location. o I’m Charlie’s Champion you see and for a company to continue to push me further and further away from my home for services that could be provided at a location down the street in unacceptable behavior. No one has called me from the Waldorf location and said anything about available dental services, new Vets or immunizations he could get there in well over 2 years but the collection continues from bank to bank uninterrupted unlike my services. o The Clinic/Office Manager called to get Charlie an appointment at another Bandfield location father away. I accepted it but he drive was crazy. Onley: This location was 1.5 hours away from my home. A new Location and a new Drive. This additional drive went from 10 mile ride to Waldorf to a 100 mile ride in a single day all to continue allowing a Vet to belittle, degrade and dehumanize Bandfield customers. You kept collecting my $55 a month while I was being pushed farther and farther away with no conversation to the location in Waldorf who had been caring for Charlie for over a decade with only a couple of challenges we worked through. Dental X-rays encouraged at this location before and during dental cleaning for $200-300 which is not encouraged that it be covered or included in each Wellness Plan as a Standard like it is in Human Plans. If we have to pay for x-rays out of pocket as humans and they are not state sponsored by Welfare Blue Cross Blue Shield programs we’d be broke but we have these other programs for those who cannot afford them but non for pets. I was told I could take dental out to reduce the monthly fee collected. I countered and stated that we could end all the money collected monthly as soon as I hear what your recommendations would be for a person who’s spent over 40k with you all over the last 2 decades. V/r Mr. Christopher T. Christopher Eubanks