I brought my cat in with an abscess on his arm, which I know is common for cats to get when they've either been in a fight or had some other kind of puncture wound (we live in a very brushy area and the cat is an outdoor cat). I have had experience with this with other cats and know that in most cases they just need to be drained and given antibiotics. I asked the staff to please do both of these for my cat and they highly recommended X-rays to be sure the infection didn't go to the bone. I told them I didn't think this was necessary as a first step and that I would keep an eye on it. They pressured me heavily at the time, as well as with 2 more ""scare tactic"" phone calls through the day while my cat was there being treated. I had to get a little harsh on the phone with the vet I was working with and tell them to please not call again asking to do Xrays, as I would bring the cat back if he didn't heal with the draining and antibiotics (I had caught the swelling early and it was not an extreme case by any means). I was put off by their insistence on unnecessary and expensive treatment for a minor issue.\r
When speaking about my experience to a friend who knew very well a previous employee, I was informed this employee left because this clinic is very much run like a business that pressures their vets to be salespeople for procedure, and they can even get penalized for NOT selling enough procedure. This broke my trust completely with this vet and I don't feel I would ever know if they were advising the right health care for my pet or just advising what would make them more money. I find this to be very dishonest, especially in the realm of medical care.\r
That said, I believe Dr. Markoff and staff to be very knowledgeable and skilled if your pet does need extensive surgery/treatment, and the facility is probably one of the most sophisticated in SLO. But I would advise getting a 2nd opinion before getting pressured into extensive/expensive procedures from this clinic.
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