Merrimack Animal Hospital

My family and I have been going to Dr. Mian for years and he's always taken great care of our animals. He's gone above and beyond on numerous occasions speeding into his practice on his off day when we called because my very small mini Yorkie (2 pounds full grown) jumped out of my arms and hit his head on the ground. Many years later when that same puppy passed away after he had a seizure Dr. Mian again rushed in to help after he had gone home for the day and helped direct me to the emergency vet clinic in Westford when it looked like he wouldn't make it. He also called me later on while he was home to find out if the emergency clinic could do anything to help Mikey (my mini Yorkie). He didn't even charge me for Mikey's last visi.

I've had nothing but positive experiences at this clinic.

Response from Merrimack Animal Hospital re: Susan T.

Merrimack Animal Hospital is more than happy to give minimum estimates over the phone. When giving an estimate to a client whose pet we have never seen or an existing pet with new symptoms, we always state the fee for the office visit and explain that any treatment plan that the doctor and client agree upon will be over and above the office visit. We do not offer payment plans and payment is due at the time of visit. This being said, we at Merrimack Animal Hospital strive to treat each and every client with dignity and respect regardless of their financial situation. In this particular case, the dog was examined, the owner agreed to an ear cytology which showed a long term, chronic, untreated issue. As well as an infection, the dog also had Demodex (causes mange) in each ear.. After showing the owners the findings under the microscope, a consultation was held over the best treatment plan. After going over the cost, the owner stated she had a very limited budget and was offered information on low cost care elsewhere or to return to get the four medications needed to treat the multiple issues in the ears. The owner opted to pay for the exam/consultation and the ear cytology and stated she would try to come back for the meds. The visit ended on a good note and we were disheartened to see this review. After trying to converse with the owner regarding this, we were unable to resolve it over the phone and the owner hung up without allowing us to discuss it.

My wife has been faithfully taking our dog to Dr. Mian for the last 4 years for her regular appointments and various issues that would arise during the course of the year. I would consider us to be a regular customer that always paid our bill in full with no questions asked. My wife took our dog in a few weeks ago on a Saturday to have her nails trimmed, because our groomer was unavailable. They took our dog in the room to do the maintenance to her nails, when our dog was unmuzzled she came out with her paws bleeding, to my wife's horror and a visibly shaken dog My wife was told Oh by the way you owe us $30.00 for what was done. First of all I know what it takes to run a small business, by owning one in the city of Lowell and I certainly know what overhead means. But I also like to keep and retain my customers. I feel that after seeing my wife's reaction and that of our dog that the response she should have received was an apology from them and a credit on our account of the $30.00 charge. You do not retain your customers by nickel and diming them to death with a fee that our groomer would have done for $10.00 with no pain or drama had she been available. I looked back at all the receipts from the past years and I can say that the $30 he charged would have surely been made up in a short amount of time. When a customer feels mistreated it is sometimes better to eat the cost than cause a loss of revenue that is ten fold of $30.00. No reason to traumatize a small dog and make her bleed just to have her nails trimmed/NO-EXCUSE !!!!!!!!!!!

My cat had a lump that grew in size over a period of few months' span. I brought him to see Dr. Mian, the vet at a nearby animal hospital. Prior to conducting a physical examination, Dr. Mian told me that my cat looked very unhealthy, he suspected there may be a tumor inside my cat's belly. The lump on my cat's neck was a risk too high to recommend. Dr. Mian ordered a blood test to confirm the diagnosis. The report came back showing a high level of calcium. Dr. Mian explained it was an implication of cancer. Based on the blood test result, Dr. Mian expected my cat has a few weeks to a year to live. Dr. Mian advised against surgery because it would shorten my cat's chance of living longer. The cost of the blood test was $480, in addition to the charges for follow-up visits.



My cat's lump continued to grow and it began to "leak" really bad. So I brought my cat again to see Dr. Mian. This time, he said there were massive tumors inside my cat's belly. He provided no explanation but simply advised me to feed my cat his favorite food because my cat was dying. He suggested euthanasia which I declined. He then gave me a bottle of blue liquid to clean the "leaky" lump. I was told that since this is a concentrated and "expensive medicine", I need to dilute it with water when applying to my cat's lump. This "medicine" was expensive and it cost another $50, on top of another follow-up charge.



Due to the dire situation of my cat, I sought second opinion from another vet. To my surprise, the new vet said the lump could have been removed surgically. The "medicine" was only a sanitized liquid. After an examination, the new vet did not find any "lump" inside my cat's belly. Another good news was that the new vet had successfully removed the lump. The total cost including a repeat blood test came to be less than $200. Most importantly, all test results were normal and no abnormal calcium level found.



My cat now lives happily & healthily after all the ordeals. I am glad to have taken him to see a different vet who turned out to be a true professional than relying on Dr. Mian's "opinions". The purpose of this story is to bring my concerns to the public forum, and hopefully, Dr. Mian's practice as a vet should be monitored and scrutinized more closely to preserve the consumers' (and their beloved pets) right / well-being.