My heart is honestly broken for what Cherokee Animal Hospital has become. I’ve taken my dog here, I’ve had friends, family, and community members rave about how amazing this clinic is. It’s hard to find a vet who is good with big dogs(Sheep, my baby, is a Great Pyrenees and 120 lbs, will include a photo) and my last time at the clinic, I had such a wonderful experience. But what I experienced during my last visit was absolutely horrible.
James Grace was extremely impatient, aggressive, and honestly terrifying. He cut my dogs nails so badly they bled(all of them, not just one), pulled his leg out aggressively, and was not gentle or kind to anybody in the clinic, even his fellow staff. Nothing was explained to us( we took our dog in for allergies), and we were given meds that we had no idea how to use. He told us our dog had fleas. We took our dog to another vet, who combed out his fur and looked for flea dirt and other signs. We were told that he has no presence of fleas from that vet. My dog, who is the happiest, most trusting guy in the world, was shaking from anxiety during and after due to James Grace’s behavior.
I understand that people have bad days. However, I was then contacted by them after complaining, and told that they thought that I was rude, and essentially that I was a liar. I was not contacted by the clinic, but someone named Peggy who works for them I assume. I was told that James Grace has been a doctor there for 45 years, and is the reason the clinic is still open, because he is,”quick and sees double the patients the other vets do”, therefore, there is no possible way that he could’ve hurt my animal. I was told that I didn’t like that he is shy and doesn’t like to talk(which is not true, honestly prefer it). His family is also the founders of the clinic.
Perhaps that day I was stressed out, and was short with the staff. That’s on me, and is unacceptable. I don’t know how that translates to being so cruel to an innocent creature. Honestly, when they contacted me, all I wanted was to be told that they were sorry for such a traumatizing experience. They took no responsibility in how their veterinarian acted. I was told that James Grace is caring, shy, and an amazing person. I wish my baby got that man instead of what we saw at our visit. I’m not sure what exactly we did to them. Maybe it was our vibe. Maybe it was that my partner and I are two queer people covered in tattoos and are alternative. Maybe it was just our faces. That’s all fine if they hate us. But our sweet baby boy did nothing to them, and no innocent animal deserves to be scared. My dog loves the vet, he loves bathes, fireworks, everything. He is not an anxious dog. I’m afraid he is now.
I’m genuinely shocked as to how much they’ve gone off the deep end. I’m not saying that this clinic hasn’t been great, they have. I guess not anymore.
There are two sides to every story, and they’ve made it very clear that they are taking no ownership in their employees behavior, and will defend him no matter what. That’s fine. But I don’t know what kind of Mom I would be if I didn’t try and warn over pawrents about such a dangerous establishment. I really hope and pray that they can turn things around and get back to the clinic we all have known and loved for years. I also really hope and pray that people are made aware of this, that they correct this behavior, and nobody ever has to go through what we went through.
