Q: Is it legal in Florida for a vet to keep my dog until payment is made in full?
One of our dogs that is older became very ill and we took her to the vet. It was necessary to admit for treatment which we left a deposit for estimated charges for 2 days (paid $300). 6 days later, were told today we could pick her up and given instructions for care at home. Upon leaving and were given the final charges, which we did not have at that moment to be paid in full ($1500), and was informed they do not take payments. Our dog is to remain in boarding at $15/day until it is paid in full before being released. I left a $500 payment today, and will be paying the remainder. We do not dispute the charges, but were unprepared for the total amount that had been incurred and due immediately before release. We are new to the state of FL, but have never had such practice occur in many years of being pet owners that pay ALL bills to our vets. We had only been to this vet once before, two weeks after relocating and paid complete for emergency treatment of another dog that was injured.
A: Negotiate a resolution yourself or hire an attorney which will cost a lot more, to negotiate for you.
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