MetaChat is an informal place for MeFites to touch base and post, discuss and
chatter about topics that may not belong on MetaFilter. Questions? Check the FAQ. Please note: This is important.
When my cat was sick last year, I couldn't pay much upfront either. I paid in dribs and drabs. They never withheld any treatment and were wonderful up until the day she died.
And I don't even have cancer. The moral of this story might be that a stranger in a parking lot can be nice, but it's also that the whole staff of a veterinary office is really crappy at basic compassion and PR.
Shitty vet has nothing to do with the ability to pay. When I came home for winter break in 1990, I'd been told that my Lab was ill and needed tests; bring her in after Christmas. This dog was a textbook Sag; normally when I came home after a long absence she would be leaping all over the place and vocalizing. This time she was happy to see me but much more subdued. I duly brought her in: "SHe has a sore throat, you're being paranoid. Here's some medicine.(which she puked up)" Lennon spent the next two days in and out of animal emergency until she died. I left a message on the vet's voicemail and he didn't have the decency to apologize in person.