Emergency & Specialty Animal Medical Center

Reviews 5

CH

Chloie Johnson

I brought my dog to this location because it was the only one open at 10pm. My dog had not been drinking water for two whole days and had become incontinent. As soon as we sat down in the waiting room, my dog tried to eat three different peanut m&ms off the floor - all of which clearly came from the m&m candy dispenser they have in their lobby. smart. we were taken into an exam room and greeted shortly after by a young man who assessed the situation and wrote up her chart. he was kind towards both me and my mom, and my pup. about 10-15 minutes later, Dr. Edwards came in. She did not shake my hand, did not ask how I was doing. Did not smile or gave a warm disposition. She simply walked in and told me her name and asked "whats going on?" I noticed a dry erase board on the front of our door and written on it were all of my dogs symptoms and our reasons for being there. And of course there was her chart? We explained once again what was going on. Dr. Edwards was indifferent and eventually told us that my dog didnt really seem sick but that it was probably "just an inconvenience" for us. Please keep in mind I was worried enough about my dog to bring her in at 10 oclock at night and overpay for the office visit (after reading other reviews, I guess this place is notorious for that sort of thing). she told us that my dog would drink water if she was thirsty and that she wasnt sure what she could give her to "magically make it better". I could go on about how she was rude to my mom but long story short, I was extremely unimpressed and obviously bothered enough by the experience to write this review. I would simply like to think that anyone working after hours at an emergency animal clinic would approach their patients/owners with a little more empathy. The only person who seemed inconvenienced was the doctor. I feel for anyone in this position but especially someone who has to bring their pet to this clinic.

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AM

Amanda Etheridge

I guess this place is ok in a pinch, but if I have an option of going somewhere else, I will. They know absolutely NOTHING about rodents. I called them once when one of our rats was doing very poorly and I was worried about her. They told me no one there knew how to treat rats and they refused to let me bring her in. I was astonished! How could they just turn away a sick animal like that? She could have died! And another time I had to practically BEG them to see my hamster when she was extremely ill over the Christmas holiday and our regular vet clinic was closed, and they agreed to see her only after I told the receptionist that Dr. Atlas at Riverview is our usual vet and that I would call him at home (at midnight!) and ask if he would call the Emergency Clinic and advise them on how to treat my hamster. Then we finally get there, the older female vet nearly had a heart attack when she roughly reached into the box holding my hamster and scared her, making her squeak very loudly and flip on her back in a defensive posture. The vet jerked her hand back in fear, and looked extremely uncomfortable. I ended up removing my hamster from the box, wrapping her in a cloth and handing her to the vet, who then left the room with her for almost 20 minutes, which made me very uncomfortable. Ive never had a vet leave the room with my animal before, I like to be there for the exam & diagnosis. But anyway, she gave us enough medicine to get us through 2 days until we could see our regular vet. So if I have a choice, I will definitely NOT be going here anytime soon.

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OT

Otis Smith

Took our boxer in for possible foreign object in her pad was seen by three individuals: One taking vitals ,one presented as a vet ,and one attempting to medicate. The individual claiming to be a vet is listed on the clinics registrar; first name on the left top, attempted to squeeze and dig out what was described as "nothing that could be seen" with her fingernails without the use of any magnifying instrument, had to provide the flashlight on my phone to allow for proper lighting, did nothing but increase the discomfort level to the point of our dog crying in pain. Only retrieved a magnifying instrument upon my request. Appeared and acted as though she had been awakened from a slumber, and was far too irritated to provide for any animal but herself. Wanted to administer a shot of Benadryl but had no diagnosis or reason for doing so Was provided absolutely no medical care for my animal, truly a money generating corporate enterprise for the (40 vets who hide behind the liability protection of limited partnerships within their corporate cover) no compassion, care or the pretense of any type of professionalism extended DO NOT EVER under even the most extreme circumstances consider this facility as an option for medical treatment for your animals in the Birmingham area This appears to be a façade masquerading as an emergency medical clinic designed to pray on the emotions of individuals who have compassion and care for their pets

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MI

Michelle Clark

Last night our 3 year old dog died suddenly on the way to this clinic. We pull up, both squalling our eyes out. The vet techs take us in and I vaguely recall them being somewhat comforting, and asking if we need a minute. So we walk outside, try to compose ourselves and go back into the front lobby area. The receptionist (who I distinctly remember being back there with us when we arrived) started asking us our dogs weight, medical history, etc. I finally said "what does it matter, shes gone!! Its too late" and the lady said "oh she dead? I mean, she passed?" Completely unsympathetic tone. She was rude about wanting a copy of our license, neither of us had it on us. We finally were like "what do you need from us. We just want to go home" she came back to say "its going to be awhile they have to put it all in the computer before I can register it" We asked her to just tell them to speed up whatever they needed to process a dog that had died before we even arrived. The dog was given no medical treatment from the clinic besides checking for a pulse. Finally, we paid $60 to leave our dog there because we couldnt bare to take her home. As we are leaving the receptionist told us to "have a good night." I almost lost it. Both of us were clearly beside ourselves the entire time we were there, crying, devastated and were given virtually no guidance on what we should do or even just a sympathetic tone. It was awful.

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SA

Sabarika sin Apellido

Brought my dog in when she was bitten by a venomous snake on a Sunday afternoon They were quick to see her and had several treatment options available. They warned me up-front that the antivenin was on back order and if my dog needed further treatment they could offer plasma transfusions. The initial quote was $730 and if plasma was needed it would be $1400. Thankfully the next morning she was much improved, having received fluids, antibiotics, and pain medication through the night - she did not need plasma so the $730 I paid the previous day covered the entire visit. They left a catheter in and I was to take her as soon as possible to a regular clinic for follow-up treatment which I did (the subsequent 2 visits did total me at $1400 in the end but who puts a price on the love for your pet?). It really hurt my wallet and was a good 30+ minute drive from where I was living but the building itself was easy to see and in a nice location. Nice staff if a bit unfriendly. They made me fully aware of all the costs that could be incurred before I was to sign any paperwork and payment did have to be up front. They explained the treatments and assured me of my dogs chances of survival as I had never experienced a venomous snake bite on a dog (copperhead we think). Im satisfied, my dog was treated quickly and well and I paid what I had to, I dont expect an ER clinic to come cheap.

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