Academy West Animal Hospital

Reviews 3

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diana Larson

I have been taking my American Staffordshire Terrier, Shea to this vet for about 3 years now, mostly for vaccinations, once for a bump that was removed and biopsied. It seemed adequate for that and since I had pet insurance this was the place to go on my list of providers. but about a week ago I took her there because she was just not acting herself. weak and just sickly. she is nine years old so I dont mess around and took her in right away. they could not find anything wrong, not that they did anything but take her temp and feel her tummy. I requested a senior blood work to be done, which they said came back fine. Two days later I get home from work and she is having cramping in the rear area, around the stomach and intestines, very lethargic and cold body temp. I took her in immediately. I did not know it but she had also vomited a little in the car. They again said they did not see anything wrong, but took an x-ray which took a long time. I had informed him when I was there the first time that I had switched her to a raw diet in December. He said he did not recommend that but when I had her there this second time, no mention was made of checking her for e-coli and I didn’t know enough to ask him to. he had asked a tech to try to get a urine sample from her by taking her outside I guess, but that was unsuccessful. He came back in later with the x-ray and said he could find nothing wrong except her colon was backed up and full of poop. his diagnosis was constipation and to leave her in the yard for a while, otherwise he said I had a healthy dog who should live many more years . I got one more week. The following Saturday she woke up with the same symptoms. Unknowingly Im thinking constipation again. I called the vet and they said just watch her over the weekend and see if she is better, if not bring her in. she continued to worsen, so when I called again I was told the Dr left for the day and there was nothing they could do, I had to go to the emergency clinic. In the meantime thankfully we all spent some time with her, she never acted in pain, just lethargic, cold, and the spasms now and then. But an hour later, she could not stand to walk, so we rushed to the emergency vet. They immediately said she was very critical, and "down" as they put it. After an hour of waiting for them to take x-rays and try to stabilize her, the vet came back and said it appeared that she had a perforated bowel which had leaked into her stomach and was septic. the option was surgery which being an emergency could cost up to $30,000, or to euthanize her. While we agonized and cried over this, my daughter, being a critical care nurse, explained that it was unlikely the surgery would help her. When I went back to see her, I could tell she was going, her eyes were already dilated. They put her on a gurney and we got about 5 minutes to say goodbye and then she was gone. In my heart I know that had this vet at Academy West insisted on cleansing out her colon and doing another x-ray, or even doing a blood test for e-coli because I have learned since this happened that a low body temperature in a dog is an indication of that, he probably could have diagnosed her correctly and performed the surgery before it went septic and possibly have saved my baby. As it is, I have lost my best friend and a large part of my reason for living. I am so angry at myself for not taking her somewhere else, among many other things. On top of that, when I called them this morning to cancel the appointment I had set on Saturday, I explained some of what happened to the receptionist. the vet has not called me to find out what happened or follow up in any way.

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A Private User

I just moved here last week. I was very fortunate to have a great vet and groomer. They both loved my dog and was always really good to him. Since we moved across country and to completely different climate I wanted to make sure we had a vet established right away. The first time I went in was for his wellness check. The front desk ladies checked us in and took us back to a room right away. I did not have to wait very long for the vet to come. He seemed nice, but in a hurry. He did answer all my questions, but seemed like he wanted to get to the next appointment. He also spent very little time with my dog. Our last vet the first visit he spent extra time getting to know him to make sure coming to the vet was not a horrible experience. He also took his time checking him out. He felt all over his body and made me feel really good about knowing my dog was in good health. This vet barely touch my dog and basically just listened to his heart and quickly gave him two shots. I figured I was just picky and should give the place a chance. So I set up a grooming appointment for the next day. When I came in for the grooming appointment the front desk lady dragged my dog into the back (my dog is 11 pounds). When I went to pick him up they told me that he had moved and they nicked his ear. They said the technician said it should heal on its own. It is healing just fine now, but I found other nicks on his body as well. I get him groomed about 5 times a year. He has never gotten any nicks in the past. After doing research I picked this place because I felt that it was a small place that would give you the feeling that your dog was important to them. I was wrong. The prices are fair. This place did its job but nothing more. My dog is apart of my family and I expect more from my groomer and vet.

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Larissa F Gustafson

Id like to first say that I believe Dr. Kimmel is a good veterinarian. However, my experience was has not been great. My cat was scheduled to go into surgery to remove a number of sub q masses. The day before surgery a vet tech by the name of Dennis called to ask how my cats skin was looking...this tech called me thinking my cat had already been through the surgery. After getting frustrated, I began to question the tech, who didnt even know when the surgery was schedule for or what the surgery was even for. Dr. Kimmel called me to apologize and verify the surgery information. Surgery day went out without a hitch. The day after surgery I had to get back into see the vet because my cat had torn out the surgery stiches (no bandage provided after surgery). The tech called me "MaMa" half a dozen times which I thought was disrespectful. Also, she began telling me how my cat tore out the stiches. This made me infuriated! No Duh, claws! I proceeded to slam my had on the exam table and told her that I wasnt a complete idiot. Dr. Kimmel meet with me shortly after and repaired the incision and provided a bandage. Day two after surgery, I called the office after seeing the plastic coated cotton pad fall out from the bandage. They didnt seem concerned that the rough cotten and bandage were now rubbing against my cats incision..."no need to have it re bandaged". I then asked if my animal could have an additional pain med dose because he was becoming restricted in movement and more vocal..."no, he doesnt need a 3rd dose". I had only received 2 and a half pain med doses.....a human who went through surgery would have more pain medication than that!!! Ill never be going back.