VCA Yorba Regional Animal Hospital

Reviews 3

TA

Tajia Bo

If I could give zero stars, you bet I would. My younger brother brought our almost 7 year old dog here around 11pm on 8/15/16 as half of her body became completely paralyzed. I was out of the state and my parents were out of the country at this time. Frantic, he called me because he couldnt get ahold of my parents. They wouldnt even see our dog without verbal authorization that he would pay ALL fees that night. Then, on top of that they were demanding nearly $700 to do x-rays and blood work. I spoke with the technician who was telling my brother they couldnt perform anything until they got paid and she vaguely went over everything they were going to be testing on our dog. I didnt know if I would be able to front the money at that moment and practically begged if we could be billed because our parents were gone and could not get ahold of. The technician (who has a tattoo on the back of her neck) absolutely refused and said no. When I finally paid the amount with American Express she stubbornly kept telling me that there should be a "3" digit code on the back, when clearly, American Expresss security code is a 4 digit number on the front. She then proceeded to tell me, "Yeah, I dont think we take American Express". What hospital doesnt take Amex? It ended up going through and my brother was at the hospital until almost 4 in the morning. The Dr. gave her steroids and pain killers and told him our dog was fine and was going to be alright and after a few days would get her movement back. She ended up passing the next day. Not to mention, she was an emotional service dog. This has been the most traumatic and devastating experience. My family is so hurt and upset because we still do not have answers. What a shame. After reading several reviews, It is very clear I am not alone. UPDATED REVIEW AS OF SEPTEMBER 6TH. Just got off the phone with Dr. Steven Dunbar Wow. So disturbed and disgusted. He is sick. He 100% confirmed with my dad, brother and I via phone call that it IS ABOUT THE MONEY and not about the welfare of your animal. They DID NOT treat our dog until they received payment as he said his "staff does not work for free" and followed by asking my dad "how he thinks the technicians will be paid". This is appalling. "Dr". Dunbar, I am truly curious as how your company has survived. Still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you just blatantly stated "it is about the money". The exact words that left your mouth. It is rather disturbing. You show no sign of compassion what so ever. You know, a sincere apology on behalf of your incompetent staff would have gone a long way. The way my brother and my family have been treated is absolutely unacceptable and I would hate for any other client to ever have to experience what we have. And since I am "out yelping again", heres a little advice to you. Yelp may not "matter" to you, but social media is SO powerful that I have no doubt in my mind that it is only a matter of time until your greedy self/company will be exposed.

TI

Tina Zlaket

I took my dog in for what I felt was an emergency as her back legs didnt work...Id called ahead, told the operator my needs, and she was reassuring. I asked how payment worked as I had a plan B in another city, but thought time was of the essence....she said the office visit was $50 and that as other charges were incurred they would discuss that w/ me....I asked if they worked w/ you on payment as I had no idea what we were dealing with as of yet....she assured me they would work with me. They were nice in the office, quickly helped me back.....then the vet came in and took a look...he suggested a blood test, which I knew they would and said OK.....nothing came back abnormal, The vet then suggested an x-ray of my dogs stomach....nothing came back abnormal. The next phase of recommendations was that I leave my dog, they watch her overnight, feed her, do another test...but if nothing panned out from there I would be referred to a neurologist. My dogs back legs were unresponsive, front legs wobbly at best, and she seemed disoriented. After this latest suggestion by the vet, the nurse came in w/ a write up of services and a potential bill.....$935. I about died of sticker shock. The crummy part was that the first 2 tests the vet did were $500 of that bill....the 2 tests that are probably the first rule of thumb cost the most. I asked if I could put down the $50 now, then come back in the am - to see my dog and to pay the rest....and thats when the fun began. The two nurses, became surly and rude....the emphasis on my dog and the compassion for my pet left the room as we discussed how they would not keep her w/o payment up front. I recounted my experience and communication on the phone prior to arrival and they said that was NOT the way they did business, and that they dont know who that was who told me this information. When I mentioned I could pay the next day (my dad was helping us out), they said "Well can you call him to do a credit card by phone"....In the end they took my $50, of which I paid the next day in full....and my dog went home and worked through whatever was wrong (we suspect she ate something funky off a neighbors lawn). Although youd think in a blood work up youd notice toxin in the system. My dog is fine, no residual issues, I have no answers from this hospital, and Im out $500. Its fortunate they are working with the Anaheim PD on the care for the service dog....and the press theyve received is priceless, but their services definitely have a price tag and youd better come prepared to pay up or they really turn into Dr Jekylls....it is sad as I wont ever go there, or refer there again.

BR

Brenda Roberts

My experience has been mediocre. And I would not recommend this hospital for rabbits and guinea pigs (even if they say they see exotic animals). My first bad experience with this hospital was when I took my sick guinea pig in 2 years ago (he had not eaten and his eyes were sunken). They took him to the back to check on him and when they came back, my guinea pig came out ridiculously freaked out. I could tell he was breathing hard and his heart rate was really high. The vet told us they had to give him oxygen - I thought to myself how stressed out did you get him to the point that he needed oxygen? He never regained composure from that and died 5 hours after the vet visit, even though they sold us medication and critical care food. Yesterday, we took one of our bunnies because it was Sunday, and we couldnt find any other place that saw small animals on Sundays. And I thought it was weird that after telling the doctor what we fed our bunny she commented "leafy greens are supplementary. They should mainly be eating hay and pellets", which isnt at all true. Any bunny owner or resource out there would tell you that hay should be available and accessible to them at any given time of the day. They can eat as much as they want. Second are the fresh leafy greens. There essential. Last in the diet are pellets. Clearly, the vet didnt have a clue about rabbit nutrition. At any rate, I noticed that my bunny wasnt eating today, so I called the hospital for critical care food so I could feed him myself. Whoever answered the phone simply said "Were a 24 hour animal hospital, so we dont sell rabbit food here. You should try a pet store". I was extremely confused because I remember them selling me critical care food before for my guinea pig. Not to mention...youre telling me that you dont sell critical care food for sick animals at an animal hospital where you...treat...sick...animals...? That doesnt make sense at all. I didnt argue, instead I asked if they had any information where Id be able to find critical care food (given that theyre a hospital, they would have a good idea at least...or so I thought). The girl said "no" as soon as I finished my question and seemed rather impatient. Now I have to figure out where else to get critical care food to feed my bunny. After that phone call (and adding my past experiences), Ive decided to never bring my animals again. The only good point I can give them, is that they spayed my female bunny, and she didnt have any issues from that. And I suppose the fact that theyre open on Sundays. Thats about it.