VCA Hillcrest Animal Hospital

Reviews 4

MA

Mario Villalobos

This review is for incidents that happened a few years ago, but they are worth mentioning nonetheless. We had two bad (one very) experiences with this "hospital". The first was our Himalayan cat whom we had neutered by one of the VCA Hillcrest veterinarians (we refer to him as Dr. Chikatilo. If you are unfamiliar with that name, do a quick google and youll see why we chose this moniker for him). Our cat, after the procedure, was in a lot of pain (which was evident by her groaning when we would pet her and her loss of appetite). VCA prescribed a painkiller. However, the prescription did nothing and was indicated by another (non-VCA) vet hospital that the drug was akin to baby aspirin (ie: it was not strong enough nor was it something given in the industry to treat our cats condition). We have to wonder, did Chikatilo or one of his staff take our cats real drugs instead? The second (and worst) incident was a routine teeth "cleaning" of our Persian by, you guessed it, Dr. Chikatilo. When I went to pick her up to go home, the staff had a gloomy look of guilt on their faces as they handed over the cat carrier with our baby girl inside. They said that she had become bradycardic (well below normal heart rhythm) during the cleaning and that they had to administer Atropine to bring her heart rate back up. Needless to say, they almost killed her (again, were they dosing themselves with drugs during the procedure?) while doing a "routine" teeth cleaning. The worst part of this incident was that our cat wouldnt eat for two weeks (we had to liquify chicken liver and administer orally with a syringe) and she would walk with left turns only for about a month while she recuperated. The true horror came when she started having seizures. Daily! We went to specialists (neurologist and cardiologist) in Sorrento Valley that ran tests to see if those organs were responsible for the seizures. All they could determine was that it may be scar tissue on the brain from a traumatic injury. Scar tissue that could have occurred during her brush with death at Dr. Chikatilos office. Not only did the seizures take their toll on our cat, but on us as well. And all of this was most likely due to a lazy staff that didnt monitor our cat during the procedure. The seizures have since stopped and our cat is now melancholic, doesnt play and doesnt purr. In a nutshell, stay away from VCA Hillcrest if you value your cat or dog. Thats all we have to say about this place. We have found a much better vet in Ocean Beach (yes, we make the drive from Poway where we live now just to see the new vet) who is alert and oriented, and cares enough not continue with and force procedures when problems arise. Which is more than what we can say for Chikatilo and his staff.

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Anna Cady

I have been a taking my pets to VCA for over 10 years. I first started going to VCA when I lived in Arizona and the vet there was amazing. When I moved out to San Diego I decided to stick with VCA - and I have never been happier. The vet techs and front office always try to do their best - I cant tell you how many times they have been booked solid for the day but have managed to squeeze me in due to some emergency with a pet. Dr K is the kindest man and extra gentle with all my animals. He clearly explains procedures and even tries to work out the best price. No vet is cheap - animals cost money, but it seems like they do their best to put together an affordable package if I am looking at something major. Dr. Olsen is fantastic too. Both doctors are available to call and will call me back when I need them too. I have had healthy pets and sick pets and they all receive the best care at VCA. One of my dogs - a large mastiff mix - had major health issues from the start. He was a rescue that lived to be about 13 years old. He had OCD, several surgeries for cancer, and eventually was put down due to quality of life. VCA has been consistent provider for him throughout his life. VCA was so thoughtful during the difficult times - even sending me a card in the mail with all their names wishing my family well. I also have 2 cats - both seem to get into trouble often. Both have had to have surgeries for various wounds. My other dog - a rescued pitbull mix - is treated so well at VCA. She has had several issues even as a 5 year old - including a slip disc in her neck. Through every surgery, appointment, blood test, stitch removal, and x-ray the people at VCA have been kind and consistent in their manners and care. The doctors here are wonderful and deeply care for the well being of animals. They have all gone above and beyond in service and for all my pets I thank them. I will continue to take my animals here for another 10 years.

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A Private User

I am writing a review to warn others about this vet. I took my cat here for about 5 years. During that time, he was really healthy so the service was WONDERFUL. The vet was great, and the most I paid for was to get his dental work done which they did give a discount during certain months... fast forward to my cat being older and getting ill...he had an enlarged heart and was not going to live very long yet the vet was insistant on me still getting his teeth cleaned. When he put him under my cat almost went into heart failure due to his enlarged heart and almost died.... but the kicker is that the doctor told me that I had to pay not the approx $400 for the cleaning but twice that because he had to save him...and my cat never should have had his teeth cleaned...he ended up dying a few months later so having pearly whites was not an issue....they are all about the money....I took my NEW cat there and they charged me 600 for a surgery to remove tumors but then after I signed the form to pay that, two hours later they called to tell me it was going to cost around 1200......they do not care about your pet unless the pet is healthy....if you have any type of issues and LOVE your pet, go somewhere else.....I am finally switching after 7 years to a new vet that cares about my cat and isnt all about the money...they are greedy and they will not even return calls regarding serious issues. I used to think this was a great place but it is no longer about helping the animal but rather helping themselves....I will say that the front staff AND the assistants to the vets are AMAZING people.....I wish they were the ones who made the prices.....but the vets are greedy or have just forgotten why they became doctors to help animals....this was really hard for me to write but it took a lot to finally have to give up on them ....now I am in debt and my cat is still ill.....be warned.

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Charles Black

Bait and switch! After being assured before I ever brought my dog in that they did simple hernia repairs in house, they did their standard $440 initial consultation (blood work normal, as uaual) the medical director Dr. Kinshella (my consulting doctor) got back to me finally after a couple of weeks and said he didnt do those type of operations, Dr. Lew or Dr. Castle might. But no- so they sent me down to VCA Emergency [the Stephen Birch Healthcare Center of San Diego vets]. The Hillcrest office did comp my consultation fee there, after a bit of an argument, but their estimate, as expected, was easily twice the going rate by the highly experienced mobile specialist here in San Diego. So screwed by either paying VCA Goldcare or paying a consultation fee at another vet for something that should have been pretty simple to start with. On a previous occasion my dog with breast cancer (initial expensive blood work all normal, of course) was operated on by Dr. Clifton - who did explain the options and dangers to me- and died of a recurrence of the cancer 4 or 5 weeks later. Was that extra time worth $1000/week? Possibly. They did send a nice card. Dr. Lew is personable and another possible cancer case in an old dachshund turned out to be a simple abscess, fixed on the initial visit, and not terribly expensive. So sometimes you can do ok, but my main gripe is being misled about the hernia and having to run to multiple vets and spend much unnecessary money on something that should have been simple from the first. And update...several days later VCA Animal Center El Cajon came up with the exact same overpriced estimate.... avoid VCAs, in collusion to bait and switch, and extract maximum profit from helpless pet owners!

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