Seven Hills Veterinary Hospital

Reviews 3

JO

Joe Crossley

I am writing this to share our experience with 7 Hills Vet Clinic in Aurora. This summer, our mixed breed dog had an episode where he required to be seen by the vet. We took him to 7 Hills. We were given an estimate (treatment plan) for over $2,300.00. I told them to redo this plan and come up with a better number as the dog, although loved, is not worth that kind of money. They came back with an estimate of $1315.00 to $1480.06. We were given the “doom and gloom” speech that the “dog will die” if we do not agree. We agreed, the dog lived and the end invoice was $1890.00. We were asked by 7 Hills to do a test for Addison’s disease for an additional $300.00 plus a visit charge. We said no and called another vet in Salida, CO who regularly sees all our pets. His charge for the same test was $120.00. End result, the dog turned out to have this rare disease which requires medicine injected every 25 days at a cost of $26.91 per month. So far so good right? They are expensive, but treated the dog and had the correct diagnosis. Fast forward to last month, August 2017. This same dog was not doing well while we were out of town. I called 7 Hills and authorized them only to give the dog the shot. I told the vet tech to save the “doom and gloom speech” and the scare tactics, only to dispense the medicine and we will have him see his vet in Salida. We expected a bill for about $125.00 or so. A half hour later, I am called and given the “doom and gloom” speech saying the dog needs $2500.00 of treatment or it will die. I refused and said we will be by to pick up the dog. When my daughter went to pick him up, she was intimidated by the staff, and was told that the dog is going to die & he will not make it to our home, let alone the vet in Salida. She was handed a bill for over $350.00, not the $125.00 we authorized! (I am alright so far even though they charged us more than we authorized.) We took the dog the following morning to the Salida vet and he was admitted for 3 days in ICU. The total for this was $359.00 plus $230.00 for a one year supply of medicine. $589.00 was the grand total. I get that 7 Hills has to pay for their fireplace, flat screen tv and bottled water. I appreciate what they do in accepting “lost dogs” and trying to contact their owners…..but to attempt to charge us 696% over what the competition charges was in bad taste. To top it off, now a month later they had the audacity to call the Aurora Police to have a welfare check on my dog! Yes, that right, because I did not buy their service, they tried to get us harassed and/or fined by calling the police department! I have my own business and would not ever try this to a client who decided that another provider was cheaper or a better fit for them. According to 7 Hills, the dog should have passed away on the way to my home in the mountains. I would have been naturally heartbroken if this came to be. But I ask, what right on God’s green earth do they or anyone else have to call the police over a decision to have your pet seen by another Vet outfit who cares, knows horses, cats, dogs, cows, sheep etc, and is reasonably priced? We will not be returning to this hospital for any future needs, nor will we refer friends or family to their business. Buyer Beware!

TH

Theresa Corbin

My biggest complaint is that they are VERY expensive! You need to ask beforehand what they charge for specific services rather than later after the services have been done. My SECOND complaint is that they do not have enough emergency doctors on staff to handle the amount of animals that they may have come in at the same time. Especially, true medical emergencies. I had taken my dogs previously to Seven Hills prior to them moving and had found that there prices were increasily going up year after year. So, I quit taking my pets there for their annual immunizations and check ups as it was much cheaper to go somewhere else. But, when my 8yr old male rottie had lost weight quite rapidly and was very lethargic, I decided to go back to Seven Hills for their diagnosis since my previous (Petco) didnt offer those services. After chest & adominal X-RAYs were taken, the doctor said, it was a bone that was seen on the X-ray that was the problem. He also drew a CBC blood draw. $423 later I was told that he a very LOW red blood cell count as well as low Protein low levels. At the time, they recommended a ultrasound be done but due to the 4th of July holiday, no radilogist was available.They sent me to Alameda East for this service but little to discover that they neither had no radiologist available and that I should have never been sent there to begin with. $600 later, at Alameda East they sent me to Wheatridge Animal hospital. They discovered that he had a tumor growing on his spleen and he needed surgery to remove the spleen. The surgery was done at Seven Hills the next day by Dr. Odasky, which is truely a wonderful, sincere and caring doctor but had way too many medical emergencies that weekend to care for. My dogs surgery was scheduled for earlier that day but didnt have surgery until much later in the evening. The receptionist seemed to be very upset as I was checking out as they had lost several animals that evening. She said, that they are not a true emergency hopsital and just sobbed. That wasn t very comforting to hear. He was sent home the next day and what I thought was very dishearting is that not one doctor called to see how he was doing? I received his lab results almost 12 days later when I was told it would take 5 days, to discover he had some sort of cancer of the blood but would need a bone marrow aspiration and more tests to find out exactly what type of cancer he had and how to treat but inevitabily he has cancer and the doctor gave him 30 to 60 days to live. We opted to not do this and let him come home and spend the best quality time that we could with him. Our beloved rottie, Debo passed away this week. It was a vey hard decision to put him down but I felt it was the best for him as his quality of life wasnt the same.And, lastly my THIRD complaint would be that that Seven Hills staff needs to be more more compassionate and have some respect and feelings for their customers during such an emotional experience as putting their dog down. They shouldnt be collecting payment while the family is grieving. Why not do this prior and can be handled in a much better manner.

JU

Julie McLaughlin

We have had a wonderful partnership with Seven Hills for the past 6 years, and they have cared for 4 of our pets. I cannot imagine taking our dogs anywhere else. Of any vet I have used in the last 15 years of being a pet owner, my experience is that this practice is unique. Dr. Francis is practically part of our family! Here are some details about our experience: We found Seven Hills when we first moved to Aurora, CO and they cared for our 11 year old Pomeranian and helped us navigate caring for an elderly pet. One summer weekend while we were traveling out of town, our Pomeranian, Teddy, became suddenly ill. We found a local vet, who advised us to put Teddy to sleep that afternoon because he was likely terminally ill. We held out for 2 more days until we could get back home and take him to Seven Hills, and they took amazing care of Teddy, but also of us! Dr. Francis and Dr. Supon, as well as one of the Vet Techs, Laura, were so compassionate and knowledgable during this time. I will always remember how they helped us. Teddy did have kidney issues, as is common in older Poms, but we were able to have an additional year of quality life for Teddy before he passed on his own at almost 16 years old. Dr. Francis was also so helpful as we brought a new pomeranian puppy home, and as we decided to adopt a Chihuahua that we found wandering in a Southlands parking lot, navingating things like heart problems, spay/neuter, and general health. Most recently, Seven Hills cared for our Chocolate Lab, Sophie. We found Sophie along a highway after she had been hit by a Semi-Truck. She had a broken jaw, damage to her skull, a broken leg and probably a lot of other things I cant remember, but she was alert and wagging her tail. We drove 4 hours straight back home so that we could take her to Seven Hills because the local vet just wanted to euthanize her on the spot. The short story is that they nursed her back to health and continue to care for her today. Dr. Ley and Dr. Demay even generously donated some of their time towards surgeries that she needed since there were so many. She has had a remarkable recovery. To try to address some of the concerns around fees: I would agree that some of the pricing can be higher in certain areas. For our family, we have determined it is worth it, as we feel that we get other intangible benefits from having a strong vet relationship and because they have been so amazing in caring for our seriously ill pets. I have always been presented with a full list of possible fees before agreeing to a procedure, and in 6 years over several serious medical procedures, I havent ever been surprised with unexpected charges. Additionally, I have been able to explain our budget to them, and have them offer alternative medicines or procedures for us to choose from. And they have always called back with test results, so that has not been a concern for us. In summary, this is a great vet practice. Give them a try :)