Northwood Animal Hospital

Reviews 3

RA

Randy Newton

I have been taking my family animals to Northwood Animal Hospital since 2005 - five cats and four dogs in all. At one time or another we have been attended by almost all of the doctors and techs on staff, so I know the practice very well. I have been consistently impressed by the quality of care delivered. I first discovered Northwood by referral from another veterinarian. At the time, I had an elderly cat in renal failure who needed continuous I.V. fluid overnights and through a weekend -- Northwood was able to offer such service in its I.C.U. as a matter of routine; the place never totally shuts down. Someone is always on-site, and there is a doctor on call. This is an obvious advantage of a large group practice. Another such advantage of a large practice is the opportunity it offers for individual doctors to develop areas of special expertise (e.g.: orthopedics, exotic pets, avian medicine, palliative care). There have been several significant instances when one of my animals, being seen by one doctor, got the benefit of a second doctors input. Northwoods doctors are conscientious about continuing medical education, just how much so I recently realized from personal experience. In February, one of my dogs, Missy, was diagnosed with a form of B-cell lymphoma. After an outside consultation and discussion of current published recommendations, she was started on a widely accepted chemotherapy protocol. It happens, though, that the treatment of lymphoma, both animal and human, is currently in a very rapid state of flux. The following month, March, Missys doctor, Kathleen Cavell, attended a small animal oncology conference where the very latest emerging treatment modalities for canine lymphomas were discussed. She brought the notes back for us to review. On top of that, last month, another doctor who knows Missy (Alicia Smith) attended a second conference that dealt with canine lymphoma, and she had notes from that one for us too. With cancer -- especially lymphoma and especially right now -- there is just no substitute for being absolutely up to date. It makes a difference that Northwood is an actual hospital, not just a large office practice. Besides their dedicated I.C.U., they have state of the art ultrasound, and in-house capability to do routine blood work. Northwood is accredited by the American Animal Hospital Association. Veterinarians, as a professional group, are commendably energetic in promoting and supporting community animal welfare, and Northwood has been great here too. The annual Rescue Relief drive was started by Dr. Kevin Brumfield years ago, and C.A.R.E. (Companion Animal Rescue Endeavor) was organized by a Northwood technologist, and receives its medical support from Northwood. Few things in life work as well as Northwood Animal Hospital.

SA

Sara Fus

A few months ago, an incident happened I will never forget. I noticed my 5 1/2 month old kitten was not running around like usual and she was laying on the bathroom carpet. when I tried to pick her up she cried and that is when I saw blood on her foot. Her foot was twisted inward and seemed a little wobbly. The skin was tore on the right side and it seemed like a bone was sticking out. I cried and cried while my boyfriend helped me get off the floor to get her to a vet. My first thoughts were: How did this happen, where can I take her at midnight, and how am I going to afford this visit? I knew Northwood was the closest and the only 24 hour vet I knew of, so I called them. They told me about the GeoCare Credit card I could apply for online and informed me they would do the best they could to help set up a payment plan and to not worry about the money (for the time being, ofcourse) because it was an emergency with my kitten. I did have to ring the bell a few times before someone answered but, after I called she was at the door in seconds. The bell was not very loud as she tried to recheck it to make sure it worked. She immediately had me set up in a room and began taking vitals of my kitten. She informed me that she would let the doctor know about the situation and he would be on his way shortly. Considering he was coming from a far out location and it was approximately 2am he made it there reasonably quick and was alert and prepared to handle the situation. Dr. Kevin Brumfields assessment was fast and thorough and he explained to me the situation. My kitten had managed to tear the ligaments surrounding her foot bone, so the bone shifted and the joint was damaged. I was devastated to hear the news. But Dr. Brumfield quickly jumped to a resolution. It involved a complex surgery where metal rods had to be put into the bone to secure it in place while the ligaments healed around the bone. This was a rare circumstance and required a highly COMPLEX ORTHOPEDIC procedure. FOUR WEEKS after the surgery and my kitten is a 10 out of 10. She is NOT limping, showing any signs of pain, and is completely HEALTHY! I NEVER felt like I was burdening or stressing the staff (which is often the case with Animal Aid) when I called to check up on my pet and ask several questions regarding her situation (cast) and medicine. I am VERY satisfied with the results and the facility. The staff is trained, skilled, friendly and prepared. The hospital is always clean. I am always greeted with hospitality and offered a beverage or coffee. Dr. Kevin Brumfield completed a difficult Orthopedic procedure that SAVED my kitten! I feel confident in saying that I will always go back to Northwood because they are the BEST in town.

A

A Private User

Northwood= Money Hungry Thieves!! I would not recommend this place to anyone who genuinely cares about the health and well-being of their pet. The more you care the bigger hole they leave in your pocket. I went to this clinic on several occasions. This past incident being my last. My 4 pound maltese had been acting funny about his ear and I just knew something was wrong. So we took him in and found that it was an ear infection. They gave him a shot for pain, some medicated ear drops, and ear optic rinse. (I had to ask how to do this and in which order it was to be administered.They also clean his ear at all.) He also told us that he is allergic to his food (no tests were run...some hair on his paw was irritated and the vet saw this) and so he recommends that we buy some PRESCRIBED dog food. So they charged us and $274 later we walk out with my poor baby and they shut and lock the doors. Thats when we noticed that the "prescribed" dog food was not given to us. My fiance has to stand outside and wait for someone to come back to the door. He is then ask to furnish his receipt (it had not been 2 minutes since we left) and the vet had never instructed them which food to give us. In fact, we did not even know. The receptionist walks out with a $35 bag of SCIENCE DIET...this is not prescribed at all! I feed holistic all natural food and I was disappointed to find that we had paid for an overpriced bag of corn and by-products. We wanted a refund and they told us their machine has been shut down for the day so it would have to wait until Monday. So we left with the bag. And has never been back since. We ended up buying him the Natural Balance Limited Ingredients Formula. (He HATED the Science Diet crap and just refused to eat it. I ended up throwing it away!) The office visit alone is $45 and I have never left this place without paying $90+ (Just the Vaccinations and Exam fee)! I have recently switched vets (Westwood Animal Hospital) and got another puppy. He came down with some ear irritation as well. So the vet plucked his ear hair (doesnt hurt them) and cleaned out both ears. Gave me the same drops and ear optic rinse, clipped his nails, administered his first dosage, and vaccinated him (what the appointment was originally for) for $60!!! They also took the time out to educate me on the location of the eardrum and how to pluck ear hair, etc. They CARE...end of story. I LOVE my vet now and have a friendly relationship with him unlike the uptight & expensive vets at North Florida. I was top by a co-worker that North Florida has is one of the most expensive clinics in Tallahassee...she is right and when she referred me to Westwood it was the best referral EVER!