Jefferson Animal Hospital & Regional Emergency Center

Reviews 3

CH

Christie Loving

Last week our 11 year old female Jack Russell Terrier became very ill overnight. She was feeling a little “off” before bed so we planned on taking her to our vet in the morning. She woke up with tachycardia and other symptoms so I took her to Jefferson Animal Clinic at 0230am in hopes they would be able to stabilize her and figure out what was happening. She had been healthy up until maybe a few days before this situation. The receptionist and vet were very kind and explained everything as it was occurring. After exam and blood work they told us she had kidney failure and we had to get fluids in her right away if she was going to have a chance. About 2.5 hours later she had been stabilized and was hooked up to an IV and being well taken care of in the kennel area. I went home to get rest and go to work. The vet promised to call if there were any changes. I called in the morning and she was still resting. Even though weve all tried to figure out what happened, including my regular vet working with the emergency vet, we dont know what caused the kidney failure (final diagnosis was chronic renal failure). This is actually a fairly common experience for vets, just not for pet guardians so its pretty scary. On the communication side, we called numerous times per day and visited each day she was in the hospital. We were always welcomed and a staff member would spend as much time as necessary explaining what was happening and why. The hospital encourages visiting with your pet and made a room available for us each time. I was very impressed with this. Even when I was upset or repeating myself due to being upset they were very patient and compassionate. The emergency vet kept our regular vet updated via fax through the week. On Thursday mid-morning, we checked Julia out and took her home for additional home care. The staff also trained us on providing fluids subcutaneously. This allowed us to have her home with us while she continues to get better without draining our resources. Almost a week later, we have a dog that is stable, on special diet and medications and we hope to have her around a lot longer. Jefferson Animal Hospital saved our beloved Julia and we are very grateful. A lot of reviewers have mentioned costs. I know this is the worst time to have to worry about costs, I believe the best way to address is to discuss your budget with the vet and staff. Ensure they know what your “end point” is so they can advise you properly. For instance, we were able to save some money by taking her home (after a few days) and doing fluids ourselves. It’s important to note that if you spend all your savings in the ER you won’t have money for aftercare and pretty much all cases will need aftercare. As long as you are planning on taking your pet back to your vet, this can be a good compromise. Every case is different of course. We worked our schedules out so she had 24/7 care with us and while not as ideal as being in the vet office, you have to balance care with cost of care. Our bill was high but not more than we were told to expect. For emergency care, this wasnt a huge surprise. Checking around on other reviews for other hospitals, our bill was certainly within the average.

SH

Shelecia Rogers

I am writing this review on behalf of my sister and her beloved dog Prissy. Prissy had experienced several medical issues and pain throughout the year 2014. Due to this extraordinary pain/ compassion for Prissys misery, my sister made a difficult decision to have Prissy laid to rest. My sister decided to call the Jefferson Animal Hospital (Outerloop location) to acquire their services and her experience was AWFUL! Over the phone they LIED to her about how much it would cost to euthanize Prissy, which we believe was just a gimmick to get her into their doors. Their customer service was TERRIBLE, they showed no compassion towards Prissy, my sister nor my mother who accompanied them. They had ineffective communication skills regarding explaining all parts of the procedure and what they would cost. My sister was shocked and upset to find out that the cost was exorbitantly higher than what she was quoted over the phone; the nurse proceeds to see if they can give her a "discount" which dropped the price from $196 to $191. Then to add insult to injury, they sedated Prissy without permission, not giving my sister the option to rightfully be there with her beloved dog to grieve and properly lay her to rest with the comfort of knowing that Prissy was not alone during her last moments of life. After seeing my mother and sister bawling their eyes out due to the mistreatment and lack of concern/ compassion for Prissy and my family, the nurse then came back to them with a reduced price of $176 but then stated it would be $18 for them to go back and actually view Prissy being euthanized. WOW! I am not even what people would consider an "animal lover" but I do understand having empathy and sympathy for losing a loved one. The people that work for this hospital certainly did not practice either of those concepts and then lied to get some money. Shady business. If you are an animal lover I would NEVER acquire this hospital location for ANY services. Well, at least until they hire employees that actually care about people and their pets. Rest in peace Prissy. I pray that you did not feel the pain that my sister and mother felt from the hospital employees the day you were laid to rest at Jefferson Animal Hospital.

AM

Amanda Yates

If I could give this place zero stars I would!!! My daughter and my son took in a 13 week old pit bull puppy that had locked jaw and was severely malnourished and dehydrated. This "Animal Hospital" did not start any IV fluids to help with the severe dehydration. We have no idea how long this pup has went without food or water. Instead of stabilizing the patient, like a hospital would and any other vet would have, they checked the the pup for parvo and then sent the pup home stating that she would need round the clock care. I have NEVER seen such negligence in my entire life!!! Also, while my kids were there, there was another dog that they let lie on the floor bleeding out from its mouth. Jefferson Animal Hospital is NOT an animal hospital at all. They are a short stop clinic that is highly negligent. They do not CARE about the welfare of their clients. I will NEVER go back and I WILL discourage others from going there as well. Furthermore, after reading others experiences I am beginning to question why they still remain open. Dr. Sommer Dorn should have her license to practice taken away. Im wondering if maybe a Class action lawsuit would change their negligence. Obviuosly, these vets are more worried about money than animals lives. Actions made by these doctors should speak volumes to the public. My regular vets office is irate over the negligence shown by these staff members. Im sure the staff that was present are going to get together and make sure their stories match. Bottom line is there were 3 witnesses there that will testify that there was NO discussion of anything other than a parvo test. If anyone has any further info they would like to share, please do so. So many helpless animals have lost their lives due to negligence by an alleged animal hospital that obviously has terrible staff and dont follow standard procedures that other veterinarians use. Sad and pathetic.