Ark Animal Hospital of Chalfont

Reviews 5

KA

Kali

Recently asked about getting my older, chronically ill indoor cat a rabies shot and the doctor assured me it was fine to do since he responded fine to it in the past. He was there for a very minor eye infection and I opted to go for the shot because I was concerned and worried about him and wanted to make sure we had all our bases covered. He got noticeably sicker after that visit and stopped eating and drinking before needing to be put to sleep just slightly over a week later. The shot may or may not have contributed to this, but if they had explained the potential risks I never would have agreed to it. On top of that, the following week when he was very confused, stumbling, and lethargic -- so they recommended keeping him overnight for fluids and never told me he was not getting fluids at night. I didnt learn of this until after going to pick him up when they mentioned in passing that they only had reconnected his IV in the morning. We were under the impression that he was going to be on constant fluids to help him recover. That means we could have been taking him home at night (instead of just visiting him) to spend time with him, or we could have taken him to a hospital with 24-hour care and its very possible hed still be with us. They should be required to disclose this. It just felt like he was already at a disadvantage from the rabies shot, and then we made another mistake by agreeing to entrust him to their care for fluids. Its possible it was his time, but now we have to live with the feeling that we may not have made the best decisions because we were putting too much trust in others process instead of catering to his needs. I spent 8 years taking great care of him and now I have to live with the guilt of these final decisions and it feels awful. He did not deserve this. I now realize we should have left this place a long time ago when the owner walked in at one appointment making recommendations for him without even ever reading his file. When I explained his history the reply was, "Okay, nevermind then." It just seemed very non-scientific and presumptuous. Any doctor should review medical history before jumping to conclusions. I do want to note: The vet techs and the office staff were always very friendly and helpful. That said, you will only get the same veterinarian assigned to your pet more than once if you request it every time or the odds work in your favor. They tended to just assign whichever veterinarian was free during your visit. In essence, this is not a personal service.

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A

A Private User

This vet is horrible. We have had many dogs throughout the years, all of which we have taken here, Id say about 12 years worth. We lost two dogs in the span of a year, and now we are going to loose another.....all from misdiagnosing from these vets! (All of the dogs went through horrible pain and suffering, it wasnt anything quick and painless.) The only thing they seem to be good at is ordering expensive tests and sending you to specialists that they turn around and say they disagree with. There was one doc that was good at Ark, but he left years ago. They have no compassion to how difficult is sometimes is to pay for tests, nor do they care about how frustrating it is to not know whats going on with your pet (they never seem to be able to say what is exactly wrong, or what the course of action is. We were actually asked one time what WE thought a bump/cyst was on our dogs back was because the doc had no idea. And that was the mother/original owner and founder of Ark! Now that bump is a huge growth, ended up being a bad cyst, not a subacious cyst like they swore it was after asking for about 5 years! They just decided to take it off after all those years but she cant take the operation because of her old age. Of course, wait until they can get more $$$ from it instead of taking care of it when it would have been safe for the dog.) Please do not go to this vet, for your pets sake! I have too many stories and situations to put on here. Believe me if I could tell you, you would never step foot in this place! Honestly!

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JE

Jeff B.

I truly have no idea how on earth anyone gives this place a good review. Unless maybe you are frequent visitors and just love to pay insane amounts of money. In which case I suppose they would treat you superb. I have been there with 2 different dogs on no less than half a dozen occasions. Every time I have a SCHEDULED TIME we end up sitting in some windowless room and waiting 20-35 minutes for the Dr to come in. I have complained about this numerous times that if they are running late then be courteous enough to call your clients and tell them to come later. Some of us have real jobs that do not appreciate a half hour break turning into 2 hours! The Drs are always very rude. I get that maybe they get tired of overbearing owners questioning them. But isnt it part of their freaking job ANSWERING OUR QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ANIMALS WE LOVE!!!!!!!!! I hate this place. Our last appointment was an emergency time because our dog had to be put down. It was already a very emotionally painful day. They made us wait 45 minutes while my dog suffered in pain! Then when I questioned what took so long I was told that they were finishing a nail clipping in the other room!! IT WAS A SUNDAY! RESERVED ONLY FOR EMERGENCIES!!! I would never again take another animal to this place. They overcharge for everything then pressure you to buy their crap products that are twice as expensive as the same things sell for at Petsmart. A horrible practice. I gave them more than enough chances. Now I pray they bankrupt.

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AN

Anna Lorence

I love these people! Chosen at random because I was new to the area I was there for two days during the worst week of my life and let me tell you the people at Ark Animal Hospital were a pleasure to see and talk to even when my poor kitten was fatally sick and had to be put down. They are all so sweet and understanding. I considered taking my cat in as an emergency and the price was $75. Thats insanely reasonable especially in a Philly suburb. Their other prices were great and they dont push anything on you (the doctor told me the price of obviously needed blood-work as if I might turn it down instead of like most doctors who just go ahead and do everything). When I had to put my kitty down they offered a check-up before hand and then told me it was completely fine if I said no instead of pressuring me into it. When I get a new kitty friend I will be heading here 100%! Thank you guys :)

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AN

Andrea Pettine

My family recently had to make the hard choice of ending our black labs pain. She had several conditions that were causing her constant pain and making it hard for her to get around. We could no longer stand to see her that way and after looking at her the staff here agreed with our choice. From the moment we got there I know we made the right choice. The staff was very nice and you could tell they shared in our grief. Its never easy saying goodbye to a fur member of the family but they did it in a way that didnt leave the heart bleeding. They let us stay with her the whole time and gave us all the time we needed to say goodbye. They treated her with respect and love the entire time this process went on. You could not ask to be treated better when dealing with something so hard.

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