VCA Wellington Animal Hospital

Reviews 4

GA

Gabriel Liebert

Shortly before my trip to Europe, my plans for having a relative cat-sit for me fell through and I was left in a bit of a panic. I asked someone who I thought I could trust for a recommendation on where I could board my cat, and she gave me the name of VCA Wellington. I had very little time to vett anything properly, so I figured I would check the facility out when I dropped my cat off and if something didnt seem right, I would do whatever I had to in order to make other arrangements. The day of drop off - I checked in at the facility and asked to see the room my cat would be staying in. They showed me to a room containing a series of wooden "cat condos" with glass doors. They were fairly spacious, and I was shown where the food and litter would be stored. I was satisfied that she would be safe here from my appraisal and from this trusted recommendation. Day 4 of my trip - The daily pictures I was told I would be sent have not been arriving as often as they should. How hard is it to take a picture and send it to me once a day? There were only 5 condos, so at most they have to only take and send 5 pictures. After some brief back and forth, I decide to check the reviews for the VCA Wellington. I forget which site I used, but it was something like 2 out of 4 stars. Not good; I messed up real bad here. Some of the reviews stated all of these facilities are run by high schoolers, and one location even lost an animal. Like couldnt find the dog, lost and gone with no explanation. I am starting to panic, but a family member volunteers to pick up the cat the next day. I call VCA to let them know that our plans have changed and someone will be coming to pick the cat up early. The girl on the phone says, "OK". I pause, waiting for her to ask for the name or SOMETHING. Nothing comes, so I say, "do you want to know her name?" The girl says "sure". So without any prompting from the owner of the cat, this girl was going to allow any random person to come in and just take my cat home? Thats what I was fearing, at least. My fears would be proven true. Day 5 - The family member goes to pick up the cat. She gets there right after the boarding doors are closed, but since she can go around to the other side for a pick up (as we were told when we dropped her off), this wasnt a problem. The family member calls the main line first and is told "Lady, we are closed, thats too bad". Thats some great customer service, but we talked to her and told her to go to the other entrance. She goes inside and tells the girl at the counter that she is here to pick up "Pede" (one of my cats names). They say they cant find her, and after some brief confusion, they ask her to come into the back so she can pick Pede out. Do you think they showed her into the cat condo area? Nope, they showed her a wall of cramped, tiny metal cages. She finds Pede, who I had marked down as Lourdes, and they let her walk out the door without verifying any information. I want to make what happened absolutely clear. The VCA Wellington Animal Hospital let a person come in off the street, pick a cat out of a wall of cages, and walk out the door with her. I have been debating with myself about how to go about reacting to this situation. I am fiercely protective of my cat, and after a situation like this I can feel myself losing control of my anger. I know that if I go into that facility and start asking questions, it is going to escalate very fast and I will never get a resolution to my problem. Here is the list of completely unacceptable behavior of VCA Wellington: 1) Lied to my face about the kind of enclosure my cat would be kept in 2) Allowed a completely unknown and unverified individual to come in to the real area the cats were being held, pick a cat off the wall, and then walk out with her 3) Made no attempt to safeguard the well-being of my animal or really any other animal in their care

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Margaret K

Dr. Dan Kirsch is just wonderful! He has taken such excellent and thoughtful care of our dog Charlie. Just recently Charlie was in respiratory failure. One phone call and we were off to VCA Wellington. Upon arrival,Charlie was rushed back, placed in an oxygen cage to help her oxygen saturation levels and Dr. Kirsch quickly evaluated her. He told me point blank, that this was a very bad situation and that quick measures were going to need to happen to save her life.He got Charlie stabilized quickly. Ran X-rays on her. He explained that she was going to need 24 hour medical attention at a different facility.. and told me exactly where to go..directions and everything! The staff got together Charlies medical history and burned a CD of her X-rays, so that when we got to the other facility, they would be able to act fast and not waste time running the same tests. How many other Doctors would be able to check their ego at the door, and put the care of their patients first..this is what Dr. Kirsch did..and his quick thoughts and attention saved our dogs life (Human Doctors take note please!!). He was calm, did exactly what was needed in order to safely transport her to a facility that handles 24 hour needs..Charlie is now home. She is in heart failure, along with other issues. She is comfortable and you would never know that she is a dog with serious health issues.Dr. Kirsch was 100% correct in all aspects, and did what he had to do to save our dogs life.My family will forever be grateful to Dr. Kirsch and his SUPERIOR CARE and GENUINE CONCERN for animals health and well being. Dr. Kirsch is a SUPERSTAR DOCTOR!! Sincerely, The Kresge Family..Charlie thanks you too..Woof-Woof :)

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Lisa H.

I have been going to Wellington Veterinary Hospital for a few years now. Years ago, I had chosen a vet with 24-hour emergency service so that if my lab mix ever had an emergency, they would already have her records. Well, that vet had changed hands, my pups regular doctor left, and I was becoming increasing unhappy with the service. It began to feel as though we were just a "number", and not a valued client. As my dog was getting to her senior years, I desperately wanted to find a new vet for her. So, I came to take her to Wellington. I am so grateful that I found them. The staff is caring and professional. The waiting room has floor to ceiling windows (keeps the patients occupied looking outside!), the floor is non-skid, which the dogs love, the exam rooms are huge, and there is never a long wait. They are 24-7 with emergency service, they have long, convenient hours for regular visits. They were so helpful and supportive during the last months of my dogs life (she was 14). Now with a new puppy, I had no problem choosing a vet for her. They also are attached to Family Pet Resort, which does boarding and daycare.

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Suzanne Lukac

We have been taking our 3 dogs to Wellington for several years now after leaving our previous vet (who became VCA) - we were skeptical at first but our most recent visits have been great. Drs. Woodcock and Botes have both gone above and beyond with helping us with issues with our 16 year old dog and also a young dog that we have recently adopted. They both stayed in touch via phone and email after visits to check on our pets progress and did additional research to offer us several alternatives to care for both pets. They have spent time with us discussing the medical issues and treatments thoroughly and we have never felt rushed or our concerns dismissed. As a result of their care, both our senior girl and our new adoptee are both doing very well! The vet techs have also been great - especially Jon who is gentle and caring and knows how to handle our pets in a way that is comforting and eases their anxiety. We have been overall very happy with the doctors and staff at Wellington!

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