Girard Veterinary Clinic

Reviews 5

JO

Joshua Schneider

To start off it is difficult to get an appointment unless you show up in the morning and wait literally hours for their open clinic or you are willing to wait weeks for an open slot. I went to the Girard Clinic for paperwork to take my cat overseas which basically required a blood test and filling out forms and sending them to government agencies....not the most difficult thing I would think (although it cost close to $400).. The vet (Dr. Balzer) was aggressive with my cat, who after being in the tiny waiting room with other animals for a couple of hours waiting to be seen, was already anxious....and the vet was quick to sedate my cat who didnt appreciate being manhandled and scruffed...you would think a vet would have better manners with pets (usually my cat is docile when she goes to the vet....although she is not used to being kept in a cage for hours and then roughly handled, I was in shock!!!). At any rate all I got was a lot of misinformation about the process (even when I had all of the papers in order to begin with), I had to wait weeks for the blood work (which in reality was finished in three days....literally they didnt think of checking for three weeks), and in the end they messed up the filing of the paperwork (the vet forgot to sign it, which they denied...but was informed by the USDA Vet who was helpful) forcing me to miss a flight costing me hundreds of dollars and for me to make a trip to Harrisburg to do everything myself which I was paying them hundreds of dollars to avoid. When I made a complaint to the manager and the vet trying to be proactive and rectify the situation, all I received was a lot of grief and outright LIES on their part, threatening to not to give me my cats bloodwork results (which I had already paid for!!!). I strongly do not recommend this clinic. Maybe this was a fluke, maybe they are better with surgeries than filling and signing a simple form...but there are enough vets in Philly....choose someone else.

---

FE

Felicia S

Well I wish I had read the reviews before I went to this place....$100.00 dollars later and my pet is the same way he was when he came in. To make a long story short we adopted our pet a few days ago..we were fostering him up until this point. We adopted him from a shelter. Hes a great dog a pit bull/terrier mix, he has been having some skin issues and we are afraid it is either food allergies or a flea bite. A few days ago he threw up and today he threw up again and hasnt eaten anything. He has an appointment to see a real vet today, thank God for pet insurance ...WISH US LUCK. We took him to this clinic I informed Dr. Balzer of his symptoms, she basically rushed the appointment, we were there for 20 mins, she weight him, took his temperature, combed his hair and gave him a benedryl injection and some flea medicine and told me to call her tomorrow, which is today and she would call me back. I spoke to her office this morning about his condition not changing, hes still throwing up and he is not eating I am still waiting for her to return my call at 3:15pm. The office wanted me to come in at 3:45 to see Dr. Balzer, which at that time I would be charged a follow up fee and cost of whatever the doctor had to do...now help me understand this ;why am I going back to her office today when if she took the time to diagnose my dog properly I wouldnt have to come back...I would not waste the time, energy or money to go to this place again..I rather pay twice what I paid at her office to someone else who knows what they are doing. If you do decide to go there...good luck you have been warned!!!

---

A

A Private User

I had previously brought my cat to this vet for a urinary infection. At that time the care was adequate, the cost was very reasonable and I was impressed by the courtesy and friendliness of the staff. The next time I brought my cat in, was for a worms treatment. At this visit I was told he was due for a vaccination that my previous vet out of state had said he wouldnt need to repeat because he is a strictly indoor cat with no other contact with other cats or animals. I refused the shot. The Dr. Balzar insisted, I again refused. She then ignored my wishes and proceeded to give my cat the injection anyway right in front of me. I was quite shocked. I went home and that night my cat became ill.. Shallow breathing, fever, not moving.. hes normally pretty active. I was worried, called the office, they told me to bring him back in the next day. I wasnt charged for the visit, but they charged me for the medication they gave him to fix whatever the heck they did to him in the first place. I want to believe that this whole episode was just a freak incident. I wasnt aware that any vet had the right to supersede the owners wishes. I was told by 2 other vets the vaccination shots werent necessary for my cat at his age, he had his first 2 years of shots. I am very wary of this vet now, and I am left wondering if making such executive decisions is a standard practice in veterinary care.

---

MK

mk jewelery

I have seen a lot of negative reviews about this place, but my experience with them in the last few months has been nothing short of amazing (Not to mention the animal hospital I used to take my cats to was $80 just to get into an exam room, so Girards prices alone have been a breath of fresh air) Unlike Paws, where I can really only go if my cats are well and just need shots, I have taken my cats to Girard when they were sick (they both had kitty colds in the last 3 months) and they were able to treat them and give me their meds while I was there. The technician Albert - that worked with my cats - even gave them their first doses which was awesome, because I had no idea how to get them to take a pill but he took the extra time to show me a few different ways to do it. My cats are also NOT the easiest patients in the world and both Albert and the Vet were so patient with them I was so grateful. The staff in general was very helpful and even though Ive owned cats now for over 10 years they told me about stuff that I had never heard before and am very thankful SOMEONE finally let me know. (a little embarassing and frustrating) that no other Vets had ever told me - but at least I know now!) Kitty update: Both of my cats are currently happy and healthy and I will now be taking them to Girard for ALL of their appointments.

---

AN

Andrew Jiang

We brought our dog in because he was vomiting and having diarrhea for a week. We tried the usual remedies, Pepto Bismol, bland diet of chicken and rice but none worked. Dr. Balzar insisted that the food we were feeding him were causing issues (mind you, weve been feeding him the same bag of dogfood for two months). She again insisted (without listening to me) to try the chicken/rice diet and bring him back if nothing changes. So we tried the chicken and rice diet again 4 days and nothing changed, so we brought him back. During the second visit, Dr. Balzar then insisted that our dog was having these issues because my wife was stressing out about the dogs condition, did the usual examination and rushed my wife out of the office. Dr. Balzar also refused to do bloodwork/tissue culture to rule out any underlying causes. This may be a cheap place, but you will be getting woefully incompetent and incomplete treatment of your pet. Our dog is just as sick, even though we saw the vet TWICE. Please do NOT go here.

---

---