VCA Northview Animal Hospital Specialty Referral Center

Reviews 4

MI

Mikaela Witwicky

My dads cat could not breathe well at all. I took him to my vet and they said they couldnt help him as they didnt have the equipment that he needed. I was already highly stressed and more so when they said Id need to take him to an ER vet. I called both AVETS and PVSEC, even after reading the horrible reviews they have (overpriced, lack of care/concern, and more), and discovered that they charged way more just to walk through their doors than VCA Northview. After calling VCA, I decided to go to them just on the call I had with the receptionist. She was friendly, and seemed to really care. The staff I called at AVETS and PVSEC werent a fraction as warm as the VCA staff. I had my mom take my dads cat up, as I couldnt get out of the office, and she was a mess, crying the whole way up there. She said the staff were concerned and caring and poor Tom was seen asap. He was there for three days, on oxygen, and we were kept updated whenever we needed to be called by them and whenever we wanted to call them. Ive never had a better time at a vets office. Yes, it was expensive, and yes, there were multiple Care Credit accounts opened, but my dads cat ended up living from whatever it was that hurt him. Dr. Purvis could only deduce that it was some sort of bacterial infection. I had to take him back up there a year later, after he got overheated during the summer. He ended up not needing to be seen. The car ride up there, in air conditioning, helped him out more than the vets couldve! To my surprise, this is the same office that helped out a cat of mine almost fifteen years prior. Id simply forgotten about them as I rarely went out to the north hills. They had helped my thyroid kitty with a radioactive treatment. As I recalled, they treated my Calla (now deceased from jaw cancer) as if she was one of their own, and they even sent her home with a toy after keeping her for at least a week, if I recall correctly. My dads cat went home with lots of medicine, but Ill never forget how nicely they treated us and him. One thing I recommend is for the pet parent to try to keep calm, even during a horrible emergency. Often times judgement and what one sees can be clouded by extreme stress. Try to keep calm for your pet, if not for yourself. They CAN sense emotions! Your fear might make them more afraid. I always recommend this ER as an ER to anyone with a pet, and I may make them a regular vet! Thanks, VCA!

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C.

C. Skye Greene

Well the last work up on my pet was a misdiagnosis , a horrible one that was corrected elsewhere. I was screwed so didnt want to enlighten them at all to help them in assessing the next client. My loss, their gain . Previously there was a gross misdiagnoses by another vet there and the vet I ended up going to knew right away about the problem. That vet was horrified about north views diagnosis . I was very hurt over the lack of knowledge from that vet. They are nt discriminate with who they hire . They will defend their vets anyway so its a losing situation once youve paid . One heavy set emergency vet is horrible and rude. I refuse to go there if shes working. They took away the house call service and after repeated calls I see they have no specialists, opthamollfy or cardio vets , no dermatologist, no orthopedic vets either and over the years Ive had 3 great vets I liked there but no more. It seems like the ones I liked moved or went part time. I dont trust part time docs. I wouldnt pay their high prices for routine care. I can go to Burtons for shot clinics , this place is ok for ER CARE as long as its not the younger heavy Doctor . They need a menu of certain prices to let clients know up front.for what its worth, the ambience is dated....a cool grey blue decor is rather depressing if you are there long . It seems like every time I need a specialist , other clinics refer to PVSEC So Im not sure what capacity they are even entitled to be called a specialty clinic . Not one local clinic refers to this hospital . I dont think they have an MRI Either. They arent full service . They do offer ER care and thats their strong point

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A

A Private User

On Tuesday, September 14th, my beloved little girl, Julie, passed away at the Northview Veterinary Hospital. She was operated on by Dr. Michael McFadden. He was a wonderful, extremely skilled, very professional, and super compassionate surgeon who tried all he could to save my precious, little angel. Julie was going to be 15 years old on Nov. 1st. I had taken her for an operation to remove one tumor that was observed during an ultrasound by her local doctor. Sadly, when Dr. McFadden began the surgery, he saw that Julie had numerous tumors inside both of her intestines and one large one inside her tummy that was making its way into the aeorta. Julie had been ill and was not eating, nor going to the bathroom prior to the surgery. I knew the reality was that she could not survive by having all her insides removed. My heart was broken into a million pieces at this reality. Dr. McFadden helped me make the saddest decision I ever had to make. He helped Julie go to Heaven. Although I have been grieving terribly, I truly love Dr. McFadden, Debbie, Theresa, Scott, and all the other staff who, even though they just met Julie and me, treated us with total love and compassion. They all cared about Julie, stayed by my side, and comforted me. I received a lovely keepsake and a sympathy card on which all, even Dr. McFadden, wrote such kind words of sympathy. I would definitely trust this hospital with my loved one. If only I had known sooner, I am sure Dr. McFadden could have saved my little girl. Please trust these very special professionals with your beloved family member.

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IV

Ivonne Beltran Parks

The only reason the VCA is getting a star is because the ER doctor and tech were very sympathetic with us. Our dog had suffered a life terminating emergency and had to be put down within 3 hours of fallen ill. We decided to have him cremated which was very expensive compared to other places. When we went to pick up his ashes, we received an urn w/o any markings, a certificate from the cremation service with the dogs name but not our last name, and a baggie with a cat collar and cat paw prints for someone else (names were on the baggie). We did not notice this until we got home. I called the VCA to confirm that this was our pet and asked what had happened. The lady on the phone assured me that her records confirmed that this was our pets ashes and the only mistake was the cat items. She promised to call back after she got confirmation from the cremation service. When she called back, she said that the new employee at the service was the problem and assured me again that these were the correct remains. My husband took all of the contents back as we had received them to make sure we had the correct items. However, the VCA told him that she didnt have any more information than the fact that our dog was sent out and that it came back, nothing else. She never spoke with anyone at the service b/c it was closed. She lied on the phone to me which upset my husband even more. The grief of losing a pet suddenly is traumatic enough. Not knowing if our dog is home has made this experience even worse.

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