Belmont Animal Hospital

Reviews 4

MA

Mackenzie Catron

I have been coming here for a year and I finally just made the decision to leave. When I first brought my dog in, I really did like Belmont. The vets seemed knowledgable and caring. There have been too many "little" things that have upset me about their care for my dog. My dog was a junk yard dog so he has some health issues that pop up every now and then. I do like their ability to always work me in when I call last minute, and the vets and techs are all very nice. Ive seen three or four different vets over the last year. Ill share some details, just to show that Im not being totally unreasonable. 1) They suggested I put my dog on grain-free food after Zyrtec/Claritin did not fully resolve his vomiting bouts. This was a great suggestion. But they continually forgot and would offer/give him treats that are not grain-free. Hello, did you read his profile at all? On our last 2 visits, I have brought treats with me for them to give instead of what they carry. 2) My dog had a tumor grow over his tear duct. Their care for him was really great, surgery went well, he recovered fully, they were very tolerant of me asking about the scientific specifics of the tumor (sorry, Im in science, I have to know!). They did a really good job managing my anxiety as well. But my dog had a bathroom accident in his crate and they had to bathe him. My dog HATES water. They didnt think they needed to let me know, so I get my dog back and his rear end is soaking wet and beyond freaked out, not just about the water but probably also about being a "bad boy" and going in his crate. I feel this information should have been included in his op report, which was otherwise very thorough. I called once I got home and asked why he was wet (I didnt notice til I had to lift him up into the car), and was informed of his accident then. 3) My dog swallowed a raw hide so we went in to make sure he was alright. He caught kennel cough while we were there (I hadnt had him long - he had only been vaccinated one week prior). When I called to notify the vet, they very casually said "oh yeah, we had an outbreak that day." No apology, no real tone of urgency, and my dog was extremely sick! Not to mention the expensive antibiotics he then had to take. 4) My dog was vomiting and we went in to check on him. They took him out of our room for an anti-nausea shot instead of giving it in the room. Maybe there is something I dont know about this shot, but my dog is such a mommas boy, and can be aggressive to strangers, so why didnt they just leave him with me? He ran right back to my lap the second he returned (such a tough guy for 60 lbs!). Also, the vet tried to give me a bland food (rice and chicken) to feed for a few days while his tummy recovered. Again, did you not see he is grain free? I almost felt like she was trying to convince me to just risk it and give him the rice. I ended up cooking chicken and sweet potatoes for him, instead (albeit at the vets suggestion in the end). ****** Additionally, and this was the straw that broke the camels back, there were several large smears of blood on the floor of our room. When I brought it to the attention of the vet and the tech, they didnt apologize or seem incredibly concerned. They just blamed it on the dark floors and how it can be hard to see if theyre clean. Thanks, my dog and I were sitting in another dogs blood for half an hour! So if you have a completely healthy, vaccinated dog, Belmont may be great for you. However, I felt their neglect for the "little things" was too much of a risk for me and my dog so we are moving on.

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MK

MK Mountain

I brought my cat in to be treated for constipation. Two days later I had to put him to sleep. Something went horribly wrong with the procedure to cause my cat to suffer in pain for two days. This included my cat mysteriously obtaining what appeared to be a completely useless paralyzed front right leg from the carpals downward. A lesson for all: Never let a rookie vet perform even the most basic procedure on your pet. Plus, you are paying full price for a rookie vs paying full price for an experienced vet. The rookie vet is not worth a fraction of full price. Two procedures were done: an enema and subcutaneous fluids inserted at the shoulders. I have to think the enema was done somewhat incorrectly. When I picked up my cat ~4 hours after the procedure, the staff expressed surprise that my cat was still oozing fluid out of his anus. Such a surprise implies something was done wrong with the enema. Too much fluid? Did the rookie vet puncture his intestinal lining? Does the rookie vet not know an older animal will have a less pliable colon wall? Did something go wrong with the sub-Q fluids? Perhaps after an undetermined number of additional botched procedures the rookie vet will advance to being a very good vet by the time he reaches the age of the other vets at Belmont animal hospital. Maybe not. Medical procedures require art & science. The rookie vet may have the training to grasp the clunky science of veterinary procedures, but I doubt he has approached the basic skills needed for the art of these procedures. I would not hesitate to schedule an appointment with the older vets, but I would never let their rookie vets (I define that as those with less than 10 years of experience) ever give any care to your pet. The older vets appear to be highly skilled and compassionate. Belmont Animal Hospital is not the only clinic that has hired a rookie vet. This can happen at any vet clinic. My review could be used as a guideline for any vet clinic you choose. Rookie vets are horrible. They lack the experience necessary to be considered a good vet. They need experience, but let them get that experience on someone else’s pet, who is not aware of the downsides of a rookie.

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MI

Miranda Christy

The first time I brought my new rescue dog in, he was seen by Dr. Zika. He had a number of issues - not the least of which was trusting new people. Dr. Zika was sensitive to his needs and could have left the room right after evaluating him, but instead she took some time to hang out and get better acquainted with him. Then we had an unfortunate incident with another dog one Friday morning. I called Belmont Animal Hospital and they told me bring him by and go on to work and they would get him taken care of. He ended up needing surgery. Dr. Sewell called me within the hour to tell me what was needed. He performed the procedure that afternoon and called me after it was over to let me know how it went. Then on Monday Dr. Sewell called to check on my dog. Belmont Animal Hospital has provided excellent care for my dog and great customer service for me - I am so glad I found them!

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MI

Michelle Sitton

Friendly and caring staff, from when I called in to make the appointment to a few days after the appointment when they called to see how things were going. Dr. Sewell was gentle and thorough with my dog, which is very important to me as I hate feeling like just another appointment to rush through to get to the next one. I was very appreciative that he explained everything in detail and gave me honest recommendations for my dogs care. Overall, both Dr. Sewell and the vet tech, Rebecca, genuinely listened to what I had to say about my concerns for my dog. Reasonable prices for this area also. As a self-proclaimed "crazy dog mom", Ive been looking for a permanent vet in Nashville since I moved here and Im so happy to have found it! :)

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