Judy Downs, VMD

Reviews 3

CO

Courtney Shaffer

Do yourself a favor and go read the horrible reviews about this place on Yelp also. I wanted to make sure I left our review on multiple sites so people are aware of this place. We would have given this place no stars if we could have. We wish we wouldve read some reviews before we brought our cat in, but lesson learned. We brought our 7 month old kitten in for a pre-declaw appointment check up on a Saturday morning. We got there early and they were actually able to see him early, which was nice. As the vet assistant was taking his vitals, our kitten was in a playful mood (he is a kitten!) and didnt want to let her put the stethoscope on his tummy so he was nipping a little bit. She told us she was going to take him in the back and finish getting his vitals. Then she brought him back. Then veterinarian, Judy Downs, came in to talk to us about the de-claw process. Without asking us barely any questions about our cats behavior at home, she decided that she "could read him quickly," and that he was an aggressive cat. She quickly started patronizing my fiancé and I about not taking the correct steps to train our cat. Again, if she would have taken the time to ask us questions and talk to us then she would know that we have been cat owners most of our lives and have done plenty of research on alternatives to declawing like spray bottles, cat scratchers, anti scratch sprays, active toys, nail trimming, etc. We have also tried all these methods on our kitten and took the time to decide that declawing was our best option. She went into a long and condescending lecture about the alternatives we should consider since she believed our cat would become aggressive. At one point she even suggested we make him an outdoor cat, even though we live in Northern VA on the 8th floor of a condominium. After listening to this, we politely thanked her for the information but told her that we have done the research and wanted to continue with the declaw. She said okay and that she was going to take our kitten back to the back get his shots (necessary for the procedure) and finish his pre declaw check up. After seeing the vet assistants look into our window a few times, she finally came back in a very defensive manor and started patronizing us again stating that we "did not understand the gravity of the situation," she refused to go through with the declaw, and that she was "saving us from getting sued for everything we are worth when our cat decided to bite one of our friends." We would have completely respected her opinion if she would have simply come back in the room and said she could not move forward with the declaw. Instead, she went through the entire appointment, was extremely rude to us, and went through all the shots that we had to pay for just to deny us service! Why make us go through the hassle, see our cat, give him shots necessary for declawing, and speak to us as if we were completely ignorant, if she is such an opponent of declawing cats? Seems like she just wanted to take the $107 from us and try and teach us a lesson. We will never bring our cats to this vet again. I cannot imagine a doctor speaking to a parent of a child like that and can see why she in not in a field that deals directly with people. She treated us like our kitten was the spawn of the devil when in all actuality he was just being a normal, playful 7 month old tabby! He is usually extremely sweet, cuddly, and playful. Since we have been home, he has been hiding under the bed. We are scared to know what they did to him in the back.

SU

Susan Enlind

Ive been coming to Dr. Downs since 1989 with my dogs, this was back when she originally was at Old Town Alexandria Vet. I got a siberian husky puppy that within days of bringing him home he was showing very odd neurotic behavior, walking in tight circles, banging his head into the wall repeatedly. I took him to Dr Downs and she ran blood work, and from day one she told me she thought he had a liver shunt. A liver shunt is where a large vein that collects blood from the systemic circulation and normally carries it into the liver, bypasses the liver. The liver is normally performing the removal of toxins and other byproducts, thus cleansing the blood. With a shunt, liver never cleanses the blood, thus the toxins are not eliminated and results in severe neurological behavior. Since he was a puppy I was feeding him a high protein diet which exacerbated the condition. I had to immediately change him to food like he was an old dog, along with 3 different medicines. Dr. Downs referred me to a specialist that could confirm the diagnosis which at the time could only be done via surgery. My pup had this surgery at 10 weeks old and confirmed it was a liver shunt and unfortunately an internal one, which means the vein runs straight thru the liver and never opens up in the liver, vs. external the vein has basically re-routed around the liver, (external is much more treatable). I was so thrilled they didnt tell me I had to put him down I was willing to do anything. Dr. Downs did the research and let me know there was a vet at Va. Tech Veterinarian School that had had success with performing surgeries on this condition but warned me it was highly experimental and high risk. At first I did not take this route, but my poor pup never grew, had energy about 5-10 minutes a day and just did not have a quality life. I did try the surgery and unfortunately he did not make it but it did give me an extreme appreciation for veterinarian science and what they could do now for animals. I also discovered that this was a pretty rare diagnosis and normally took 9-10 months to determine with normally visits to specialists all over the country. Dr. Downs nailed it day one. I have been a loyal, very happy client of hers ever since. Even when I moved to Chantilly, VA I still always went all the way to Old Town to visit her and then in turn followed her to Little River when she opened her own clinic. She has shown me and my pups nothing but incredible compassion and excellent pet care. She is always thorough in explaining everything when my dogs have required additional testing or surgery. She always gives me estimates with options and/or recommendations with what tests, x-rays, medicines, treatments she would perform and which I could hold off on. She has treated my dogs for everything from snake bites, to fractured toes, to removing odd growths/cysts to doggy alzheimers (Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome). She has referred as necessary to an array of specialists from neurology to behavioral and has continued to be spot on every time. I will be a loyal client as long as she is in practice.

A

A Private User

Dr. Downs and her staff are amazing! And trust me I am not an employee like one review said. I had to rush my 7 week old puppy to their office with a serious head injury, she was attacked by my older dog cause they were fighting over a bone. She had a lacerated ear and a fractured skull. They were very patient and understanding and took amazing care of her, even found out that she had roundworm which I would have never known. They were very upfront with the cost and were very understanding when I expressed some concern over the cost. I knew it was going to cost a lot, but we were talking about saving a puppies life here. They worked with us and gave us a break on some of the expenses. Yes its expensive and yes you have to pay upfront, but 2 things; you get what you pay for, and paying at time of service works for us personally because it negated the need to have to pay another bill when we have enough already! Anyways, I have had neighbors of mine say that they didnt like them, that they were expensive or not good with someones aggressive cat, but for us they are amazing, close by, and caring. They always take the time to answer any questions or concerns you have. I dont normally write reviews for things, but i figured it was the least I can do after they saved my puppys life and took care of my older dog! Thanks again guys, and Queso and Odie thank you as well!