St. Marks Veterinary Hospital

Reviews 5

A

A Private User

I had to have my baby kitten put to sleep here - she had been poisoned and was not going to make it. However, since I have another cat, I would have expected they would try to figure out what on earth was poisoning our cat - which they didnt. They put her to sleep before I had a chance to see her again, and then demanded money on the spot. They charged over 300 to put a kitten to sleep - I do not know what this normally costs but it seemed excessive. I had just had my purse stolen so I did not have my new credit cards, so I offered to write a check. They called my check in to a credit company and told me it was bad. It was NOT a bad check, and they were very rude and tried to embarrass me because of it. They demanded that I walk 20 blocks to my bank to take out cash and asked me to LEAVE my boyfriend there at COLLATERAL. When I asked if they could just please send me a bill because I had to go to work, they said "Well, youre cat is going to sit in the freezer until you pay and shes going to start getting gross." Thanks, guys. Really polite. Until then I had this nice delusion that my sweet kitten was curled up on a pillow somewhere to sleep comfortably forever, but now my last image of my adorable cat is her contorted in a freezer on top of a bunch of other dead cats. I left with them yelling at me, and later returned with a check from my roomate, which they also said was bad. (It was not.) I THEN had to humbly ask my parents to call in their credit card number, which the vet WOULDNT ACCEPT! They continued to demand that I pay in cash. So at this point I had tried three times to pay them, Im clearly an honest person, and THEN they started calling my boyfriend and harrassing him about payment. If someone attempts to pay you with perfectly good money three times, you dont start harrassing their loved ones on the phone after business hours. The also called me one night at 8:00 pm and yelled at me. They were so excited about getting all that money for putting her to sleep that I wonder if they even tried to help her or if they just decided they could get more money by putting her to sleep right away. Oh, by the way - my other cat died the next day from the same problem - a can of food that had not been returned after last years recall of pet food made by Chinas Menu Foods company. This is a bad place with bad people. I wish I could give them a lower review than one star. Please do not put yourself through the pain of bringing your sick pet here. May both my dead kittens weigh heavily upon this vets karma.

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DA

Darren Kawa

I have been a client at St. Marks Vet since 1998, and this review is long overdue. While I feel the veterinary care has been good, the practice itself usually feels greedy... to the point of predatory, and it can be difficult to separate the warmth of quality of care from the feeling of a hand sliding into your back pocket. As is the consensus in many reviews below, Dr. Dimeola is amazing. I love her. I think she is truly a wonderful and caring vet, and great at what she does. I have recommended several friends to her. Unfortunately, the practice not so much. Through the years there have been double-billed medical tests (by their own admission and later removed from the bill when my partner, a nurse, pointed out that several tests were included under multiple names). Last week we requested one generic blood pressure pill (nineteen cents online), and was sent home with, and billed for, six brand-name pills at seven dollars apiece. No explanation for the change until I spoke to the front desk, then the office manager, and finally the practice owner, Dr. Haddock, who agreed to refund the money when I returned the pills I didnt order (and which the sign in the lobby clearly states cannot be returned, in compliance with NYS law). That should have been my last visit. Today I had a "medical waste surcharge fee" for the disposal of a needle from an injection. Im mad at myself for letting them do it to me again, and so the review. You can do better.

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ST

Steven Polakoff

This practice is comprised of a very competent group of Vets, the staff is extremely friendly and caring and they do operate 7 days a week and I have always been able to get in to see a vet on the same day if it is a pressing matter. However some of the Vets do in my opinion over react and suggest too many costly tests and procedures when diagnosing. However, if you want the services of an experienced, competent practitioner and avoid the unnecessary procedures and charges they always seem to want to order, then be sure you specifically ask your appointment be made with Dr. Charisse Luk. She is kind, friendly, but professional, never put s you in a panic and always takes extra time for any questions you might have. Most importantly she looks for the simple issues first and not devastating 1 % possibilities. She is the type of doctor that takes one step at a time until it is figured out. That makes their charges fairer but yes they still charge something like 10-25% more than most other vets in the neighborhood for the same services. However none of the smaller local vets operate 7 days a week, 12 hours weekdays and 8 hours on weekends and have wonderful connections and referral services to other local practitioners should you have a 2 AM in the morning emergency. But should Dr. Luk decide to practice elsewhere in Manhattan, I would follow her.

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A

A Private User

I took my dog in for an emergency breathing check up. The doctor did see my dog right away to make sure he was stable at first, but we had to wait for about an hour to get him checked up thoroughly. The surgeon we saw suggested my dog to have the brachycephalic surgery performed BEFORE giving my dog an internal diagnose first :( He mentioned that the cost would vary depending on how well the surgery goes (what? really??). I personally thought the doctor wasnt experienced and professional enough to make such incomplete statement. So I did some research and went to the best vet surgeon in town Dr. Richard Greene. He is rated the best in NY Magazine, he suggested to give my dog a small dose of anesthesia so he could take a look of whats going on inside his throat. It turned out my dog was perfectly healthy and saved me thousands of dollars!! On top of all this, St. Marks filed my VPI insurance with an incorrect invoice amount on my behave. I had to call VPI to set this straight. All in all, I suggest all of you pet lovers to get a 2nd opinion on any major issues.

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ME

melisa kehlmann

I have been a client of St. Marks for years. I found out about the hospital after rescuing "exotic" pets (anything other than dogs or cats) which St. Marks tends to. I have met most if not all of the wonderful and clearly animal loving drs, techs, assts, and front desk personnel and all are kind and sincere. I thought the care went beyond routine and decided to move my 2 dogs over as well. I cannot say enough positive things about St. Marks. The doctors are A+ and will work out treatments and health plans without pressure. Suggestions made without making me feel like a bad "mom". The front desk will accomodate as best possible and acknowledge not only me, but mostly my pets. People that complain about the pricing simply are not from NYC or dont mind horrendous wait times in factory clinics without exceptional service. If i could give SMVH 10 stars, I would. Love love love them

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