Long Island Veterinary Specialists

Reviews 3

JO

John C Nunley

Let me tell you, my first visit to LI Vet Specialists was not consumed with thoughts as to what the facility might look like or the ambiance of the staff ... I was bringing my pet dog in who was seriously ill with lymphoma and I was sick to the pit of my soul that I was going to lose her. Then Dr. Nicole Leibman introduced herself and the manner in which she treated and spoke of Lexi in addition to the time she spent explaining to me various diagnostic tests, treatment options and relevant costs but more importantly the palpably warm and concerned manner in which she dealt with this case. Naturally I placed Lexi in her care and she went through a battery of diagnostic tests that day with plans to begin chemotherapy treatments the following week. Dr. Nicoles care giving did not end when we left, however, as she took my e-mail address and contacted me later that evening. When I explained to Dr. Leibman that some of Lexis symptoms had worsened Dr. Nicole made arrangements to administer Lexis first chemo treatment the very next day. By the time Saturday morning rolled around Lexi could barely walk, due to a tumor that affected her left foreleg. When we arrived at LI Vet Specialists, Marissa, one of Dr. Leibmans very capable assistants, came out and greeted me and was already familiar with Lexi, having worked with her the day before. She the explained to me what the procedure consisted of, about how long it would take and then took Lexi to the exam rooms. The procedure was to be about 90 minutes so I decided to wait there at the facility which is quite roomy and well appointed. Theres more than adequate seating room for guests and their pets and I am amazed that all the pets seem to get along ... Ive been there on four different occasions where there have been an assortment of dogs of all sizes, breeds and mixes and not even a growl, much less a bark. Two large screen TVs at either end of the room, for distraction, beverage bar at the far end of the waiting room, interesting reading materials and, most pleasant of all, the staff all of whom are warm, friendly and attracted to your pets in a most amiable way. At the conclusion of the procedure Marissa brought Lexi out and explained some of the effects she may suffer and went on to fawn over Lexi, which warmed my heart because I felt the compliments were genuine. That night was tough as Lexis breathing became very shallow and she was quite inactive. Dr. Nicole was in touch with me on a number of occasions that night and through the week, monitoring Lexis progress. Which, by the way, improved daily ... her strength and normal habits began to increase a bit each day ... her limp began to improve to the point where she would jump up and run out back and woof it up with the other pooches during their bark fest. Before I knew it, her limp vanished altogether and she was jumping into the rear of my SUV once again. Weve been back to LI Vet Specialists twice since the first chemo treatment. Another of Dr. Nicoles assistants, Jackie, has been looking after Lexi these past couple of visits. Jackie is another fine example of the staff here at this facility ... the way she treats Lexi youd think she was her master, and I have no trepidation whatsoever leaving Lexi in the care of any of these fine people at LI Vet Specialists.

MA

mary greco

I brought my 6 yr old Doberman to LIVS where I met with Dr. Marino and Dr. Grossbard...I explained that my dog had a cough (more like clearing her throat) that started approx. one month prior...they did a sonogram but couldnt see anything...next step was a ct scan..I left my dog there overnight with plans to do a ct scan the next morning while under anesthesia...surgery to follow if necessary...this way she would only have to be anesthetized once...one of the techs and Dr. Grossbard were keeping me updated...Grossbard calls me at work to tell me that they confirmed a diaphragmatic hernia and surgery would take approx 3 hrs...1 1/2 later, he calls to tell me that they discovered a large mass that wrapped around her esophagus and coated her lung and heart...at this point, I am unable to breath and ready to pass out! Grossbard proceeds to tell me that the ONLY thing they can do at this point is close up the incision and send her home with a feeding tube...maybe try chemo but it didnt look good...how could I allow them to send my dog home in pain, not being able to eat and suffer a slow, agonizing death? I felt the only choice I had was euthanasia at this point while my dog was already under anesthesia...I was traumatized and devastated! I couldnt understand how they didnt see this on the ct scan and I wasnt getting satisfactory answers from Grossbard...later we haggled over the bill...they insisted that a surgery was performed and kept faxing me revised bills, changing the name of the surgery at least 3 times...the final bill stated "exploratory surgery"...We settled on $4600.00 for overall costs...they tried to charge me for a radiology consult which would have been fine, except the tech told me that the radiologist was not present as he was supposed to be...then who read the ct scan? They told me that my dog had a diaphragmatic hernia...how do you make this mistake with this kind of testing? The tech that was caring for my dog was absolutely wonderful and truly cared about her...The tech did seemed upset that things werent right but could not elaborate...I was not comfortable with the misdiagnosis of the ct scan and asked for a copy of the disk..they sent me the disc and the report which I gave to a radiologist (and friend) to read, and he told me that it was obvious that there was a large mass and in NO way resembled a hernia....why would they attempt surgery if they didnt know what they were dealing with? It was unnecessary and I lost my dog in the blink of an eye! I trusted them to help my dog and they misdiagnosed her and it cost me my dog!

RI

Rimma Landau

It is very difficult for me to write this letter because we lost a very beautiful, young (3years old), strong and a happy dog just a few days ago… I have to say that our family has a long history with LIVS. Excellent doctors such as Rada Panich, who helped my other dog to diagnose and treat a very rare infectious disease that no one else could recognize. DR. Sapienza, who saved my older dog’s vision and did the operation right away. That is why, I thought, that LIVS is the place to go to in any difficult situations with pets. WELL, our second dog BAILEY wasn’t that fortunate… One day we were doing our usual play routine in the back yard when Bailey suddenly collapsed and her body started involuntary movements as if she was having seizures. We rushed her to the local veterinarian clinic where learned that out of nowhere Bailey developed a bradycardia. Her heart rate was less than 50, which is very low for dogs. Our local VET told us that Bailey needs a cardiology consult. So we hurried up and made an appointment to LIVS . The next day we met DR. Mac who was listed as a member of cardiology specialists, but she told us otherwise that she was an internist, and LIVS doesn’t have a cardiologist on staff (???) OK! At this point we needed to start somewhere, needed to do blood work, an ECG and est. After all the procedures DR. Mac came up with the diagnosis of a 3rd degree AV BLOCK and a recommendation to go to a cardiology clinic in Manhattan for a pacemaker implantation along with some lousy discharge instructions to keep the dog calm and to do brief walks on the leash for when “nature calls” THAT WAS IT… There were not any emotions on her face, she didn’t find a warm and comforting word for the dog, nor a good luck wishes to the owners, just as she was very dry, cold robot without a heart. I guess, no CORNEL SCHOOL can teach you the qualities of kindness and compassion! But, we wouldn’t pay attention to her personality that much if DR. Mac would tell us how critical Bailey’s condition was. If she would offer to keep the dog in ICU for hydration and other available treatment just to have Bailey’s heart supported while waiting for a pacemaker implantation. (By he way we made an appointment right away, but it only was available in 2 days because of the weekend) BAILEY’S HEART COULDN’T WAIT THAT LONG… WE LOST HER… P.S. “Thank you, DR.Mac” maybe, you should consider a career change! You shouldn’t come close to animals…