VCA Animal HospitalsReviews of vcahospitals.com

Since this vet was purchased by MARS, it will never be the same. They are not the vet office they used to be. Whenever you have a corporate takeover - all they care about is profits, and nothing else. I have to find a new vet now.

I’ve made the difficult decision to stop bringing my pets to VCA Encina Animal Hospital after years of increasingly disappointing experiences. What ultimately drove me away was a persistent pattern of poor communication, dismissive staff, and what I believe are questionable business practices that prioritize revenue over genuine care. Communication at this clinic has been a consistent struggle. Phone staff, especially Emily and Christine, have often been curt and unhelpful, making it feel like I was an inconvenience rather than a valued client. My questions or concerns were frequently ignored or brushed off, which only added to the frustration. I also have concerns about the medical decision-making at this facility. When my puppy Jameson was seen for a simple cyst, the proposed response was a full dental cleaning and biopsy—costing around $3,500. In the end, I received no real answers, and the cyst resolved on its own, raising doubts about whether the procedure was ever necessary. This wasn’t an isolated case; I’ve experienced repeated pressure to approve costly and seemingly excessive treatments, like being told to submit multiple stool samples when one would suffice. Over the years, I’ve felt less like a pet owner seeking help and more like a target for upselling. Even treatment records are written in ways that subtly shame clients for opting out of high-cost procedures. It’s emotionally manipulative and inappropriate in a setting that should be focused on trust and compassion. Even my conversations with the hospital’s leadership left me with mixed messages and little clarity, further damaging my confidence in their transparency and professionalism. The only exception to this experience has been Dr. Yates, who consistently provided compassionate and thorough care. Unfortunately, her professionalism stands out as the exception, not the standard. I’ve since compared pricing and services with other veterinary clinics, and VCA Encina consistently ranks as one of the most expensive, without a corresponding improvement in care. For example, I was quoted nearly $1,500 for a neuter procedure I had done elsewhere for a fraction of the price—with no compromise in quality. In short, my experience with VCA Encina has been one of increasing disappointment. I can no longer justify entrusting my pets’ health—or my peace of mind—to this clinic.

Update to earlier review: June 11th - VCA Encina, who I have learned is self-insured, is no longer responding to me or my concerns. March 25th I mailed a letter to the VCA medical director, the hospital manager and the CEO of VCA Corporate, Patty Wu, requesting the name of VCA Encina's professional liability insurance so I could pursue a claim of medical malpractice directly with them. After no response, April 4th I emailed a reminder of the request and was told: "Hello, We have forwarded your request to VCAs legal team after your response to the email sent on March 18th. From my understanding, our legal team has reached out to you and will assist you with anything further." The legal team has not reached out to me as of 6-29-2025. This feels a little intimidating and threatening. My cat died last year in extremely unfortunate circumstances. My family has been and continues to be devastated, and now we're being told that 'legal is going to reach out to me' but instead they seem to have ghosted me.

VCA animal emergency hospital southeast caulder rd. Is GODS place with Angels that were there for me to take my baby Coco to go to heaven. Dr. Weston Moseley, Sarah and another sweet angel that (can’t remember her name) needs to be recognized carring me through this heart breaking time. Compassionate, loving, kind is not enough to say how wonderful these angels are. I am shouting from the roof tops to everyone how blessed I was to be lead by our loving GOD to them. It was April 7th at 5am. I am elderly, was alone and they were there for me and my baby. I could go on and on. I love these angels. Bless you.

I really like the staff at the local VCA hospital, New Hartford,that I bring my pets to but the costs are outrageous for general Basic surgery prices are ridiculous so much so that I decided to take one of my pets that needed surgery to an independent veterinary hospital where the cost was 1/4 of what the VCA hospital wanted. I am in the process of taking my other pets to the same independent hospital and that is only due because of the outrageous cost involved and not only surgeries but visits to the doctor and any blood work that’s done.

We have taken 6 dogs to what used to be Standish Veterinary Hospital in Standish, ME over the past 15+ years. Around 2020, this local small town practice with vets and staff who knew your pets was bought out by VCA. Overnight, it seemed, not only did prices jump massively, but 9 times out of 10 you simply cannot get a sick appt for your pet unless it’s a month or more out. Initially, they blamed this on the pandemic but here we are in 2025. Last year, I had a dog with a sudden and severe respiratory ailment. Well, we can’t see your dog for two weeks. So I went to the local petmedic office who was able to assess the same day. Got bounced around for a while to more expensive specialty vets because VCA couldn’t get her in. The issue finally resolved after three months of coughing and gagging. No idea what it was because we never got a definitive dx. VCA was in denial that it was the canine respiratory virus saying that “none” of their other dog patients were getting it. This week, another of our dogs had an abscessed molar which, once again, they couldn’t see her for until SIX WEEKS out, with an actual extraction appt not available for TEN WEEKS. WTH? Then her abscess burst and she had a steady drip of blood coming out of her face. I again tried to call VCA to ask what the heck I should do but got their voicemail because they were “in a seminar” I learned when I still hadn’t gotten a call back 30 minutes later. Thankfully, again, our local Petmedic (who had been able to get her in for an assessment the day before and prescribed abx) was able to instruct me over the phone in what to do, who to call, and then sent me a list of about 20 veterinary offices in our county who ARE accepting new pts. I immediately called the closest one who said they had appts available this very same week!!! So I moved all four of my current dogs that same day to that practice and told VCA Standish to transfer all records and cancel all appts. Since 2020, they have also lost a number of long-time vets and staff who knew our pets. Now it seems only a few long-timers are left with a revolving door of newbies who don’t seem to give a hoot. It’s too bad, because the original owner and one of the remaining techs are wonderful humans but VCA itself sucks. I have gotten the sense they want to focus on preventive care so don’t leave any possible openings for sick visits. Not sure what that’s all about but I don’t buy the pandemic excuse any more.

VCA Twin Rivers Animal Hospital does not really care about the animals. They just care about making money. They are overpriced. They do not care about the pets at all. As they stated they are a "BUSINESS!!!" Better vets are out there. Look for another vet.

If I could do less than 1 star I would. Do not do business with VCA. I was warned and didn’t listen. Lesson learned. I have a sick dog that I have already spent hundreds on and they did not fix the issue but want me to spend hundreds more to “see what works” and shove more medications down his throat or yet another jab (2 were required yesterday as I heard my dog crying while they jabbed him not once but twice!) I was charged $160 for a shot that was suppose to stop his itching. It’s been we’ll over 24 hours and he is no better and now this vet wants to charge me more money and shove more shit down his throat. I pulled my pets from VCA and only hope that in the interim my dog doesn’t get worse. They are rude and didn’t even care about my situation. Throw more pharmaceuticals at him and charge me out the ass for it. No thank you VCA. I have reported this to the BBB, have hired an attorney for the damages/emotional stress and fired VCA.