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December 2023 by Tarah O.
It has taken me a little bit of time to calm down and gather my thoughts enough to write a review and live this situation over again. I brought my sweet dog in from MT because we do not have a vet in our small town and we have had our dogs vaccinated and spayed here in the past and they were always great. They even assisted us through the tough circumstance of putting one of our other dogs down a few years back. I don't know what has happened to this practice in the past few years but after my experience the other day, I would beg and plead with anyone who is thinking of taking their precious pet to them to go elsewhere. My dog was dealing with a very scary situation with her eyes and from the moment I called them, I was met with ABSOLUTEY no care or empathy. Even after I drove 2 hours and got her into the office, I was met with no empathy from the VERY rude and self righteous front desk lady. She shoved me in a room and told me I was there too early so I would have to wait awhile. No concern for my sweet dog AT ALL. Once the vet got in the room all he did was shine a light in her eyes and tell me he couldn't do anything to help her so he would have to send me to another vet in Idaho Falls who had the instrument to test the pressure in her eyes. At this point I was annoyed but trying to give the benefit of the doubt. He assured me that they would help me from this point on at the other vet. When I got to the vet in Idaho Falls, they took my dog and tested her eyes and gave her back to me which took about 2 minutes and told me that they would contact the vet in Rexburg and he would be in touch with me in the next couple of days.... Excuse me?! I just drove 2 hours and am dealing with my dog suddenly going blind, her eyes bulging, and her pupils huge and not responding to light and I don't get any answers?! I then called Upper Valley back and once again, the extremely rude and unprofessional front desk lady answers and tells me that I probably won't hear back from the vet until tomorrow. Mind you, this is just an eye test where they need to look at some numbers and rule out glaucoma so that I can help my dog before she permanently loses her sight. I told her I was going to stop in on my way back home if the vet couldn't take the time to tell me the results while I was on the phone. She put me on hold and got back on and said he would call me back in a little while. Now I have to wait around while being 2 hours from home and getting dark out to hear from the vet about this situation.The vet ends up calling me about 10 minutes later and tells me I don't know what it is and I can't help you so I will have to send you to the emergency vet in Idaho Falls. Once again.. no empathy, concern, or desire to help my dog. I reached out to a vet in Montana and they referred me to the sweetest lady in Helena who recognized and actually cared about the severity of my dogs current state and even though she didn't take new patients, made an exception for my dog. I was able to get her in first thing the next morning and do a thorough examination. I now have a diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment plan from a vet who actually showed care and empathy for my animal in the way that any pet parent would want from their vet in that type of situation. Because of the lack of care from Upper Valley and unwillingness to take appropriate action, my dog will now be permanently blind because I did not get the help I needed for her fast enough. The 2 vets in MT are STILL reaching out to check on my pet and see how she is adjusting to her new life without sight. Did I hear back from Upper Valley to check in on my dog and see how she was doing or if I ever even got a diagnosis? No, of course I didn't which just sets in stone the rest of their actions or lack there of. I am sure they will get on her and try to justify their actions but there is no justification for the way they handled this situation and once again, I beg and plead with everyone to stay as far away from this vet as possible.
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May 2022 by Karen E.
I thought Upper Valley Vet Clinic was absolutely great care. I had both of my French Bulldogs spayed and was a little nervous because I haven't had a pet in almost 10 years & haven't had a pet spayed in over 20 years! Surgeries were without a hitch & both girls came home groggy but in good condition. The aftercare procedures were very thorough & really covered every concern I had. A couple of days after the surgery & thought one of my girl's incision site seemed like it my be getting infected so I contacted the office and because I live over 75 miles away, they told me to take a pic & text it to them. They should it to the doctor & everything was fine. This was great treatment of a patient in my opinion. My girls never appeared to be in any pain, they had normal reactions after surgery like being tired for a couple of days, nausea & no appetite after surgery and within 48 hours they were back to the normal, happy selves. I am happy I have found a new vet!
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September 2021 by Notso L.
Wish I could do a negative review . My dog was injured from a grooming session at this facility. I have tried to get it to heal and it now requires surgery. This facility will not work out any type of monthly payments to help us help our dog. Until now I had been taking my animals to this veterinarian for 20 plus years but, never again.
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August 2021 by Clint L.
It's honestly taken me a few years to get to where I can write this. I took my dog here to get his vaccinations and generally make sure he's doing well. I took him there and the first visit everything seemed to go well. He loved any and all attention. The thermometer and shots didn't bother him at all. He did great. Well when I took him back weeks later for the scheduled booster shots I brought up my concern that he wasn't acting quite like himself and was lethargic. They kind of brushed me off an said that was normal when getting vaccinated. I was a little put off but decided that with all of their schooling they should know best. Well, over the next few weeks he got worse. He wouldn't really eat and wasn't really moving all that much. I called and told them what was going on and that I needed to get him in there because it was an emergency. They told me it wasn't an emergency and that the soonest they could get him in there anyway would be in 2 weeks. I was very very upset and ended up going to a different vet that same day. Well, that vet showed me the charts and weight from his 2 visits at the very place that told me it wasn't an emergency. He had lost a large amount of weight from his first visit where he got his first round of vaccinations and the second round of booster shots. They didn't mention anything about that to me even though I had expressed concern for him. This other vet I took him to did X-Ray's and found he had cancer. After reading the charts they said that if they had done this when I did the booster shots he could have had surgery and been saved. But, because so much time had passed it had progressed too far and there wasn't anything they could do. I ended up having to put him down. I would NEVER send anyone who cares about their animals to this place EVER. To top it off I called and told them about what happened and they said that sucks and proceeded to continue to send me "reminders" to get him checked up. They are still being sent. I moved because of how painful it still is to receive them after all these years.
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November 2020 by Gabriel G.
THIS WAS MY MOMS EXPERIENCE WITH DOCTOR ESPLIN. The doctor told my mother "I noticed that she was anxious when she separated from your daughter and I felt that I probably should have given her something to help calm her down, normally I do but I didn't I'm sorry I feel very regretful. I am sorry I didn't follow my instinct." My mother asked the doctor is that standard protocol when a dog is anxious why didn't you do it this time? She said Dr. I'm not the expert you are but we have instincts we should follow those instincts. I don't understand why you didn't do what you normally do. The doctor remained quiet and said he was sorry and felt regretful. He then told my mother that he was operating on her and when he instructed his assistant to check her vitals, the assistant noticed she was not breathing, he said "I don't know how long she was not breathing. She had an IV and was connected to the oxygen machine. We attempted CPR on her for 20 minutes." my mother told the dr you attempted CPR but you don't know how long she wasn't breathing makes no sense. The dr said her heart stopped beating and her body temperature dropped. My mother said Is it standard protocol to check the vitals how often do you check the vitals, how can you not know she stopped breathing, and the doctor remained quiet and didn't respond. He said well the table is heated to keep the temperature up and I am unsure how long she was gone. The dr said her size was a risk for the surgery. Since she was a small dog she was at risk for her body temperature dropping and for anesthesia. My mother asked the doctor since you suggested this surgery highly recommended this simple routine surgery why would you tell me now that her size was a risk. You never mentioned this before the surgery was scheduled the other option was to just dissolve the stones why couldn't we have went with that option first. If there was a risk involved at all this decision for doing surgery would have not been made we would've went with the other option I don't understand why you did not mention this before. The doctor said well it's unlikely that a dog passes away during the surgery it's one out of 2000 however, my mother told him you didn't disclose this information and now look what happened you took our family member away from us. HERE IS MY EXPERIENCE WITH DOCTOR ESPLIN I HAD a puppy that I took to this clinic to have surgery done to remove bladder stones. Doctor Esplin says these stones are very common and should be a very simple procedure to remove them. The Doctor says it will be a lot easier because our puppy was a female. He NEVER mentioned that this would have a life or death risk whatsoever. As we take her for her appointment to have surgery, we receive a call from Doctor Esplin that the stones were removed but she did not make it. She passed away during the surgery and nothing seemed to make sense. They had a laser scan to check her health and stated that she was a HEALTHY dog and had no health issues. He states he does the procedure and his assistant watches the vitals but tells me they were UNSURE of when our dogs vitals began to drop but says they watch the vitals during the procedure. Doctor Esplin states he notices our puppy was anxious before surgery and didn't think anything of trying to make sure she is completely calm. He shares that he wasn't sure if the amount of anesthesia they gave her could have had an affect and that it can affect smaller dogs and have a higher risk as well as affect a dog if anxious. HE NEVER SHARED ANY OF THIS PRIOR TO THE SURGERY NOR THOUGHT OF GIVING A CALL BEFORE SURGERY TO INFORM US OF HER BEING ANXIOUS AT THE MOMENT. This is honestly devastating and heartbreaking to lose a piece of my family. I want to make sure everyone sees this and open up your options to many other clinics before making a final decision. I don't want any family to experience any tragedy as my family did.
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November 2020 by Sara B.
I am very disappointed! Frustration is an understatement! The lack of communication on their part was just unacceptable, and thier mark-up on meds is unethical... While my dog had complications during spay and they didn't let her die on the table, when I picked her up they failed to mention anything of the complications and gave no additional pain meds. I stayed up all night while in contact with another vet worried I'd need to rush her to the ER. I called Upper Valley first thing the next morning and the Dr did promptly return my call. At that time I was informed of the complications during surgery, blood loss and potential need for a transfusion. She was monitored at home that day and the following night, again no sleep, and was brought in the next morning for an exam as she still was just not right. While I appreciate them not charging for that appointment, they mark-up thier meds well beyond what other vets in the area charge ($100 more for the same pain meds I typically get from another local vet). Turns out she probably did have a slow bleed and although I kept her stable the first through the second night, she probably should have either stayed the night at Upper Valley or been transferred to the ER to start with. The bleed had stopped and although she had a large hematoma, she did turn the corner by the third day and starting making improvements. She is still on the mend, but it's going to take much longer than expected. Surgery, check-up, after care, complications, medication, price, emergency, spay, neuter, anesthesia, pain
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June 2020 by Callene N Frank Z.
Friday evening our cat became very sick, we called our regular vet & they were unable to get us in due to the vet being on another emergency. Our neighbor works at Upper Valley Vet. She came over looked at our cat who was drooling, very dehydrated. She suggested the emergency vet in Idaho Falls or her vet Upper Valley. I called spoke w/Dr. Tew he met us at the clinic. Was able to give our cat medication and IV. She stayed the night. When I called 1st thing Sat morning was told she was stable and Dr would give us a call when he returned from another emergency. Dr. Tew called and let us know our cat was stable and we could come pick her up. We picked her up she looked so much better. Dr. Tew told us to call him if she gets worse. Luckily over 24 hrs she is back to our normal spunky girl. I am so happy the staff Upper Valley Vet helped our cat. The prices for the great care was by far very resonable. Upper Valley Vet has earned us as customers. If you are looking for a GREAT vet for your furbabies I would highly recommend Upper Valley Vet..
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May 2020 by Austin J.
Dr Shawcroft was so awesome and helpful! He answered all of our questions and took care of our pup in an emergency situation. He even came in on his day off to make sure we could get help. I would highly recommend him and Upper Valley Vet Clinic!
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January 2019 by Ninna C.
Very Cold and Rude facility. BAD BAD BAD.......If I could mark a 0 I would. I DO NOT recommend as they are deceptive with services and have a horrible Dr/patient courtesy as well as the receptionists who are the first experience when you call or walk through the door. The cold feeling and harsh tones set the mood in their facility and the whole experience has always been negative.I am appalled with what just recently happened. I have also had problems with Upper Valley Veterinary with "Padding the Bill". I began going here to help my daughter with fees on her pets. In 2016 I got my 2 felines vaccinated and a yearly check up no problem so I thought...About 2 years ago I had a bearded dragon.....who I thought had died, his beard was very black and unresponsive. I brought him in and they listened for a heartbeat, there was none. I was distressed and buried my sons dragon only to get a bill for over $100.00......apparently they gave this tiny bearded dragon a "Ultra Sound!??" Which I was not aware of. Then skip to about the end of November I gave my surviving cat her vaccines. I had called previously and confirmed for feline vaccinations they are $35.00. As I left the facility I was told my bill was $95.00.....I was frustrated as she said "Well the Dr. gave her a de-wormer (which I did NOT request AND another vaccine on some sort) I told her I only brought in $35.00 as stated......I had to wait for a Veterinarian to come out and firmly shake my hand and demand that services MUST be paid in full......I told him I have been coming here for years and I always pay my bill and I usually get billed for it and that I am a single mother grandmother and only have few hundred dollars to live on being on disability. He said ok hesitantly. I knew I needed a travel healthy certificate to go to AR with my healthy cat who weighed at the time 9lbs....(That cert was $50.00.) I took my trip...my cat did not EAT and barely drank her fluids. When I got back I immediately took her back to the vet only to be told that from her blood work she has 2 weeks to live and had lost 2.3 lbs and she was dehydrated AND after I had to ask to run another FIV and LeLV tests she came back positive for Feline Leukemia..this made me very upset and frustrated that I keep her vaccinated and asked "How did this happen" he said if her immune system is jeopardized the vaccinations will not work. The bill and my account were now over $100.00. I paid another $100.00 towards bill ($185.00 total in 4 weeks) The vet offered to hydrate her and I said YES of course and he sent me home with the bag, lines and needles, w DRY kidney food. He told me to come back in 5 days for more blood work which I did...and he hydrated her too while there. All blood work levels had declined and 1/5 were within range. The next day I realized I forgot my bag of fluids which is given to you to administer...I called to ask if I could come pick it up. I was treated very RUDELY and harshly and NOT answering my question the receptionist VERY adamantly said "The Dr said WE can NOT render any services to you until 'YOUR bill is paid in FULL!" This shocked me as I had bought needle and fluids from them. I hung up, but immediately called back to TRY to get my bag of fluids used on my FeLV POS cat (which comes w the cost of subcutaneous fluids IF administering yourself) and she said NO we can not help you until your bill is paid in full ($300.00) I then inquired about purchasing any fluids or needles she AGAIN repeated herself VERY coldly NO we can not give you anything until your bill is paid in full. I told her I already discussed with the Vet that I can only pay once a month when I get my disability check and he had been ok with that. This facility has NO compassion (from all conversations I have had in office cold, sharp and rude) I have found out my cat has pancreatitis and inflamed bowels too...I am still in shock that my cat was given a vaccine and a clean bill of health only after 2 weeks she is on her death bed now
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November 2018 by Rusty Jenkins
They are good at caring for animals large and small and care about us as owners. We have received caring notes from them when one of our cats could not be saved and when my sons horse had to be put down because what he had was incurable. It is a heart breaking thing to lose an animal you love so much. I appreciate all that Dr. Paul Tew and the Upper Valley Vet Clinic staff have done for our family.
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July 2018 by Raegan C.
I would give no rating if this was possible. First off I sent my 9 month old cat to be neutered and he came back with his skin hanging out of his testicles because they did a poor job. When I took him back they looked at him again and said they noticed yellow fluid in him and that he had really high blood work. They have never seen it before. You are not supposed to operate on a animal when they have high blood work. Any experienced vet should know this. They also didn't know a common genetic disease called FIP. Going through the operation caused my cat to die. They were not experienced and they took my best friend from me. Never go here they do NOT know what they are doing.
