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March 2024 by Jennie Peterson (she, her)
I can not say enough great things about this office! I am working on getting a health certificate for my dog to be able to travel internationally and the women who mange the office have been spectacular, they have been able to answer all my questions and provide guidance on how to move forward. They have been kind enough to contact the USDA to make sure we have all the proper paperwork within the correct time frames. I would recommend this vet to anyone looking for international travel with their pet.
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February 2024 by Andrea LaRowe
I've been taking my dog to VCA-West Loop for years, and I wouldn't go anywhere else. The medical and admin staff are friendly and efficient. They run on time, all the time. I've never felt pressured into expensive tests or procedures. They take WONDERFUL care of my pup, at medical exams and vaccination appointments, and during the 2-3x/year that we board her with them. When we board, they remember my dog, and they welcome her with enthusiasm.Highly recommend for any and all of their services!
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October 2023 by Daniela Rodriguez
I have been taking my cat to this veterinary clinic for almost four years now. The staff members are amazing and take the treatment of my cat very seriously. I am very grateful for the care they provide.Today, my cat had an appointment, and I called the office to inform them that I did not have a carrier to transport my cat. The staff member (whose name I unfortunately forgot) promptly offered me a disposable carrier. I went to the office to pick it up and my cat was able to safely make it to his appointment.Once again, I am grateful for the exceptional service provided by this veterinary clinic.
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October 2023 by Kritika Goel
We had a very bad experience here. Definitely avoid this place if you can. The vet is more of a salesman than a vet. It felt like just a business that tries to make money off our vulnerabilities. And they definitely do not know how to handle cats.We took our cat for his annual rabies shot. From the moment we walked in, they tried to sell us different things - first they tried to sell us their CarePlus plan with a dental care add on. Then they tried to recommend complete blood work just because we told them that our cat likes to drink water. They were unable to hold our cat for his vaccine (he was wriggling out), so they wrapped him in a towel and squeezed him so hard that he coughed. After the cough, they scared us about heartworm disease and tried to prescribe him X-Rays worth $300+. Finally, we offered to hold our cat while they put the vaccine, and the vet threatened us with thousands of dollars of fines if our cat bit him while they were trying to vaccinate him.Bottom line: They tried to sell me useless things to a point where I stopped trusting them completely - so even if there was one truth in there 10 lies I wouldn't know. So next time, I'll take my cat to a different vet.
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June 2023 by Liu Chunlin
ALERT! ALERT! ALERT! This place is a scam. I have been coming here for more than 5 years now.They would not tell you the charges ahead. I brought my dog there for his exam told me to come back in a week for a follow up. The exam cost $730 that’s fine because the doctor told me about the charges. What I did not know was coming back for a follow up they charge me another $77 when I check out today…. They did not tell me ahead of the charges and the most disappointing thing is when I told them why they didn’t tell me the charge before the follow up, the manager starts to tell me “ you got to pay to go and see a doctor” seriously who wouldn’t know that but at least doctor would tell you the price before doing anything. They should tell their customer of all the charge before doing anything.I have taken my other dogs to banfield and they do not charge for follow up. I do not care about the price for the exam and the follow up. You guys should at least tell me the charges beforehand and not letting me expect the bill to be different when i check out… one more thing the hospital manager is a Joke she can’t solve anything she just keep repeating over and over again seriously DO NOT COME HERE.
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June 2023 by Liu C.
ALERT! ALERT! ALERT! This place is a scam. I have been coming here for more than 5 years now.They would not tell you the charges ahead. I brought my dog there for his exam told me to come back in a week for a follow up. The exam cost $730 that's fine because the doctor told me about the charges. What I did not know was coming back for a follow up they charge me another $77 when I check out today.... They did not tell me ahead of the charges and the most disappointing thing is when I told them why they didn't tell me the charge before the follow up, the manager starts to tell me " you got to pay to go and see a doctor" seriously who wouldn't know that but at least doctor would tell you the price before doing anything. They should tell their customer of all the charge before doing anything.I have taken my other dogs to banfield and they do not charge for follow up. I do not care about the price for the exam and the follow up. You guys should at least tell me the charges beforehand and not letting me expect the bill to be different when i check out... one more thing the hospital manager is a Joke she can't solve anything she just keep repeating over and over again seriously DO NOT COME HERE.
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March 2023 by Jimmy Dyer
Dr. Matt Moodie has been absolutely wonderful to work with. He has seen my pup through everything from dental exams to hard to diagnose illnesses. His thoroughness and consistent follow-ups makes me feel like he cares just as much about my dog as I do - which is important when you consider your pet to be one of your children :) He never rushes through an appointment and ensures that all of my questions / concerns have been addressed. I couldn't be more grateful for the partnership!
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March 2023 by M E
Dr Tang gave me complete and detailed instruction about my cat’s condition. She also helped me schedule and prepare for the appointment with cardiologist under a really tight schedule.
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March 2023 by Becca M.
(this review has been sitting in my drafts for almost a year and i just noticed but it's still an accurate depiction of my experience so posting now regardless) Took my dog here 5-6 times over the first couple years of his life. Most experiences were fine and he wasn't that scared of the vet to start having grown used to it, but once the covid procedures (which i completely understand and commend) happened, his behavior totally changed and it's extremely difficult to get him care now. Obviously no other humans were in there during those periods of time, so i'm unsure how things were handled, but the first time we took him back that we were allowed back in too, he acted terrified and was incredibly uncooperative to the point they prescribed him anxiety medicine and told us to reschedule. So we did, and when we took him back the next time his behavior was similar but a little less due to the drugs. Regardless, they decided they needed to take him into the back to give him the shot we came for. I could hear him yelping from the room, and when they brought him back they said "sorry, we actually gave him the wrong one. Its not going to hurt him or anything, but Now we need to give him the right one and seems like he does better with you holding him" Um what? I left that appointment pretty angry about the remedy for a mistake of that nature only being an apology, all in the same breath as let us do it again, but continued on the care club for a few more months thinking i'd give them another chance. I noticed the charges weren't coming out of my bank every month, only some of them, but didn't question it further. Then, all the sudden i got like a $350 charge all at once and when i called they said it was because the payments weren't going through and i owed them that money. There was always money on this card during this time, and i did not receive *any* communication telling me i was missing payments or there was an issue.. They just decided to lump sum charge me without any notice three months later which seemed sketch to me. They refunded relatively quickly once i explained the situation so i appreciate that side of their customer service, and i fully acknowledge that my dog being difficult is not on them, i just won't ever be coming back here.
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February 2023 by Brittany King
I really wanted to like VCA. It came highly recommended from PAWS Chicago, where my partner and I adopted our dog and this location in particular had good reviews and high praise when we first chose it almost a year ago. Unfortunately, the needs of my pup aren’t a good fit with what VCA is able to offer.The TLDR version of this review: if you’ve got a social pup that is easily food motivated, eager to please, and loves meeting new people (even at the vet) then I think you’ll have a good experience here and should give them a try.If you have a more anxious pup, that may require vet care more than 1-2 times a year, I caution you from choosing this location.My partner and I are first time dog owners. In our first visit we worked with Dr. Tran who was super patient and answered every single question we had. She likely went way over her allotted time with us, but we never felt rushed. It was at that visit we realized how difficult our pup might be for vets. Although we’d taken him to the vet every week for ~6 weeks when fostering him just fine, this experience was different for him and it never got better. I recognize this is not entirely VCA’s fault.Dr. Tran quickly recommended anxiety meds, which is where things went south. His prescription made him vomit, a lot, but every time we’d call VCA to get him looked at, we were assured it wasn’t the meds making him sick, while also being told they had no availability to see our vomiting pup. This led to several EXPENSIVE ER visits. The limited availability of appointments has been beyond frustrating. It was also hurtful to be told consistently that we were wrong about our dogs bad reaction being due to the meds they prescribed. Instead of calming him, it made him sick consistently for weeks before we listened to our gut, stopped using them and asked for something different.My final frustration is with the unwillingness of staff to meet us halfway. Anxiety meds were suggested, we found ones that worked and sedated him heavily before visits (which we hated), we got a trainer, talked to a behavior specialist, muzzle and e-collar trained him so he’d be more receptive to it at the vet. While all of those things served my dog well in other aspects of his life, he is still just so afraid of the vet. Almost a year later we’ve been half a dozen times, and paid for each visit although he’s never been able to get more than his heartbeat checked. It just has not been a good experience for anyone, including the vets/techs we’ve worked with who at this point definitely know our dog a difficult one.Fed up at our visit last week, I asked what else could be done, how they could work with us. Ultimately that led to the vet (who was kind, but kept it real, I forget her name) suggesting we try home visits with another office or work with yet another behaviorial specialist. So, that’s what we’ll be doing. I’m upset that VCA seemed to write us/our dog off pretty quickly after that first difficult visit and I’ve seen staff react similarly to other anxious pups.Like I said, if you’ve got a low maintenance pup, I think this place will work out just fine for you, but if you need a bit more patience, more readily available appointments, and want a more fear free experience, look elsewhere.
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February 2023 by Nicole Blair
My dog had an appointment about a week ago and my household member was sent the correct time in the morning while I got an email to come hours later at 5:30 PM. Not only did they make that mistake, but when my mother brought our dog, she felt she did not get a thorough exam as well and felt that the newly graduated technicians need to work on their skills more. My mother requested a demonstration on how to cut my dog’s nails, and the vet tech was doing it in front of her, but still cut my dog’s vein by going too deep. Later, they tried insisting my dog was too anxious when they were the ones struggling to find a vein and draw blood. If they can’t do it, they should’ve found someone else capable in the facility, because my dog had to be pricked many times for a simple blood test since the vet tech felt there wasn’t enough drawn. All this paw and leg handling pushed my dog’s boundaries too far since she also had to get a shot and I’ve lost trust with handling her paws. My dog, as a Shiba Inu, was calm as long as she could be with very minimal squirming, but already too much had happened. Once my dog climbed on my Mom’s shoulder for the second blood drawing, she got a huge hematoma since the needle probably moved. I understand vet techs need to learn somewhere, but to be charged full price without an apology for even just screwing up something as simple as cutting nails is just poor business practice. Get your act right. I have lots of screenshots for anyone interested just not all on the same phone. If VCA wants to work this out, please email a worthy solution.
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January 2023 by Brittany K.
I really wanted to like VCA. It came highly recommended from PAWS Chicago, where my partner and I adopted our dog and this location in particular had good reviews and high praise when we first chose it almost a year ago. Unfortunately, the needs of my pup aren't a good fit with what VCA is able to offer. The TLDR version of this review: if you've got a social pup that is easily food motivated, eager to please, and loves meeting new people (even at the vet) then I think you'll have a good experience here and should give them a try. If you have a more anxious pup, that may require vet care more than 1-2 times a year, I caution you from choosing this location. My partner and I are first time dog owners. In our first visit we worked with Dr. Tran who was super patient and answered every single question we had. She likely went way over her allotted time with us, but we never felt rushed. It was at that visit we realized how difficult our pup might be for vets. Although we'd taken him to the vet every week for ~6 weeks when fostering him just fine, this experience was different for him and it never got better. I recognize this is not entirely VCA's fault. Dr. Tran quickly recommended anxiety meds, which is where things went south. His prescription made him vomit, a lot, but every time we'd call VCA to get him looked at, we were assured it wasn't the meds making him sick, while also being told they had no availability to see our vomiting pup. This led to several EXPENSIVE ER visits. The limited availability of appointments has been beyond frustrating. It was also hurtful to be told consistently that we were wrong about our dogs bad reaction being due to the meds they prescribed. Instead of calming him, it made him sick consistently for weeks before we listened to our gut, stopped using them and asked for something different. My final frustration is with the unwillingness of staff to meet us halfway. Anxiety meds were suggested, we found ones that worked and sedated him heavily before visits (which we hated), we got a trainer, talked to a behavior specialist, muzzle and e-collar trained him so he'd be more receptive to it at the vet. While all of those things served my dog well in other aspects of his life, he is still just so afraid of the vet. Almost a year later we've been half a dozen times, and paid for each visit although he's never been able to get more than his heartbeat checked. It just has not been a good experience for anyone, including the vets/techs we've worked with who at this point definitely know our dog a difficult one. Fed up at our visit last week, I asked what else could be done, how they could work with us. Ultimately that led to the vet (who was kind, but kept it real, I forget her name) suggesting we try home visits with another office or work with yet another behaviorial specialist. So, that's what we'll be doing. I'm upset that VCA seemed to write us/our dog off pretty quickly after that first difficult visit and I've seen staff react similarly to other anxious pups. Like I said, if you've got a low maintenance pup, I think this place will work out just fine for you, but if you need a bit more patience, more readily available appointments, and want a more fear free experience, look elsewhere.
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January 2023 by Teodor Morava
I feel like their hustling for money, I'd avoid this placeUpdate. Waited forever to hear back, guess what, asking for more moneyThese guys are a joke. Maybe at one point this was a good location, but they gonna hustle you, don’t be surprised that every call is asking for another test that’s going to cost more moneyAvoid avoid avoidUpdate 2. I checked with another place down the street, what vca charged me @ 300, this other place charged at 120. Scam artists
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December 2022 by Cookiepookie Lee
I have been coming here for 10 years now since my dog was a puppy. Despite the fact they changed to appointment only, they’re super slow and never stick to their appointment time. Absolutely no respect for their customer’s time. This has happened way too many times already. I am still ok with them not adhering to appointment time but k feel sad for my pup who shivers the whole time in anxiety. Too bad a good vet clinic cannot control their tardiness.
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November 2022 by M C.
The staff at this VCA location connect with your pet and you! The doctors are able to care and treat most medical problems, except emergencies. This well-care oriented franchise has an incredible staff of doctors, technicians, and office personnel. My happy senior dog seems to be thriving, despite his underlying medical conditions. They also provide boarding to their patients. VCA offers well-care insurance which is fairly cost effective, for pets without any pre-existing medical conditions. Having invested a great deal of funds for various procedures, I realize that I should have purchased pet insurance that covered costs of serious illness and surgeries. The annual well care dental and medical expenses are a fraction of the cost of providing ongoing treatment or surgeries. Once a pet has been diagnosed, medical insurance for illness or emergencies is not available. You may want to research the pros and cons of well-care vs medical insurance coverage for your financial situation as well as the common medical conditions for your pet's breed.
