VCA Alameda East Veterinary Hospital

Money Driven. I find it dishonest to funnel people into unnecessary expense under the pretense of being "more thorough". In my 2 dealings with AEVH, I was pushed in the direction of additional appointments for no apparent reason. The first time I tried to schedule an appointment with their canine Dermatologist (after my regular vet suggested the consultation) for a condition that was not clearing with several "first line" attempts. I was told that I could not see their Dermatologist directly, but had to see a AEVH general practice veterinarian first. I explained I had a GP and he wanted me then to see a Dermatologist. The scheduler declined to make the appointment w/o a GP appointment first. I was able to speak with their Dermatologist directly who was appalled to hear his clients were being siphoned away.

On another occasion, our GP wanted to get an MRI of our dog's cervical spine at AEVH. In a similar fashion, I was told that an MRI could not be done without a "complete neurologic evaluation by one of our Neurologists". That appears to be the standard of care in the area. However, at VRCC I was able to get the same evaluation with a Neurologist AND Neurosurgeon (one in the same unlike AEVH), but also get the MRI for atleast $500.00 less.

I am done with Alameda East. I find them to be money driven primarily.  View Less … View More

Saved our Dog's Life on Labor Day: Emergency Surgery Success. This past Labor Day (2011), we picked up our German Shorthair Pointer from daycare in the AM after a weekend trip. He was not acting like himself and pacing, vomiting, foaming at the mouth. We rushed him to Alameda East and it was determined after checking out him and doing x-rays that he was experiencing gastric torsion. The on-call surgeon was called in and within two hours of taking him, he was in emergency surgery to try and save his stomach from completely turning over. Our dog was out of surgery in an hour and the surgeon and vet were able to save him and reverse his condition. HIs spleen was removed due to damage the torsion had done to it, but our dog was saved.

We are very pleased with the level of care, sense of urgency, and ability to operate on the holiday when our dog needed it. Without this emergency surgery, he probably would not have made it. Dr. Isreal and Surgeon Dr. Cavanaugh did a great job with our dog of 8 years. He is at home healing now and it will be a few weeks before he is back to normal, but we are pleased with the level of service and care received when truly needed. Thank you Alameda East and Dr. Isreal & Cavanaugh for helping to save our dog  View Less … View More

Thank You!. My cat went into labor this morning, her first litter and my first cat period. The first kitten came out fine, but she didn't have another one for at least 2.5 hours. I began to get very concerned so I called to see what they thought. Everyone I talked to was very helpful, nice, and genuine. They told me that this was normal for her cat type as long as she wasn't struggling, which she wasn't. Told me to keep her in a dark warm room, which I did. After that, less than 40 minutes later, 5 healthy kittens! And the momma (MY baby) is doing great! Thanks so much to the staff at VCA for taking the time to ease my worries and give me great advice!  View Less … View More

the worst! stay away. They went way over their already overpriced estimate - dont go here unless you want mediocre care at very high prices! I will never walk thru those doors again. And i am telling all my friends with dogs to stay away.

My instincts said dont go there, but i did anyway and boy, am I ever sorry. Hang on to your wallet and your panties - they'll take it all! I was quoted a range of prices then charged well beyond the high end - I even had it in writing.

My dog is healthy, the procedure was minimal, I was told it went smoothly, so why the additional fees?

When I asked the cashier why there was the over charge she shrugged and handed me the credit card statement to sign. No explanation. I reluctantly signed and got my dog.

My dog is family and I am happy to pay to keep him healthy and happy, but this was ridiculous. I wish I would have done more research before making an appt - I attend a lot of dog events and as I asked around I found many with the same bad experience.

Then I hear its a teaching hospital with mostly inexperienced techs - so why the super high price? They are getting rich off of suckers like me. Lesson learned. Hope my experience spares someone else.  View Less … View More