Altered Tails Barnhart Clinic Phoenix

If you're looking for an establishment that loves dogs and cats more than people then here it is. By far one of the best places in the world to have your animal neutered. They are loving kind manner is just the way you want your animal treated. Remember that dog or cat are part of your family and most of the time your children and that's how you want them treated. Read Less

So, you see, it is great to have a place to go for pet needs at a low price. Beware: they will cut your pets nails too short while they're under anesthesia, and this will cost you thousands over the life of the pet. Example: I have been trimming my pet(s) nails with no fears from either of us, since I got both dogs. I took my littlest pup in for spaying. While under, they cut her nails way too short. Like, painfully short. They even looked funny, like something was covering the ends,. They did not ask me if they could do this. At first I thought, wow, what a great service! Three weeks later, they still were too short to clip. Five weeks later, I tried to take off just the tips. She complained, fussed, fidgeted and struggled so much I could not do it. If I had continued, she would have hurt herself or myself. As a result, she will not allow me to trim her nails. I researched and discovered that the nails likely had bled so much, from being cut so stupidly short, that a (painful) solution had to be put on the nails to stop the bleeding. That's possibly why they looked funny. So now she goes to PetsMart at $10 a pop. Over the life of my pet, this will end up costing me so much more than if I just took her to the vet for the spaying. So, just be sure to tell them - DO NOT CUT MY PETS NAILS. That being in place, I am sure you might be happy with Altered Tails. Read Less

Had our kitten spayed and shots given through their grant. Our new kitten is my daughters ESA (emotional support animal), we would not have been able to afford otherwise. Thank you so much, my daughters continued stability is no longer in as much jeopardy. Read Less

Loved the flow of the process and the Altered Tails staff! At drop off, the staff did an efficient and caring check in. I felt at ease leaving my fur baby with them. They said they were aiming for four for the pick up time, but would call if he was going to be done any sooner. When I went to pick him up, the staff were amazing. The front desk person went over the aftercare and extra pain killer instructions. The man that brought out my dog was incredibly nice. He gave my dog scratches and helped while I put on the cone, offered to give me a towel for my car, and helped me carry my dog out to my car. The staff was so kind, caring, and compassionate! It made for a great experience. Read Less

*Updated - 3 year Review* The deals are great, one of the young staff members, Jessica, is less than desirable. She was argumentative and I realized that there was no solution to my problem that she would be willing to find. Could have asked me to reschedule for a different day or offered up I solution and I would have been happy, but no. It was just cut and dry with her, "nope, it's too late to give that to him now" we're her exact words. Pretty pissed at this place right now, which sucks because this is the only place I would take my pets to get fixed and vaccinated at.. It appears it's time to take my business elsewhere. Read Less

Awesome care in spaying my female and neutering my 2 male ferral kittens that became our new house mates! Thank you all for the time and care that goes out to the animals brought in. Thank you for affordable care!!! Read Less

Had my dog neutered here last week. He came home with a scrotal hematoma. Tried calling Altered Tails the following day (Friday) but they must have been closed because no one answered multiple calls. Ended up having to take him to a different vet for more medications. It's been 4 days and my dog is still in pretty rough shape. I gave three stars because this place provides a valuable and important service. They were professional and helpful when I brought my dog in. I understand that they do dozens of surgeries every day. Unfortunately my dogs procedure was done improperly or the suture came loose afterward. Read Less

It's super busy, but they offer great specials. I had my male cat neutered in January for $20 and they gave him free vaccinations. My female cat was spayed in February, also $20 and free vaccinations. I drove an hour to bring them here and I'd do it again if I had another pet. They take good care of your pet and they saved me nearly $200.Read Less

I am very upset and disappointed with Altered Tails and there complete lack of professionalism. My wife and I are responsible pet owners. We have two indoor/outdoor cats that have been chipped. Jerome is almost 10 and Theo is about 4 years old. There is a house at the end of our street that feeds stray cats so ferrel cats do hang out there and it is a problem. Now we have a doggy door, because we have two dogs. The cats come and go as they please. They are often found eating food at the end of the street. Today we were told that someone pickup up Jerome, thought he was a feral cat and brought him to this facility to be fixed. Altered Tails then tagged Jerome's ear and put him under anesthesia for surgery - WITHOUT my consent - and again HE HAS A CHIP and has been fixed for a decade! They figured that out after the fact. Jerome is not a young cat and the anesthesia could have killed him. Isn't it common practice when a stray or suspected ferrel car is brought in to check for a chip? I would also think before preparing for a surgery you would examine the animal and see that the animal was already fixed eliminating the need for the surgery.What an incredible lack of professionalism that is inexcusable! Read Less

I recently had 2 feral cats spayed & neutered. I requested that they receive a rabies vaccination. When I picked them up the person that checked them in failed to let the vet know. So no rabies shot!! Theres no way that I will ever be able to catch them to be able to vaccinate them. Even though they are ferel cats doesn't mean they can't be a lil healthier. Where's the care and compassion? They do so many a day that they don't have the time to slow down and do their job right. Read Less

They did a great job and charged an extremely reasonable price. I was actually surprised to learn that there was a special going on when I took my cat, which I didn't even know about. I saved a lot of money due to that! The staff was great and they took good care of my kitty. As Shelby Gibson is unhappy with the late fee being charged, that is no reason to give them a low rating. They make it EXTREMELY clear that you must pick up your animal before 5, as that is when the clinic closes. Any pick ups after 5 are charged a fee, as they have to wait for you when they should be closed. They were very clear about that and it is all over their website and paperwork. I got stuck in bad traffic as well on my way there but I built in more than enough time to get there before they closed. Maybe the staff did not handle things well but you cannot be mad at them for having that rule. I'm sure they had so many people not showing up on time and having to stay after close waiting for them that they had to do that. This is no reason to be upset with this clinic. They do great work, even despite how very busy they usually are, and I think they are doing a wonderful job! Read Less

its very sad what people have to go through to keep an animal. not only are you penny pinched to keep it, being charged so much for them to have a home, but penny pinched to treat it, AND THEY WONDER WHY THERE ARE SO MANY HOMELESS ANIMALS, THESE CLINICS DONT CARE, VERY HEARTLESS PEOPLE. its really sad!! Im very surprised there are not better laws. Read Less

EXTREMELLY disappointed in my visit. Had three of my kittens fixed there, and was told pickup was at 3-5. I got stuck in traffic and was going to be super late, so I called to see if my boyfriend could pick them up 15 minutes after 5, she told me I would have to pay a fee of 30 dollars for each cat. I explained the situation and that I could not afford to pay 90 dollars for being 10 minutes late. She was very kind and agreed if I could make it before 5:20 that it would be fine. So my boyfriend arrived to pick them up at approximately 5:10 only to be yelled at by the executive director named Ellen who told him I lied and that conversation never happened. So I call while he is there arguing with this unhappy woman, and ask nicely to speak with her. Immediately Ellen was EXTREMELY rude and would not let me explain the conversation I had with another worker. She THEN proceeded to HANG UP on me and slam MY BOYFRIENDS phone onto the counter, and once again demanded 90 dollars. Finally after my boyfriend threatened to call law enforcement we got our cats back. Not without another argument about whether we were entitled to their medical records or not. She was trying to refuse their medical records to us because we would not pay nearly 100 dollars for being 10 minutes late. Then had the nerve to tell my boyfriend we could not come back there.Read Less

My kitten is dying from the treatment she received there, our vet believes they "spayed" her intestines which is why she cannot eat or defacate and Altered Tails will not treat her or take responsibility. Our personal vet is currently attempting to save her. I have raised my kitten from the moment she was born and am devastated at her treatment. The fact they complained about her meowing when I picked her up should have been a major sign of the type of people they wereRead Less

I have had 2 feral cats altered here and have to say that I have not had a problem. I am now going to bring in a feral kitten that is 5mos. old also to have fixed. What other place would do this kind service for feral animals. Read Less

They ran a special for dogs 6 months and younger, so for $20 I could alter my little baby boy dog Leo. I docked points for two reasons their appointment policy and small waiting area. EVERYONE is given a 7:30 am appointment. This means you and your beloved fur baby will end up waiting in a line/ small space with lots & lots of other pets. Some of these pets are super sweet & friendly, and some want to fight and/or bite. We witnessed a yokel bring a large white Pitt bull on a shoe string of a leash, the dog was controlling the yokel and it went after a black lab. The owner of the black lab, rightfully, gave a tongue lashing to the irresponsible dog owner. Then the yokel unleashed his inner Tourette's syndrome and cursed and screamed for about 15 minutes. The labs owner did not back down, this upset the other dogs. I have two pit mixes. It's not the breed, it's the owner knowing their dog & training him/her properly. The white Pitt was a danger to everyone there. Altered Tails should stagger all of the appointments to limit the number of pets in close quarters and warn irresponsible dog owners to control their pets. The staff was very nice and we had no problems with my little guys recovery. For an additional and minimal fee, they gave him his shots, microchipped my boy and trimmed his nails. Please be careful with your beloved fur babies, some dogs and owners do not play nicely. Read Less

I had no problems. Very nice for the amount of people and dogs they see daily. Not chatty which I appreciate.  I took my puppy in and she's always a bit timid but seemed comfortable with the staff both k n and out of surgery.She is also a super high energy pup who you cant keep down. Stitches held really well despite being back to playing the same day. Id go there again. Read Less

The staff was really friendly at the Phoenix location! It was really busy as it was right as they opened but they handled it really quickly & efficiently. The prices are really reasonable so if you're looking to get pet neutered/spayed or shots, I'd recommend Altered Tails! Read Less

*I went to the Mesa location* I am rating 3 stars because the customer service was HORRIBLE, but the cost was very fair and they took care of my puppy. I found the front desk to be very snotty and argumentative, which made me uncomfortable. Luckily, I don't care about being right, I care about getting my dog taken care of. They seemed to care more about making a point and being right than customer service. Read Less

Great, great, great service. Again, two more dogs were dumped at my school. I helped them find homes. Part of the whole adoption and rescue included a visit here. I wish I knew about it for my cats. It is very cheap compared to the plan I got with Petsmart. It is a five star service for sure. They do great things and even have a Feral cat program. God Bless them. Please, someone help them to open more clinics. As much as I hate to do this since Az is just awful as far as animal welfare goes, I am knocking off a star. I am doing this as a heads up to folks who want to use the service because of a very rude staff member and a very disorganized check in procedure. Just be flexible if you chose their services. Perhaps bring another person to help you? The place has an assembly line check in so do not expect fancy Vet customer service. You get what you pay for. In my case I was not paying. I was just helping out and dropping off the dogs. I kept telling the woman at intake this and she kept arguing with me. This proved to be very stressful for me and the dogs. I left the place extremely upset. The dogs were very scared. They had been through a lot these last two weeks. I was especially annoyed at the way one of the intake clerks was treating me. She was snappy and rude with me. I noticed she treated a few other patrons the same way. I think the check in process is stressful, disorganized, and unclear. Maybe a sign to tell you how to do it? I had no idea what to do. When I returned the paperwork on the counter the woman literally tore my head off, threw it back at me and said, "get back in line." I was so confused. Usually one hands in paperwork at a medical clinic and then gets called back up in turn. Also, there really was not a line to get back into. Maybe they should do a ticket number thing like at the Deli? The intake room is way too small for the volume. Lots of pets peeing, smelly, and loud barking craziness. There was nowhere to sit. I had to fill out the paperwork standing up with two dogs tugging on a leash, jumping on my legs, and hiding behind me twisting the leash around me, scared to death. The intake worker kept telling me to move away from the counter but there was nowhere else to go. Those dog's butts were not budging from their hiding area. Poor babies were very stressed out, so was I. A few patrons were yelling at the intake workers for not having them down for their verified appointments too. I wanted to video tape the scene it was sooooooooooo crazy.  It sure was a zoo both literally and figuratively. lol. When you have scared animals it can be very aggravating. The intake worker could have been much nicer. However, all of the other staff members were very helpful, especially the Techs. I also liked the woman who was walking around helping people. Karma dictated that she appeared after I already checked in and was on my way out. Anyway, it is a great service for sure just be open minded. Be prepared to be a bit aggravated for your reduced cost services. I could have given them 5 stars but they need to improve their check in services. They also should educate staff surrounding sensitivity. Read Less

Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. They offer such great services to the valley, I cannot begin to thank them enough. Spaying/neutering your dog/cat is so so important, and altered tails makes it more affordable so hopefully responsible pet owners will come here. They also offer low cost vaccines which is another bonus for your beloved pet. Read Less

I brought my 2, male, three year old pugs in to get neutered. The staff was so very friendly with the people there and the animals. Check in took maybe half an hour and I was 5th in line. Pick up was super easy and quick. I would highly recommend this wonderful low cost spay neuter clinic to anyone! Keep up the great work. The ONLY inconvenience I had was the entrance was around the back of the building and I park in the front at first. Read Less

I would say NO Stars... I took my feral cats to these people and what a nightmare it was. They are incapable of compassion or care for the cats - after all they are "just ferals" . If you need help with feral cats call 602-265-7729 these Altered Tails people are a joke. Read Less

Altered Tails is wonderful. They provide low-cost spray and neutering for dogs and cats, as well as, for feral cats. The staff is extremely friendly and caring. They took the time to carefully explain in detail after care steps to ensure my puppy would heal promptly. My dog was spayed a few weeks ago she started to open her wound during the night by licking-- they fixed her up for free and really took the time to take care of her. I would recommend this place for anybody looking for a low-cost spay and neuter clinic or if they are having a feral cat problem in their neighborhoods. Read Less