Stay far away. They do not care about your animal or you just making money. They can't even remember the own scripts they write. They bring you in on special "free welcome visits" or trying to sign you up for their "wellness programs" which still has very high hidden fees throughout. Our first "welcome" visit cost almost $400 for exams and tests our puppy had already had, one he did need however we still have not gotten the results. The Vet wrote prescriptions for medications the company promotes with active ingredients that our puppy has not previously been on. Trying to get them changed to proper medications was a nightmare and we were allotted no refills on the script- that they proudly highlighted multiple times. Then when we went to get them filled through PetMeds after all of this, THEY DENIED THE ORDER, yet they had already written the scripts. Go find a stand alone vet that actually has a heart for animals and not a greed for money. Read Less

I refuse to take my dog here. I've heard horrible things about this place. I took my 8 week old corgi to the Banfield in Mission Gorge instead. He checked out with a clean bill of health (minus his extremely Itchy skin) our vet told us to give it a day or two, and if the itching persisted to call her.Well, his itching not only persisted, but had gotten worse. Last night he couldn't sleep he was itching so bad. (No mites, flees, redness, dry skin, etc.) I called our vet and she prescribed us a medical grade anti-itch shampoo to help sooth his poor skin. She told me since I was 45 minutes away, I could pick up my prescription at the Banfield in La Jolla. (Which is right down the street from my house) All I needed to do was provide my information since all the systems are connected.I gave my information and explained what was going on. They were able to pull up his prescription and records. Only, they refused to give us the medication. By this time, it was too late to drive to Mission Gorge. I called my vet and she sat on the phone arguing with the La Jolla Banfield staff about giving me the shampoo. SHES A VET AT THE MISSION GORGE BANFIELD. We are talking the same group of people here... I could not believe the amount of disrespect down right rude behavior I observed with their team of "Medical Professionals" This just reinforces the fact that this place is a horrible place to take your pet. They didn't care that my dog will go another excruciating night without any type of relief. They offered zero solutions for his problem. It was just, "Sorry, we can't help you."It's shampoo for gods sake people...it's not a shot or a pill. Your customers can't talk or explain their pain, so you should provide them with any kind of relief you can. They clearly missed that memo...The vet off Mission Gorge has been extremely nice and helpful, I highly recommend driving the extra miles for better customer service. I will be driving there early tomorrow morning to get the shampoo I should have been able to get in La Jolla... Read Less

I hate this place! the McDonalds of the vet world.  charge for every single thing when we come in.  We have monthly plan that doesn't really do anything.  Our pug has been having infection in the ear, they keep saying cause the way the ear is curved we can't see in there.. well you're the vet, get better equipment! sound so stupid when you say that to me!  Also they said my pug who is 14 who never had lyme vaccine needs to get one, for some reason them calling about setting an appointment for lyme disease I assumed it was part of our plan.  Instead they charged us and then our pug had a huge lump that was sensitive to the touch at the injection site... they said lets just observe him and totally denied this ever happens. Well there is thing called google and when I looked this up, turns out this has happened before! irresponsible! not taking any accountability at all!   its a month later, it shrunk only a little. its still a huge hard mass! I'm incredibly upset with them and when tried to cancel from the same place we enrolled they give me a number to call! wth!?!? just cancel it! Read Less

I go to this Banfield for all of my dogs needs and we have been a part of the Wellness program since he was a puppy. We have seen all different doctors there, but I am especially pleased with how his teeth cleaning went yesterday. I was a huge ball of tears and so worried about putting my little 7lb Yorkie under anesthesia, but Dr. Zaranek and the team were so calm and caring. She called me herself to give me updates and make recommendations for his care. He was pretty out of it the rest of the day, but showed no signs of pain and did not get sick. They called me the next day to make sure he was doing well, too. The only thing I felt was lacking was that I didn't get any pre-procedure instructions. They tried calling me to confirm, but unfortunately I was at work and missed their call. Thankfully I'm a nurse and know not to feed him before anesthesia, but many people might not know and it might be nice to get an email with some tips if phone calls aren't feasible.I'm not sure why people have given bad reviews in the past, but I will definitely continue bringing my dog here. I would absolutely die if anything happened to him, which I'm sure many people feel that was so I am so, so thankful he is happy and healthy. Thank you guys so much!! Read Less

The veterinary staff will try and sell you unneeded items or drugs for your dog. I have never experienced anything like this at any other Banfield over the last 15 years. They come across as used Cars salesmen. Very unethical and using the love for your pet as an angle to make money. Read Less

I came in January 10th in the morning, and everyone working had absolutely zero customer service quality's - from the two girls working the desk to Dr.White. Dr.White barley examined my dog and did not seem to care much about my dog nor me, and essentially ignored any questions I had. I was in a bit of a rush, and the girl checking us in was busy training another girl (which is fine) but at least TRY to have a little customer service skills with your clients. Also, be prepared to get judged for "not wanting to get your dog neutered." On top of a horrible experience, they booked my second APPT for a follow up shot on a booster too late, so I had to pay extra to get the whole shot session again. Going to this location makes me reconsider having a plan with this company, and would not recommend trusting them with your animal. Read Less

Never had such a bad experience at the vet. I felt like they didn't pay attention to the reasons I brought my cat in and were just trying to sell me products and treatments I didn't need. I ended up just having to take him to a vet again one week later- waste of my time and money. Read Less

I did not receive care here but I was not impressed with the service I did get. My dog was seen at the solana beach location (because this location was full and scheduled me there) and I had talked to the vet about getting comfortis. After calling the solana beach location, I got an OK to get it and that I should be able to get it at another banfield location. Wrong! This location refused to fill it without having my dog seen at this location. I called solana beach back and they were confused as to why I was turned away. I drove further to get the Rx in sb who were very nice through the whole process. Seems like this location just wants money. If they can schedule me to sb, surely they can give their vets a call to clear any confusion about the Rx but the receptionist didn't even make an effort to do anything. Read Less

The reviews are right. Banfield Pet Hospital (La Jolla location) is the single worst, horrifying, and dangerous place to take your puppy. Over a period of three days, the hospital risked my puppy's life TWICE. A rescued 4-week old chihuahua does not have the physical strength to withstand negligent vets. The worst part is that all the serious health problems she had were due to malpractice. And, to make matters worse, kept my puppy for hours while trying to put a catheter (pocking her like crazy), only to tell me they didn't have the proper catheter for her and I would need to take her to the ER (because it took too long for her to receive her meds). And, EVEN WORSE, she was pocked with a dirty needle and develop a large cyst of pus that had to be surgically removed. My experience at this location was truly horrible, such that every time I stop by PetSmart I get shivers. This hospital only cares about ripping customers off, scaring customers to death because their pets might die, and providing life-threatening service. Read Less

I have been bringing my English bulldog here for several years. Although this hospital is on the pricey side, it is located at a very convenient location and is open seven days a week. Typically I find that for the most the staff is very helpful and accommodating, unfortunately today I took my dog in and he was seen by Dr White instead of his primary vet. In the last few days my dog has been urinating frequently approximately 10 times a day and has a prior history of urinary tract infections. Despite the historical data indicating a history of UTI's and the fact that my dog has bladder stones  the vet did not want to put him on preventative antibiotics unless I paid $140 for a bacterial cultural. What kind of an inhumane vet would not put a seven year old bull dog with a lengthy history of multiple infections on preventative antibiotics to ease his pain and make him wait for 4-6 days for a bacterial culture to put him on antibiotics. Now I fully understand how antibiotics work as I am in the medical profession and the issue with resistance to antibiotics however we are discussing a dog who is already seven years old with a life expectancy of another two years. Therefore the issue of resistance should not be an issue at this juncture. Highly dissatisfied and do not recommend anyone taking their beloved pet while doc White is on call!!!!!! Unfortunately I just paid for his yearly wellness plan  , however moving forward I will most certainly not bring my baby back when Dr White is in the house!!!!!! Pet lovers beware!!!!!!!!!!!! Read Less

I would say about this banfield location is that this place is not an animal care place. They want to make money off of their clients for any thing they can. I had my dog neutered here which was suppose to be covered under the wellness plan and they told me that my dog had some issues with his kidney so they had to do a another blood work and to give him some different kind of anesthetic don't know what it was and they charged me extra for it and said they would have to do a different kind of blood work after few months. this was about six months ago and when I asked them to give me in writing what is wrong with my dog they didn't. And I had my dog checked with other vet and they said he is perfectly fine.Now i took my dog there because he had a small cut they came out and gave me a bill for almost $300 which had an office visit fee and wound cleaning and some other charges. It's a small cut and i can see it and they don't even hesitate. My another dog who was a golden retriever which is suppose to be a dog that swim they said she has a ear infection because of water. They made me spent more money because they said he needs medicated ear cleaner and some other stuff. Being the responsible pet owner any body would get scared if their pet get sick so I don't care about spending money but every time you go there they want to sell you some stuff it's like you are standing in a jewelry shop where they try to sell you the stuff even when you don't need it.And they don't even tell you that it's a 12 months contract when you signup for the wellness plan. I would not recommend this location or their wellness plans for anybody who cares for their pets. A complete ripoff. It's not just one time it been happening over and over and I see people standing in line there wasting their money.I would take my pet to little mom and pop vet clinic since they try to earn your money not rip you off. Read Less

I occasionally take my dog to PetSmart PetsHotel for doggie day care and would like to emphasize that the staff at PetsHotel are wonderful.  Unfortunately the same cannot be said for Banfield.  One afternoon when I picked up my dog from daycare she was bleeding from her genital region (turned out to be a superficial abrasion).  Obviously alarmed, I asked if the vet on staff could take a quick look because she had treated my dog once.  She refused because we did not have an appointment and referred us to the emergency pet hospital in Sorrento Valley.  A referral to emergency care, when warranted, shows good clinical judgement.  However, a cursory exam would have revealed the superficial nature of the bleeding and avoided panic.  More importantly, if the bleeding had been life-threatening, it could have been addressed immediately rather than after a 20 - 30 minute drive (5:30 pm, rush hour on the 5 and 805) to the emergency pet hospital.After this upsetting incident, I called more than 3 times to speak to the practice manager.  She never returned my call.  There are better veterinary options in La Jolla and I encourage you to look elsewhere. Read Less

I usually go to the point loma location and never ever had a problem with it.Couple weeks ago, I tried to schedule an appointment for my dog's neuter but they would only have for a month later so I decided to schedule at the La Jolla location (if one is good why the other wouldn't be?)First: point loma never leave you on hold, at La Jolla they left me on hold for 6 long minutes, just to schedule a neuter. Anyway, I was "lucky" and they had for a week later. After two days my phone died and I would have to change my phone number with them in case they try to contact me to confirm anything about the neuter. AGAIN I was left on hold for 3 or 4 times, just to change a phone number. The neuter: got there at 7 in the morning.First: they need to train the receptionists how to not excite your dog, it's very annoying when you try to put your dog on the scanner and they keep exciting your dog for no reason.Second: she was trying to push me on getting my dogs nails cut and to microchip him, she was very inconvenient insisting about that. It looks like it was all about money! Is that a clinic or what? They look at your dog as an opportunity to make extra money, once you already paid for everything with the wellness plan. Third: they call me around noon to say my dog was doing fine and AGAIN OFFERED ME TO MICROCHIP HIM AND CUT HIS NAILS, I felt like "are you serious?" anyways I said no again.Finally when I went there to take my dog, the doctor's assistant came to talk to me (not even the doctor!!! Like who cares? My dog's submitted to surgery everyday!!) I asked her a couple questions and then the doctor finally showed up, she was SO RUDE! the assistant and the doctor were contradicting and again the doctor was super rude, they also gave me a cone which cost me 17$ and it's very poor quality! My dog was crying and I wanted to leave as soon as possible that place! It was horrible and I would never come back... I'll give a chance to point loma anyway, once I never had any problems there! Read Less

When choosing a vet, I expect the clinic to care about my pet and me as a client, and not about making money. My experience at this office left me feeling that they cared very little about my cat, but wanted to get me to pay as much as possible. I had a visit at this office because my cat had a weird lesion that was growing on the back of his neck. My usual vet didn't have appointments for 4 more days, and I was too worried to wait that long due to the exponential growth of this lesion. I called around to a few places, but this was the only vet who could schedule a visit in a reasonable time frame. When I first arrived, it took about 10-15 minutes until someone acknowledged that I was there. I realize that places get busy, so that's understandable. The staff seemed very flustered, and it seems that they only have one computer to check out guests. After they examined my pet, they recommended all of these tests and exams which is fine seeing as they didn't know what was wrong. I told them that I didn't have enough money to spend on all those tests. At this point I expected the Vet to work with me and figure out the best treatment plan for my pet. At the end of the day, I will spend the money to treat my pet, but I don't make enough money to try everything and see what works. The other vet I visit always tells me what I should try first then we can reevaluate if that plan didn't work. Instead this Vet just stared at me waiting for me to cut down the list of tests. Now, I'm not a vet and I don't know what is best for my pet. This experience let me feeling that they did not care much about my pet or me as a client, they just wanted to charge me the most. In the end, I selected what I thought was the best, then they tried to sell me on buying their preventative medical plan. I of course passed as I don't want to be locked in a year with this place. I would rather pay more to see a vet that cares about my pet and me as a client. Now this is the part that really makes me feel that all they care about is making money. After I pay and leave, I go to Yelp and I see that they offer a free visit for first time clients. No one mentioned that to me. If they cared about my pets well being, they should have told me about this offer so that I could have spent the $50 it costs just to see the vet on another treatment for my cat! If my cat doesn't get better, I will not come back to this clinic. I will be taking my business elsewhere. Read Less

What an amazing experience! The staff is so nice you can tell they love what they do . Soledad the receptionist had a smile on her face the whole time and had Excellent customer service. My dog Weazel actually enjoyed going to the vet because they gave him so much love . Well I'll definitely be back and will refer everyone I know to Banfield La jolla. Thank you ladies for the great experience. Read Less

My boyfriend and I just took our 17 year old cat to this location, and truly had a wonderful experience. They treated Lloyd for an allergic reaction to some older flea bites. The services weren't overpriced, and our vet and vet tech were kind and understanding. We will absolutely return! Read Less

I came here because my dog's regular vet was booked up and I had a coupon for a free first exam here. It then quickly became a bad experience. The vet continuously tried to up-sell unnecessary services and products. For any healthcare establishment, I would expect to meet helpful people who care about your pet's well being. However, in this establishment, the primary focus is to drive your bill up, since they already expect you not to return. They exploit pet parents by exploiting your bond with your pet, and recommending irrelevant services and products, and hope that you haven't done the prior research. Avoid like the plague. Read Less

I do NOT trust the judgment nor the medical calls this hospital makes for my animals.  They are so quick to incorrectly diagnose and attempt to charge for expensive tests and treatments when they are not warranted in the slightest.  They wanted to cut open my dog and check for cancer ($$$) when all he needed was antibiotics to bring his liver levels down to normal because he had an infection.  Who made that correct diagnosis? My spouse.  Whenever we come in for routine check ups, we have to battle back at least two sales pitches for some medicine or take home therapy for some affliction our perfectly healthy animals now seem to have. Not to mention, one of their vets always has a "how dare you question my professional diagnosis" tone whenever you talk to her on the phone.There are better, more professional, and frankly more qualified vets in the area and I intend to find one. Read Less

Ok this is going to be slightly long but please stick with me! I started bringing my cat here 3 yrs ago because it was convenient and ten mins from where I live. I signed up blindly for the Wellness plan which I now fully regret and you'll see why. My cat was super over weight and started to lose weight slowly. He got his comprehensive exam and blood check to see why. He was tested for Diabetes and thyroids which both he tested negative. They briefly mention that one of his kidneys was slightly elevated but not to worry since he seemed to test like that every time so no need to be concerned. Fast forward 3 yrs which means several comprehensive exams.My cat kept losing weight and Banfield kept telling me it was probably Cancer and to be prepared for the worst, at one point they try to encourage me to think about euthanasia and that euthanizing him would probably be the best.  For some reason I didn't want to believe it because they've been telling me the same exact thing for 3 yrs! If he had fcking Cancer he would have been dead by now! So this past Feb my cat became extremely ill and I rushed him to Banfield and they basically told me he needed blood work but wasn't due for blood work until 2 weeks later! They wouldn't budge and I was forced to renew my useless contract and increase the "coverage" in order to afford his treatments. Once the blood work came back they told me his KIDNEY levels were off the chart and he needed to be hooked up to fluids right away! So I agreed. After 2 1/2 days of fluid treatments I get a call in the middle of his treatment that the fluids caused his blood pressure to spike and all the sudden he had a heart murmur! He never ever had a heart murmur. I was told to pick him up immediately and bring him to another pet hospital because they could no longer treat him!!! Are you kidding me!!!! I thought he was at a pet hospital! So they stopped his IV treatment in the middle of the session! So I rush him to animal specialty hospital in sorrento valley and they stabilize him. Come to find out they told me that Banfield gave him a dangerous amount of fluids which may have caused his heart murmur. So after stabilizing my cat I decided to find him a new vet! They were able to finally diagnose him and guess what he does NOT have Cancer! Come to find out he has Kidney issues that should have been diagnosed 3 yrs ago when Banfield first notice one was slightly elevated! They never once offered me to do a test to check his kidney levels because they were so convinced he had cancer by just looking at him. Because of their continual misdiagnoses my cat now as permanent damage to his kidneys! If they diagnosed him correctly a lot of his current issues could have been avoided. So once my cat is stable and spending thousands in the ER I take him home. Now anyone that has a cat with kidney disease knows they can have a relapse with their elevated kidney levels. So a week later he becomes weak again and like a moron take him to Banfield La Jolla. I was shocked with how rude his doctor was to me! It was as if I was annoying them and interrupting their valuable time by asking them to make sure he was ok since the appeared very weak. The doctor basically asked me why I was there and said nothing is wrong with him. Well guess what! That night I had to again rush him to the ER to get him stabilized. He ended up spending the night there. So yeah I would say something was wrong with him, his kidney levels were off the chart. After his last episode I decided to change vets. I had to do this to basically save his life. The new vet I take him to is Governors Animal Clinic and they are amazing and basically saved my cats life and at least prolonged it! They are also much cheaper than Banfield. They have given him a full kidney treatment plan (Banfield never did that) which includes daily medication and fluids. He is gaining weight and has more energy! I will NEVER bring any of my animals to Banfield ever again! And I wish I wasn't stuck with their useless contract. Maybe I can contact my attorney to have them look into the misdiagnosis. If they had diagnosed my cat earlier with Kidney issues he probably wouldn't have the kidney problems he now has. Another concern I have is how they treated him when I wasn't looking or with him. I've notice my cat who is usually calm got very aggravated when he went to Banfield. He would hiss and growl which is not a normal behavior for him. He was beyond stressed out going there. When I've been taking him to the new vet I've notice his behavior is more calm and he gets less aggravated. It's interesting how his behavior changed once I changed vets.Please do your research on this place and read everyone's complaints about their wellness plan before you sign up. There are much better and cheaper pet insurance plans out there with way more coverage than what you get with Banfield. This is not a good pet hospital. Read Less

This particular Banfield location is probably the worst clinic you could possibly choose for you pet. I brought my puppy here exactly 1 year ago and it turned out she had Giardia. It cost 300+ to figure out she had Giardia which can be identified from a simple fecal exam. Of course, being an inexperience pet owner I just wanted to find out what was wrong and let them do whatever they wanted.During the entire visit they constantly try to sell their health plan to me at a time where I was scared my puppy would die! After seeing the bill and how much the health plan would help reduce the price, I fell for their tricks and signed up. Thus, I was locked in for an entire year.I went in several times throughout the year and it became clear that the doctors here are brand new graduates who should spend several years practicing under an experienced vet before they practice on their own. They are VERY bad.... I just don't know any other way to put it.They overcharge constantly and try to sell you stuff you don't need. The nurses are rude and unwilling to take their time with the animal. I had a nurse shove a thermostat up my dogs rectum without spending a second gaining her trust and then complain that the dog tried to nip her and that my 15 pound dog that was licking the receptionist's face for 30 min is vicious....I decided to stop taking my dog here before the health plan was over after my last visit. My dog stopped eating her food and i simply went in to have her checked out with some routine labs. After they found out I feed my dog a commercial raw diet (Stella and Chewy's) they immediately started blurting out ignorant comments. The receptionist said, "You know domestic dogs don't need the raw" as if dogs within the last 100 years have adapted to consume highly processed cooked garbage in a pellet. Then the doctor started criticizing her diet and said there may be salmonella in her food and "other dangerous stuff." Again, complete garbage given that there is not a SINGLE case of dogs becoming sick from salmonella due to raw food, whereas these types of reports come out on a monthly basis for popular kibble companies.The last straw was when she recommended i feed my dog science diet instead. So, switch from a human grade raw organic food which costs me over 100+ per month for a 15 pound dog, to something which is filled with grains and euthanize/sick animal meats. She even compared the food I feed to McDonalds. Please don't listen to any recommendations they make regarding your dog's food, they get kickbacks from royal canine and science diet and therefore push this stuff as much as possible.Anyway, don't go here if you care about your dog/cat. Look at all the 1 star reviews. This place is absolutely horrible!. Read Less

I brought my cat in because she was having issues with fleas. They didn't really look her over very well and I felt like I didn't get good answers to my questions. The vet herself was nice and she noticed that my cat had an ear infection on top of what I had originally brought her in for so I was glad that she caught that. Other than that though I was not impressed. The customer service was horrible. The lady at the front desk was not friendly and told me to leave without paying because they would not be able to close the bill until they ran the test and decided if I needed to buy ear infection medication. I said that I wasn't sure if I could come back that night and that I wanted to get her the flea medication (which she definitely needed) as soon as possible because I could tell my cat felt miserable. She tried to tell me no because they wanted me to pay first and that I would have to wait until they got the other test results back. I offered to pay first but she refused and then was very snappy with me and finally told me to just take the flea medication without paying and that I could pay when I come back.Later that night I got an angry call from the manager telling me I "walked out without paying" When I informed her that I tried to pay but was told to pay later she acted very surprised and wasted a lot of my time on the phone by telling me how surprised she was that they would tell me to walk out without paying and blah blah blah. I ended up paying over the phone with my card but I couldn't believe a manager would call a customer and treat them like a criminal and waste my time by lecturing me about how surprised she is at her employees mistake. Also, the manager did not apologize to me for the misunderstanding. The vet who I talked to after apologized for the ordeal though so she was nice.Overall I think the vets are ok but the management and the front desk employees are sub-par.  I will not be returning here.Update: After writing this review I was contacted by a manager at Banfield who offered to give me a free vet visit to make up for the bad experience, they even paid for the prescriptions that my cat needed for that visit. I did feel that the second visit in was a much better experience and I did like the vet I saw so I am changing the review from one star to three. Read Less