Vca Encina Veterinary Medical Center

I ended up here when my dog became very sick and my normal vet could not run the tests we needed done. The staff was very nice and got me in that day. Dr. Nurre was very nice and professional, he explained to me what he was going to do and explained the bill to me. My dog had to stay to nights in the ICU, and Dr. Nurre said I could come visit anytime. I was very impressed with everyone. When I took my dog home, still very sick, Dr. Nurre called the next day to see how Sammydog was doing and he gave me his cell phone and said to call any time. I would definitely recommend this vet for any emergencies. They are expensive but well worth the money. They saved my dog. Thank you all for the great service and support. Read Less

Worst animal hospital I’ve ever been to. I waited 2 hours and paid $100 for the vet to do nothing. They wanted to charge me $800 for a chest X-ray and blood work on my dog. Utterly ridiculous. The staff seemed to care less that we were there. There was about 20 of them and hardly any patients. I should have followed my gut and listened to the other reviews. I am sick to my stomach right now over it. Now I have to find a different vet that is not trying to rape my wallet... Read Less

Very disappointed . I was charged $300 for consult and I feel that was not right.  Estimate told was under 2000$ and when I went for consult I was told 4000$. So I told them I will have to save that much before I can decide.  Being honest.  They charged me $300 for 15 min consultation which is supposed to be free n told me if we find someone to replace we will refund you.  Let's see what happens then I can call 7 on my side but that in itself left me with bitter feeling for future$300 easy money. Who charges for consultation ? Read Less

The people at this place are fantastic. My cat Pandora had been having seizures and was getting worse. I took her here twice, the 2nd time being (unfortunately) the end for her. She was too far gone to recover, but they made sure I understood the options available and didn't push either way. I made the appropriate decision and the kindness and compassion they showed was amazing. I'm so glad they were available and willing to help me through a tough time. Read Less

Dr. Adamo was outstanding; knowledgeable, personable and obviously a pet lover. He was patient and gentle when we had to bring our small dog in for an expert opinion on her deteriorating physical and mental condition. I would definitely recommend him. The support staff was very good, 7 out of 10. Read Less

Amazing care!!Our cat, Pete, became very ill last night.  By 5 am, we knew we couldn't wait until 9 am when our regular vet opens. I called east bay and they said come right over.   As soon as we walked in, they took one look at him and took him in the back.  Less than 10 minutes later, Dr. Walters came back and gave us options and back he went to work.  Sadly, our Pete did not make it, but Dr. Walters and his staff worked on him until the end.   It appears that Pete had a genetic problem that we did not know about.     It has been a hard day, but it was made so much easier because of the care at East Bay.     Thank you so much!! We will never forget your caring and kindness in a very difficult time.   Joan and Tom Grimes Read Less

Exceptionally great vet care overall, my dog was treated in the dental department, had a bunch of teeth removed and a biopsy, and also had the regular vet consult on a skin issue. Worth the drive to Walnut Creek. Read Less

The team is spirited, upbeat, practice funny scrub Friday, and embraced our visit with lots of singing, jamming out to Bette Davis eyes, and Fleetwood Mac. Obviously Kyrie was our fav because she had some serious swagger and her cat eyes were on fleek. We enjoyed the take home science vile with the extraction from our dog, and it made for a good work show-and-tell item. Our only dilemma was trying to NOT come up with excuses for a follow up visit. Read Less

Zero star! DO NOT TAKE YOUR PET HERE! On 5/10 around 527am  my dog had a seizure and his eyes were darting from sides to sides,he was able to stand but weak, walking like he's drunk and his body was burning hot. I called East Bay Vet. Specialist also known as Encina VetHospital & got an appt to see Neurob5/11. Brought my dog in & explained that he had a fever,seizures & vomited 4 times & that I started Baytril 5/10. I also fast him in case he needs to have a CT scan or MRI done at this place so did not give him Baytril since he need to take with food. Neuro did all the balance tests & recommended MRI next day 5/12 since it looks like Inflammation to the brain. Not once was I told to continue to give him Baytril or send me home with a strong broad spectrum antibiotics or seizure meds. 5/12 MRI done & showed inflammation along the meninges Spinal tap done & it was a bit cloudy- A sign of bacterial meningitis as I was told. He was given a steroid shot & predisone to go home to start 5/13 & again NO broad spectrum Antibiotics was given. My dog responded to the steroid shot & he was able to walk around slowly & ate a little. 5/13 was told to start on the Prednisone, dog slept more during the day & middle of the night he had the fever again & episodes of seizures. 5/14 found Neurologist email on the internet & emailed him about the fever & seizures, Dr said to take him to East Bay Vet. Specialist & he would phone into the ER staff to start my dog on IV fluids & antibiotics. It was a little over an hour drive,arrived 2pm & a staff took my dog to the back, I waited outside for 20 minutes then put into a room & waited about 1 hour for ER dr to come talk. ER dr insisted to do blood works, I told her that was done on 5/11 but insist that I need to re do(Fine) Then she said he is not a good candidate for CPR & another staff will come in w/ the estimates of his treatment & for me to sign the DNR form. Waited another 20 minutes to sign the form & was told I can see my dog before I leave. 15 mins passed before they brought my dog in, he was still breathing fine, can't stand but able to lie down with head up & that's when I noticed NO CATHETER was in his arm!! So they were just taking his vitals & draw blood & DID NOT START ANY TREATMENTS!  I hastily tell him to fight & gave him back & told the staff to start treatment on him IMMEDIATELY. She took him to the back & I frantically texted the Neuro DR (337pm)to call in & have treatment started.I left there 4pm & around 630pm I got that dreaded phone call that he went into Respiratory Arrest & I had to put him down. When I asked for his records I was appalled by the treatment given to my dog! Not only did treatment started late but  ER staff gave 2 anti vomit meds(Reglan & Ondansetron),anti-nausea(Cerenia),stomach acid reducer(Protonix) along with antibiotics(Baytril-does it ring a bell? I had started this & was NEVER told to continue when I first brought my dog in!) Doxycycline and Clindamycin(read the highlighted area on the photo). The Clindamycin was wrapped in a pill pocket & stuffed in my dog's mouth & staff did not care whether he swallowed it or not so when he went into Respiratory arrest & they had to intubate him, the pill pocket was still lodged in his mouth! The 3 tests & in house tests I wanted cancel I was told the 3 tests were not canceled & was told it was miscommunication on my end & that the in house tests were already done(Really?) The in house test(see photo)was ran 5/15, the day after my dog died! Why give him so many anti vomiting,anti nausea & stomach acid reducer when he should be treated for his primary problem which is the bacterial meningitis. Side Effects of Cerenia if allergic cause DIFFICULTY BREATHING! They just wanted to use up all 8 injections that I paid! He probably had an adverse reactions to those unnecessary meds not to mention the pill pocket that was stuck in his mouth! I am so upset & disappointed that my dog had to suffer in the hands of these incompetent ER staff. Pls do yourself a favor and read all the ONE STAR reviews for EAST BAY VETERINARY and ENCINA VETERINARY HOSPITAL(same clinic)it is a warning from one pet parent to another. Definitely NEVER coming back nor recommend this place. Not even a Sympathy card was sent and still have not receive my dog's death certificate! Read Less

So disappointed with this place.  I left 2 v-mails in hopes of getting an appointment for my dog who is in need of a root canal and I got ZERO response.I decided to take my dog elsewhere since having her in pain wasn't an option. Read Less

Noticed a swelling on my cats jaw Thursday morning, it turned out to be an abscess from an infected bite he got. I had an appointment set up for Friday with his normal vet but Thursday night the abscess popped and started leaking fluid everywhere. Brought him in and Dr. M and the entire rest of the crew took care of him from start to finish. They checked his vitals, made sure he was ok, examined the abscess, diagnosed what they needed to do, and then did it. I was kept abreast of the whole situation from start to finish - they even went as far as to give me a "high" and a "low" estimate on how much the work would cost before they started. So great to have professionals taking care of my fur baby. Read Less

My 4months old puppy ate a piece of plastic on a sunday, so I called in and took him here immediately. HUGE MISTAKE. I ALMOST LOST MY PUPPY. Don't take your pet here , the people here care absolutely nothing about your pet, they just want your money. Also, there was BLOOD on the wall in the exam room. When we got in they had us fill in the forms and took my puppy to the back, normally they would let you be in the exam room with the dogs and do a simple check up, they did not let me see my dog, and did not communicate with each others, one person told me one thing the other told me something else. They brought him to the room at the back and we heard him KEPT SCREAMING, we knew it was him, I asked the staff where is my dog and what was that sounds. She went in for a second and answered " Oh it's not your dog, it's just some other dogs, we have a lot of dogs back there" This is NOT ok, I knew it was my dog and even not, it's not ok to let any dog scream like that, and I heard that multiple times, it was terrifying. I was so anxious waiting in the exam room, they told me to just wait here, and I have not talked to any doctor or see my dog. After an hour they said that they need to take X ray and see where the foreign object is,  but they insisted to use sedation to do that. after another hour of waiting, they tried to induce vomiting but he did not vomit the foreign object out. I was told that they need to do endoscopy, but if that doesn't work, or the object passes down to the intestine, they would have to do surgery. At this point I was desperate, it was such an emergency and they had me waiting without my dog in the exam room for 3-4 hours. and did absolutely nothing. They said they called the specialist but he didn't answer, "we don't know when the specialist is available, it could be a few hours" but in a few hours, the object would not be in the stomach anymore. but they did not care at all, they said that my dog can stay here for a couple nights and see what happens. It was obvious that they wanted him to do surgery and stay for a couple nights for the money!!I could not stand this anymore, I went down to Sage in Concord after being treated terribly for 4-5 hours, thank god I did, within 2 hours, they called the specialist on a sunday night to perform endoscopy and took the object out!! They said that the object almost passed to the intestines so we brought him in just in time..Young puppies might not wake up from surgery and anesthesia so it was definitely not recommended. but East Bay Veterinary couldn't care less. they are heartless people just want your money and treat your dog badly. Read Less

They saved my cat's life! I am disabled and very low income. My cat, Muffin Man, had swallowed a housemate's hair. He had a bowel obstruction and almost died, but they used their Angel fund to do his surgery. Wonderful people. Thank you so much! Read Less

We are very fortunate that East Bay vet is around the corner from us and has always been where we take our dog for regular check ups. However, in the last year and a half our doggy has developed a chronic illness. Thank goodness for this amazing staff! They are so attentive and kind. Everyone takes the time to get to know all of the patients (and their families). We can call day or night and know our pet is in good hands.Read Less

The staff and doctors were great. Kept us up to date with what was going on with a Tux. While the health of our little guy was our main priority, we were also concerned with cost associated with the care. My husband is on disability and SSI, and I am a disabled veteran on a fixed income, and they were very upfront with costs incurred, as well as potential costs. We opted to bring our little guy home with us for home care, and the staff provided excellent care instructions. Sadly Tux didn't make it through the evening, and the staff was able to provide us with our options for his remains. Even with the sad times, the staff was caring and compassionate. Thank you guys for all you do. Read Less

I am very happy we chose this hospital to take care of our furbaby. We had the best experienced ever with the staff and the doctors. Our beloved dog Temo was diagnosed with Lung cancer and they gave us the best options to treat our baby. Unfortunately the disease was spreading too fast and Temo never got treated. However the staff and doctors helped us to make the best and hard decision a parent of a 4 legged friend can make. We put our dog down last Monday and the staff and doctors were very supportive and amazing. The doctors explained everything to our kids and we are very thankful for that. This has been one of the most difficult times and we never felt alone. Thank you so much !!!!! We are forever grateful. Read Less

Great place, friendly and knowledgeable. The board certified surgeon worked on my 200lb French mastiff and resected a 5lb mass off his bladder. For those of you who are interested here's an update on Hooch's condition: On Tues day 12/11 Hooch underwent surgery to remove a large mass in his abdomen. It ended up being attached to his prostate, bladder and colon. The mass ended up being the size of a softball and a half weighing in around 5lbs. It had cut off the circulation to his bladder and was slowly killing it. The surgeon said he had days to live if it was left in there.... Today Hooch is happily lounging around the house eating, drinking, peeing and pooping yay! We're on the road to recovery. But due to the manipulation of his bladder he was left incontinent. He now wears a diaper for the time being until his bladder is able to return to normal function (Dr's hope in a few days or so). Thanks to Trupanion (his dog insurance) they paid 90% of his $5,000 procedure that saved his life :) Happy Holidays Everyone :) Read Less

Horrible place. Don't take your dog here unless you want to be overcharged for a job that's not even done. I took my dog here over Columbus Day weekend at the recommendation of my vet. She had what was suspected as a splenic mass but my vet wanted a formal ultrasound before surgery. I went in with my two toddlers because my husband was working and was there around three hours. I didn't mind that as it needed to be done, but waiting with kids is always an added difficulty. Dr. Hamm was nice and answered all of my questions which were in abundance. She made sure to let me know that they aren't usually able to squeeze people in for ultrasounds, so don't expect it in the future, but they could today. I was appreciative and when the time came for her to have her ultrasound the whole thing took under three minutes. I even said, "wow, that was fast!" She explained that they didn't have to shave her, but it just seemed way too quick. They said it was indeed a splenic mass and that I should proceed with surgery with my vet's office but printed me out an estimate for their office if my vet's office couldn't do it within the week. My vet was able to do the surgery that Tuesday and I got the dreaded phone call. It wasn't a splenic mass, it was everywhere with adhesions everywhere. My vet looked very sad and uncomfortable and asked, "they told you this was operable?" She apologized for sending us to get our ultrasound here and we had to put our dog down mid surgery. It took me months to be able to call East Bay Veterinary and discuss this with them. I asked to speak with a manager and the receptionist seemed very uncomfortable. She asked my name and what it was in regards to and put me on hold to speak to her. Suddenly she was "out of the office" (in a very obvious lie). She said she would have her call me back the following day. I was very put off by this and called back with a blocked number and suddenly she was available..... I spoke to her a few days later when she called back and she was nice enough, and said she was not a doctor and that it needed to be discussed with them. Wasn't overly sympathetic but tried to be. She assured me there would be a call back in a timely manner. I received a call back on Christmas Eve from Dr. Nurri (sp?). He informed me that my vet was "wrong" several times and that a board certified surgeon would have been able to resect the tumor and he didn't know why our vet couldn't but they certainly didn't' make a mistake. I explained best I could that the ultrasound should have taken longer, if it had they would have seen what needed to be seen. He informed me that it "did NOT take only three minutes, you don't know what you're talking about. We do this all the time. " So if you want a place that is immune from mistakes, squeezes you in for an ultrasound they don't have the time for but will charge you $400+ for, will suddenly have people "out of the office" when you want to speak to the people in charge and will talk down to you and tell you that "you don't know what you're talking about" after interrupting you the entire conversation telling you that your vet is wrong and they couldn't have done anything wrong even though they weren't there, then this is the place for you! Seriously, if you love your pet, stay away. Read Less

Worst help ever, My dog ate mouse poison so I took him to his normal vet ( Alpine ) and they gave me a Prescription for Vitamin K which they could not fill so referred me to this place whom they said would help, I called them and they said yes they can fill it, I was there within 30 minutes and now they tell me they will not fill the Prescription because they have to see my dog. What it comes down to is that my pets health does not matter and all they want is the money. NO THANKS this place can go to Hell as far as I am concerned and if you really love your pet to trust this place what so ever. Read Less

Dr. Lew was very caring and gave a very clear explanation of our baby Burritos condition. He had blood work and X-Rays done. She didn't recommend anything he didn't need. Will definitely go to them in case of another emergency but hopefully not! Also, the nurse that assisted us was very friendly! Read Less

It seems like a very nice place with good service, but like a lot of medical practices these days (e.g. dentists, doctors, and now evidently common with vets too), they use the "highest level of service" argument as an excuse to up sell their customers for services that are not wanted or needed. And they try to make you feel like a bad person for not wanting their extra service, and in many cases they will not even perform a basic service unless you agree to the extra unnecessary examination. For example, I was told it would be $50 for a one year followup dog Rabies vaccine, so we went into the office and the doctor looked at the dog for less than a minute and gave the injection. I was then charged $150 because they did an "examination" since they hadn't seen the dog that year. This extra charge was ridiculous because my dog was clearly very healthy, and no extra service was given that wouldn't have already been included in the cursory glance to determine it was safe to give the Rabies vaccine, i.e. the dog wasn't visibly sick (and didn't have a reaction to the last vaccine). And if they are going to do an extra physical exam, they should have notified me and had me agree to the extra charges before they were administered. At the checkout they refused to drop the charges. I hassled with them for three months before I could get a manager to return calls or emails. They finally dropped the charges after a lot of drama. But I don't care for this attitude that you can't give a dog a vaccine without charging an extra $100 for a 30 second examination, even if I sign a waiver. It's just a way to make extra money. Read Less

Dr. Nurre and his assistant Melanie are fantastic. They have been taking care of our Samantha for over a year now and have always gone above and beyond to make sure she is happy and well taken care of. They are a great team. The love and care they show our Sammie and us makes Sammie wag her tail when entering and leaving. Can't praise their care and kindness enough. Thank you all even the rest of the staff who show Sammie and us love and care. Read Less

So glad we were sent to East Bay Veterinary Specialist and Emergency. Dr. Nurre and the whole team there have been so supportive with my family. They did not give up on our Bell Bell and worked relentlessly to diagnose her. We could not be more happy with our care and will continue to pray for a full recovery for our girl. From our family to your's thank you. Read Less

I recently found a dog wandering in a parking lot, and a week after I took her home, with no luck finding her owner, I found out she had Parvo. I took the dog in to be treated. I couldn't afford to put her in the hospital and my vet and I decided it would be most humane to have her put down. I left in tears, only to find out later that day that three of the vet techs had pooled the money to keep her alive, and she was being adopted to a permanent home. This is now the only vet that will get my business.Read Less