Grateful that the dr. Recommended a teeth cleaning. Two really bad teeth were found, that needed extracted. Thank goodness this procedure was done before my baby got seriously sick. The staff helped me so much with information and kindness , but especially treated my dog with caring hands! Read Less

I have been going to Gentle Care for over 4 years now and have always had the absolute BEST customer service and care for my animals. The knowledgeable, compassionate, and caring doctors and staff have always treated my animals as if they were their own. My dog has had 2 major knee surgeries through Gentle Care and each time they were professional, reasonable and very helpful throughout the entire process. I wouldn't have felt comfortable doing such a major surgery anywhere else! Their staff, from technicians to vets to front desk staff, is absolutely wonderful!!! Read Less

We’ve b en going here for about ten years now. They treated our pet snake when he got an infection and they treat out dogs as well. They’re always very friendly and their hours make it easy to find something that works with our schedules. Read Less

The doctors and the staff are truly gentle with your pets, and can handle all different personality dispositions with care. They give you whatever time is needed to answer your questions. They work with you to give your beloved pets the care that is needed. They get to know your pet quickly and remember him/her, so that the next time you go in, they are quite at ease with the patient, and the patient is at ease with them. The doctors surgical skills are excellent. You can't ask for a better place to take your pets, than Gentle Care Animal Hospital. Read Less

I have 3 ferrets that are my babies. The staff there is amazing. I wouldn't take my babies anywhere where else. My sweet boy hope became deathly I'll and they work so hard to find out what the problem was and worked extremely hard to help him. Thanks to all their hard work I still have my baby boy hope. Read Less

I took my kitten (Chicken) here after adopting her because this awesome place honors the free checkup from the shelter! The staff are so friendly and always help me find an appointment time that suits my schedule. They are so good with my kitty, I swear she looks forward to the vet! They let her explore and hold her to keep her entertained. The vet even uses easy cheese to distract Chicken and make her happy. I never leave having any questions and I feel the quality of care is through the roof. They go above and beyond to make me and my cat the happiest we can be! Read Less

Gentle Care is the most beautiful place. They are thorough and excellent medically but they are also angels of kindness and compassion to animals. I love the staff and the Vets. Truly, they are the best animal hospital I have ever used, and I have had pets my entire life. Read Less

Gentle care staff, technicians and veterinarians have remained dedicated to my pets for over 10 years. They have willingly accepted some challenging cases and have included me as the owner, in decision-making, research of my pets' conditions and options for treatment. All staff are friendly and provide compassionate care to all of my pets. Read Less

I have taken my pets to Gentle Care since moving to Lawrence 16 years ago. They have always provided skillful and caring service - the best I've encountered as a pet owner. Two of my cats had chronic health problems that required regular visits over a year or more. Gentle Care staff went out of their way to make my cats comfortable. When I lost them, the staff was exceptionally kind and supportive. I highly recommend Gentle Care and have complete confidence in them. Read Less

The staff at Gentle Care has been so kind and responsive to the needs of our family and our pets. Dr. Emerling is thorough in explaining the condition of our pets in terms that a non medical individual can understand. They are especially talented at providing information about how to care for your pets at home to help improve their health. I especially like that the course of treatment of an ailment is always the least invasive to our pets. Read Less

Have taken my dog here for 6 years since she was 3 mos old. We have always had compassionate, thoughtful caregivers, having gotten to know each of the veterinarians. Dr. Ermling always knows how to relieve my dog's anxieties by enveloping her in her arms, and teaches me each time about all her care and ideas for me to better care for, train, and maintain my dog's health. The veterinarians are personable and do not pressure you, but give excellent advice and care. Read Less

I thought my hamster had a UTI and he was seen on a Saturday. Dr. Ermeling told me to bring him back on Monday because the only way to get a clean urine sample was to aspirate it directly from his bladder. On Monday evening, they said they had poked him several times, but he hadn't produced urine all day.  I could pick him up, collect a sample overnight and drop it off the next morning. (I cleaned the container that he was in all day Monday, and there WAS soiled bedding)First off, I could've collected a clean sample and dropped it off, but Dr. Ermeling said this would be no good, while another vet presented this as a good option.Second, my hamster almost died the day after I picked him up. He was cold to the touch and had labored breathing. I spent the whole night warming him up and hydrating him. I firmly believe they poked him in the wrong place, which is why they said "there was no urine."My supervisor told me about skin scrapes they did on her dog years ago - constantly cutting and stitching her up. She switched to a different vet - all she had was a yeast infection. AND apparently the front desk lady would recognize her number on caller ID and pretend to be the answering service. A coworker told me about her senior hamster that was killed IN the office. The vet squeezed the hamster really hard and she bit him, naturally. He flung her away and the impact killed her immediately. And while in the waiting room, a vet tripped over someone's injured rabbit, fell on the rabbit and killed it!I really wanted to trust this place - the stories weren't very recent. It's clear that I made a big mistake trusting them with my hamster's health. There is nothing "gentle" about this place. Read Less

Female dog stayed three days after spay in boarding. When we picked her up, scar looked bad. We had to bring her back in two days later with infected surgery site and UTI to get antibiotics (had to pay for all of this). Read Less

We started bringing our dogs to Gentle Care almost a year ago when we first moved to Lawrence. Unfortunately, as of last week we have switched to another clinic. We stuck it out in hopes of it getting better, but after last week I would never step foot into Gentle Care again. To start out the first time we took our dogs in there was blood on the floor in the exam room. I mentioned it to the front desk and they said they would clean it but never did while we were there. A few months later we were put into a room that had urine all over the floor. After that anytime we went in I held my dogs because I was never sure if it would be clean or not. Last week, after hours, my dog had an emergency and was bleeding and I called. The answering service answerd took all my information and told me a vet would call me right away. Almost 30 minutes late I received a phone call back. I had already driven to Gentle Care in hopes a vet would meet me there. When the vet called me back she said it didn't sound serious and they could 'maybe fit me in the next day, but if not the day after that'. I ended up taking my dog to Blue Pearl, where she had emergency surgery. For her follow up visit I took her to a new vet that was CLEAN and CARED about my pet. I tried to stick it out at Gentle Care but the fact that they couldn't be bothered to help my dog in an emergency showed me that they are just a 9-5 vet and could care less after that. I will never again return and have taken my business elsewhere. Read Less

Compassionate, professional care that has helped our pets when treatment would help, and helped us when it would not. We've always been happy with Gentle Care's practical guidance, neither under- or over-treating our furry family members. Read Less

I cannot say thank you enough to Dr. L and her staff. Yesterday I walked in with our dog who was fighting for her life and Dr. L stopped what she was doing to help us. Dr. L and her staff have been amazing to work with the past 24 hours. Dr. L did a great job keeping us informed, staying calm (and keeping me calm!) and doing everything she could to help our pup! You can tell she is very passionate about what she does and so is the staff at this clinic. Chalie and I cannot thank you guys enough! Read Less

I have always loved Gentle Care! I have taken my cat there for years and I just started taking my bunny there. They are so caring, personable, and professional! When I brought my bunny in to get neutered, they walked me through the process, and called me with an upate the day of. They do an awesome job. My animals are my babies and they take great care of them. Thank you for all you do! Read Less

I am sorry your for your loss Ma'am. But I have been taking my animals to Gentle Care for years. No ... I'm not going to lie and say I couldn't find less expensive care. However, they have never -- ever -- treated me and my feathered and furred family members in any way other than: RESPECTFULLY. They understand how much we adore our pets, and meet us where we are -- on whatever spectrum -- when it comes to decisions of suffering and pain. They've nursed our dogs through old age, and death. They saved my parrot's life when I thought her suffering was too much to bear; Doc convinced me she'd pull through and 10 years later she's still going strong. Now I hear that they have taken in some of the animals from PetWorld -- A heartbreaking tragedy for the owners, the families who boarded their pets, the staff, and the kids who learn in their programs. I, for one, will be going to Gentle Care, tomorrow, and giving them a little money to help with expenses. I don't have much to give, but I'll give what I can.Read Less

I've been taking my cats to Gentle Care for years. Dr Ermeling even made a house call for one of my cats before she opened the clinic. There had only been one vet there I haven't liked, he wasn't there very long. Everyone has always been caring and loving to my guys. They are all wonderful. Read Less

We took our beautiful 3 year old dog in for a routine teeth cleaning, instead of picking up our dog with clean teeth we picked up our dog in a black garbage bag because Gentle Care had KILLED our beloved family pet! They had used too much anesthesia on our German Shepherd and she did not make it out alive. To make matters worse went we picked our dog up she was in a black garbage bag propped up against a door almost being used as a door stop. This was many years ago however Ge take Care still has the same owners today. I caution you to think twice before taking your pet to Gentle Care!!! Read Less

I'm impressed with the doctors every time I take my little Chinese Crested dog in for a visit. Today Bax was treated for a yeast infection in his ear. The doctor and attendant were exceptionally gentle. Thank you Gentle Care! Read Less

My hamster passed away in the early morning hours of March 18. The area behind his left ear had started bleeding shortly after midnight, so I called your emergency hotline to get help because you were only a ten minutes' drive away. However, your staff turned down my request because I was not 'a regular customer.' As such, I had to drive my hamster to Blue Pearl in Kansas City, MO, which is an hour's drive away from Lawrence, just to seek medical treatment for him. Being the little guy that he was, he did not survive the trip home. I am terribly upset and angry that you turned my pet down, not because you happened to be handling another emergency at that time, but because you did not see enough value in his life to help him. I was not a 'regular customer,' so that is why my pet's plight meant nothing to you. Is this the philosophy upon which the hospital is run? Do you refuse assistance to a pet on the basis of clientele? Since when has saving a life become conditional? I am not writing to you to seek compensation. No, I am writing to you because I do not want another pet owner's cry for help to be turned down on a whim. It is a terrible shame that a hospital whose mission is to help animals refused to treat my hamster right when he needed help the most. I want you to know that you have done a horrible thing. You will never be able to redeem yourself, but what you can at least do is to question your conscience before you turn down somebody else.Read Less

I will note this took place several years ago -    We took our dog in for a routine teeth cleaning, instead of picking up our dog with clean teeth we picked up our dog in a black garbage bag because Gentle Care had KILLED our beloved family pet! They had used too much anesthesia on our 3 year old German Shepherd and she did not make it out alive. To make matters worse when my father went to pick up our dog he assumed she would be nicely placed in a back room. Instead she was in a black garbage bag propped up against a door almost being used as a door stop. I caution you to think twice before taking your pet to Gentle Care!!! ..... Ironic they are now located in what was a funeral home? I think not. Read Less

I have recently relocated to Kansas with three parrots. They have all needed various treatments since we arrived. Dr. Rauch is compassionate and thorough. I can't say enough positive things about the entire office - techs are kind and calming - the front office is warm and welcoming. They have fit me in on short notice and have been available 24/7. Very pleased to have found competent/caring people to care for my feathered kids. Read Less

We have been taking our pets to Gentle Care for over 15 years. The front desk assistants are welcoming and informative, the technicians and doctors are caring and friendly and willing to do what it takes to provide us excellent service weather it be a routine check up or saying goodbye to our 11 year old chocolate lab. They are compassionate people and I wouldn't take my business anywhere else. Read Less

I liked Dr Ermeling. My dog's procedure, that I understood was to be done by Dr Ermeling, was carried out by Dr Rausch (without my prior knowledge or consent). I had never met Dr Rausch. When questioned about this Dr Rausch told me that is the way they do it. When I complained, his response was a dog is not a human it is just a "possession". If I could only deal with Dr Ermeling I would be happy. I would never deal with Dr Rausch ever again. Read Less

I called the 24-hour phone number not realizing that it's reserved exclusively for customers. My kitten developed an upper respiratory infection this weekend that until tonight seemed manageable by morning.I have no vet as of yet and having not dealt with this before, I had hoped that I would be able to talk to someone about if I was being overly cautious or if this was cause for alarm. Instead I was given a very curt and unapologetic statement followed by two other 24 hour clinics numbers. I understand that this is a business, but if you want to build your clientele, please offer a little more customer service. I'm not asking for a diagnosis or some kind of "free" service but what I am asking for is a reasonable amount of sympathy and information.   I simply would not recommend this clinic because of this incident. Read Less

My first experience at Gentle Care was good, but when my poodle got a urinary tract infection I quickly found out that Gentle Care was not a place I'd ever want to bring my dog. She had a reaction to the prescribed medication; I discontinued giving her the meds and called the vet. Each time I called the receptionist said the vet was busy, understandable, and someone would call me back. After calling multiple times and finally being asked very rudely by the receptionist why I hadn't called sooner I finally complained so much that a vet spoke to me. I brought her in around closing time, waited and waited, then finally got different meds. By that time I was late to go to the airport and had to bring my dog, who hates cars, along. I discussed this with the vet and he didn't seem to think it would take as long as it did so he gave my dog half of a Benadryl it didn't do much good.  It was such a terrible experience that I never took her back to Gentle Care and would never recommend this facility to anyone.Furthermore, it took multiple phone calls to get her records transferred to her new vet. Read Less

My husband and I left this clinic.  We stayed here for two years and half after finally leaving.The front office staff is very friendly.  I only met one of the female vets once.  Dr. Darren Rausch though is odd.  First, let me state that this is not my first dog so I'm not new to owning a dog.Our first experience outside of our check-up was when our dog got bit by a mysterious something while out in the country on a camping trip.  Our dog's face ballooned up and he was yelping like crazy (our dog is uncharacteristically quiet - never backs or whines).  We called the office and were basically talked out of bringing him in.  A strong emphasis was made on the cost of bringing our dog in, and a "don't worry about it," attitude.  In the end, they gave us a list of things that did merit brining him in (sleepiness and not eating or drinking) and instructions to give him some OTC benadryl.  I get that it sucks coming in on call, and I guess I'm grateful I saved money, but they could have been slightly more sympathetic and supportive.A year later, our dog developed a nasty eye infection with copious amounts of yellow/green drainage present each morning and throughout the day.  We called the front office and described the problem and they scheduled an appointment.  We waited for about 20 minutes in a dog waiting area for the doctor to come in and tell us just rinse his eyes in saline and he'll be fine.  The visit was a little over $60 bucks for them to tell us that.  My husband was not happy telling him after the fact that we were not given any sort of medical treatment to help our dog out.  And I would like to point out the guy made me feel like it was a waste of a visit to bring our dog in.  "It'll clear up in a few days."  I could have been told over the phone to rinse his eyes with saline.  You'd think after the first experience that's the kind of clinic visit to discourage people from if you're not going to do anything.  Sorry to say, we waited and waited and FOUR MONTHS LATER our dog's eye infection did eventually clear up.  Seems like he could have used something to help it much earlier though when we visited the vet.Later on my husband and I got a cat and took her in as well for treatments.  He definitely was much more friendly with our cat, but still had the same don't worry about that behavior when we asked questions.  We very specifically asked about Diabetes because several friend's cats had recently developed it.  He basically told us not to worry about it and that she was fine.  No offer of information on how to prevent it, what to look for, food recommendations, ect.  I cannot remember what my husband later brought her (the cat) in for later on, maybe it was when she got spayed, but my husband's experience was so bad, he refused to go back.  Since then we've been very happy with our new vet who takes our questions and concerns seriously. Read Less

If you are looking for healthcare for your rat, I recommend Gentle Care. I have had a tumultuous entry into pet rat ownership, and Gentle Care helped saved me from more heartache.I bought a total of 3 rats at a local pet store, thinking they'd be easy and hardy like guinea pigs I have had in the past. Not so. Rats are prone to respiratory disease, and all my girls had it. Two sadly died, and when my third become sick, I was determined to make sure she made it. I searched online for vets who were experienced with rat care, and came upon Gentle Care. They were willing to either set up an appointment with me later that day, or said I could come in and wait for a break in their schedule. Being slight hysterical, I brought her in right away. I filled out some paperwork, and they were luckily able to see me fairly soon after my arrival. The premises is clean and pleasant, despite being in a slightly sad-looking strip mall (not that that really matters, but know you will feel comfortable in the clinic).After a quick evaluation, she prescribed both an antibiotic and probiotic (so as not to kill her necessary bacterial flora). I was given clear instructions, and they said they would call me to check in on her. Indeed they called me, multiple times, to check in on her progress. I really appreciated this. The cost of the visit and medicine was a bit pricey (~$75), but I have no basis to say whether this is on the high or low side. However, I know vet fees, like human medical fees, are pricey in general, so it was not necessarily shocking. But, the cost was worth having my girl alive and well. Overall, pleasant experience and I liked the follow-up phone calls, and so very happy my girl is healthy now!Personal tips for others with similarly sick rats: She did not like the taste of the antibiotic, so it was a bit of struggle to administer, however, she did like the probiotic and I found it easiest to squeeze out her dose and let her lick it off my finger versus trying to use the syringe. Also, I recommend steam baths for coughing, they seemed to help a lot. Place rat and dish of hot water under large clear Tupperware container for a few minutes. Read Less