Between our all-nerves pit bull and highly rambunctious cat, my partner and I schedule more vet visits than one could fathom. Both highly injurious parties have immune systems that function as well as... Read More
Between our all-nerves pit bull and highly rambunctious cat, my partner and I schedule more vet visits than one could fathom. Both highly injurious parties have immune systems that function as well as the Delorean without a flux capacitor, a watch without a battery, a shoe without a lace. That being said, they get themselves in disastrous situations all too often and as such, it's almost like our time is split equally between home and vet.Moving from Austin, we wanted to find a vet hospital that was caring, proactive (cast us away!), and successful at curing our pets' every needs. We heard great reviews from our family testifying to each of these needs, but the real unexpected cherry on top was when we learned North Acres allows pet drop-off and pick-up at a later time. Being that we both work until late afternoon, this had us ecstatic to know that we could get our pets in on the day they need to be seen, without having to wait until we can squeeze some time out of our work days. Plus, when your pet is under the weather and you're out of the home, there's peace of mind in knowing they're in the hands of a vet. So, we decided to give Acres North a try and ended up using them as our vet of choice for quite some time. I'm sad to say our experiences unfolded pretty disappointingly over the course of our visits, as each trip we seemed to feel less and less satisfied. First things first, vets rotate in and out of this office. This was not only frustrating for us, but for our pets who have no idea who these probing strangers are each time we visit. There's no time to build rapport with our pets, learn them by name, or get to know their personalities, so there's a lot of explanation and uneasiness going around when our dog is hiding under the office chairs or our cat refuses to come out of his kennel. One vet talked with us at length about changing both of our pets' food brands, which we did. Some of the brands she recommended were not brands I would have ever seen myself feeding my cat and dog - those spoiled little babies get the cream of the cream. We were feeding our dog a wonderful and natural, grain-free brand called Whole Earth, and she had us convinced to switch over to Science Diet. We quickly switched back after we discovered that some vets actually get paid by these mainstream food brands to refer their food, and this seemed to be the case given how hard she was trying to sell us on brands that didn't necessarily fit my pets' dietary needs. Another factor to consider is the high exam cost. It's no secret that all trips to the vet burn a gigantic hole in anyone's pocket, but when I was forced to take my dog to an emergency vet when Acres North was closed, I realized just how much we were overpaying for the services and meds we were receiving for standard stomach issues, eye problems, etc. My partner and I showed a lot of loyalty to the vet despite these cons, but the true deal breaker was that each time we went into the office, the vet and vet tech asked to muzzle our dog, who was shaking and crying underneath the exam room chairs. The first few times this happened, I thought, "alright, they don't really know my dog or how she is going to behave. they'll see she's cool in a few." But again and again, they continued to back away and request a muzzle. I know this is because my pup is a pit bull, because there's no way these folks would try to muzzle a labradoodle, golden, or a weenie. Needless to mention, my dog has never snapped, bit, or come near any person she doesn't know, in any way, in her life. I know the office staff at Acres cares about my pets, but the rest of these downsides just can't be overlooked. Sorry to say we won't be returning, but it's time to take these sweet and sickly furballs elsewhere. Read Less