THIS PLACE IS TERRIBLE. My companion is a 3 month old Siberian Husky who has had many complications this past week; so like any mother would, I took her to be seen about. I unfortunately made the mistake of taking her to VCA. They steal your money basically. They gave Sasha (the husky) a test for parvo, and when It came back negative, they said it was an unreliable read... first off... why would you make someone pay for an unreliable test, secondly... why tell someone it is unreliable and could be a "false negative" AFTER I pay for it?? They then recommended a blood test be done to find out further information on what could be the issue with Sasha. So of course I said sure. When they came back with the results, all they said was that her protein level was low and that she could have a couple possible diseases; Shunt, parvo, auto immune, but in order to get more information I would have to continue to pay for "unreliable-overpriced tests". In order to do so, she would need to be taken to the 24 hour VCA to be watched and if she wasn't taken that night, she might not make it. I went with my own instincts and decided to take her back home to sleep with me so that I could keep my own eye on her. She lived, of course. And is still alive. (Praise God). Unfortunately, she wasn't getting better, so I decided to call another vet in Palm Springs and ask what they thought. They said shunt was highly unlikely in Siberian huskies and she could just have a bacteria. Long story short, the people here rip your money from you because they know that you will do anything and everything to keep your companion in your life. They just wanted to run me in circles and pay for expensive tests in order to steal from me. They didn't care about how I was feeling or how Sasha was doing. She was just a price tag to them. Sasha is now in Temecula at the Butterfield animal hospital where they people actually care.DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME AND MONEY HERE. THEY RIP YOUR OFF.
I have great danes and cats. High Desert VCA provided, until one incident, good but expensive care for them. We had a puppy who had been stepped on by another dog and went lame. When I was advised to bring her in if she didn't get better I made another appointment where she was seen by a fill in vet from their other High Desert clinic. This vet, seeing that her leg was now slightly crooked, refused to do an xray and informed me that "some people have crooked puppies" and told us to go home. (This statement was witnessed by a former tech there as well as my son.) On Monday the regular vet was there, Dr Davis, who sent us directly to an ortho vet the next day where leg saving surgery was done and she was treated for 2 bone diseases. A delay of another day could have resulted in the loss of the leg as well as crippling her. I love Dr Davis and have complete faith in his care. But a year later when I called to get an appointment for a dog that had diarrhea in the next couple of days I was informed that it would be treated as an emergency appointment and charged an extra $75. Didn't matter that I had spent thousands there in the last year, they wanted that extra $75 to be seen 2 days later. I saw another vet in Yucca Valley who did not charge me the extra fee and have been seeing them since. I never got out of VCA for under $200 and usually $300. For the exact same services I pay around $100 elsewhere and don't have to worry about an incompetent vet filling in if the regular doctor isn't there.
Hight Desert Animal will automaticaly charge you a decent fee, mine was $27 (but it can vary from others I've talked to) just upon visiting with your pet. If you're military I'd say go to the vet on base, but that's if you have time to wade through the phone calling & the time to wait for an appointment. If it is an emergency you're stuck with these guys. They also have a location in Yucca Valley & it's pretty much the only vet nearby so you're limited on GOOD choices. It takes one experience to ruin a reputation & I had "that" visit. I took my dog in to receive one of his parvo/DHPP shots ($28). The veterinarian-Brandon who took my dog rudley restrained & dragged my pup (3.5 month lab) to the back. Luckily it only, literally, took 30 secs to administer the vaccine. When I go to pay I inquire about why I'm paying an extra $27 when I know in 30 secs they didn't PROPERLY check my dogs ears, temp, & teeth. I understand they have limited space & I couldn't go with my dog, but the ridiculous fee was RIDICULOUS! They will also try to sweet talk you into getting extra tests done, stool sample $35 a pop, ear tests, which I quickly declined, or extra vaccinations. Also I'm new to the rabies ($22) procedure I assumed I would get the physical tag from the vet, NO. Luckily I can read and saw upon exiting that I had to go to Palms & Paws & pay ANOTHER fee for the actual tag-$42 dollars later. If you don't need the tag for a full year they can do it month to month so you can save a little. I know this is most helpful to military families.
The people here were wonderful. Every aspect of the visit was professional and caring. Thank you, Dr. Davis, Stephanie and staff for an experience that put me and my dog at ease.
