ST FRANCIS ANIMAL HOSPITAL

I've had to take two dogs here in the past year. One had an extensive ear infection. They were able to fit me in and treated him promptly and gently. He had been treated by a doctor in Aiken, SC previously with zero result, so I was quite pleased when St. Francis got his ear infection under control and for half the price of the Aiken doctor.

She had to stay a couple days, because they require it now. They were very good to her. I take all my cats there. I have been going there for years. They even helped me find my current cat that I have I have. They are very excellent people. I will be using them again here soon, because my cat is due for her shots. She is my princess.

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I have used them for six years. They are very friendly and they will do all the necessary check ups and treatments on your animals. The doctors are very caring and get to know your pet.

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We are new to the Augusta area. At the last minute before our trip our cats had some major eye troubles. We needed to know if we should leave them or take them with us on our trip. Even though we were not patients, they fit us in on a very busy day. They were respectful to our homeopathic requirements and needs and were willing to work with us. The facilities were clean and commodious. The vet and assistant diagnosed both cats efficiently and, very generously given their time constraints, gave advice on licensing and shots issues. Even though they are across the river from us, we plan on using them again. It is rare for us to find vets who are willing to work with our non-medicine, no-shot practices. We are pleased and happy with their service.

I took my ten-month-old kitten in after her behavior changed drastically. The tech was extremely kind and gentle with her, but the veterinarian flatly refused to entertain the idea that something was wrong with my cat, as her physically experine and quot;cats are fickle and their moods change on a dime.and quot; He also referred to my animal as and quot;a nice bag of flesh.and quot; Then, after prompting, he finally agreed to do a blood test, but refused to let me be in the room while they took a sample from her. Later, when I called in for the results, I discovered they also took a urine sample from her, without notifying me or asking my permission. I will not be returning.

All went well.

A terrible experience until I saw Dr. Warner

My dog Buffy had been a patient of ST. Francis for most of her life. In 2010, Dr. Curt Garner of St. Francis told us she had a heart murmur and referred us to Dr. Jacobs, a cardiologist in Watkinsville, GA. It was very important that she be monitored for fluid in her lungs; if fluid did begin to collect/build-up in her lungs, then she would need to start medication immediately. On 06/01/2012, Buffy coughed up or spit up bright red blood. Dr. Creg Cranford at St. Francis examined her and told us it was probably and quot;a little veinand quot; in her throat. When asked about her breathing and tests, he said that he thought she was probably okay and to bring her back if it happened again.On 06/05/2012, Buffy saw Dr. David Tribby for blood work, annual exam, and shots. We started home and Buffy collapsed, her tongue was blue and she was hardly breathing. We raced back in a panic. Dr. Tribby said her heart rate was slow and her body temperature was low. He gave her another shot and had me hold her with a blanket and hot gel pads to warm her up. We waited until he thought she was fine to go home.ON 06/12/2012, Buffy went to St. Francis Emergency one last time. She was taking short breaths and seemed wobbly. Dr. Ian Schuler looked at her and then told me that her color was good and that her lungs were clear. I persisted with my concerns and he explained that when there's fluid in the lungs, it sounds like wadding up plastic wrap. What he didn't tell us is that listening with a stethoscope is not 100%. She should have had an x-ray. Instead he gave her a shot of a painkiller. For what? We don't know. On 06/13/2012, it's very obvious that Buffy still has a breathing problem, just as the night before at St. Francis. We take her to Augusta Animal Emergency. They x-ray her and give us the saddest news. Her lungs are almost full of fluid, and her body is shutting down. It's too late for medication to work. Buffy died! We also now know that bright red blood comes from the lungs. On June 1, 2012, Dr. Cranford could have saved her life with an x-ray!

We dropped the cat off in the morning for her procedure and picked her up 8 hours later. Four days later my cat was on my lap and I noticed something small and black move across the short white fur on her neck. Fleas! When we brought her back to the vet the next day to get treated for fleas the clinic refused to take responsibility. The tech told us that she probably already had them. We told the tech that the cat did not previously have fleas and had never been outside in her 12 years of life and that we have no other animals. The tech then said she must have gotten a flea on her when we transported her from our home to the vet. They then charged us for an external treatment and said she would be flea free in 3 days. After three days in the laundry room, she still had fleas. We went to the store and bought an alternate brand and treated her. She was finally flea free after a week.Despite the adequate patient care - no vet office should leave your animal with fleas and then refuse to take responsibility. We go to Highland vet clinic now and have always had great patient care, customer service and reasonable prices. Best of all - no fleas

They were very knowledgeable and professional. They are also very clean.

They are very thorough. Their service is of high quality. I have taken my dogs to other places and they don't do that. Their price is high. I would use them in the future.

I have two dogs and a cat. It's a great place. They are very friendly and very professional. They are a little pricey but it's okay.

Unfortunately our Aussie, Romeo could not be saved. The entire staff at St. Francis was friendly outgoing and considerate, having an understanding of what we were going through. We were bring Romeo in for 4 days in a row and every day we brought him in everyone his name. Unlike the prior Vet in Evans.

This was the worst experience I've had with an emergency vet service - ever. My son's 4 month old puppy got sick on Thursday and he took her to his vet on Friday. He had weekend plans and left the pup with friends. On Saturday, the pup was worse and he asked me to meet his friends at St. Francis - they did not have the ability to pay for the emergency care. I arrived about 15 minutes after his friends. They were in the waiting room with the sick puppy. No one else was in sight. The friends informed me the form I needed to complete was on the counter at the desk (ability to pay) so I completed the form and waited. Finally, I went back outside and rang the bell to get someone to help us. Took the puppy into exam room. During her exam, the puppy had an accident that smelled horrific. No one offered to help clean and we were left in the room while the tech completed our estimate. When she returned, she stood in the hall waiting with the estimate while I went back and forth with paper towels from a room across the hall and cleaned up the dogs feces. Another technician was at the desk and I asked him for a plastic bag (for the dog blanket which was also covered with feces). He looked around, didn't see one, and told me "just a minute." I was ready to cry. He came back to the room ten minutes later - I had already found a bag by then. The estimate was $600 for overnight care and IV fluids. I was shocked by the cost and also that there was no breakdown of the charges. By now it was 1:30am - I paid the $600 deposit and left the puppy there for overnight care. I stopped the following evening to check on the puppy's progress. The technician (another - not one from the night before) thought I was there to pick up the puppy. She indicated the puppy was to be picked up by 11pm. I said I didn't understand - the 24 hours wasn't up until 1:30am - why did she need to be picked up by 11pm? She said "because we are doing you a favor!" What I didn't know was that she had called my son and told him if he picked her up by 11pm, they would reduce the charges. She assumed that was why we were there. I said I would pick her up and she asked for my CC for the refund. I didn't think I had it with me so she said very loud and rudely by this time, "well, you have the account number - don't you?" My husband had his card so I provided and was presented a CC machine to sign. "What am I signing for?" I asked. By now the vet had come out and said "you're getting a refund - I would sign if someone was trying to give me money!" Well, since I wasn't shown the refund, or what I was signing for, the response was completely inappropriate. At that point I indicated to the vet that the tech had been extremely rude and my entire experience there was a nightmare. I know emergency care is expensive. This is not the first time I've had to use this type of service. What I do want is to know they care about the animal first and foremost. St. Francis does not.

We have used this office exclusively since having to take one of our cats in as an emergency. I have appreciated their honesty and forthrightness regarding my pets. They do not hide any information, nor do they try to lead you to do anything you don't want to do. They are respectful of your personal choices. At no time have I ever felt rushed at this hospital; I always feel as though I am getting their full attention during my appointments.

I want to thank Dr. David Tribby for his wonderful services through the years. When we get another dog, we will go here.

All the staff there were attentive, calming and showed great affection toward my dog. I have continued to use them for ongoing treatment the assistants and drs. discuss treatment options and costs thoroughly. I have never felt rushed.

I took my cat into their emergency room when he was sick. Unfortunately, he did end up dying several hours later. However it was not due to lack of effort by the staff. They were kind to me and allowed me to sit with him as long as I wanted back in the kennel area where he was being kept. They were very compassionate when he died. They have a private room to say goodbye in and will handle the arrangements for cremation if needed, which was very helpful to me since I had just lost my best friend and wasn't up to doing much of anything. The one complaint I had was that since there had been a computer problem when I went in at 3 am to say goodbye to my cats body they were unable to give me the total bill amount so there was a balance left. They called me at 8:30 in the morning to get my credit card information from me. This stuck me as rude since I had been up all night with my sick cat and didn't get much sleep after he died.

I didn't have an appointment but they were able to take me as a walk in. They have a wonderful rapport with animals, cats and dogs, it doesn't matter and they have wonderful rapport with people too. They now are open 24 hours.