James River Animal Hospital

I am really surprised to see the reviews that says they have compassion. I used this clinic years ago, and there appeared to be maybe an ounce of compassion and care at the time, but that has declined to zero at this point. If there were more avian veterinarians in the world, I would say retire when you reach the point that you become arrogant and no longer care. My bird died in the waiting room because the receptionist wouldn't let us see the doctor even though I had contacted them multiple times through the night to let them know the situation and that we would be coming and spoke with the receptionist en route to ask that they prepare to stabilize a bird in extreme respiratory distress (I am a type of avian doctor myself and know the ropes). I had to talk to her twice en route and the second time all she wanted was my payment information though I was trying to drive and keep my bird alive, she wanted to make sure that she had payment, though they have always gotten their money from me before. I have worked with two esteemed avian veterinarians, ************ of LSU Veterinary school, and *************** from Ohio State University. I myself am a Professor and an ornithologist. I was treated like a fool, though I admit, I was beside myself when my bird died in my hands while I watched the receptionist ignore me with an air of indifference and while took a boarding appt. and had a long conversation with another client. Dr. Hardy went on to be just as indifferent as he told me the bird was dead the minute I walked in the door and refused to make any effort to revive her. Of course after many minutes of him standing there listening for her heart to beat with a stethoscope before initiating atropine or any other measure to save her and just to make his point and then dropping her into a zip-lock bag to hand her back to me, there was little point in his lecture on my ignorance and how I shouldn't watch so much television on how to resuscitate a bird. I guess he didn't know that I have spent the last 25 years of my life working with avian veterinarians, avian rehabbers, and becoming established as an avian scientist myself. I have to say, he did, after many minutes and my groveling and begging him to give her a shot of atropine and then he took her away and put her in oxygen before being so kind to bring her back to me in a zip-lock bag. BTW: Positive pressure ventilation can be accomplished via 100% oxygen and cannulation and if no heart beat ausculted, chest compressions should begin by compression of the sternum even though this is difficult to accomplish because the heart is difficult to access because of the overlying sternum/keel) 60 to 80 compressions per minute (Lichtenberger 2009). Maybe if Dr. Hardy had maintained his knowledge of avian veterinary medicine as it applies to passerines instead of mostly dealing with the large, psittacines, he would have actually known the basic principles and steps in avian cardiopulmonary-cerebral resuscitation. Or maybe if the receptionist had done her job that would not have become necessary. Either way, they both dropped the ball, and both were condescending and callous. I regret that I was out of town and away from a true practicing professional avian veterinarian. It was a 13 hour drive to where we needed to be and I would have been better off doing that than driving 5 hours to reach Dr. Hardy. If you have a very sick bird stay away from Dr. Hardy and James River Animal Hospital and get to a veterinarian who specializes in avian veterinary medicine, preferably at a university veterinary hospital. It doesn't cost any more and you will get treatment from people who are up to date in their field and who have more than one oxygen machine at the very least. Watch your birds closely and recognize that your animal is sick as early as possible and drive whatever distance it takes to get your pet where it will truly be cared for, and don't rely on Dr. Hardy and his staff to save your beloved pet. Most veterinary schools offer an avian rotation to their students and will be able to treat your bird, but some are better than others. Do your research ahead of time.

A long wait in the waiting room to get in, yet we were the only clients there.  Even longer wait after Vet was done to pay our bill.  Very unorganized.  Vaccinations were fine.  He prescribed a cream for the urinary tract infection with instructions that if it did not resolve to call back and he would give oral antibiotics.  It didn't help so after using the entire tube of cream, we called back and never heard from him again.

Knowing what great service is from a Veterinarian clinic I was very disappointed with this clinic all-around. This was our first visit to James River Animal Hospital and after calling and speaking with a clerical staff member whom I felt was attentive to new patient needs I made an appt.
The staff was okay though not professional or sociable with us nor their 'patients'. (the friendly staff member I had spoken to on the phone had already left for the day) I felt the Vet herself was in a hurry or had something more important to do, as she didn't spend any time warming up to our very anxious little girl, said very little to anyone and quickly gave our furbaby her vaccinations and sent us on our way. No questions about health history, flea/tick prevention, heartworm prevention, fitness, diet, etc... were asked about nor mentioned. Needless to say, our family will not be returning for any future needs.

We've used them for about 8 or 9 years, but I felt like I was overcharged. I called another place to see about their prices and found out it's usually about $175 or $180 per dog which was pretty much what I had already paid. They are a little pricey.