REACH (Regional Emergency Animal Care Hospital)

My Vet in Johnson City called for the quote for this procedure. They wanted to charge me between $6000 and $6500 basically giving me no choice but to put my pet down. They were very rude in their responses and almost acted like it was funny that I didn't have a choice, basically leaving me no choice. With many people out of work due to the economy they could have given me financial choices but choose not to putting me in the position to choose my families financial wellbeing over saving my dog. My pet had been a patient of theirs years before for surgery and it maybe cost me $1200. It seems to me they chose GREED over truly helping a patient in need. NEVER Take your pets there, they are ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY!!!! Fortunately, my vet called around and found an animal hospital that would perform the same services and only charged me $2100. I would love to have someone from this place let me know why their was such a GREAT difference in cost for the SAME EXACT SERVICES! They should be investigated for PRICE GOUGING people during their most vulnerable time. How Horrible and inhumane!! Never use them. If at all possible check around. There are a lot of very reputable animal hospitals that would never do this.

R.E.A.C.H. qualifies for rating categories below "Lousy," this clinic is the absolute worst. Below is the detail of the formal complaint that I made to the North Carolina Veterinary Board on or about January 12, 2018, for negligent/intentional malpractice by R.E.A.C.H. Emergency Animal Hospital, as a whole, located at 677 Brevard Road, Asheville, NC 28806: I did not make this complaint lightly, and this was my third unacceptable experience with this veterinary clinic, and was so egregious I feel it would be remiss of me, not to share the incidents of incompetent/negligent care being provided by the veterinarians, assistants and technicians of R.E .A.C.H., are set out below: The first experience, I will not go into detail, as it occurred approximately 20 years ago, and I am sure the providers have changed since then. However, at that visit I had to instruct the Veterinarian on how to properly treat my dog, including what medications to give, resulting in zero confidence and my unwillingness to visit this clinic again, until I had no other options on Sunday morning of January 28, 2018. The second occurrence occurred within the last few months. My son rushed my Grand·dog into R.E.A.C.H. on a Sunday morning due to her not being able to stand (leaning and rolling to one side) when she came back in from going outside. I left church and met my son at the hospital. The staff had taken my grand·dog into the back for examination. After a time the Veterinarian came into the room to speak with us. She reported to us that her exam led her to believe it was most likely a brain tumor, and with her age, treatment options would be limited. She asked if we had considered putting her to sleep. I then asked if the Veterinarian understood, this came on suddenly, if she was aware the dog had been vomiting, and if she had considered the possibility that might be a vestibular issue, like vertigo (especially with the vomiting). I asked her if she thought it might be possible that the dog could have an ear infection. She said to us that she had not check the dog’s ears, and left the room to go do so. Upon the Veterinarian's return to the exam room, she told us that the dog did have a foul odor in one ear, and now agreed that it could possibly be a vestibular issue. I requested my grand·dog be treated with antibiotics, antihistamines and antibiotic ear drops/ointment. So again, I have had to make the diagnosis by asking questions, and prescribed a treatment plan. My grand-dog was taken to her regular Veterinarian the next day, and I can happily report it was a vestibular issue, and she has fully recovered. What a horrible loss to this family, if they had followed the unfounded advice of the treating Veterinarian, and she had been put to sleep unnecessarily. My third, and final visit to this clinic, occurred on Sunday, January 28, 2018, following my AKC champion bitch's delivery of 5 puppies. After waiting an hour and a half after the last puppy had been delivered, I called the clinic at 6:22 am to advise that I was bringing my bitch in to make sure she did not have another puppy still in utero, (as the x ·rays taken 6 days before showed 5 puppies with a shadow that might be a sixth), and to have a clean-out shot of oxytocin, as she had retained 3 placentas during delivery. I arrived at the clinic at 6:47 am with my bitch (and her puppies safely closed and secured in a clean box). We were escorted to the scale and then into an exam room where the technician took her temperature and listened to her heart. I reported to the technician that her temperature was 2 degrees higher than her normal, but the technician did not want to hear that from me, and rebutted that "it was within normal range." She then said "she is stable, this is shift change, and we have to do report, so it will be a while." I asked how long "a while" was, and she said, they will be with us shortly. So after sitting in the exam room for 30 minutes with my bitch screaming her head off, I sent my helper with the puppies out to the waiting area, hoping that would lesson my bitch's stress level. While continuing to wait, I noticed how unclean that exam room was, with dried blood spots on the floor of the exam room and brown splatter stuck to the baseboards on the walls. After sitting there an additional 15 minutes of listening to the staff laughing, cutting up and having a jolly time through the door leading to the back area (in between my bitch's screams), a different technician or assistant finally came through the door carrying a stained dirty looking bed made of sheet material, and threw it on the floor next to us, telling me "she can feed her puppies in here." I am sure they had gotten tired of hearing my bitch scream. I responded that my puppies are not coming out of the box in this building, there is too much possibility of disease here. She also stated "she is stable, and they are in the middle of shift change, it will be a while." Now, I am uncertain if they have some sort of x-ray vision to see she had not retained an additional puppy, but at this point I do not understand how they can determine that she is "stable." Finally after another 30 minute wait, a female Veterinarian finally came into the exam room, I believe her name was Dr. Krauskopf based on the bio photos located on the clinic's website, but I was exhausted, and she was only present in the exam room for a moment, so I am not completely certain. What I am certain about, however; is from the evident disdain on the treating Veterinarian’s face, she was either overtired, angry that I had bred a litter of puppies, or both. She made it quite evident that she had no concern or regard for my bitch, whatsoever. She said she would go and prepare a quote for the services I requested. I waited another 15 minutes on her return (now leaving my newborn puppies without nursing for over approximately 2 hours from the 30 minute drive in, and now the 1 hour and 30 minute wait we had endured), and nobody returned. I then contacted a fellow breeder by phone, took my bitch back into the lobby, gathered my help with my puppies, and walked out of the R.E.A.C.H. clinic at 8:22 am, telling the front desk as we all walked out the front door "do I need to let you know we are leaving, because you all are too **** slow?" I then traveled another 30 minutes to a fellow breeders' home where it was clean, and I could allow my bitch to nurse her puppies, and where I obtained the necessary medications for my bitch. I administer them to her, myself at that time. Unless the R.E.A.C.H. technicians have some sort of "superpower," x-ray vision, there was no possible way for them to have known by taking her temperature and listening to her heart, whether or not my bitch had another puppy in utero, therefore they could not have known that she was, in fact, "stable." There seemed to be no concern for cleanliness of the clinic or any concern for my bitch or her puppies, by the longer than necessary wait time. I am uncertain if I would label this instance as simple incompetent "negligent malpractice," or from the obvious disdain of the treating Veterinarian, "intentional malpractice," with the intent of punishing me and my bitch for having a litter of purebred puppies in a world filled with dogs/puppies in shelters looking to be adopted. Whichever the case, please think twice before bringing your pet to R.E.A.C.H. for any kind of treatment. Please ask around, this seems to be the typical modus operandi for this clinic, as I have heard nothing positive and only horror stories from local pet owners, including many lost litters due to this behavior. There is one particular incident I was made aware of, that still shocks me to this day: R.E.A.C.H. refused to even clean a gaping wound on a dog impaled by a stick while running through the owner's property, sending the owners and their dog out the door with the wound still gaping open, due to the owner's inability to pay or charge on a credit card, a deposit in excess of $10,000.00 to begin treatment. The staff completely refused to even clean and dress the wound, then required payment from the owners of several hundred dol

They're amazing. They're expensive but they are amazing. It's a 24 hour clinic. We've had good luck with them and so have our friends. It's a special situation when you take an animal that's that sick there. If you're taking them there, you're in danger of losing the animal. It's a stressful situation

Dr Woods and the staff were rough with my dog which had been in a wreck and unable to walk. The vet tech dragged her, ignoring the fact that my poor dog was unable to use her rear legs. They did not assess the situation properly (that the dog was dying). The dog and myself were forced to wait for 2 hours before given a pain med waiting for my credit to be checked and 4 hours to have X rays taken for no apparent reason. Dr Woods performed a bone relocation, the dog arrived home in horrible condition, dying, unable to eat, walk, ******* on herself. They assured me that this is normal and everything will be fine. The dog died at night after being discharged. When i reviewed the list of meds, huge amounts of opiates and anesthetics were given. When another vet reviewed the notes he noted the meds being on overdose/high end. The vet never apologized blaming the death on a blod clot. I really regret not waiting and going to a more reputable hospital. This is an overpriced butcher shop.

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My dog became paralyzed in his back legs and we took him to REACH . A surgical vet examined him and and did some tests and ex rays. My dog had a compressed vertebrae and it was stopping blood flow to his back legs. He needed spinal surgery or he wouldn't walk again. He had the surgery and he stayed in their care for 5 days. I was so impressed with the quality of care and compassion from the entire staff. I didn't have to worry about anything because there is someone on staff 24/7 to make sure the animals are doing well. They supplied me with detailed information and instructions on his home care. We went back for a recheck a week later and my corgi actually wanted to see everyone who worked their like they were old friends! All of the staff are compassionate and dedicated. The surgeon was outstanding. They are a bit expensive, but you get quality when you pay for it. I have recommended them to other pet owners. FYI- my boy made a complete recovery and for this I am grateful.

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They are very passionate. They have an actual room that  look like a den with soft surfaces and rugs. Animal hangs in that room and the vet comes in when the pet is ready to get the shot. They are very nice. They also come to home if the pet cant come to the hospital.

inflammation of air passages. wonderful vets and staff.

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We brought our small dog in to diagnose the cause his diarrhea. Before they checked for the most obvious cause, parasites, they ran over $400 worth of scans and x-rays It was like they had to practice on all their expensive equipment whether it was needed or not. He could have been diagnosed with just the $27 fecal test. Avoid unless it is life or death and you can't get to your regular vet. Our neighbor had a similar thing with their dog on a Sunday, and it cost less than $100.

Overall, the service is about what you would expect from an after-hours emergency vet clinic. The services performed were done well, some might even say over done. Every nick and scratch was shaved, cleaned and treated. The one spot that we were most concerned with; a two inch gash that required stiches, had a drain tube inserted that was not discussed in the pre-op consult. At the time it felt like the drain was inserted as a punishment because we had opted out of several other recommended procedures and medications including a blood test and three medications to prevent the possibility of upset stomach and ulcers from pain medication. We also happened to be there during a shift change (around 1:00 am). We were told prior to the shift change (12:45 am) that our dog was coming out of anesthesia and we should be ready to check out in 15 minutes. Over an
hour later, after watching several staff members leave the building, we were finally able to check out and go home.
The follow up treatment has been excellent. They removed the drain tube and stiches at no additional cost and the service was very quick.

Helped with the Final Time of a pet of 16 yrs.

After preliminaries XRays the vet in charge told me my dog most probably had a ruptured malignant and fatal tumor and that more tests were required to confirm that. I asked for an itemized list of all the tests. The technician that provided me with the list lied about the scope of the Ultrasound implying that it was not enough and that I had to do the other suggested tests in the list - which in this case were not essential for what we were trying to find out.
After I declined the extra tests and authorized only the Ultrasound I was left waiting. Meanwhile I observed other owners arrive after me with their pets in no emergency state, have their pets been seen, treated and sent home. Two hours later I realized they hadn't even started performing the test to confirm the hemorrhage in my dog's abdomen.
When my dog was brought to me to be euthanized I realized that despite the fact that he was bleeding out and sedated they still kept him with a muzzle on. I received no updates about my dog during that time.
I have filed a similar complaint against this company with the Better Business Bureau. The company first attempted to blame my stress. Although they later apologized, their apology in no way takes responsibility for lying and putting other patients ahead of my dog who was bleeding out.
Other pet owners need to be warned about this company's behavior.

This was one of the scariest things I've gone through. My dog went lame in one of his back legs. I called Reach and they encouraged me to bring him in immediately. I didn't because I thought if I could wait until my regular vet opened I would save some money. I couldn't wait so I took him to Reach. Their exam fee is only about $100 which I think is very reasonable. They immediately put him on iv meds and when there was no improvement I saw the surgeon. As it turned out he's the only surgeon in town that is certified for nuero surgery. He had to stay there for about 6 days and the total bill was 4,400. He had 1st rate care. They have vets and techs there 24/7. Anytime I wanted to call for progress updates or go and visit him it was no problem. The love and attention they gave him just amazed me. The surgeon called me each day.
When I would visit him in his run I could hear the techs treating the other recovery animals. They didn't know I was there. That told me a lot. They truly love animals and treat them all with the utmost compassion.
If one of your pets has an emergency take him there if your regular vet is closed. They are top notch. He is doing great by the way.

My lab has experienced some significant emergencies and she is happy and healthy.

We took our (elderly) dog to REACH because he was acting like he was in pain and had a swollen stomach. Just to run a basic panel of tests to see what was going on cost almost $350. Then, once a diagnosis was reached, they wanted us to leave him there for two or three nights to receive IV medicine treatments (which was quoted at over a thousand dollars to do) - even after we told them we didn't have the money for all that. What they quoted us and what we wound up paying for the "basic outpatient treatment" were NOT the same amount (we paid a lot more than we were quoted to run the tests). The staff was professional, but that's not saying much when you are faced with their STEEP prices for services. I was not impressed with them, overall. If your pet is in a true medical crisis, of course seek medical attention. However, if you go to REACH, be prepared to spend many hours of your time waiting to be seen, and many hours of your paycheck to pay for their treatment options.

They were an emergency clinic and only operate outside of regular business hours. It has been while since we have gone there because if we find somewhere else to go we would go. They were way too expensive. It was better to go 20 miles to the next county and get the same emergency care for half the price. When we go in they require the money up front. They would quote me and the amount would be thousands of dollars for an emergency visit. They would tell me there was an alternative and they wanted it right then.

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Very well. I expected the expense because of their emergency care status. They are the go-to for my regular vet when the vet is closed. They were very helpful and provided excellent care.

REACH is an emergency hospital and, as such, were able to see us late at night with no appointment. My 16 year old cat started pee-ing on the counter which she had never done and which was full of blood. While there was quite a wait, the care seemed triaged much in the same way it would be at the human-hospital ER. The staff were friendly and kept things moving. The price was rather shocking but worth it not to have my cat suffer until the next day. The veterinarians were warm, calm, and really seemed to know what to do.