Care Center

Begin forwarded message: From: Andromeda Infinity Date: June 1, 2019 at 2:16:05 PM EDT To: "[email protected]" Subject: I’ve had two dogs in their care on two separate occasions both,end… I’ve had two dogs in their care on two separate occasions both,end up with a form of MRSA(MRSP).The first one was during a surgery in their surgical unit which should be STERILE but apparently not.So fast forward to this time and it was a monitor being placed on my animal,which you would think wouldn’t be such a big deal but apparently,the place is teeming with MRSA(MRSP) because the incidences were six months apart.They really need for someone to come in there and clean up that place.Beware if you take your animal there not only will some of the staff completely ignore them and not do what they should for them,but they may also end up with an infection that could possibly end their lives. It’s very sad. I ended up removing my dog from the Care Center and rushing him to Med Vet, where they took excellent care of my dog and when they are done with any exam in a room,they have a commercial cleaning crew that comes in and cleans hospital grade AS IT SHOULD BE,in an environment like that.Also, Med Vet communicates very well with their staff members, doctors, everyone! They also communicate very well and have a plan in place for your animal and communicate with you as a client. My dog went from being in distress as well as having acute pancreatitis, to a MARKED improvement within 36 hours of being at Med Vet. He was at Care Center for over a week and nothing changed for him BECAUSE YOU LEFT HIM LAY IN A CAGE AND DID ZERO FOR HIM!Every time I would try to speak to the doctor they either number one,didn’t call you back or, you would sit there with the doctor asking questions and she would just look at you and not have too much to say or have a plan together. Very unprofessional!I had nothing but drama trying to get any answers from the doctor that was taking care of my dog this last time. She’s about as useless as **** on a plastic cup.Care Center has no good communication between the doctors and the staff either.I witnessed it myself.There are some doctors and some staff members that I think are good there. But you never know what you are going to get.Unfortunately,others are just complete wastes of space. As much as I may like some of the staff and a couple of the doctors down there, that doesn’t negate the fact that they don’t take proper care of your pet and are apparently running rampant with who knows what types of viral and infectious diseases so beware if you take your animal there. It’s very unfortunate.It is not the Care Center that I knew for the past several years. Things have gone downhill there dramatically.I hope that you clean your act up Care Center. I hope for the sake of the animals that are in your care, that you all get your act together and that you get that place both physically cleaned up and hopefully you can heal your staff so that everyone can communicate versus going back-and-forth internally and no one doing their job correctly because there is zero communication. Your dirtiness and unkemptness has cost me not 1, but now 2 animals having passed due to getting MRSP caused directly from your filthy hospital, and having to treat them with medications that were so strong that side effects ravaged their poor little bodies. It’s no coincidence that this is happened in your care. I hope that you all feel very ashamed! Unfortunately I don’t think anyone gives two ***** down there.People, if you love your animals I cannot recommend this place at all to you. You are taking a giant chance anytime you leave your animal in this filthy place. I wish it was just me being disgruntled but ,the fact is that place is like a house of horrors for your animal.You’re just not back there to see it.As I mentioned prior, just because there are some nice people working here, there are certainly way more there that don’t give a **** and it shows.One day I hope that place gets their **** act a gather before they keep giving diseases to animals that come in there to be treated.You’re supposed to treat the animals Care Center, not give them a new disease on top of their already compromised situation!!!!!I wonder how many pets or animals this is happened to and people have no idea that you are giving their animal a very,very bad infection?! I’m sure it happens a lot!Not only did you hurt my animals by your filthy standards but also the lack of medical care that you gave.That trickle down effect cost me, at minimum,time away from my poor animals while they were in your care(or lack thereof)only to get them home only to have to bring them right back because they were filled with whatever type of infection your filthy establishment passed on to them.You robbed me of precious time that I could’ve spent with my animals by not taking care of them properly and passing diseases from your hospital to them. It ended up being back-and-forth with you and then ultimately down to another place because of you and your lack of care. I missed precious moments with my animals that I will never get back BECAUSE OF YOUR NEGLECT ON SOOOO MANY LEVELS!!!I will never be able to see them again because of your horrible mishandling of both situations!There is no forgiveness for that. The approximate cost of my service over two separate occasions with these two animals was well over $10,000.

We have used Care Center before and have always gotten good service. This time was no exception. Having a 24/7 emergency pet care service is wonderful.

Ginger was the physical therapists who worked with my dog and she was absolutely wonderful. I would recommend her to anyone. Ginger was absolutely fabulous. I recommend her to anyone I hear that has animals with hip dysplasia.

On February 3rd, one of our beloved dogs had surgery to remove a mast cell tumor under her chin.  As instructed, ten days later we took her back to the vet's office to have the stitches removed.  Six hours after getting her home, her wound was splayed open - looking like a gutted fish.  She was bleeding and the entire area from her chin to chest was exposed.

We called the CARE Center and provided basic details.  They were ready for us upon arrival at the front desk.   "Dr. Cameron" * looked her over and explained what needed to be done while also letting us know that another surgeon would perform the work because of their shift change.

Dr. Linda Hays performed the surgery with a "triple layer suture" to be sure the wound would hold and heal properly.  Antibiotics and pain meds were prescribed as would be expected.

Thanks to their availability, expertise, and caring our dog is doing well and still with us.  We appreciate their attentiveness in preparing for our arrival when we were so stressed and the follow-up phone calls to be sure all was going well.

* Kudos go out to "Dr. Cameron" for handling the situation when our (now previous) vet called to complain that he had given us false information.  Our fault with the vet was that we had not been informed of the existence of the mast cell tumor for over a year which could have allowed it to spread, i.e. affect her life span.  This was our opinion but, unfortunately, "Dr. Cameron" got put on the spot having to defend the action taken without knowing "the rest of the story."  Dr. Cameron contacted us in a professional manner and we do appreciate that communication as well. 

We visited her twice daily and had interactions with most all of the Vet Techs, office staff and doctors on both day and night shifts. Everyone demonstrated outstanding caring and professionalism. This was a long, scary and emotional ordeal for everyone, because our Yorkie did not show any changes during the first 3-4 days she was in the hospital.  One of the doctors noticed that she was still in pain and asked us to change up her pain meds. This was a very good decision, because the following days, she finally showed improvements.
The billing staff did approach us numerous times for revised bills and quotes for continuing services. They did treat our Yorkie very aggressively with several types of antibiotics, pain meds and anti-nausea meds. We understood this because she was very ill. We did not mind. She also had to have ultrasounds on a daily basis.  All of this including round-the-clock care was an investment in the future health of our beloved doggie.
I would highly recommend the Care Center. They did there best to keep us fully informed and encouraged me to call any time of day or night to check on my dog.  My only regret is not purchasing the Vet insurance, that most likely would have covered this expense.
Our yorkie then experienced complications from the pancreatiis with a liver issue. With time, the liver enzyme started to drop back to almost normal, while she continued to experience nausea. We returned on a weekly basis to re-check blood levels and ultrasounds. Our main Veterinarian, Dr. Peruski, stayed on top of things and saw us through this incredible lengthy experience. Today, nearly 2 months  later, our Yorkie is back to her normal, playful & loving self!

My cat, Cookie, began vomiting on July 4th 2014 by Saturday night the vomiting became more frequent and I knew she needed medical attention.  I just moved to West Chester and had not had time to locate a vet service.  I had been to the Dayton Care Center and felt comfortable taking Cookie to the Care Center on E Kemper Rd in Cincinnati thinking I would get the same level of care.  I took Cookie in and the vet on staff found nothing remarkable with a physical exam.  She gave Cookie an injection to remedy the vomiting and instructed me to take her home and feed her a bland diet.  Sunday night Cookie was getting worse...she had no desire to eat and became more lethargic.  I took her back in and a different vet recommended a battery of tests including blood work and x-rays.  She stated her findings were "unremarkable," gave Cookie some Mirtazapine and SubQ fluids, and instructed me to take Cookie home, give the medicine a chance to work and observe her.  I went to work on Monday.  When I came home, I found that Cookie had vomited in her water bowl and it appeared she had spewed blood through her nose on the hallway wall.  There was dried blood around her nose.  I took her back to the Care Center, and another vet, wanted to hospitalize Cookie and do another set of x-rays with an ultrasound.  The Care Center staff called me around 11 PM and stated they had to give Cookie oxygen because she was becoming distressed and was having trouble breathing during some test.  When I asked, the staff member said Cookie was comfortable and they planned to do the ultrasound in the morning.  I was becoming very distressed over the situation and was concerned about Cookie's comfort and well-being.  I called my mother who contacted the Care Center on Tuesday morning.  She spoke the vet on staff, Jomo Edwards.  He was asked about what the ultrasound was going to determine and what the course of action would be since our funds were limited and again we didn't want Cookie to continue suffering.  Dr Edwards could not provide information other than the ultrasound was covered in the estimate and the additional charges would be incurred when Cookie was sent to a specialist.  By this time, we decided to pull Cookie out and take her to her vet in Dayton at The Scratching Post.  Before we could arrive there, Cookie died in my arms.  Dr Summers did a quick physical exam and in less than 60 seconds found a large mass in Cookie's abdomen.  I have been very distraught over this because I trusted Cookie with the Care Center and there only concern seemed to be running tests and racking up unnecessary charges.  I was charged $120.55 my first visit, $405.71 the second, and $657.10 the third and they could not find what Cookie's Dayton vet found in less than a minute.  Cookie likely had a cancerous mass in her abdomen.  If this had been diagnosed properly she wouldn't have had to suffer needlessly.   It appears to me that the Cincinnati Care Center?s main interest is collecting fees from distraught clients, and I would caution anyone before allowing them to care for your pet.

Great for weekend emergency. Take time to explain. Expensive

Our dog needed an emergency blood transfusion.  The doctors took great
care of her.  We ended up having to put her down, but got great service
and care from the Care Center.

The CARE Center kept him overnight. They provided him with IV fluids and medications and monitored him to see if he had any more vomiting or diarrhea. The did not do any diagnostics other than checking his vitals. They did monitor him and provide some possible causes of his illness. They made sure that he ate something and kept it down prior to releasing him. 
The CARE Center is a state of the art medical facility for animals. Walking into the CARE Center is no different than walking into a hospital emergency room (except you usually get taken care of much more quickly). The staff are pleasant, friendly, and efficient. While the care is not cheap, it is worth it for the peace of mind it brings. Emergency care is not the only service the CARE Center provides, they also provide consultative services and more in depth medical treatment. They have a staff of highly trained specialists, including cardiac and oncology care.
If you can go to your regular vet, I recommend that as being your first option due to the likelihood of it costing much less, especially if there is a need to perform any tests. However, if that is not an option, I would not hesitate to recommend or use the services of the CARE Center.

They do a great job. They have saved a couple of my pets before. They have an area to keep your pets so they can see them at all times. You can even access them through the internet. Excellent, excellent care however, they are a little expensive. If anyone will save your pets life, they will!

I took my 6 year old dachshund with back pain at the instruction of the vet at Grady Veterinary Clinic.  She had injured her back in November 2011, but meds and rest had worked until she re injured herself right after Christmas.

She could still walk and defecate on her own when I took her in. The test and surgery where on a Tuesday and I dropped my dog off at 9am that morning, I did not hear back from the doctor until after 8:30pm that evening.  She had a calcified disc that they "chipped" around in the surgery.
She recovered to a seemingly pain free state, yet she now cannot walk nor defecate on her own. 

This is emergency medicine so not cheap.  I like to pay by check,  which was an option offered.  The check "clearinghouse", rejected my check while extracting the money from my account.  I had a very difficult time working with the office management to get them to understand and take responsibility for this.  I had to have someone from my bank call and try and deal with the staff and clearinghouse.  Finally, after much stress and embarrassment, CARE Center sent me a letter of apology and will waive the emergency visit ($90.00) if I should ever need them again. 

See above

I took my 9 yr old cat, Teddy, to this place on a Sat morning. Teddy had been losing weight, had not taken food or water for two days and had stayed in one spot for two days.  He was drooling a lot and I thought he might have a decayed or abcessed tooth.  They took him away and evaluated him. The vet reported he had a high fever and that when she palpitated his kidneys one was very small. She then discussed the course of treatment for cats with kidney failure. I asked about his teeth and she said his bad teeth could be a sign of kidney failure. She returned 20 minutes later and said the blood test did not confirm kidney failure but that with his high fever, low platelets and high white cell count, that he was likely battling an infection.  I believed the situation was dire and agreed that he should be checked in to receive fluids and antibiotics.  The vet said she had to print an "estimate".  The estimate was $1,699-$2,798.  I put down a deposit equivalent to the low end, thinking it would of course be much less for what we verbally agreed to which was fluids and antibiotics. Later the vet calls and said Teddy tested positive for FIV.  I have no idea how long he may have had FIV because I got him from a shelter. This was an obvious complication. I told the vet to continue the hydration and antibiotics until Sunday as I was not ready to consider euthanasia. I called Sunday morning to see how Teddy was and the vet said he was worse than the day before. His face had swollen up like a balloon and NOW she was thinking it was his teeth.  He was having trouble swollowing and his fever was spiking again.  I asked if it was possible he was having an allergic reaction.  She disagreed and thought it was that his infection just suddenly got worse.  I asked if she would consider giving him prednisone and she said no, not with his FIV.  She said she would give him benadryl, though.  More as an appeasement to me than any acknowledgement that he was having an allergic reaction to the antibiotics.  When I picked him up, I was shocked at the state he was in.  When I took him in, he was a weak but alert. When I picked him up, his face was swollen, he was having trouble breathing and he had a distant, vacant look in his eyes.  The vet said he had abcessed teeth yet took no xrays of his teeth. Instead they billed $147 for xrays of his abdomen.  They billed $87 for the FIV ELISA test which is a screening test and did not confirm the result with a confirmatory test. They billed for 4 syringes at $30/syringe, The CBC panel was $159. There were injection and oral administration fees, repeat tests, daily exam fees, and a litany of other fees. I could only imagine they tormented my poor cat all night performing billable services.  Did they 'care' for may cat?  Absolutely not. When I left him I saw where he was caged. They had him in a cage with a yelping dog below him. When I said I thought that would unneccessarily stress Teddy they said they would move him. When I picked him up they had moved him but also moved the yelping dog to be next to him again.  In summary, this care center is horrible in quality and value. I brought Teddy home and by the next day his facial swelling had subsided, and he was so much more relaxed. I regret so much subjecting him to this place for no good outcome. They "advised" me against taking Teddy home but he was much better at home than in that place.  Next time I will call my vet first and read Angie's List.

Our 16 year old cat was attacked this past Sunday and required emergency vet care. In the past, I?ve always gone to the Red Bank Road hospital but based on a flyer from a few months back, I decided to bring him to the Cincinnati CARE facility. In the 25+ years that we?ve had animals - dogs, cats, goats, horses, rabbits, rats - this was the most awful vet care experience of our lives. O?Malley is a gentle, geriatric, de-clawed neutered male. He was in our garage when he was attacked by a neighborhood cat who is starving and semi-feral. I downloaded and filled out the registration form, and we arrived around 11:00 am. After a brief wait, the front desk person took our cat, telling us that ?the tech needs to get his vital signs.? First Problem: Separating us from our animal. From what she said, my impression was that this would be very brief. Instead, we were kept separated from our animal the entire time. This created extreme apprehension for us and is unacceptable. Understand that we are experienced animal people. We are used to Home Vet Care, where everything happens in front of us. Why, when there are so many treatment rooms were we not given the option to stay with our pet? I can?t remember ever going to an animal hospital that separated me from my animal like this, particularly with no explanation. For sure, our whole experience started in a very bad way. The next thing that happen was our discussion with the vet. Again, I found it very weird that this was happening without O?Malley there. We were told he needed to be anesthetized, sewed up, and put on antibiotic and pain meds. She said she needed to work up an estimate, and that he would need to stay. At this point, the doctor made two mistakes: ? Based on past experience, I specifically asked for liquid antibiotic. This request was ignored. ? We asked about the second leg wound. The doctor had failed to find it. Given my upset at still not seeing my animal, I was even more concerned that she hadn?t found the wound on his leg. I told my daughter Jen that this would be expensive .. my guess was $300 to $400. Second Problem: Screwing the Customer. Imagine my shock when I was presented with an estimate of $800 to $900 to stitch up a paw. Really? I knew this was ridiculous but what to do? My cat was injured, so I signed the paper, but this was going from bad to really ugly. It turns out I have a basis for comparison. Two years ago, our cat Simba got bone cancer and we had his front leg amputated. This was major surgery - Dr. Line at HVC took off the leg and the shoulder; the incision was 8? - 10? long. Total cost: $713 - $175 less than what these guys charge to sew up a paw. On a Sunday. These are high prices, but after all, this is an emergency clinic on a Sunday. And then there?s gouging people because you can. And then there?s this, which is rape. That?s the only word for how I feel. I love my animals and would do anything for them, and these guys used that against me. But that still wasn?t enough. I was then asked to sign a paper saying that if O?Malley needed to be revived, they would do so only for another $300+. Really?! Is that such an important revenue stream that while someone is wrestling with how to come up with almost a thousand dollars to fix their cat, they now have to contemplate this? I mean, how often does this come up? one in ten? one in one hundred? You mean they can?t do what every other vet does and just do the right thing at the time? Does it increase their costs to revive an animal so significantly that they have to charge for it? Or is it just another way to take advantage of an animal lover? Anyway, it seemed like I had to sign and initial more papers than when I bought a house (I?ve since read other reports on Angie?s list, and several said ?they seem very concerned about getting paid.? .. that?s how it felt to me). We finally got to see O?Malley; my head was killing me, and we went home. Third Problem: Oblivious staff. Our experience was horrible, but fortunately O?Malley did fine and Jen and I were back at 8:00 pm to get him. We check in at the desk and were told - surprise - that $801 wasn?t enough to cover this. No, we needed to be raped a little more to the tune of $64. The more I read the itemized list, the madder I got. $153 for a CBC? That?s what LabCorp bills the insurance before they settle for $15. And do you really need a CBC anyway? He was put on antibiotic prophylactically, so what are we really getting for $150? And on it goes: $20 for an injection; $30 for another injection; $100 for fluids that our vet charges $30 for. So while we waited and read, the tech (after about 15 minutes) brought us our cat and his meds. And sure enough, we had pills, not liquid like I had requested. So we got our instructions, and I waited for her to ask ?any questions?? I said ?well .. this has been a really dreadful experience .. who should I contact?? She answered ?Sarah?, turned around, and was gone. A basic rule of customer service is that you never walk away from an angry customer. I know this person is a vet tech, but if you deal with customers, then you have to deal with customers. She didn?t. Now remember that we had asked for liquid antibiotics, the doctor had forgotten about it, and we had to get it changed at the end. Also remember that the tech said nothing to us about an extra change. So I thought to myself, ?surely to god, they aren?t going to want yet more money to fix their screw up, are they?? Those cheery front desk money collectors were all over it, demanding ANOTHER $24. Do you see how ridiculous this all is? That no-one was empowered to say ?you guys have paid enough - this was our mistake? or just not mention it at all? My overriding impression of this ?hospital? is a bunch of people rooting around in my wallet and only incidentally caring for my animal. This is the exact opposite of every other vet - large animal or small animal - that I have ever dealt with. I understand wanting to make a living. I don?t understand this. EPILOG After submitting this complaint to Sarah Tiltman, the director of Client Services on Tuesday, October 19, I GOT NO RESPONSE. If she doesn't respond to complaints, I wonder exactly what she does. Our vet, Dr. Line, examined O'Malley today (for free!) and confirmed that these charges were beyond all reason.

They said our cat did not appear to be plugged, and prescribed $70 worth of drugs - enough for a week as it turned out! These were pain killers and an anti-spasmodic. Our normal vet called us early the next morning and asked us NOT to give these drugs, plus our cat acted "half dead" in the morning. Our vet suggested we pick up an antibiotic prescprition that day. We called Cincinnati Animal Referrel and Emergency Center and they said they would not take the meds back, so we asked if they would "soften the blow" of $70 worth of useless meds by providing a free or discounted visit IF it was needed during the next year. We thought this was a reasonable comprimise considering that they provided far too much quantity of meds for an emergency - an opinion shared by our normal vet. One of their owners, Dr. Dan Carey, said he did not think this was a reasonable request and that he felt they were accurate in their diagnosis and more or less, too bad. We feel they are not reasonable, are not willing to share in mistakes, did not help educate or point our how much med was given - at 1:30 AM! We think they are quite into making big money and do not seem to care about working with us. We suggest going to the Veterinarian Care Center on Redbank Road, which have heard is more reasonable, and is recommened by our vet also.

I could not be happier with the way they cared in an emergency situation. They are very knowledgeable and professional. It was handled in such a way that I can't give them enough accolades. They provided a quick diagnosis and quick care to stabilize my cat. The whole staff was very professional and at the top of their game. I would take my pets back in a heartbeat.

The vet was very thorough and scoped her to see where the bleeding had started. They never found the problem but they thought it was coming come from her. She spent the night at the clinic and she did fine after we brought her home. We appreciate everything this clinic did. They do offer 24 hour emergency service. We will continue to use this clinic in the future.

I have made several visits to the CARE Center over the last few years with sick dogs on dnoways and times when my regular veterinarian was not available. Everyone who works there is compassionate. The vets are very knowledgeable about emergency care and take the time to explain everything they are going to do. Although the costs are higher than a regular veterinarian, they are a lifesaver on weekends, nights, and holidays.

From start to finish, this place is first rate. Every doctor, assistant or tech I spoke with was compassionate and knowledgeable.

They were available and cared about the animal. They have all of the necessary diagnostic equipment, the facility is clean and staff is very professional. I would use them again in the future if necessary.

When we arrived to the center, they were quick to check us in and have a nurse look at our dog. The staff was friendly and seemed to care about our dog. We then proceeded to wait in the examination room for an hour and a half for the doctor to see us, even though there was only one other person in the waiting room and the parking lot was empty. He was very friendly, professional, and knowledgeable and answered all the questions that we had. After the doctor examined our dog we waited for another hour in the exam room for a fecal examination to be done. Overall, we were at the center for about 3 hours and had about 20 minutes of interaction with the doctor and nurse. They generally seemed to care about our dog, but were extremely slow in administering the care. The medication they provided did cure our dog?s ailment. We would recommend them for emergencies, since they are one of the only choices for after-hours care, but be prepared to wait.

Our Rottweiler had a stroke over the weekend. We took the dog to their clinic. Our Rottweiler was seen by an animal neurologist. They stated it would take a year for recovery. This was back in may and it seems as though she have already recovered within six months. Everything just went beautifully. They wanted to do a scan. I was surprised that they treated the dog like a human. They took her to an area hospital to do the scan. They provide total care for your animals. They are very informative and responsive. They provide a full report, the same report they provide to the veterinarian. When she was discharged they gave us all the information we needed. They gave a full report. Our vet stated that the clinic was exceptional.

It went well. I do think the CARE Center is extremely expensive. It does not offer routine veterinary care, and I doubt most people could afford to take their animals there if it did. However, the expert and caring level of care is good, and it's comforting to know there is a 24/7 option available if a loved companion animal experiences any sort of health crisis.

The quality of care and compassion was incredible. My dog had to have 2 surgeries and the doctors saved both of his legs.

Our dog was unable to walk and our vet determined that he would need surgery on his disc. He kept him under observation all day and then made the arrangements for us to take the dog directly to the Care Center. Our dog was taken into the clinic where he was evaluated and we went to a treatment room where they confirmed our vet's diagnosis after the evaluation and explained the pros and cons of doing the surgery. We loved our dog (now deceased of other causes) and would have paid any price to save him from paralysis. We were told the approximate cost and paid half at the time we left him there. The surgery was done in the late evening and we were called after it was over, just as they said. We were also called in the morning after the surgery when he was more awake and they could evaluate his reaction to pain, which would determine the success of the operation. He passed the neurological exam and was sent home a couple of days later, where he did beautifully--was up and walking in less than 2 weeks (they said it could take as long as six).