Address: (Edit Info)
4730 N 7th Ave, Phoenix, AZ, US
Page Views: 209
6 positive - 2 negative = Net Rating (4)
Positive (6)
Negative (2)
Posted on: 2008-06-25
Having gone through a period of time when I would have sworn that I was running a hospice for animals, I became intimately associated with Alta Vista. Seriously, how many people can walk in to a vets office, be recognized and acknowledged by their first name, and the techs all know the details of your animals BMs? I am convinced that I have put more than one vet in a new car!!! But ranting aside, they have almost always been professional and caring. I have had the odd off visit, but when you are on the frequent visit plan that is to be expected. Personal experience would rate a 4 star rating alone on the fact that they can muscle my chart around. But they get the coveted 5 stars for their mobile service.
Dad's very large (I would say obese, but that's a sore point, so let's say she was big boned) and very old yellow lab was frail and failing fast. We all knew what the humane thing to do was, but here's the rub... Libby hated going in the car. The folks at Alta Vista have an incredible mobile vet service which allowed the family to not force Libby's last moments to be worse than they already were. One call to the office and an appointment time was set. The vet came to the house (right on time) and spent a considerable amount of time with the family and Libby. She was allowed to pass comfortably, surrounded by those who loved her most.
If you are someone that has four-footed family members and find yourself in a situation where a more personal touch is needed, Alta Vista and their staff will definitely rise to the challenge.
I am so glad I found this place, and it's right across the street! It's in Melrose, the quaint neighborhood on 7th Avenue between Indian School & Camelback. Now, for the review: My 15-year old cat, Spike, got sick. I got an appointment the same day. They were so caring there. I got into a private room almost upon arrival and didn't wait long for the vet. It was bad news: his kidneys had failed. They ran tests and I knew...KNEW...I would have to put him to sleep. I had been preparing for this day. The female vet put her hand on my shoulder, which is exactly what I needed. The vet loaded him up with fluids so I could have a few days with my Spike. Turns out, the next day, he wasn't doing any better. I immediately went back, tears streaming down my face. I whispered "I need to put him down". They immediately whisked me to a private room. Everything was humane and the people working there were so caring! They let me sit with him after he died and said they'd be back in a bit. I was a wreck, but everyone came in and hugged me. I wasn't charged an arm and a leg. I had him cremated and they gave me a beautiful urn to go with Spike. I highly recommend Alta Vista based on service, price, caring and the wide range of services they offer. They also do day care and boarding!
In addition to all the rave reviews about Alta Vista staff saving pets from horrible circumstances, i would like to add that they have very reasonable rates for routine care. I have also boarded dogs there for short trips out of town. The rates were good, and the dogs were returned happy.
I don't even have any pets but I still have an experience to relate that justifies the 5 stars here. And it's a doozy.
While comfortably sitting at Postino's (for the very first time believe it or not) sampling my first-ever heavenly bruschetta with a friend, my girlfriend at the time called my cellphone. When I answered I couldn't understand a word she was saying because she was hysterical. Basically, her dog ate her bird. (Please don't laugh. The friend I was with couldn't resist and I almost punched him). She had come home, saw a bloody clump of feathers in one corner of a room, another bloody clump somewhere else, her guilty-looking dog sulking nearby, but no Mr Apples (a parakeet) anywhere to be seen. She ultimately found him hiding in the bathroom, barely conscious.
I drove over to pick them up and got my first look at Mr Apples. I was pretty sure he wouldn't make it. He was little more than an unrecognizable lump of bloody skin and bones. Even his long tail had been ripped off. We rushed to Alta Vista, calling them on my phone to make sure they were ready when we arrived.
They took Mr Apples away as soon as we got there. An attendant asked us questions and comforted my gf while the vets tended to him out of our sight. Maybe an hour or so later, a female vet came into our private waiting room to explain the situation. It was a miracle. The dog had punctured the little dude's body but he seemed to be holding up, and only time would tell if there was serious internal damage. A lot of feathers had been ripped off but with time they would grow back. He wasn't out of the woods, but with little-birdie antibiotics and time there was a good chance he'd be back to his old self.
The ending's a happy one. I don't know how the spunky little bastard did it but he eventually healed to a complete recovery, and he routinely gives the middle finger to his canine assailant. If you ever run into a serious pet crisis the way Mr Apples did, I'd say you can run to this place and count on the best care under the circumstances.
My precious pooch attends Pup Scouts at Alta Vista and wow, do they have the doggie day care business down. I've been to Dog Day Care facilities all over the city and this is the one that's stuck. The staff are caring, well-trained and do perform a temperment test on new pups. The dogs rotate between one-on-one time with each other, with employees, and group time. This is the first place my dog has ever willingly gone knowing I was going to leave him.
Alta Vista saved my puppy from the dreaded Parvo. This feat alone is a great endorsement for them, but there's so much more. The staff is always really nice and friendly to both people and pets. In addition to being a veterinary hospital, they also do grooming and boarding. All this and their amazing extended hours, make it hard to justify taking my dog anywhere else.
I called Alta Vista yesterday because one of our dogs needs some dental work and I am pretty unhappy with the service that we have received from our current vet (Banfield at Spectrum/Christown).
The receptionist, Sissy, was extremely nice on the phone. She gave me a general quote for a dental and fit us in for an appointment the very next day, for free! She told me that we would be meeting with Dr. Harbo, the vet at the practice who does dentals.
During the time from when we arrived, finished filling out the requisite paperwork, and were ushered into the room, we saw several employees, all of whom were pleasant.
At this point, our experience changed completely. Adam was our final veterinary technician. He was terse, almost rude. He spent about 1 minute with us and the dog, and looked in the dog's mouth for about 5 seconds. He barely spent enough time in the room to hear our concerns. He left as quickly as he came in and was gone for quite some time.
When he came back, estimate in hand, he asked if we expected to see the vet. When I told him that I understood that our appointment was with Dr. Harbo, he informed us that if we wanted to speak to a vet, a $45 office charge would apply. We declined.
My problem is that I was misinformed when making the appointment, then treated poorly at the appointment. From a business perspective, they should have treated this free exam like an audition to win our business - because it was.
Will I try Alta Vista again?? I don't know. The price was right, but that really isn't the only factor. If it was, I would still be happy with Banfield (ugh.)
I want a vet (and their staff) who will treat me and my dogs with respect, and not value me only for my money. I also want a vet who does not treat me poorly because I have financial concerns - I just can't blindly drop thousands (or even hundreds) of dollars. Believe me, if I could, I would. These dogs are my babies.
I am bummed that my first experience at Alta Vista was not as good as I would have liked. Maybe next time.
I have this cat, you see, whose name is Count Larry. Only in the last month, after 1.5 years of dating, has my boyfriend come even close to garnering the same amount of affection I shower on this cat. The cat and I have been through the ringer together.
He started displaying some disgusting behavioral problems, and I thought he was angry at the the dogs, but then he added lethargy on to the top of these problems. I took him to Alta Vista, very very worried... absolutely in hysterics, thinking I was going to lose my little Larry. The doctor took a look at him and took X rays, the first of which were too "fuzzy"... she charged us for these. The second set were fine, but she said she couldn't diagnose the problem and that we could make one of two inferences from the "gray area" on the X ray:
1.) That he is going to die if not operated on or 2.) It's just a piece of poop that's stuck.
REALLY. So, basically they told me I would have to pay upwards of $600 to operate on something potentially benign, or run the risk of him dying by just paying $200 for the useless x rays and observation, with further "study" on the X Rays. Because we had limited funds and his illness didn't qualify for the CareCredit, we had to go with the latter, and kept him under close observation for the next 24 hours. They said they'd call in the next 24 hours to check up on him and to let us know what the new X Rays said.
Guess who never called?
After 7 days of badgering them about whether or not my cat was dying, they couldn't tell me anything and passed me off to eachother at least three times on every phone call.
They suck. Screw them.
UPDATE: By the way, Lar turned out to be TOTALLY FINE. After inspection of his bowel movements (totally disgusting, FYI... cats must be the smelliest creatures 2nd only to either ferrets or those monkeys that fling their own poo), turns out he just chewed a hair tie of mine and it started twisting him up a little. Nothing some kitty immodium-AD and force-watering couldn't fix.
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