Bothell Pet Hospital — Attraction in Bothell

Update: Victoria called me and we had a really nice discussion. She listened to and understood my feedback and said the issues will be addressed. I really appreciated the call and hope that things do change, namely putting in a policy where prescriptions are called in promptly and to hire people who actually like animals (or at least pretend to like them). Changing my rating from 1 to 3 stars in hopes that things are getting addressed.

I wouldn't recommend coming here unless there are no other vet hospitals available. I do like the convenient location and most of the people there seem to mean well. I think the problem is they are too busy to put the thought that's needed to give proper customer service and more importantly proper healthcare to pets.

I'll start with the minor issues first.

-they had me bring my dog back for lab work to make sure his new meds weren't causing any issues. after the appointment, I called a few days later to find out the lab results. Turned out they didn't do any lab work although they charged me for it. The only thing they did during that appointment was take his blood pressure. I had to make another appointment and bring him back for the lab. -I took my dog there for an appointment and waited in my car (this is during COVID where you can't go inside). It was taking a few hours so I called to see the status. They forgot to tell me that this was a drop off appointment and they'd call me when he's ready to be picked up. -I took my other dog there for immunizations. They said he needed to be examined before they could administer the shots. The vet called me from the exam room and proceeded to tell me in what great shape SHE was and referred to my dog as a she multiple times. My dog is a male.

The more serious issues:

-I took my dog (who has congenital heart failure and fluid in his lungs) to be seen via drop off appointment (this time, they gave me a drop off form) where they keep the pet until there is a timeslot the vet is available. I didn't hear from them for 7 hours. So I called to see what was going on. They put me on hold, and they said the doctor was seeing him now. The vet called me about 45 minutes later. I don't know for sure but I think they may have forgotten about him until I called. I asked if they fed him at all while he was there and they said no because I didn't give them his food. Since they know the process better than me, I wish they would have told me that it was possible he would stay all day and that they won't feed him unless I give them food to feed him. The vet told me that he was having fluid in his lungs again, she could hear it, and she called the cardiologist to ask what to do. She recommended a medication that the vet said she'd call in. The next day, I call the pharmacy and there was no prescription called in. I called the vet's office and asked if they could call it in. The woman who answered said they'd call it in when they call it in. I told her the urgency (that this is life threatening) and asked if she could make it a priority. She said she will call it in. I asked today? And she said no, not necessarily today. That was pretty much the entire conversation. She didn't try and soften it or explain anything. She was pretty much like this is what I'll say I'll do, take it or leave it. What are you going to do about it sort of thing.

I have now transferred my dog's care to another hospital with an appointment in a few days. Whether Bothell Pet Hospital ever calls in the prescription remains to be seen. (Update-they did call it in on Thursday two days after the appointment and one day after the unpleasant...

It fills me with sadness to write this review. Up until the last year I was a super fan of Bothell Pet Hospital, telling all that would hear about the excellent care our animals had always received. I hesitated to write a review until our latest experience. All our animals are becoming older, requiring more trips to the vet. Each experience within the last year made me question if we were at the right vet clinic for us.

The event that started our quest to find another vet Our older boxer had been diagnosed with 3 tumors. Each in an area that biopsy could not be done and surgical removal was either very invasive or couldn’t be done. We knew our time with him was limited and like any pet owner would want, we wanted his time to be enjoyable and pain-free. We discussed on several occasions that we thought he was in pain but to us, it didn’t seem like we were taken seriously. Thus, we moved him to another vet, unfortunately he only had another month with us but he was so much happier and more comfortable that last month.

The next Our younger boxer was grieving the loss of her bonded mate. We could not get an appointment to see the vet for ideas to help her through this process for weeks. This is when we made the move to another vet.

The final straw leading to this review Our older cat had been vomiting (more than usual), because she was established at BPH and we hadn’t changed vets for her yet, we scheduled an appointment for her at BPH. The exact diagnosis could not be determined without further testing and even with that testing the treatment most likely was going to be the same, so we opted not to do further testing. We started her on the suggested meds and she was improving, until one day when we saw blood in her urine. We were able to get her in to find out she had a UTI. She was treated with antibiotics and seemed to recover. But within a week of finishing antibiotics she had blood in her urine again. Thankfully there was an appointment with a vet on Friday night, unfortunately when we loaded her into the kennel she emptied her bladder which meant they couldn’t do a urinalysis and we had to bring her back the next morning. On Friday a plan was decided that if the urine test came back negative in house, that we would do an x-ray and send the urine out for culture. The x-ray and urine culture negative in house but on Wednesday, the culture came back with a slight e-coli colony. More antibiotics were supposed to be filled. On Thursday, everything went sideways for our soul kitty. We called BPH to talk with the vet, we were told he was in with a patient and the staff would let him know so he could call us right away. Now, 5 days later…no call from BPH regarding what was happening with our beloved cat, also no call for refill of pain medication or antibiotics for what was supposedly causing blood in her urine.

The night we were waiting for BPH to call, closing time of 6pm came and went. Now our options were to find an emergency vet that could see her…if you have ever had to go to an emergency vet in Seattle, you know it is an expedition of several hours and with covid, you can’t even go in with your pet. What a horrible picture that is when your pet is in pain, all we wanted to do was to be able to console her and make her time here more comfortable. At the emergency vet we made the difficult decision to let her cross the...

Update 1/25/21: it’s 4:15 and I still have not received a call back. I just called and was told his prescription is still not ready. I told the girl on the phone I was assured I would be called on Saturday and wasn’t. She asked me if I wanted her to talk to the doctor or the person who took the message on Saturday. I told her the doctor because I’d like an answer for my dog since we have been out of his prescription since Saturday. I’m now waiting for the doctor or someone to call back with an answer for my dog as well as the office manager.

Update 1/23/21: I called on 1/22 regarding my dog’s prescription thinking I’d give them another chance. Our vet was out that day, but the girl who answered said she would talk to her the next morning. I told her we only had one dose left, she said she was going to talk to her first thing in the morning, then get back to me. I just tried calling, and they’re closed until 1/25. I never received a call back. Their follow through and communication is terrible.

I’ve been happy enough with this place until today when I had the final straw. We are established patients and our cat needs to be seen to make sure something isn’t wrong. The first available appointment isn’t until next week. They can take her this week for an extra $22 “kenneling fee”. Meaning I drop her off and they see her when they can. In other words, I pay them to stick her in a kennel and have her available when it’s convenient for them. Yes, I recognize they’re working her in, but I don’t understand why it costs extra to stick her in a kennel.

Previously I’ve taken my dog in for regular checkups and medicine management for anxiety. The last time I had him, they didn’t want to prescribe medicine for him. They wanted me to have him see a behavioral specialist out of Portland. They do zoom consultations. They are crazy expensive, like around $700 for the minimum two sessions it would take. When I called back to the Bothell vet, she had no idea it was that expensive. I think before she recommended it, she should have had some idea of what she was asking of me.

Also, their communication is lacking. When I call in for prescription refills they don’t always call me back to tell me if it was approved. When I call back they act surprised that I hadn’t picked it up yet. I hadn’t because I didn’t know it was approved or ready for pickup. This has happened a few times. Plus, their phones are off for two hours for lunch. That seems excessive and makes it more difficult to reach them at times. They should stagger the front desk lunch breaks so they don’t have to turn the phones off for 2 hours.

So, they’re fine for routine stuff, but anything beyond regular checkups, you may either not be able to get in or have to pay extra or be referred to exorbitantly...