Cat Hospital of Austin — Local services in Austin

I just recently moved to Austin, and being a first time cat owner, I wanted to make sure my little dude adjusted well to the change.. I searched google & found the cat hospital of Austin, and I was sold.. I was so excited to go to a clinic that specialized in cats.. I thought he was gonna get over and above treatment.....

Unfortunately due to COVID I was not able to go inside, so when I got there I handed over my cat and all of his records...Not very long after the doc calls & tells me she’s worried about gingivitis in his teeth and that she thought he could of potentially contracted FIV (which he was already tested/vaccinated for) & Bartenella disease (which is very rare)

When I heard this, I was frightened and my emotions were on a high because FIV is basically a death sentence....The receptionist told me they had to test my cat, and of course I was eager and I wanted what was best for him so I proceeded with the apt. Once the apt was over they called & told me I owed 280 dollars for having my cat go through various testing/vacations.. they even said “they just had to clip his nails bc they were latched to the towel.”.....Obviously!!! The poor guy was probably petrified. Luckily, FIV came out negative the day of his apt, and the front desk told me they would notify me once they got the results for bartenella.

Yesterday, they called with the results.. big shocker it was negative..The receptionist then proceeded to tell me the doctor is worried that he may have tooth decay and they advise me to bring him in to do a cleaning and to remove the damaged teeth without even pausing to give me a moment to think... the receptionist proceeded to say, “I can schedule that all now for you”. (My cat is 1 year old). Yet again, I went from having a healthy boy to feeling frightened for his health and having to get his teeth removed. I just thought that it was very drastic...I went with my gut and told them I appreciated it but didn’t feel comfortable and wanted a second opinion. The receptionist was nice about it and told me that if I needed paperwork the other doctor could call to request it and they’d be SO happy to help.

Later... my new vet called to grab my cats apt information, and the cat hospital of Austin proclaimed they had NO evidence of my cat or myself in their records... (fishy). My new office called me back to make sure I had the right number, I verified the cat hospitals location and phone number.. so the new vet office made a second attempt... and again, the receptionist insisted my cat was never a patient there.

Today during my second opinion, I was told my cat just had allergies and I could give him special food to help with tartar around his gums, and if I would like I could occasionally give him a steroid to help relieve his symptoms. He even gave me a free bag of food to try out instead of just charging me for it. (Now that’s a vet who cares). My new vet solidified my gut feeling by stating, “wanting to test him for bartenella/FIV and then to just jump to pull his teeth was reaching a little too far. If I just did those simple things at home I could reverse the symptoms from his allergies.”

I am a firm believer in good people. I see all these awesome reviews below and I’m confused why my cat did not get the same treatment at the cat hospital of Austin. Maybe it’s because they figured out I was new to cat parenting, or the fact I was just new to the location and took advantage of my situation..I feel as though it is very inhumane to put any animal through drastic measures just to make money in the process... there was obviously a much simpler and safer option to suggest first. A veterinarian with that many years of experience should of figured that out before reaching as far as pulling a 1 year old cat’s teeth out. I’m sad to just think that if I would of gone that route I could of caused damage to my cat for the rest of his life/potentially shortened his life span.

I hope my experience can help others make decisions about this location & warn them to...

I began coming to Dr Leland’s office for my cat about year ago, and felt like I had finally found a vet office that truly cared about my cat (Kream) like I did. However, I was very very disappointed and heartbroken after boarding my cat there for 9 days while I was traveling. The reason I boarded her was because a reoccurring skin issue began to flair up by her ear and I wanted the vet to keep an eye on it and provide any treatment if needed; I authorized up to $500 of treatment that could be administered without even needing to contact me.

When my partner picked up Kream the office said everything went well and brought her to the car in the kennel with the boarding invoice; no notes what so ever. Once she got home and out of the kennel, Kream was very defensive and scared. Immediately, I noticed the area between her right ear and eye was completely mangled looking; The same area I was concerned about before boarding was now at least twice as big and obviously infected.

I rushed her to another local cat hospital that confirmed she had a pretty serious skin infection. When I reached out to Dr. Leland’s office she was initially not available, and I was later called back by a vet tech, after asking to speak with the Dr directly. When I finally got the Dr on the phone she immediately began defending her self and spewing excuses. She admitted the last time she saw Kream was Thu and I had her picked up on the following Tue. Additionally, she admitted she does not check on the boarded cats every day, even though I specifically brought her there to be monitored and explicitly explained this to the front desk workers. The Dr then boasted she had punished the vet tech she felt was at fault and offered me some free medications, without even evaluating Kream’s condition, as compensation for the event. I requested a refund for boarding which she refused.

After this event it very evident that Dr Leland leads a very loose ship at her office, which can be easily seen by the hypocrisy in their “mask required” policy. If customers don’t wear a mask then they require the patient to wait outside, however when ever I would wear a mask inside, at least one person in the office was not wearing a mask over their face. In retrospect, I recall only ever seeing Dr Leland once after over a year of visits. Additionally, I only noticed her vehicle even at the office once in the at least a dozen trips I made to her office over the course of a year. I also question the need for $800 dollars of treatment to relieve my cat of simple constipation a few weeks before this event.

My final thoughts on this office are to be aware, that despite they have a ton of “cat lover” stuff inside the office, Dr Leland appears to be absent most of the time and lacks leadership to ensure her staff is competent. Unfortunately, it appears this office is more interested in the wallets of their patients, than their well-being.

Attached are 1 before and several after photos of the damage done to Kream due to her stay at Dr...

11-30-17 We had previously paid over $1000 in July for the same situation, but it was at least planned. I finally got to speak to the vet by phone. She made sure I knew she was the owner for the past 17 years and that their Thanksgiving hours had not changed in those 17 years. I said I had never boarded before on that holiday, so I was unaware of their 17 year run, especially because the newer employee failed to realize those "set in stone" hours for that week. The vet was condescending even though I thanked her for saving one of my kitties in 2009 when I came across this Cat Hospital. I said I had trusted her and the staff also. That trust is disappearing. I asked her if staff had changed because I don't remember struggling to understand their customer service skills back then. She said a longtime employee had moved away. I can definitely tell there is confusion, stress, miscommunication and bad customer service from the more established employees. The newer employee was at least courteous a few times. She also "lost" one of the kitties crates during pick up, putting them both in one crate! That could have been trouble because they fight alot when they are too close to each other. One thing after another during this visit!!! $528 later for 5 and a half days, for two cats given minor medical attention and boarding. Oh there's more... When I dropped them off on Wednesday, they asked me the feeding schedule, made me write it down, I brought lots of food for them to eat like they do at home only to receive alot of it back when they were picked up??? So I asked what happened with their food? The vet said, "oh people complained their animals get fat when they return home because they are confined during boarding." I said that isn't how I feel! I should have been asked what I wanted for them considering one cat is already LOSING weight for an unknown medical reason we are costly trying to figure out. My patience is see through with this Cat Hospital right now. Too much money is spent here and I can't even get a greeting when I come in???

*I called today (05-02-18) to board the cats. I was told they needed to be vaccinated for rabies because it was expired in April 2018. Okay. Then I was informed a medial exam was necessary because they had not been seen in a long time. I asked what is "a long time"? I was informed since December 2017. I said so I need to pay for an additional medical exam, vaccinations to board the cats? Yes. Okay, thank you. I'll call back. I did some checking at another vet. I called again to verify the costs of everything. I was placed on hold, later to be told "I needed to go to Balcones Animal Hospital." I asked why is that? He said the notes on your account said to "direct Ms Smith to Balcones Animal Hospital." So I asked, "Does that mean I'm not welcomed there?" I guess it does, he said. "I'm sorry for whatever happened before." I said that was fine and thanks for...