College Park Animal Hospital

I’m taken aback at the few negative reviews posted here — we have two aging animals (a dog and a cat), and we’ve never experienced anything less than excellent service and care each time we’ve been here.
The receptionist staff are pleasant and accommodating, and the veterinarians have always been careful, thorough, and compassionate with both of our animals. (Dr. Berndt saw our dog; I can’t recall who saw our cat.) I also appreciate that even though the doctors have my animals care as a priority, they acknowledge and appreciate that it can be expensive and find ways to work with owners — for example, even though my dog will need his teeth scaled, they recommended doing the procedure in the spring when they have a discount on that service.
I would not describe the facilities as «posh,» but it is always clean, and to me good and thorough care for my animals is more important than fresh paint on the walls.

My wife and I have used College Park Animal Hospital for 26 years now. While you will rarely get to see Dr. McMichael, the rest of the staff is more than capable of handling your pet’s needs. The young vets keep the practice current. Just a good, old-​fashioned local vet practice.

The staff here is great! I especially appreciate Dr. Berndt’s dedication. She has given us great care and advice, and always takes a lot of time with my four (now five) cats and two dogs. She was especially meticulous with a feral kitten we recently brought in, and answered all my questions very clearly and without making me feel rushed.

I felt the need to rebut all the negative reviews on here. We have seen Dr. Neri here twice for our dog, and he has been thoroughly kind, professional, and helpful with us. The same goes for the other hospital staff. Yes, it is in a small and non-​descript location, but we are thoroughly satisfied.

While the building could use a touch up, the Drs. and staff at College Park are wonderful to work with. Dr. McMichael has been treating animals for years and is willing to take on almost any surgery or care your animal may need. The other associates are young, knowledgeable, and work hard to help your pets. When my cat Izzy needed a dental cleaning, Dr. Berndt took wonderful care of her, and the whole team has been very nice in the past. I always feel comfortable with my animals there.

I called this animal hospital seeking help after my cat had a horrible fall injuring his leg going up the stairs. I was very worried and a bit frantic on the phone. The receptionist was very rude and stated do not bring your pet here if you do not have an appointment. She also did not give any recommendations to hospitals with emergency services. It seemed as if she simply did not care. Even other hospitals I called that did not take walk ins were able to state so in a pleasant manner and offer recommendations. I cannot speak on the service at the hospital. But if the doctors are just as uncompassionate and unprofessional as the receptionist, I definitely do not recommend going to this place. I was very disgusted.

do. not. go. there.
I am an over-​concerned «pet parent», but when a dog goes in for a checkup and his severe inner ear infection (that lead to an actually serious hematoma in his ear) is completely missed, there’s an issue. when you pay for tests, and the results go «mysteriously missing» and you pay three times for basic tests, there is a problem.
when you go in when urgent care is needed (as in a hematoma needing to be cleared), and they tell you it’s an annoyance… well, that’s the last straw.
An ethics board complaint is forthcoming.

I’ve been taking my cat to this vet (which is 2 minutes away from my house) for the past 13 years. Service has always been mediocre, but I it’s been acceptable. Until yesterday. I took my cat there to find out he had pancreatitis. He was in a lot of pain and needed meds and TLC. He got the meds. Dr. Berndt (sp?) (a young female) was very nice and seemed very caring about my cat when we brought him in. He had to stay overnight, so the next day when Dr. Berndt wasn’t there, I was refered to another doctor, Dr Neri. Lord help all of us pet owners, if he is the example of vets for the next generation. No bedside manner, no social etiquette, lacked professionalism. He wasn’t friendly. He was just reading the file as he was talking to me. Couldn’t look me in the eye. Didn’t ask how I was. Seeing that I was distraught that my kitty had to spend the night in a hospital. He may be book smart but he has no feelings. He even refered to my cat as the wrong gender. Look at the file before you say anything! Familarize yourself with the information first before you talk to it’s owner! I’m turned off and glad I made the decision to not leave him there another night. I brought him home and gave him the meds myself. And I won’t be going back. I’ll be going to the vet that’s 5 miles further away from my house. These people don’t care. I’m giving 2 stars because my kitty was not injured while there and he does seem to be perking up.

Expensive and EVERYTHING gets a «worst case scenario» recomended treatment. They will offer the most expensive treatment money can buy. Even if doing NOTHING will net you the exact same results. SHAME on them for preying on pet lovers emotions and billing them like the suckers. Shame on me for learning this lesson the hard way TWICE at several hundred dollars a pop.

After adopting a last chance cat from a local pet chain, I decided to make the CPAH her primary vet since we live down the road. I thought the location was very convenient.
After her 3^rd visit for some vaccines I found it extremely hard to make an appointment that was not more than 3 – 5 days away. My kitten had an upper respiratory infection and needed antibiotics asap and they told me all of the vets’ slots were filled up and the only opening was 3 days away. Seriously? And you call this an «Animal Hospital?» The second time my kitten needed to see a vet for an emergency visit they told me the same thing, no slots were open to see the vet. I was infuriated. How can they call this an animal hospital and not have the time to see animals that seriously need help? They need to leave some time for emergency visits if they claim to be an «animal hospital.» How many human hospitals tell you to come back in a few days when you are sick??? Animals should not be any different.
Nebel Street Animal Hospital is open 24 hours… for emergency or non emergency visits. It is in Rockville, MD for anyone who needs a vet that is reliable and accommodating.

CPAH is not the best around and their location while it may seem like it is really good at first will put the fear of god into you when you are getting your animal out of the car. Their service sucks, my Mother had 2 dogs die 24 hours apart and it was just insane. The receptionist never explains anything and is not very kind.

I called them and was able to get an appointment the same day. I brought my GPs in the get checked out. The doctor answered all of my questions and concerns about the GPs. I had thought everything was going to be expensive but when I saw the bill, it looked as if I was given a discount.
Pros: The staff were very friendly, able to get appointment quickly. They see small animals.
Cons: Parking lot was small. There is parking in the back but I only saw a couple empty lots, there was a slight smelly odor inside when I was waiting to be seen.

CPAH treated my rat for a slight upper respiratory infection. As a former veterinary worker at an advanced practice, I wasn’t too impressed with the hospital itself. The room they put me in hadn’t even been swept since the last patient and there was dog hair all over the floor. I certainly hope they at least washed down the table. The doctor and staff were very nice, and they pulled out all the special tiny equipment needed for my rat, and treated him very well. The visit wasn’t too expensive, and neither was the medication, (though it was for a rat, how expensive can it be for a ¼ lb animal?). Since they treat small animals here, I would return if I needed to, but I’m not sure I would make it a regular office for a cat or dog, simply because it was small, seemed out-​of-​date, and they’re obviously lacking either the staff or willingness to clean exam rooms between patients.

I have been a client of College Park Animal Hospital (CPAH) for two years. During those two years, I was satisfied with the care my pets received and with the manner in which the hospital staff communicated with me and my family.
However, in January 2008, my old cat, Smokey, became very ill. I took him to CPAH three times and twice to the ER. CPAH missed a serious and potentially life threatening heart condition in Smokey, even though it was obvious on the X-​rays taken by one of its vets (recognized immediately by the emergency vet on the X-​ray taken at CPAH). As a result, Smokey deteriorated quickly without any medication for over two weeks.
Alarmed by Smokey’s symptoms, I began doing reading on the Internet, which lead me to believe that Smokey might have a serious heart disease and should be treated urgently. I called CPAH, and one of the vets there agreed to put Smokey on rescue medication and refer him to a cardiologist. The medication started helping Smokey right away, but it was still necessary to take him to the ER on January 29^th, where he died after a sedative was administered to him. Had the rescue medication been given when the heart condition was first apparent on the X-​ray, the fateful trip to the ER may not have been necessary.
One of the veterinarians treating Smokey at CPAH admitted missing the condition; to reward her honesty, I did not file a complaint with the State Board against her. The other veterinarian, however, and the owner of the hospital refused to acknowledge that mistakes were made. To add insult to injury, the owner became defensive and vindictive against me and my family. He has distorted facts, given me false medical explanations (that Smokey’s type of heart disease cannot be seen on an X-​ray, and that’s despite the fact that three other vets saw it on the very X-​ray, on which his staff vet missed it) and when I confronted him, began stonewalling. As a result of my complaint, the Maryland State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners issued a letter of censure to one of the two staff vets in question «concerning his failure to recognize cardiomegaly and increased pulmonary interstitial pattern on the thoracic radiographs taken of „Smokey“ on January 8, 2008» (so much for X-​rays’ inability to identify this condition). According to the letter I received from the Board, prior to accepting the censure this vet «participated in classes offered at a regional conference as a means of improving his ability to read radiographs and ultrasounds.» The letter from the State Board also stated that a letter of censure is a matter of public record.
For more information and a tribute to our beloved Smokey, go to
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