Veterinary Hospital University of Pennsylvania

Great knowledgable service! The staff are passionate about their work and it shows. Be prepared to wait forever for anything. Took my dog in for «emergency care», they were knowledgeable but at 1am I don’t need to know the nitty gritty and be explained in extreme detail that she should eat a bland diet. The 4 stars (should be 5) are just for the loooooooooong wait and the loooooooooong explanation which could’ve been resolved in a standard 3 sentence note

It’s hard to imagine a medical department associated with The University of Pennsylvania could be this bad. Penn sets the gold standard with it’s care of people at various facilities but the Veterinary Hospital is the worst. Any time I have been there, it’s a 5 hour wait to be seen. Of course, the reason I am there is because it’s the middle of the night and my vet is not open. This is an excruciating experience, starting with the wait. You wait and you wait and then you wait some more. In the end, what happens is all about the vet students with little respect or consideration given to the pet or the owner. Before they will even agree to see you, a very large deposit must be paid. If the animal stays overnight, be prepared for bills in the thousands of dollars. On top of that, their success rate with 3 different animals I had to take there is zero. Every dog or cat of mine they «treated» dies within days. They have various ways to get you. One cat had just gotten sick and they were not quite sure the problem when I left. The next morning they knew what it was and said the medicine to treat may work but was extremely expensive. I chose not to go forward as there was little hope it would help. They called me very early Saturday morning telling me they had just mixed up a batch of this medicine for another animal and there was some left over. Did I want them to give it to my cat at no charge? I really could not say no and they went ahead. The end result was a cat so much sicker in 2 days that I had to put him to sleep. I also ended up with a bill of many thousands of dollars. I would not have had that huge hospital bill if they had not cornered me about the medicine that ended up accelerating the cat’s death. The problems there go on and on, from inadequate parking in a bad location to a cramped waiting room and the general feeling it’s al about money number 1 and the students number 2. It should never be that way. When I was in school, we saw patients as part of training but the primary goal was the best care for the patient. Almost all medical, dental and other schools have sliding fee schedules since that is one place patients can get a break. Not here. The fees are the highest I have ever encountered, all so your pet can be a test subject for their students. I don’t know if allowed to mention by name but an emergency 24 hour vet center has opened on Front Street and they are excellent. More compassion, better care, much more comfortable environment and parking easily available. Saty far away from the Penn Vet school clinic as you can.

The veterinarians are of course wonderful — well educated, very capable, kind. Same goes for the vet students that do a lot of the intake work. The volunteers at the front desk are very helpful, the security guards are very nice and also helpful. It is pricey, more than any other vet hospital I have experienced, but I would say the care is better. We only utilized them for a specialized surgical procedure which I am so grateful for since it has saved my puppy from pain and suffering. Due to the price of care, even for just check ups and more routine procedures (spay/​nutter), I would not use them for any type of routine care.
The medical records department is AWFUL. It was terribly difficult, as a foster, to get the appropriate documents from them. I spoke with two women in the department, the first had no idea what I was saying, the second was RUDE RUDE RUDE. Instead of helping me, or calmly explaining a way for me to get the information needed, she hung up on me! I am in shock. I cannot believe such a highly regarded institution employs people like this. It is unbelievable. An organization is truly only as good as its worst employee. Now when I think of this place, all I can remember is how I was treated by this unfortunate woman. We will be taking our animals to the VSEC instead from now on.

Do yourself a favor and go here for your pets. The attentive care they give is second to none. The professional appearance and way your pet is handled will tell you all you we to know. My experience was excellent and will recommend every know that has pets here. Thanks again PennVet for the great service.

Way overpriced and the staff is not that nice! I called and wanted to speak to the Dr. as my pet was very sick and I was told that I should call later when more tests returned so that the «Dr. would not have to repeat herself»! Really for the kind of money they charge they should be repeating and repeating themselves. When my pet was released they found no conclusive problems and now I feel that for $ 3,500. they really did nothing to help me or my pet. I found the people that work there to be cold and seemingly uncaring. I would not recommend this place to anyone!

BEWARE!!! Just ask how much a visit will run. (215) 746‑8911 Just be sure to call, and ask how much before you make an appointment.
Way, way overpriced. And you get to deal with practicing students.
$ 175 for a very basic check up. $ 175 for a student to look at your dog and tell you the obvious– your dog looks healthy. THEN a vet comes in and friendly chit chat and all that. We took 2 dogs in because we needed to have them spayed, and were told that we had to come in for a basic check up beforehand for a basic check up.
$ 375 So… we really wished we had asked up front what a check up would cost. The vet student walked us up to the desk to pay, and that is when we were hit with a $ 375 bill for what they refereed to as a «soft tissue examine». We were all like WTF!?! Also the exam was nothing special besides having to wait a long while to spend time with a student practicing at being a vet. The vets did not bother using an otoscope. An otoscope is simply the medical device to look in ears, which can be very important to dogs because they are much more susceptible to ear problems as hair can help breed harmful bacteria and cause effections, scarring, and/​or hearing loss. It is very simple to check for with an odoscope, and takes just like 1 minute to give a quick check.
Anyhow anything done here will cost several times more than other professional well reviewed veterinary hospitals around. Unless you do not mind spending 3 – 4 times more per office visit go elsewhere. Why spend several times more to deal with students?
Also I asked if they had any recommendations or information on making your own dog food. We shop at an Amish market. The meat is good, and free of chemicals and hormones, and I am able to buy chicken trimmings for cheap, which is expectant for dogs. Good homemade dog food can cost much less than Pet Smart. I asked for information any ideas as to vitamins or whatever might help make for nutritious dog food. The vet and student had no ideas– no ideas at all, and later emailed a link to a BS site that offered only to SPAM you and sell way over priced food thru mail order. So not only did they fail on being able to give basic nutrition advice they both failed at being able to point to even finding a source for basic dog food information. Seriously!?! Dog and cat doctors should have recommendations on nutrition besides go to Pet Smart.
Also it turned out that it would cost over $ 1000 per dog to have them spayed. We checked around and it was $ 300-​$ 400 at most repeatable clinics. No explanations as to why every charge at this clinic costs so much more than anywhere else.
Going here seems like a very bad idea. Why pay triple to have a student look a your pet?

I brought in my 14 month old Shiba Inu, Ava, to UPenn vet not too long ago. She had a neurological problem.
I walked into an luxurious waiting area thinking… s*** this is going to cost me a arm and a leg. Like all the other reviews, this hospital is no joke. The cost is very steep. A single physical examination appointment with neurologist is around $ 220. By the end of that day, I spent around $ 2200 on a MRI, Spinal tap, and physical/​consultation fee.
The highlight of my day was when I was told that there was no cure, no treatment, no information on Ava’s condition.
Despite the me and my bank account being completely devastated, Ava’s Neurologist Evelyn Galban made the difference. When ever I had a concern about Ava’s worsening condition, Evelyn was there to hear me out via email. I felt as though she genuinely cared about Ava’s state of health. Although Ava is no longer with us, the quality of medicine at UPenn vet is impeccable. I never had a issue with the vet students either.
Due to costs, I would recommend UPenn vet for special cases or emergency visits.
I feel as though most people don’t realize that every time you see a veterinarian, there will be a consultation/​examination costs associated, regardless of whether or not you believe that service was fully met.
That is something to keep in mind. It’s something I’ve learn to accept as standard procedure.

I have had to visit this place on multiple occasions for pet emergencies. I have experienced misdiagnosis, long wait times, incomplete discharge instructions and meds, and high bills. I would not recommend their care. After an ER visit with admission for a cat, he came home after 10 days infested with fleas! I sent a letter to the director about my dissatisfaction and never got a response. This is especially terrible considering I am a physician at Penn.
There are now other option for emergency care, so I will not return. I do not feel that the care is competent or compassionate.

Wait was long

The review is for ER, my dog had a swollen eye came here at 1am, no update what so ever for hours… I am just sitting and patiently waiting and I am now the last one here and its been almost 5 hours!
I had to request the front desk to get the doctor in order to get an update. First doctor comes out saying she has no idea what going on with my dog and that the doctor assigned is working on a more critical case. I had to demand I get an update as this is ridiculous I didn’t bring my dog to ER to not have her receive urgent treatment and care. I could have just waited at home and slept and then take her to a regular vet in about 1 hour since it already morning…
Finally second doctor comes out to give an very brief update and that was it. Saying we will try to get you out of here as soon as possible. And 40 mins later I am still waiting…
The doctors on this staff is by far the worst I ever experienced. This my second time here and it has been my worst experience ever with any 24 hour Animal ER.
I will never come here again unless I have no other choice. No ER or healthcare facility should ever just not provide an updates to the family regarding a patient, and have to wait until the family is upset and demanding an update to provide one.

This review is for the exotics department.
I went to UPenn for the first time back in May 2014 due to my bearded dragon’s unusual behavior. I typically took him to specialists around my house in Central NJ, but no one seemed to be concerned with really finding the underlying issue. I called early on a weekday morning and tried to get an appointment with Dr. Latney, the head of exotics. She said to come through the emergency room and she would be contacted to care for him.
Upon arriving, the bearded dragon was initially seen by a generalist who ensured he was stable. Shortly thereafter, he was in the care of Dr. Latney and Dr. Meade. They stabilized him and kept him overnight and performed other tests such as ultrasound. That is one thing that I like about this place, access to tests is all right there. They were in constant communication with my wife and I which is something that we value. They sent us home with him and some medication and instructed us to come back for a recheck. My memory is a bit faded but they suspected adenovirus and had the knowledge to know that there was a PCR test available to test for it. This is something that none of the other vets that I had previously taken him to were willing to take the time to check and test for.
Throughout all this, we determined that Odin still had a coccidia parasite load which is not good when a bearded dragon has adenovirus. This was the first vet to use a different type of medicine based on her research and communication with the parasitology office that they have. None of the other vets that I had been to had enough knowledge or desire to fix this.
The recheck came and we saw Dr. Wyre who was also great!
Since then, Odin has been back several times and they were able to completely eradicate the population of coccidia that he had. He has been stable and healthy.
I am so impressed by them that I am going to make the drive from Central NJ again to bring my parrots to them. I strongly recommend them. Yes, testing CAN be expensive but if you want to solve your pet’s health concerns, this is the way to go. [As an aside, please remember that CareCredit can be very helpful in an emergency as well.]

cancer effing blows — whether it’s in a human or an animal.
as my husband and i navigate treatment for a very serious cancer in our relatively young dog, everyone we’ve met at penn has helped make the situation bearable.
this place isn’t perfect. for one, it’ll put a hurtin’ on your bank account … but you’re paying for care from specialists who are at the top of their fields. a career in veterinary medicine is absolutely grueling, and it’s hard for me to complain about charges when we’re receiving top-​notch treatment from doctors who (in our case) devote every single day to dogs and cats with cancer. it takes very special people to do this kind of work.
our dog’s treatment has unfortunately involved a total leg amputation, and his surgeon was amazing. i think she works 20 hours a day … i’ve emailed her questions at 9 p.m. before and my phone was ringing at 9:05 with her answers.
another thing: if you’re not in for an emergency, you might have to wait longer than you’d like. sometimes appointments run on schedule, but they do get backed up. i have a hard time complaining about this, too — i know if they’re running late, it’s because someone else’s beloved pet needs attention. the last thing i want to do is bitch about a slow pace that is resulting from a sick or injured animal getting the care they need.
generally, the first people you see when you walk through the doors here are greeters who are as knowledgeable and professional as paid staff but who are actually volunteers. they are awesome. i’ve cried on all of them (shout out to the daytime security guard, too, who gives a mean hug and an even meaner pep talk). there is one volunteer, glenn, whose genuine warmth and kindness make every visit a little easier.
i hope you never have to go here, but if you do, you can be confident that your pet will receive world-​class care, with love.

This review is for an ER visit. I am so very grateful for Dr. Chu and the staff here. My dog was viciously attacked by an off leash dog late the other day and Penn’s vet hospital was the only place in the area that was open. The staff were very attentive and quickly took my dog from me and got him to the back. He unfortunately had to be sedated and kept over night in order to care for his wounds. The doctors were very informative about what procedures had to be done. Their kindness and reassurance really helped me feel comfortable about leaving him in their care, and left me hopeful about his recovery. Would definitely recommend this place!

Although a couple of the vets were friendly and competent, it didn’t make up for the overall horrific treatment my baby had here. I had to learn the hard way that these vets are only interested in making money and gaining experience. They treated me and my pet horrendously, lied to me on a few occasions (that I know of), and although I spent a total of $ 2000, because I couldn’t afford all of the treatments they recommended, they literally told me I was abusing my pet and not being a responsible pet owner.
The experience was literally traumatizing to me and ended up costing my precious baby her life. If I had the money and the time, I would file a lawsuit for all the ways they mistreated and harmed my baby. (At one point they couldn’t get the pill in her to stop her vomiting, but the tech shrugged his shoulders and said, come back again tomorrow and we can try again then, he wouldn’t let me speak to any of the vets in charge and it was 4am so I could barely think straight)
If you love your animal, don’t feed the monsters here, all they care about is money and their career advancement.

I took my dog, a chihuahua, to the emergency because she was lethargic and she threw up two days prior, they X-​ray her stomach, drew blood all was negative fee $ 509.00 gave me pills to stop her from vomiting, two days later she was still lethargic, I took her to another doctor and was told she had back pain that radiated to her stomach and gave her a cortisone shots, muscle relaxer, and prednisone medications, now 2 days later I started to see an improvement, U of Pa did nothering for her, but took my money. I call them and tried to talk the the so call head nurse and she said they did every right and will not refund my money. I would never recommend my worse enemy to go there. And I will fight for my money back.

I live in center city and was a grad student at Penn so I wanted to support Penn Vet. Although everyone was friendly and we received all of the care we needed, every visit took several hours. We were only there for check-​ups or minor issues (like a UTI) and would end up waiting for an hour after the appointment finished to receive our follow-​up paper work and bill.

They know you’re jittery, upset, and maybe even angry about the state of your pet, but every staff member I encountered was beyond nice when I brought my cat, Seido, in for 24 Emergency Service. The security guard was super nice when he asked me to move my car, and he was kind enough to stand outside and wait for me (it was late at night — didn’t even have to ask him and I really appreciate it). Seido’s emergency staff and primary care physician after being moved out of the ICU were all incredibly understanding, knowledgeable, and kind. Thank you.
Seido is happy and healthy again thanks to you guys. :)

I brought my dog to the ER here when he suddenly had severe tremors and was in acute distress. We called en route to let them know that I was coming with a critically ill dachshund. Within moments we were greeted at the door by medical staff who grabbed my dog from my arms. They got to work on him before I even gave my name. I am sure he would not have survived if he was not treated so rapidly and competently.
He was then admitted to the ICU for further treatment and I was equally as assured that he was getting the best care possible. Students, residents, and faculty were so thorough and genuinely interested, trying to understand what could have caused my dog’s toxicity. (Most likely mold he ingested.) The critical care vet, Dr. Ateca, was available for all of my phone calls and provided excellent treatment for my baby.
From the parking attendant to security guard to receptionist and medical staff, everyone was patient and thorough, and compassionate when I became extremely emotional on several occasions.

Penn vets saved my dog from major surgery! I just moved to the poconos, and took my dog to a new vet in the poconos for a routine visit. The vet showed me that my dog had broken the tip off of the big upper tooth in the back. She told me that the pith was showing, and that the entire tooth would have to be extracted. It would be major surgery, since those teeth go deep into the bones of the head. My dog would be in pain for weeks, and would lose a lot of function from it.
I decided to take my dog to penn vet for a second opinion. They have a full staff of dog dentists. I was hoping they could do a root canal. They had great news for me. The pith was NOT exposed! My dog didn’t need surgery at all!
Cheers to penn vet for putting the dog’s health and well being above making money! I will always go there from now on, even though it’s a 3 hour drive.

A very high quality of medicine is practiced at University of Pennsylvania in both the veterinary and human aspects but you have to remember that it is a teaching hospital. You may be serviced by a student who has never seen a case like your pet’s before. Forgive the deer-​in-​head-​lights look and remember that you too were once learning. Remember that they are not the only ones caring for your animal. They are backed by a team of certified nurses and boarded specialists. Not all referral hospitals offer that!
The wait. A wait in the ER it typically means they are very busy or are treating an animal that is far more critical than yours. Oh your cat has been itchy for two weeks? That’s much less critical then the hit by car with head trauma and a collapsed lung. It can also take time to get an inter-​department consult — you will find that at any hospital!
The bill. It will be high. Do not walk into the ER with $ 100 and expect to have all things cured. This is not a free clinic. Quality medicine comes at a very high cost. Get pet insurance in advance to help cover your bills or apply for Care Credit while you wait. Pet ownership is a privilege not a right!