Lakeshore Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Hospital

I had to take my 16 year old kitty here in the middle of the night, she was scheduled to be put down the next day at the vet but she got worse throughout the night.
I called in advance so they knew I was coming. Of course I was sad, I also had never put a pet down before. The lady working the front desk went out of her way to contact Care Credit for me (my card hadn’t been used in awhile and they had to reactivate it) so that I could spend time with the doctor and kitty in the room.
I can’t remember what doctor helped us but she was great. She made us feel calm and assured me that I was doing the right thing. She let me sit with my cat for as long as I needed alone and was just very gentle and compassionate about the whole process.
I highly recommend them for any emergency care you might need.

This is the place you go when your regular vet is closed or your pet is terminally ill. We brought our buddy Brodie here. He had lymphoma. Sad story but the respect we were given and the array of choices on care that were provided to us made the transition a much easier process. There candor was much appreciated.
For any emergency we will be here. They are currently expanding the facility as well which is always a plus.

Staff was incredible — knowledgable, kind, helpful, and treated our dog like family. We had such a good experience with everyone from front office to techs to doctors. We trusted then implicitly with our dog and they truly put us at ease and always make us feel cared for. The rehab unit was incredible — can’t say enough good things about all of them! We feel lucky to have been close enough to use their services for treatment of our dog.

We took our Golden Retriever, Angel, to see Dr. Rushing, after she’d been injured at another Veterinary clinic. She had damage to her neck, and our regular vet, (completely trusted), recommended Lakeshore. The staff was Wonderful, Caring, & Compassionate. Dr. Rushing was Professional, and Very Kind. Although we had to put our Angel down, we So Appreciate the efforts, and kindness of this clinic.

If you get the right vet, this place is 5 stars plus. If not, it’s a three star vet. I brought one of my cats here three times over the course of about a week, two of the three were emergency situations.
Starting with the positive: I ultimately had to put my cat to sleep, but the vet who helped me and the staff were amazing! Caring, compassionate and just overall wonderful. The vet gave me a hug and assured me that I was making the correct, though very difficult, decision. They made me a paw print in clay to take home and they sent a card a few days after. I couldn’t have asked for better care.
On the other hand, the first time I brought my cat in it was like pulling teeth to get any information. I was there for hours! Now, I completely understand that this is an emergent care facility, but when a vet repeatedly tells you that she’ll be right back with an update, an estimate, discharge instructions, etc., I don’t expect to wait another half hour. For both situations when this particular vet treated my cat, I had to ask at the front desk several times what the status was and if the vet knew I was still there. The particular vet seemed incredibly overworked and looked exhausted.
So I guess the bottom line is cross your fingers that you get an alert, responsive vet. I’m thankful for the care Lakeshore provided but I’m also glad I don’t have to go here all the time.

We brought our 15.5 year old dog here for a ultrasound. The staff was professional and so kind to us. Because they are ²⁴⁄₇. They see lots of emergency and trauma. But they still took the time with us to explain the procedure, the costs and treatments. The price may be higher but the expertise and convenience was worth it. Unfortunately, we got the diagnosis we feared. We were given options, and most importantly time to process. I can’t say enough about the staff on duty and dr schoeller. We had to say goodbye to a wonderful pet. But the kindness shown was greatly appreciated.

Took my cat here for an emergency check up. Very friendly staff and very caring. They are quite expensive but I’m assuming that is due to them being primarily emergency. The only reason they aren’t getting a ⁵⁄₅ is do to price. But maybe I’m just cheap!

Came here with a pup I had transported to its new foster home.
The staff seemed very friendly.

The men and women who work here are AMAZING! They were so thorough and took the time to answer ALL of my phone calls when my dog Lucy had emergency surgery. Dr. Otters (spelling?) STAYED LATE even though he wasn’t on-​call to do her surgery because he had been following her all day and wanted to see it through. He took so much time explaining everything to me and even let me see Lucy immediately after surgery. The other vet «intensivists» in the ICU were equally compassionate and really put me at ease. The girls up front were also very patient answering all my phone calls and questions. I can’t say enough good things about the people at LakeShore. They are wonderful.

Why can’t you take regular, non-​emergency appointments? This clinic is the only place my pets have received perfect, in depth care. I’ve had to use this facility multiple times in the last 8 years, and never once have I left disappointed in the care given here. Even when things didn’t turn out for the animals in the end. They were thorough, caring and most importantly, correct on every diagnosis. My only gripe is that it is not closer to my home!

My dog had an unexpected wound that needed attention at 10:30pm on a Sunday night. Since regular vets were not open, we had a limited choice of places to go. So we went here. They wanted to charge us several thousand dollars to do surgery on our dog. We instead asked them to patch him up and we would go to a different vet.
The doc (Dr. Rives) that took care of us was very crass, had no personality and we felt like she did not care about our dog. If there was another doc on duty, we would have asked for them. Also I found myself standing at their front desk for up to 15 minutes waiting for a staff member to talk to me. At one point I had to track down a doctor for a lady who just walked in with a dog who was having serious issues, because no one was watching the front desk. When the nurse arrived she said she saw her on the camera, but didn’t hear the doorbell of her walking in.
Needless to say, we will not be back because we are not rich people who can afford to pay $ 5,000 a the drop of a hat. The regular vet we went to said he could not justify that much cost to fix a dog. He said he would have to do surgery for 12 hours straight to incur a bill of that size.
So if you have a animal that needs immediate attention, take them here to get them the bare minimum, but don’t expect your doctor to care about you or your pet. Have them patch the animal up so that you can take it to another vet when they open.

I took my dog for an emergency visit to LVS on Friday 8÷16÷13 around 11:00 p.m., as he was having trouble breathing and exhibiting a head tilt. I had never been to the vet before, pulled in, and the parking lot was sectioned off due to repaving. I was unsure where to go (no signage), turned in the entry lane, and was hit by a van that promptly drove off and had fictitious license plates. I’d think there were cameras on or around the doors, but no one ever offered to look at them.
My dog has a complex history of chronic bronchitis. I had previously scheduled an appointment with Dr. Klose in internal medicine at LVS for the following week to have my dog evaluated. Due to this, the E.R. vet, Dr. Lerin Rives, did not want to treat his cough and clear respiratory distress. She discharged him with the recommendation to start him on a previous med. All the while, he couldn’t catch his breath. I asked to see a different doctor, and thankfully, Dr. Linklater treated him for his symptoms and showed a genuine concern for his condition. If it was an option, I’d trust my dog’s care to him for as much time as he has left.
I will return to have my dog evaluated for by internal medicine to see where we go from here. Dr. Linklater saved the day for LVS in my eyes. I’m not sure I’ll ever return for a pet emergency based on my experience, but at the end of the day, my dog is still with me and that’s all that matters right now.

very unprofessional management, unprofessional merchant services used by the faciility, and worst of all missed a serious health issue with my pet.

The facility is very clean, newly updated, and great staff there. With that being said, most people that visit here are during unfortunate circumstances. That was the case when my mom’s cat suddenly went blind.
We brought her in, was shown immediately to a private exam room. The nurse asked us questions and performed tests. She took checkers, the cat, to another room for the doctor to look at. After 15 minutes, the doctor came in and was very calming, transparent, and informative. She gave all the facts on what the issue was, what the possible outcomes or solutions are, and let us make our own decision.
We had to put her down due to other illnesses she had but felt that the whole staff there was super supportive and did a great job. Very professional and nice staff.

My cat wasn’t herself. She was lethargic, hadn’t eaten and didn’t try to bite me when I touched her butt. She needed immediate care. I’m so thankful I found the wonderful Lakeshore Veterinary Specialists.
First of all, everyone who works there is kind-​hearted, compassionate and helpful. The hospital was clean and bright. Throughout the process, we were never told what to do, but given all the tools we needed to make the hardest decision of our lives thus far, which was to put Nermal to sleep. Not once did I feel any kind of pressure from the doc to go one way or the other, nor did I feel they were trying to make money off of me by ordering unnecessary tests. I was able to make all of my own decisions armed with all the tools, down to payment options if I needed them.
When we finally came to our decision, we were given as much time to say goodbye as we needed. At that point, Nermal had been given pain meds and was put in a comfy bed. Saying goodbye was hard, but she looked comfortable and serene. I couldn’t ask for anything more for my beloved pet.
Days later, I’m still very sad to not be able to hear the pitter-​patter of her little paws run to the door when I get home from work, but I know for sure her last few minutes on this earth were comfortable, quiet, pain free and surrounded by the two people who loved her the most, and one very kind, compassionate, knowledgeable veterinarian who seemed to love the Nerm as much as we do.

I cannot express the gratitude I have for the people who work here. They are some of the most compasionate and understanding people I have ever dealt with. I had to put down my only remaining dog in January (I had 3 huge dogs for over 10 yrs) and this last one was obviously the most difficult since there wouldn’t be a dog waiting for my care at home this time! The staff let me spend as much time as I needed to say my goodbyes and offered to make a final «pawprint» make out of clay! This final ‘keepsake’ was unexpected but most assuredly welcomed! It is a blessing knowing that I have a place to take my pets 365 days/​year, 24 hours /​day where I KNOW they will get the very best care! If you have a pet that needs emergency care… this is the place!

We took our cat to Lakeshore when she seemed to have eaten something toxic. She was extremely dehydrated, and Lakeshore gave her IV fluids, which she clearly needed. Unfortunately, poisoning in most cases cannot be detected by any diagnostic test, which Lakeshore admitted. The vets there (and one in particular), however, wanted to sell us as many diagnostic tests as possible, anyway, I guess to try to rule out every other possible cause of illness. Diagnostic tests are extremely lucrative for animal hospitals, and it seems they were quite motivated by this. Because our cat was 13 years old, we didn’t want to look for chronic disease, particularly since she had been very healthy up until this very acute episode — it seemed unlikely that chronic disease was the issue, and the most likely cause couldn’t be detected by these tests anyway. We told Lakeshore this over and over and over (we had, literally, four different conversations with them during a single day, declining further testing). They (and one vet in particular) would not take no for an answer. One vet even misled us by saying that she had spoken with our regular veterinarian and he «was on board with her.» Turns out he wasn’t — he had only discussed our cat’s prior history (which was healthy), and had in no way endorsed her excessive diagnostic recommendations (neither did two other veterinarians I spoke with during this frustrating episode). Long story short, our cat entered the veterinary hospital with a $ 1,200 estimate for two days’ care (quite high), and left after 44 hours (less than two days’ care) with a bill of more than $ 2,600, thanks to the many diagnostic tests that we refused repeatedly. We actually had to take her out of there early to avoid even more charges because of a «shift change.» And there was no diagnosis of her illness, either, in spite of how many tests were run (not surprising, since poisoning can’t be detected, and it was the most likely cause from the start, which they knew). Our bill also included a small double-​billed item, which it took more than 2 weeks and several communications to get refunded, in spite of bringing it to their attention just three days after we left.
We did try to discuss our issues with the owners of the practice, and tried to settle the matter with them privately, requesting a partial refund, but they refused. We’re left with warning others of the extremely coercive tactics used at this veterinary hospital to run up excessive diagnostic charges, and taking them to small claims court. Take your pets elsewhere if you want to have any say in their care, and particularly what expensive (and often unnecessary) tests are run.