Dongan Hills Veterinary Practice

I take my aged dog here and find Dr. Jerger is caring, kind and patient. He tries his best
to calm and care for the dog who can be difficult at times. He spends a long time explaining everything to us, and finding appropriate meds for the dog. His staff is very nice and helpful as well.

After my 1^st (not so great experience) Dr. Jerger called me personally to apologize. He was incredibly nice and clearly bothered by what had happened. We spoke for a while and it as clear that he cares greatly about his practice and his clients. For him to take the time out to rectify the situation speaks volumes. I went back today and we saw Dr. Brown who was AMAZING. She took her time going through everything and gave me some great tips for my nervous pup. She answered all my questions and was very thorough and super nice. I am so glad Dr. Jerger called and convinced me to come back. He and Dr. Brown care a lot about the practice and I am definitely a patient for life! Thank you to the doctors and the wonderful staff!

Dr. Jerger, Dr. Brown, and the staff of dongan hills veterinarian practice are hands down the most professional and helping staff staten island has to offer. I’ve traveled to many different veterinarians throughout staten island and never experienced the service I received from this office. I explained to them I was in a very tight position financially however I owed it to my dog to get him the best help available. Dr. Jerger literally walked me through what my options were and provided my dog with the best care. Forever grateful, Thanks!

Dr Jerger and staff showed the utmost professionalism and compassion for my dog. I had an emergency with my dog and not only did they stay open late until I could get there, but the performed his nearly 4 hour surgery which ended around 330 in the morning. I can’t thank them enough for saving my buddy and taking such great care of him.

After struggling to find a vet after moving from out of state, we brought our dog here and love it. Dr. Jerger is the absolute best! He talks to you and explains everything in a way you can understand but feel like you are on the same level with respect, caring, and understanding. Such a great doctor. He always does a full examination and is quick to note anything and everything. The vet techs are all great too. The only negative I can say is I am not a fan of Dr. Carreras. I had to use him on a last minute emergency on the weekend. I could have waited for Dr. Jerger, but I was impatient and didn’t want to wait until Monday. Dr. Carreras didn’t explain things well at all and talked down to me when I questioned his diagnosis. To give you an idea, he claimed a chipped tooth on my dog would warrant a long hospital stay and the removal of her jaw. This was not the case. Luckily, if you have a set vet you are always sure to see them so no worries — and Dr. Jerger and the rest of the staff warrant all 5 stars!

I began bringing my dog here in March of this year. I had previously been very happy at Richmond Valley Animal Hospital, but I moved. I went to another vet in-​between there and here that I was very unsatisfied with. On the basis of reviews and recommendations, I made an appointment at DHVP. Wow. No offense to Richmond Valley, as they took very good care of Nemo for years, but I never knew a vet could be THIS GOOD. Everyone, from the receptionists to the technicians to the vet I’ve been seeing, Dr. R. Jerger, is amazing. Tests were run after a very thorough explanation of what was happening and why. Results were provided next day by the doctor himself.
Now Nemo needs some dental work, and having seen the people in this office care for my dog is the only reason I’m not completely freaking out at dropping him off someplace. I know he’ll be in good hands.
Pros: Expert veterinary care, wonderful customer service, hardly any wait at appointments, on call ²⁴⁄₇ for emergencies… I could go on and on.
Cons: That I didn’t find them sooner!
As someone who treats her dog like her child, I highly recommend Dongan HIlls Veterinary Practice to all other dog parents on the island. (Or the other boroughs. Heck, even come from Jersey!) You will not be disappointed.

Simple: If you care about your pet, don’t bring him or her here.
This practice performed innumerable tests on my dog. Blood tests, skin tests, urine tests, every kind of test we can rattle off. Oh, they gave the dog a cancer test.
There was clearly something wrong with the dog. The dog couldn’t breathe. They had no idea what was wrong — before, during, or after these tests that they «performed». The only thing they were actually doing was perpetuating the fable of performing any kind of test at all.
The dog had cancer covering her lungs, all the way up through her throat, making it impossible for the dog to breathe, sleep or eat anymore. They didn’t see this in the «cancer test»? Was the «cancer test» just looking at the exterior of my dog & then charging mass sums of money for a ‘job well done’?
Seems weird. Seems like they didn’t really do anything to detect the problem or to alleviate the suffering of an animal that was obviously in agony.
I’m only writing this because I cannot fathom how anyone that works at this practice can sleep with ease knowing that they are entrusted with the lives of our pets, our best friends — yet allow them to rot, waste away, suffer as my dog had to. Really despicable.

Choosing a vet is no easy decision, and after moving to SI, I feel as though I considered just about every option before finally bringing my cats to Dongan Hills about two years ago. Even though it’s a bit far from our neighborhood, we make the trip happily as everyone in this office is absolutely wonderful. The doctors (and we have seen them all at various times) are knowledgeable, perceptive and have a great «bedside manner». I am also someone who likes to ask a lot of questions, which they have answered patiently and at length. All in all, they’re fantastic folks, and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking for a vet here on the Island.

For ten years we had been taking our dog to Dr. Carreras’s office. Last month we had to put my dog to sleep. She developed a heart murmur and had a huge tumor in her chest. Her last visit to this office was mid August, 2013. Somehow, four veterinarians in this office missed what was obvious within five minutes to the vet at Bay St. Animal Hospital on August 23. An x-​ray revealed that my dog’s condition was grave, and so we had to make a very painful decision.
In May 2013 Dr. Carreras conducted a full check up – physical, vital signs, blood, urine and stool analysis, extraction of fluid from a fatty lump she had under her left leg – all negative. While I know tests can be false negative, I don’t know how they missed the development of the murmur and dismissed the signs of her inability to stop breathing and panting heavily, and loss of appetite as signs of old age, arthritis and her allergy. He even told me to exercise her a few times a day because of her arthritis. The vet at Bay St. said she could have suffered a heart attack from over exertion because of the heart murmur and tumor. Imagine if that had happened during our daily walks!
I read the other review that referred to Dr, Carreras as the closest thing to «St. Francis.» Well, St. Francis wasn’t a doctor, and took a vow of poverty. I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t have charged exorbitant prices for an incorrect diagnosis, and I don’t think he would have forgiven himself for imparting wrong information concerning a beloved pet.

These vets are the best! The staff is great as well. My cats have seen Dr. Carreras, Dr. Pugliese and Dr. Brown. They all are extremely knowledgeable, caring, courteous and professional. I have nothing but the utmost respect and trust for all of the doctors here; in fact, I trust them more than my own doctors!

One of the best vet clinics out there: professional, responsible, courteous, takes great care of your pet.

Dr. C and his staff are the best