VCA Madera Pet Hospital

Now that I have a pet, I knew I needed a vet. After doing some snooping around on Unilocal in Marin, I discovered VCA Madera Pet Hospital. After my first visit today, I feel confident that my dog is in excellent hands. The doctors and staff are just as warm and caring as the other Unilocalers said they’d be.
I took Cosmo (my pooch) in for his initial health exam. After filling out some basic paperwork, we were greeted by Dr. Farnell. She couldn’t have been lovelier or kinder to my little guy. Cosmo was immediately taken by her gentle approach. Maybe I’m just used to doctors who treat humans (and treat them like soulless machines), but I was pleasantly surprised by how warm & friendly Dr. Farnell was. I really got the impression that she genuinely cared about and liked my dog. She asked me basic questions about his diet and health and then checked his heart and skin. Fortunately, despite a minor ear infection, Cosmo got a clean bill of health. What a relief!
Speaking of bills, visiting the vet ain’t cheap. And VCA Madera Pet Hospital is no exception. My 45 visit/​examination + ear cleaning/​medicine cost me $ 150. Well, welcome to the life of a pet owner, I guess.
All in all, I have no complaints about VCA Madera Pet Hospital. I consider myself lucky to have them so close to my house. If you’re a new pet owner or in the market for a new vet, I would highly recommend paying them a visit. Your furry friend will be in very capable hands.
** FYI — if you register on VCA’s website, you receive a coupon for a free initial health exam.

I’ve been going to Madera Pet for the past few years with my two dogs. Honestly, I’ve had mixed experiences there. Not all of their vets resonate with me. But Tassano put my 14 year old dog to sleep on tuesday and it was if an angel was by my side. It was heavy and she and the receptionist and the vet techs were pros.

We have been bringing our two dogs here for almost four years. We have always been impressed at the ease with which we can get our dogs an appointment for those unexpected illnesses and issues. Usually, they can get us an appointment with one of the doctors within an hour or two.
Dr. Robertson has been the primary doctor for our dogs and she is great. For urgent care issues when Dr. Robertson was not available, we have also seen Dr. Wilhelm, Dr. Tassano and Dr. Frankot; they are all superb doctors.
The entire staff at VCA Madera is friendly, helpful and makes you feel confident that your pet is receiving the best care.

You can’t find a lovelier, more caring, place to bring your pet! I recently took my dog here and met with Dr. Meghan Wilhelm. She’s patient, calm, and just an overall cool chick. In addition, the entire staff, front desk to assistants, etc are just so friendly and upbeat. Which to me means that it’s a great place to work! Highly recommend.

After a terrible experience at Larkspur Landing vet hospital, (I woke a day after to my dog was groomed to her bleeding profusely from her anus) with unleashed dog groomer, corte madera. She, terry, had me go to her vet, larkspur landing vet. I was treating so inexplicably horrible, I can’t believe they are or that particular female vet is actually a real person?! Anyway I took my pooch to these guys and an amazing vet took the time to give me a diagnoses. They even took it a step further and gave me (free) a cone so she couldn’t lick bleeding area and cause further damage. I was so relieved that I hugged the vet tech and thanked her. I went to my car and cried, just relieved that this place was here for me and my jenny and that she’s gonna be ok:) you guys rock!

Took the dog in for a quick checkup. Seen within a few minutes of our appointment. Dog was comfortable with the examination, staff are very friendly. In and out quickly, with medication to make the dog happy. Good visit and worth a return.

I’ve seen a few veterinarians at VCA Madera and have been very impressed with all of them. I relocated from another state where I loved my vet so this was a stressful transition. I recently saw Dr Robertson and she was very thorough, responsive and sensitive to cost with my dog’s illness. I would definitely recommend this clinic to anyone who wants quality care for their pets!

Two stars for great vets, unfortunately VCA are very very very expensive and take over local mom and pops facility’s then raise the costs once they eliminate competition.
The standard of care is top notch but you will actually pay more than going to a human doctor.

Dr. Larisa Tempro and staff helped make my dogs last days as comfortable as possible. Dr. Tempro never gave up and spent a substantial amount of her own time researching my dogs unique issues. Her intuition told her what direction to look in and she was spot-​on. Thank you from the bottom of my soul for caring as much as I do. Thank you also for crying with me when we had to let him go. We will have a new pup in early May that will be seeing you soon. I wouldn’t take my pet to anyone else.

I highly recommend Dr. Kim Robertson to any cat owner. Dr. Robertson is very patient and highly skilled at assessing the cats condition and optimal treatment options. My kitty had been injured and traumatized in another setting. After doing a thorough review of the history, Dr. Robertson outlined alternative treatment options. Dr. Robertson is extremely patient and has a very gentle demeanor. Due to her skill, she was able to successfully treat my kitty with the simplest (and cheapest) option.
The offices and exam rooms are immaculate. I have been there on multiple occasions and every time I have had the same pleasant experience. I have found the entire staff to be friendly, efficient, and accommodating.
I now the issue of cost has been raised by others. My experience has been that I have spent much less at this office for treatment than other offices due to Dr. Robertson’s
skill and compassionate care.

Dr. Robertson is the best vet my cat has ever had. Everyone here is very nice. Yes, it is expensive, but in my lifetime of cat ownership I have come to realize that you get what you pay for. I cannot comment on the other vets but I would highly recommend Dr. Robertson to any cat owner. She is incredibly friendly and I feel that she genuinely cares for my little buddy. I am so happy to have found her.

I like Madera Pet Hospital, Dr. Farnell, Dr. Robertson, both good doctors and I feel like our dogs have received the best care possible. When it went beyond what they could handle (Cancer) we were sent to Dr. Sablok at Pet Emergency in Marin for higher level treatment. She’s fantastic!

VCA rocks!

I brought my elderly cat to see Dr. Kim Robertson on April 19^th, and everything about the experience was positive. Everyone on the staff was absolutely lovely. Dr. Robertson was kind and compassionate as well as vastly knowledgeable and very good at explaining things. The prices were very reasonable, and every procedure was explained to me in detail, with the price included, before it was done. The appointment-​making process went smoothly, and the new patient intake was quick and pleasant. Louise and Ashley were particularly helpful and friendly, although there were other really good people whose names I did not get.
My cat is cranky and difficult, but she loved Dr. Robertson. I do not have a lot of money but I am willing to spend what I have caring for my cat, and this was understood and respected by the doctor and the staff. I have been looking for a new vet for a while, and I feel that now I’ve found the right person. Dr. Robertson is our new cat doctor, and VCA Madera Pet Hospital is our new animal healing center. And I found out about them from my neighbor, who has been bringing her cats here for 27 years and is still 100% pleased.

They are all so great, nice, welcoming and helpful! The vets are competent and they listen to our concerns.
I brought my dog for very important Australian paperwork for exportation, they were so on top of it.
Sometimes the check out time takes a very long time, but they are always so courteous.

Our family had been bringing our pets to Dr. Jones for years. Once he retired, the place became part of a National Corporation and the prices went up, the quality went down, and the front staff became rude. We found a new vet through recommendations from friends that comes to the house and takes care of our families and extended families pets at home, on our schedule… Mill Valley Mobile Vets… Dr. Steele. What a gem in a rough profession!

We are relatively new to the area and have been in search of a vet as fantastic as our old one.
VCA has seen our dog on a handful of occasions since our move as she has been adjusting to her new home etc.
The docs and staff are friendly and the office is clean. They seem to provide a pretty thorough exam and make sure our questions are answered. So far, not bad.
I will say that our old vet used to call and follow up after every visit– regardless of whether we went in for our annual shots, or an infection, a cut, etc. They always called (sometimes several times) to follow up and be sure that everything was healing as planned.
My dog has become pretty seriously ill since moving and VCA did take care of her. However, not once has there been a follow-​up call or inquiry about how she is doing, even after being poked and prodded with IVs and medication. That extra touch seems to be missing from the vets in this area.

I’ve been going to Madera since before it was VCA, and we’ve both survived the transition. When I first moved to the Bay area I called my vet in Los Angeles, and asked him where to take my cat (s). He responded, «You want A.J. Kallet, and no one else.» Since Todd is now the Medical Director for 200 VCA clinics, I took his recommendation seriously.
He was certainly right about Dr. Kallet, but wrong about the «no one else,» because when it became challenging to get an appointment with A.J. that wasn’t a week out, I began to accede to his gentle nudges to «try using some of the other excellent vets at the clinic.» I now see primarily Meghan Wilhelm and then Tamara Jacobson when Meghan’s not in the clinic.
I breed and show Abyssinian cats — all over the country. I’m a really tough critic, and this clinic is absolutely 1^st rate. All 3 of the vets I use have superb clinical judgment, the surgeries I’ve had done at Madera all went incredibly smoothly, and — in the middle of what can be an incredibly busy clinic — the entire staff manages to stop, look you in the eye, and treat both you — and your animal (s) — as though you were all special.
I’ve found 2 amazing house/​pet sitters with whom I can leave a litter of young kittens, and feel comfortable that anything that needs to be done — will be done. And that anything that should be noticed — does get noticed. And that anything that needs my attention — arrives in a text message «stat.»
Yes, the cost of care is not cheap. And yes, they run a fair number of tests — in most cases only those, the results of which will change what they need to do in terms of their clinical approach to an animal’s care. And yes, the costs on some tests can be mind boggling.
But I remember clearly the last time I questioned Dr. Kallet on a particular diagnostic test. He began to explain in terms of cost. I interrupted him, and said that — once we stuck my cat with a needle — he could run as many different analyses as he wished — as long as the results would change what we did clinically. The issue for me was — how many times did we stick my cat with a needle. From then on, he would come out of the back with a big grin on his face, hold up one finger, and say,. ‘One stick.” You just can’t ask for more.
Dr. Wilhelm loves my cats as much as I do, and it shows. She got Mia through pneumonia — and guys, on a 4 week old kitten — this just plain doesn’t happen.
I do wish that the clinic had someone who practiced Integrative medicine — homeopathy, herbs, acupuncture, etc. For that I use Dr. Coddington at The Country Vet. I do wish that VCA could restrain its enthusiasm for maintaining its mark-​ups and its goals in re: «return on investment». but if you’re looking for a 1^st rate veterinary hospital, with 1^st rate doctors, 1^st rate technicians, and 1^st rate care — I would recommend Madera without reservation. 5 Stars

I used this hospital to have my Abyssinian cat declawed. The vet did a GREAT job. My kitty experienced no pain that I could discern, healed very quickly and was as sassy as ever.
I am very grateful.

I have been going to Madera Pet Hospital for almost 13 years. I did a lot of research into Bay area vets when I first moved out to the west coast, and Madera Pâté Hospital came out on top after talking to dozens of dog owners.
Most of the the staff (doctors and vet technicians) are friendly and knowledgeable, and the facilities are clean and bright. It can be busy, so you should expect to wait — on hold, in the waiting area and in the exam room, and the waits can be very long.
I would agree with several other reviewers about the price. It’s very, very expensive! It’s rare to leave without a $ 300-​$ 400 bill for various tests that may or may not be needed. It would be great if they provided conservative and aggressive testing options and disclosed all of the costs of the tests up front BEFORE they are performed so that you don’t suffer sticker shock when you check out. My advice would be to ask upfront 1. if the test is needed, and why; and 2. How much it will cost.
I definitely get the sense Madera Pet Hospital is more concerned with the bottom line and increasing revenue now that they are part of VCA. I’ve noticed they are pushing tests more than ever before.
I was recently pressured into having my 13 year old dogs tested for heart worm and starting Heartguard back up despite my resistance due to their age and a health issue. The vet simply did not want to listen to my concerns.
The doctors are all very experienced, knowledgeable and professional, and if there is a medical problem or condition beyond their scope of expertise, they will gladly refer you to U.C. Davis or other specialists.
I do believe Madera Pet Hospital is the best is Marin. I simply wish that they had not become part of VCA. The place is ridiculously expensive so beware! Ask a lot of questions, and get estimates for everything up front.