Animal Healing Center

Rude receptionist!!! I have NEVER encountered a receptionist as rude as the one here! I was discussing some very basic information and at every opportunity she would give me sass or scoff! I asked her for their email address and she verbally scoffed at me and then said «oh my god» then gave it to me. You probably shouldn’t be mean to your potential clients! NEXT!

There aren’t enough words in the entire dictionary that could explain the magic that these doctors are able to perform. We brought our cat in after been given a short life span and possible brain tumor from both a general doctor and a specialist and here we are three years later with our extremely healthy little bundle of joy. Dr. Drumm treated our adult cat about every six weeks for the past three years and we literally owe her life and well being to the wonderful acu, chiro and supplement care that Dr. Drumm provided. Whatever is making you look into holistic vets, have it be a medical issue or just general well being, you found the right place.

The «receptionist» hung up on me when I asked if she knew of any other alternative vets who might provide Neoplasene therapy for an innoperable tumor. The phone conversation lasted 20 seconds and went as follows:
Me: «Hi, I have been a client there and know your vets treat cancer cases. Do you offer Neoplasene therapy?»
Amber: «What did you say?»
Me: «Neo-​plas-​ene.»
Amber: «No.» (as if she was angry)
Me: «So, you know of Neoplasene?»
Amber: «Yes.» (annoyed)
Me: «Do you know any vets in San Diego who might offer it?»
Amber: «That seems like something you can research yourself. Click.»
I used to recommend AHC. Never again (until Amber is fired). The ladies in the front have never been very pleasant but I do like the doctors I have met there, as far as their personalities go. I do think it’s silly to call your practice «alternative» and remain close minded about so many helpful options.
They insist raw diets are «unsafe» for cancer patients. Telling someone not to feed a cancer patient raw food is like saying you shouldn’t put oil in a car engine because the oil has leaked out. Cancer patients (with the exception of those with inability to digest raw meats) need the nutrients of a raw diet to bolster the immune system. One can only do so much with the myriad recommended nutritional supplements they offer you instead. If the argument is that the raw food can have bacteria/​fungus how would that make processed or home cooked foods any better? There are raw pet diets which are treated to kill bacteria and fungus and there are processed diets which are loaded with bacteria and fungus. I don’t follow the «logic» of stating raw diets are never to be given to cancer patients.
I had also contacted AHC to ask for help with a therapy that was saving my cat’s life. They refused to even try it because there is no known protocol for the treatment in cats. They responded as if I was crazy for asking. I can only hope one day their child is dying and someone refuses to help them get a life-​saving medicine to their child. Only then, would they understand what I felt. I explained the scenario and they had no desire to help– not even a referral.
My cat was sent home from the specialist and expected to die of liver failure within days. I managed to keep my baby alive (and quite well) for a few months with my experimental treatment. The issue was that the therapy I was limited to at home was irritating and made her nervous of me. My hope that I would get a good chunk of life extension and be able to wean her off the therapy is what led me to persist. I wanted to find a vet who would help me get more into her in a more comfortable manner I called AHC twice explaining the success I was having, but they would not work with me. My idea was that, with IV administration, we might achieve a high enough dose to heal her liver completely. If that couldn’t happen, it seemed realistic to expect we might reduce the 3−4x daily treatments to weekly or even monthly infusions. I found a vet willing to prescribe the drug, but he would be too far to travel to with a cat. I then found a vet who was willing to help with the therapy at my home if I signed a release for the experimental therapy. Unfortunately, by the time I found her, we couldn’t find the drug we needed in a form suitable for IV use. We thought we had found it, but it was the wrong version. In anticipation of being able to treat my cat via IV, I had reduced her home treatments. By doing so, I caused a flare up that resulted in the first obvious pain she had since I had begun the therapy. At that point, I gave up and said goodbye to my best friend (and quite a few veterinarians who refused to help us). The good news is, during my experimentation, I managed to reverse my cat’s hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism had no known cure besides surgical removal or irradiation of the thyroid. Ironically, the medication used to remedy the thyroid disease caused liver disease and the remedy for the liver disease was an unknown, safe remedy for her thyroid disease. Maybe had AHC helped me they would have found the natural cure for hyperthyroidism and been heroes in the veterinary community (not the big pharma part. they’d be pissed).
Moral of the story– When you have people’s children’s lives in your hands, you owe it to them to consider everything that could help and carefully weigh all options. Maybe I am wrong, but that is how I would proceed if trusted with the lives of people’s beloved pets. I would at the very least, have pleasant staff to gently let down the pet parents I decided were too crazy to help. After all, crazy people are usually not afraid to share their feelings on Unilocal ;)

We came across AHC when trying to determine how to handle our 13 year old cat that had just been diagnosed with a mouth cancer. It was a emotional time for us and our Vet Dr. Chou and the staff there were incredibly supportive. Our Flea Boy was family to us and we would have done anything we could for him. We know that he enjoyed the acupuncture, cold laser treatments, rain drop baths, and ozone therapy (maybe not the ozone therapy so much!). Our cat has been a fighter his entire life and we know without the help of AHC his last days wouldn’t have been as comfortable and enjoyable. Thanks to Ann, Dr. Chou, and the rest of the team at AHC. You’re all a first class organization.

Does your dog have unexplained itching? Does she wake you up several times each night itching and can’t stop?
Does your regular vet tell you she has allergies, without any explanation about which allergies and what to do about them?
Then your dog gets a mast cell tumor. You have it removed and radiated to the tune of several thousand dollars.
After the radiation, which is awful and takes twice as long to heal as expected, your pet is still itching up a storm and the root cause of this allergy has not been addressed.
Enter the Animal Healing Center.
They knew the reason for my dog’s constant itching and what to do. The dog is slowly itching less. I am no longer concerned the next tumor is just around the corner, because the root cause is being taken care of.
Thank you, Animal Healing Center, for the help! We needed it.

I brought my 12 year old pug for a chiropractic adjustment. He is very loyal and normally never leaves my side let alone take treats from anyone but me and my partner. He immediately loved
Dr. Jessica Greene. He kept pushing his body close to her after the first adjustment, he was reacting with excitement as his poor joints found relief under her caring hands. Afterwards she offered a treat and he happily took it from her and did not want to leave her side.
Our pug is our little buddy, his longevity is very important us, so when we noticed he was having trouble jumping up and down off the couch and bed as well as climbing stairs, we knew we needed to do something and honestly when it comes to orthopedic issues I will always see a chiropractor/​acupuncturist first before an MD for myself any day and I feel the same way with my pug.
I don’t think a few dollars here and there to make him feel better and be healthier is an issue. As with some people who only focus on price. I focus on results and do not mind paying a little more for good results.
Our pug has been acting like a puppy for the past few weeks after the first treatment. We are going for his second treatment today. I feel this is going to be part of his normal health care from now on.

It has been two years since we’ve started a home-​cooked diet for Cooper. I am pleased to say, Cooper is now on Atopica every 5 days. In my previous review, you’ll read that every attempt to wean him off prednisone and atopia proved almost fatal to him. He has gone from no prednisone, Atopia every 3 days, and now to every 5 days. We are what we eat and the same goes for your dogs.

I was happy to hear of this place because they have a small retail section and I needed to pick up an Apawthecary tincture as I couldn’t wait for online shipping. Beware that everything here is DOUBLE what you will pay anywhere else. This tincture is $ 10 – 13 including shipping if buying online, however they got me for $ 23. You’d think I’d get a consult with that, just a quick question, but the curt receptionist made it very clear that they wouldn’t talk to me about any of their products without charging me a doctor’s fee! Plus, I just read from another reviewer that they gave her dog chicken jerky made in China. Really??? Wow. What a disappointment. I was hoping to have found a great new place for my two dogs.

The good:
1. Started us on homemade dog food. Helped overall health of our allergic dog, and took weight off of our othe oner.
2. Put our dogs on Chinese herbs for certain conditions which seemed to help.
The bad:
1. Lousy attitude at the front desk. They lied about the cost increase for their herbs. We got them from another vet and magically the same herbs didn’t have a ” $ 16 increase from the manufacturer that we have no control over.“
2. Ridiculously expensive, and they charge for anything and everything they can.
3. Exam/​treatment room had carpet with windows that did not open. I could not stay with my dog due to allergies. Ridiculously unhygienic.
4. Acupuncture had no effect whatsoever. We are seeing a vet who does only acupuncture, she comes to the house, is ¹⁄₃ the cost of AHC and is amazing.
5. Unimpressed with doctor’s interaction with us. Rather condescending.
6. If AHC is truly there to help as many animals as possible, why fleece the owners, many who are desperate to find help for their ailing pets.

Our beloved, old dog had every ailment under the sun during her life. Towards the end she needed some help with mobility and chronic bladder infections. Dr. Katie and Anne were absolute game changers in Patsy’s life. Her bladder infections never returned and without their treatments she never would have been able to walk as long as she did. When it was time for us to say good bye to sweet Patsy they were so compassionate. We tell everyone about them and look forward to seeing them again when our time comes to adopt another dog.

I’ve been taking my pets to AHC since 2012. Three of my pets have been patients, and I am so impressed and happy with them that I still consult with them regularly, even though I’ve moved out of town. I trust them 100%.
I truly believe that their holistic, sensible and compassionate approach is a huge part of the reason my cat Mel, who passed away at nearly 21 this past January, got many extra months of happy, healthy, comfortable life. They give good advice, work well with your traditional vet, and they educate you along the way so that you can take part in your pet’s health care rather than just carry out instructions. I’ve learned a great deal from Dr. Drumm and her staff. It’s been a pleasure.
For those with a concern about having to leave phone messages: they will call back. They will email back. The office is meant to be a restful, peaceful place for animals who need a calm, healing environment. A constantly ringing phone isn’t conducive to that kind of soothing environment. You’ll appreciate that once you and your pets are there being seen.

Been going here for 5 years. If it wasn’t for Dr. Kangas, my pug Oreo would not be walking at the sweet age of 17. :)

I don’t normally flat out tell people not to go to a business or professional office– I figure some places that aren’t for me may be great for another person– but for the love of all things holy– STAY AWAY from the holistic vet office, «Animal Healing Center»
1) They asked if they could give my dog treats, which I don’t mind and figured in a healthy holistic setting like this, surely they will be the best of the best– WRONG! they were from CHINA!!! chicken jerky from CHINA!!! Even pet store chains are removing those from their shelves after they were linked to hundreds of dogs’ deaths. The FDA has no idea why they are harmful– but admits their is a potential link between dog treats from china and dog deaths/​illnesses.
2) They sold me two holistic supplements that, when I got home and read the label more closely, I realized had GARLIC in them– GARLIC!!! Garlic’s harmfulness to dogs is well known and it is on pet dangerous food lists, such as this one:
3) The Final Straw: Today, a full four days after I took him to the holistic vet (where he received acupuncture, cold laser therapy, and massage), I found an acupuncture needle matted in the fur under his armpit– still stuck in his skin. That is right– the «vet» left a freaking needle in my dog for over four days! He now has a little scab under his arm from the irritation it caused.
STAY AWAY!!!
In fairness, I will say the masseuse was a different lady than the «doctor» and she seemed very nice and teddy enjoyed it, but frankly, after everything else, I am not going back.

Thank you so much to Dr. Diana Drumm for the work she does! We’ve been bringing our dog Hennessy to Dr. Drumm since October. She is so knowledgeable and caring. I feel like she really listens to my husband and I went we speak to her then works with us to ensure the optimal health of our dog. I highly highly recommend the Animal Healing Center!

I prefer Holistic approach but I know we need both so we go here to get that assurance on what our pup needs to get don and on preventative supplements. Dr. Katie is really understanding and listens well. She is very informative, caring and supportive of our pup. They give us a Military discount, which is great. Also, when I do have questions or need recommendations I call and the staff-​mainly Julie has helped.

I read all these wonderful reviews, but I asked my boyfriend to give them a call two days ago he left a message asking about services and we have still yet to receive a call back, I am sorry but if you are as great as everyone says why can’t I get a simple return call, my poor puppy. And she gives you one Woof!

On the night of August 3^rd my best buddy Cara, a golden retriever who just turned 7, was diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma following a bleedout. She had been A-​OK up until the moment that she was completely lethargic and unresponsive. She went to the VCA hospital in Mission Valley where she was stabilized and diagnosed with this horrible disease. A mass was found to be growing on her spleen. Following surgery to remove the mass, we had a couple options for treatment: chemo or holistic.
We’ve gone the holistic route because A) chemo would make Cara miserable B) there’s no real proof that chemo does anything for this particular disease and C) there’s something to be said about holistic treatment that goes back thousands of years.
She’s been coming here for two months and it’s been a terrific experience. Cara’s on a fresh food diet as well as a bunch of supplements and is doing very well and we just hope she stays happy and comfortable and is with us for a very long while. Dr. Drumm has been a fantastic calming presence and everyone in the office has a vast knowledge of the treatments and supplements.
It’s hard just writing about this but holistic treatment is something that’s worth looking into and the Animal Healing Center is the best place to be. It’s healthy, it’s natural, and Cara loves it.
Thanks for your excellent treatment of Cara!

Out of the blue, I called the Animal Healing Center to ask for a recommendation for non-​toxic flea control medication for cats. (My current vet only recommends Advantage, which I refuse to use on my animals.) AHC was kind enough to call me back and provide a recommendation on another product, Comfortis, even knowing that I would not be coming to them as a patient. (I’m sticking with my current vet because they’re ¼ mile from my house, which is just too convenient to make a change.)
I totally commend them for being willing to help me, knowing that there was no business in it for them. If I ever make a change, I will come to them, no question.

Dr. Keith Weingardt is an AMAZING human being, and an EXCELLENT clinician.
We took our Sammy to see him, for acupuncture, cold laser and what ever else deemed worth trying, for what I thought was intervertebral disc disease… at 13, he was having trouble with his hind legs, unable to jump onto the bed anymore, and even having trouble getting up from laying down. As surgery was not an option at his age, I wanted to investigate alternative methodologies against the high dose prednisone I was doing, which has it’s own set of negative side effects.
It was tough getting a new patient appointment as quickly as I wanted, but the staff was very nice, and after making the appointment, put me on a list to call me if anyone cancelled an earlier appointment. Luckily, that happened and so we were all set to go. Dr. Weingardt was incredible, during that first visit, and we all spent that initial hour consultation on the floor, with Sammy (and Boomer, who came along for moral support!).
To make a long story short, we started immediately, with acupuncture, and Sammy seemed to have more energy and be stronger, right away. We were very happy, and full of hope for our baby. We scheduled weekly acupuncture, with Dr Weingardt, and after a few visits, during his physical evaluation, he mentioned to me that he thought he felt something in Sammy abdomen, and suggested I get some further diagnostics (abdominal xrays/​abdominal ultrasound). Well, we did, and unfortunately, the abdominal ultrasound showed a massive tumor, looking to be prostate cancer, which does metastasize into the spine, which might account for his neurological issues which brought us there in the first place.
While this was devastating news, I will forever be thankful for Dr Weingardt’s thorough physical exam, which brought this to our attention. This gave us the opportunity to do what we could to treat poor Sammy, in the hopes of, if not curing him, making his last days as painless, and dignified as possible. Dr. Weingardt prescribed some Chinese Herbal pills to help, and continued acupuncture. I added all sorts of antioxidants and tumor suppressants (I used to do oncology research at UCLA many years ago), as well.
Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, yesterday, Sammy had to be put to sleep by our local vet (for as they say, sometimes the Dragon win’eth)…and thanks to Dr. Weingardt, the last few months of his life were not too terribly bad. He maintained his dignity, and Dr. Weingardt not only helped clinically, but SPIRITUALLY, as well… he was extremely supportive, full of empathy… wonderfully caring, and always focused on what was best for both Sammy and our family. I cannot recall ever having met a more wonderful, caring, and clinically «in-​tune» veterinarian (or other physician, for that matter)…
When I shared that we were going to have to put Sammy down, on Sept 7^th, as he had simply lost the will, and ability to continue… on the 5^th, he was ambulatory, and on the 6^th, he could not even stand… so we knew it was now time, Dr. Weingardt was once again, kind, compassionate, caring and supportive.
And today, Sept 8^th, in the mail was a wonderful, personalized card from the entire staff of the Animal Healing Center, with condolences for our loss… with a lovely handwritten personalization by Dr. Weingardt. Wow, what a kindness shown to us, in our grief over our loss.
For anyone considering The Animal Healing Center and Dr. Keith Weingardt, I can unequivocally state from both a scientific/​medical perspective, as well as from the basic human, be kind to one another, perspective, this is the place to be! I came from North County, which was quite a drive, with traffic most of the time.
I am honored to know this gentleman, and will be continuing to take Boomer to see him, and will be recommending him to anyone who may ask…
Because of Dr. Weingardt, Sammy’s life, as well as ours, was forever made better.
Thank you, and I hope this review can help other’s find what they and their pet may need…

Unfortunately Joey is still having serious problems with his spinal disc between T11 and T12. So back to Dr. Katie we went.
Joey loved her from the first time he saw her. I think what he remembers most is that she gives him LOTS of little pieces of treats. She even gives him treats during needle placement, to distract him.
Today was no different. Joey had been feeling a lot of pain and he is getting pain medicine every 3 hours. After his acupuncture treatment he went flying out the door, peed for about a minute and a half, and then looked up and me and wagged his tail. «Mom, I feel lots better.»
I guess some dogs respond better or worse to acupuncture, but for Joey it’s a miracle. I tried several acupuncturists before I found Dr. Katie and she is our answer to pain. We’ll be back, again and again. Even when he’s healed I plan to take him regularly.
They have been doing construction around the building fer EVER, and it’s a mess to park and there’s dirt flying everywhere, but nothing will deter me and the dog from our visits to Dr. Katie…