College Animal Hospital

SO nice over there at this vet clinic! We are new to the area, I have 3 dogs, the vet is very experienced and kind, highly recommend her.
(Also, fees are reasonable.)

Love College Animal Hospital. Have been coming here for 10 years. Dr. Van Spronsen is kind, knowledgeable and tells it like it is. She and her staff obviously love animals and it shows. Yet, they are not here to sell you a bill of goods just because they could since you care so much for your pet. She has given us wonderful referrals through the years, and in general, has been there for our pets with quality care. Best of all, she was so loving and kind when our sweet lab was diagnosed with cancer. Once we determined surgery was not an option, she helped us to come to good decisions about next steps to make our beloved dog comfortable and happy in her last days. We highly recommend College Animal Hospital.

I’ve taken my Corgi here for over a year now and always have had a pleasant experience. He even seems to like it. He is always excited to see everyone there.

My previous vet in La Mesa seemed more interested in picking my pockets than caring about the real needs of my pets. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve paid thousands of dollars in vet bills when there was a need, but basic care shouldn’t turn into an expensive arm twisting.
I’m so glad I found College Animal Hospital here on Unilocal.Dr. Christine van Spronsen is a wonderful vet! She’s super knowledgeable and insightful. She carefully examined my rambunctious pups, Taz and Tiwi, and updated their shots. She gave me an additional option of doing heartworm medication but didn’t try to force it on me. When I mentioned Tiwi seemed to get car sick (but without barfing), Dr. van Spronsen asked the right questions that determined that Tiwi exhibits anxiety and probably needs to feel more protected in the car. I followed her advice of putting her in a carrier, and it’s worked!
The front office people at College Animal Hospital are so nice, too. We felt very welcome and are looking forward to future visits!

My normal vet didn’t have an opening when my cat had a 911 emergency. This place took my walk in when they sensed my emeregency. My 14 year old cat was dying and was on his last breath. I walked in, they knew who I was and immediately took me into the office. The doctor examined my cat «buddy» and gave me a direct and honest educated opinion and was very compassionate with my options. We proceeded with putting my best friend down. The nurses brought him a comfortable towel to lay on, were very gentle and let him go. I wish I could say I left happy but my heart was broken. The staff is very noble, caring and sincere, I very much appreciated their help. They even sent me an apology card. Thanks guys

This was my first visit to this hospital for my cat Luna to have her spayed, Dr. Spronsen is no doubt an animal lady, she was very patient and thorough with me as i was very sensitive about doing this to my cat luna.
Since then Im very pleased with her results and attitude since the surgery.
Luna is doing so well and happy. The staff called and followed up with me, the next day which I appreciated so much and followed up later with me during the week for a check up. They also sent us a post card thanking me for bringing her to the hospital which was really cute and sweet.
I will be bringing my Dog Peanuts to her when he needs a check up. I thought the pay for the service was very reasonable, I think it just depends on what your animal needs.
The way i see it, you can pay for the service or pay for the CARE of your animal.
She took care of Luna.
Thank you Dr, Spronsen and all the Girls at the office!
:)

Our dogs were seen promptly and were given their health certificates the next day. Dr. Van Spronsen took time to talk to us about New York’s rabies regulations, and didn’t even mind that we’d brought two dogs and a baby. Prices are a little high, but she’s helped both our dogs with flea medication and skin issues. This place is a little hard to find and the waiting room is rather small.

I wish there was a negative star. I found this clinic on Unilocal and it sounded good. Boy was that ever a mistake. First of all we sat and waited for over an hour! I took off of work to make the appointment and they didn’t even have the courtesy to call and let me know they were running behind. 1 hour! Then into the examining room where I waited for another 40 minutes! How can a business have so little respect for their customers! While I was waiting I could hear the vet yelling and screaming at someone. It was so incredibly unprofessional. By the time she came to take a look at my dog, I was not exactly feeling confident about this place. She spent 10 minutes with us. I had brought my dog in for a checkup and it was so quick and impersonal. I am so surprised that she was so different than the descriptions on here. Like others, she cut my dogs nails so short she was limping for 3 days. I found her to be pretty rude and overpriced. Definitely would not recommend.

I find Dr. VanSpronsen to be very caring, gentle and knowledgeable. She has twice recommended me to specialists when it was called for and cares more so that my dog is taken care of. She was also very caring and matter of fact about our cat, who they took care of to the end. I have never been sold or recommended foods or products there except for meds that were needed. I will continue to bring our pets to her for her knowledge and care and the fact that they are so reasonably priced regardless that specialists are also able to provide the same general services albeit at much higher prices.

I love this place because it is very close to my Home and they always do a great job treating my 3 Babies. I too have a problem child in the form of a Beagle! He constantly has skin problems… allergies that flare up big time in the spring. I can always get in here at a moments notice. The Dr. always takes all the time I need to diagnose and treat my Louie. She ALWAYS explains things to me thoroughly and I never feel rushed.
I feel pricing is competitive but in my opinion you get what you pay for. It costs big money to keep a practice like this open and the education requirements probably rival that of a M.D. It’s not cheap. Comparing a Veterinary Practice to «1800petmeds» is like comparing Neiman Markus to Wallmart.

I have been going to College Animal Hospital for at least 8 years. Dr. Van Spronsen really cares for the animals… and puts up with my crazy pet mom ways like no one else. She is patient and always kind, really listens to my concerns, and offers suggestions on practical solutions. If she runs tests, she calls back promptly with results, she doesn’t leave you to worry or to have to call for the results. When they are in, she will personally call. Its customer service that you just don’t get many places these days.
My little dog Coco is a problem child, but Dr. Van Spronsen always puts my mind at ease. She takes the time to listen and evaluate what Coco needs and how I can help her achieve it. In the past when we needed a specialist she recommended an excellent place where we could have an MRI done, and she took interest in the results. She never recommends unnecessary procedures or treatments. The price is very reasonable and like I said before the service is excellent.
Dr. Van Spronsen does all the check-​ups and vaccinations for Coco and my cat Oleander. They both get excellent care at College Animal Hospital. I wouldn’t go anywhere else.
Gotta go… Coco just tangled herself in the computer wires… aahhh the life of a dog mom

I can no longer recommend this place…
On two out of two visits, they clipped at least one of my dog’s nails too short to the point where they had to put some clotting agent on them in order to stop the bleeding. Furthermore, since my first visit, I’ve found out that I was given some inaccurate information on that visit (by going to see a specialist). Also, even though she disagreed with my opinion of what I thought was going on with my dog (based on the symptoms, I thought she may have been experiencing an infection, yet the «doctor» disagreed with me), she still had no problems selling me medicine for my dog — if you didn’t agree, and thought that my «uneducated» diagnosis was wrong, then why did you sell me antibiotics??? Lastly, my previous visit, she prescribed some medicine for my dog but failed to notify me of the side effects, which resulted in me taking my dog to the animal ER (not knowing that what she was experiencing was simply a side effect).
Overall, not the worst experience of my life, but I honestly cannot recommend this place to anyone who strives for the best service (s) for their beloved pets.

I worked for doc for almost 3 years and recently had to resign. Im definitely going to miss working for her. She is amazing and really cares for your pets, and the team there, words cant explain how much they all love what they are doing. Please bring your pets there, not just because I want her to have the bussiness but for your pets, they will get the best care!

I have been taking my pup Gus to College Animal Hospital for over seven years. Dr. Van Spronsen is very knowledgeable and honest. She and her staff are very welcoming and go out of their way to make my dog feel comfortable. I have and will continue reccommending her to others.

In regards to Dr. VanSprosen upselling or refusing to refill prescriptions, my experience has been that she is the exact OPPOSITE of an upseller.
Several times, she has referred me to specialists when she thought a problem with one of my dogs could be better handled by a specialist. An upseller would try to do it on her own, right?
And you certainly can’t be an upseller if your prices are incredibly reasonable for visits, and even on medicines. I made the mistake of filling my prescriptions with Drs. Foster and Smith because they were about $ 30 cheaper. They were a huge pain to deal with, and then their prices skyrocketed to $ 10 MORE than Dr. VanSpronsen’s. What’s that about?!
Anyway, take my word for it … I have three shih-​tzus and I have been to see Dr. VanSpronsen over 30 – 40 times for assorted stuff over the past 10 years. She cares about you and your dogs more than dollars, I promise!

HORRIBLE! They try to take all the money they can from you! I wanted to order my flea medicine off
(Way cheaper!) and they wouldn’t fill the prescription (which is illegal by the way). She will tell you to buy medication from her that is a lot cheaper to just buy from PETCO. DO NOT GO HERE IF YOU LOVE YOUR PET!!!

I’m upset at myself for not writing a review for Dr. Van Spronsen sooner than now. She is awesome, and my dog thinks she’s not too bad either. Dr. V does a very good job explaining all procedures to you, and the reasoning behind them. She has such a sweet and kind personality that my Yorkie doesn’t mind coming in for a visit.
The best part is that it’s easy and quick to get an appointment, you don’t have to wait weeks before you get one.

Dr. Van Spronsen is fantastical! She is honest, caring, and does good business… which is more than I can say for several vets I’ve been to in the past.
My furbaby is a feisty one let me tell you. I’m pretty sure that if given the opportunity, she’d tell the docs exactly what she thinks they should do with that thermometer and some choice ideas on where to stick it.
But Dr. V was so gentle with her, and me, which I really appreciated. She never took my little feline furball out of my sight (which is my BIGGEST pet peeve from other vets) and she listened to me thoroughly.
The most amazing part was that when my fuzzball had a bad reaction to the booster shot she got, Dr. V had me come right in and checked her out without even charging me. That’s good vet care… and by that I mean, caring more about the animal then the money.

When we moved to San Diego two years ago I scoured Unilocal for a pediatrician, umm I mean Vet, for my two «kids (cats)». I was fortunate to find a review for Dr. Van Spronsen!
We are moving again, this time to Hawaii. Dr. V was awesome with helping me with the whole process of getting my kids ready for the shortened quarantine.
Dr. V is very nice and truly loves animals. Her staff is very sweet and caring too. I wish I could take them all with me to Hawaii.

We’ve been coming here for almost two decades, and Dr. van Spronsen has owned it for most of that time. This is group of people who care as much about their human clients as the animals. Always friendly, always careful, always considerate. Appointments are efficient and on time, and the prices quite inexpensive for the service provided.
But best of all, Christine is a pragmatic practioner. She understands how important our dogs are as part of our family, and yet helps us balance our emotions with practicality as situations arise. And when it comes time to let a family member go, she’s there for us with compassion and strength. A truly wonderful person who provides an invaluable service to her community.