Animal Emergency Clinic

I’ve heard so many terrible things about this clinic from other dog parents over the past few years, I can’t believe they are still open. This clinic needs to be boycotted by rescue organisations and loving pet parents.
I understand the need to be paid. However, allowing a treasured member of the family to perish because of your greed is wrong. I’m so sick over this clinic I don’t know where to start. We are forced to trust the lives of our beloved to people like this because they are the only pet emergency rooms. Vets should care more about life than money. I

I cant say enough good things! Took my kitten into today as my normal vet is closed on Sundays, Mary Beth and the whole staff were so nice and comforting to both my cat and myself! Even though they were very busy they got me in and out within an hour an half. Although I hope I never have to go there again I will be comforted by the fact that my cat will be well taken care of and loved! A million Thank yous to the staff!

I just took my dog here today because his face/​mouth became suddenly swollen and he was obviously in pain. (I had been here probably 12 years ago with another pet and had a positive experience then, so I didn’t think to check.). If I had checked the reviews before I went today, I would have probably gone somewhere else. But truthfully, I had a good experience. Now, you should know that I was the only «patient» there when I arrived. This was a Sunday morning around 11:45. But the staff was very sweet to my dog. The vet (Dr. Brittany Cacciottoli) was very kind also, and she explained each step and what the cost would be (I agreed to a couple of different x-​rays). My total bill came to $ 400, and that was for a mouth X-​ray, a chest X-​ray, and a sample of the infected mass seen on slides. That is not out of line with what my regular animal hospital would charge. They also explained that I could bring him back anytime in the next 3 days and there would be no emergency fee. And while I was waiting for the X-​rays and slides, there were several other people that had arrived with their animals in the waiting room, and no one seemed to be unhappy with their service. Who can tell, really, when we are stressed out about our suffering pets, but I just didn’t witness any of the lack of compassion that I saw in these reviews. So… I don’t know what to tell you. Lots of bad reviews here. But I had a really good experience today.

I had a very good experience here. The phone/​office staff were very friendly and compassionate. The vet was very thorough and helpful. It was $ 130 for exam and medication, which I don’t find to be out of the ordinary. It cost me more to have an infected flea bite treated at the Humane Society. I really appreciate having a 24 hour resource. If your pet needs to be seen again within 72 hours, they waive the $ 90 fee for the additional exam. Just my experience, of course.

My regular vet recommended this clinic to me. I had a variety of experiences here– my dog had heart disease and on a few occasions had to be rushed in when it was after business hours. Some of the vets were more compassionate than others. Some had a very poor bedside manor. I understand this is their job and they probably see very sick animals all the time, but I would think they would be animal lovers to at least some degree if they chose this profession, and I would expect a little more kindness to a pet owner about to lose her dog. The other reviews stating that the place is expensive are certainly correct. My last visit there was over 1k, with the bill quickly passing the high end estimate that I was given. They kept her for several days, and I was able to visit several times– they were fairly nice when I went in. When it came time to have to put my poor little pup to sleep, I was emotionally a wreck. My boyfriend called to ask if I would be given a chance to make decisions about her remains, picking our urns, etc. later, because he didn’t think I would be up to it right at the same time as saying goodbye to my dog. He was told I could make the decisions later, but when I went in the day I had to put her to sleep the front desk staff was very pushy and rude, and all business with very little to no sympathy. I was given a binder of urns with no pricing information on them, and when I asked for an idea of pricing (because frankly I didn’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on an urn for my dog), she took quite a bit of attitude with me, saying I needed to pick which one I liked before she could give me a price. It would be VERY easy for them to put prices on the urns upfront to make it easier for clients to make decisions at an emotional time, so it came off as a definite money grab. and the woman spoke to me in a way that I felt was condescending and pushy. I will say that they gave me plenty of time to say goodbye, and the actual vet who came in to give the shot to my little dog was kind enough to explain everything and had a decent bedside manner. The urn I purchased (a $ 90 urn, one of their middle price points) was very pretty and a nicer quality than I might have expected. Of course the experience of saying goodbye to my dog was horrible, but I thought some things could have been done to make it a little easier and kinder, and only some of the staff seemed to have any sensitivity to the sad event. I haven’t had much experience with emergency clinics, but I certainly much prefer my normal vet for bedside manner, and if there was another emergency clinic closer to me I would seek other options for the future.

I brought my dog in today for euthanasia. He was very old and finally, this morning, just couldn’t stand up or walk to get outside. The staff was so kind and understanding. I had never been to the clinic and was nervous after reading other reviews. I filled out paperwork, the receptionist gently found out whether or not I wanted to stay with my dog during the procedure. I only wanted to meet the veterinarian and was able to bring my dog into an exam room pretty quickly. A blanket was brought in for my dog and I wasn’t kept waiting long for the veterinarian. The veterinarian was very professional, patient, and reassuring. Before I left I was even given the option of a bill sent to my house later, which I felt was a very thoughtful gesture. I feel that this horrible day (the day every pet owner dreads) was made easier by the staff, and I’m very grateful for service I received today.

DO NOT TRUST THESE CROOKS! Our cat was sick with a digestive system riddled with cancer and these CROOKS strung us along for days with a false diagnosis and racked up a bill of $ 1700. When we finally were able to take her to our regular vet she recommended we file a complaint because she said it was obvious there was no hope for her. These people are unethical and morally corrupt thieves. Also if you look at the reviews you will see that several of their employees post false reviews to counteract the factual ones. A really dishonest operation.

I’m so torn on this review, because I want to believe this is a good place to take your pet in an emergency, but my experience left me underwhelmed and out of money.
The short:
–Terrible bedside manner
–Expensive. Really, really expensive.
–Not very thorough
–There if you need it.
The long:
As a foster parent for litters of kittens, you just never know what kind of health they’ll be in and what problems they might have during their stay with you. Last month, I had a rough go with a little guy who had become dehydrated. The organization with which I foster uses AEC for after-​hours emergencies. I’ve always tried to avoid these emergency visits, but at 3 am on a Saturday night, it was my only choice.
First thing to know is — do not come here without money. They will not help you. They will not even look at your animal until you pay the mandatory $ 90 office visit charge. Once you fork that over, they take you to an exam room and go through treatment possibilities.
Having fostered close to 100 kittens in my day, I knew that my guy needed fluids immediately. This was the first thing I told the vet tech and doctor. However, when the vet came in to talk to me a full 20 minutes later, he had not started him on any fluids. He rattled off this laundry list of tests they should run (feline leukemia, fecal, blood work, just to name a few). Assuming you don’t have much experience with kittens — a feline leukemia test won’t bring them out of dehydration. Nor will a fecal exam. You know what will? Fluids. So start the fluids and then we’ll talk tests.
I found the doctor to be dismissive and completely uninterested; lacking any bedside manner whatsoever. To be short: I didn’t like him. He actually laughed at me when I asked if they’d started fluids yet. «Um…NO. We don’t start ANYTHING without talking to you first.» Translation: we don’t do anything until you accept the charges. This place is a money grab.
After declining routine tests multiple times, they finally gave him an IV. Then they hit me with the high/​low estimate of care to keep him overnight. They make you put down a deposit that’s an average of the two. So $ 300 later, I was headed home without a kitten for the night.
When I called to check on him the next day, they said he’d perked up a little but wasn’t taking food. Well. He’s nursing. Did they try giving him kitten milk replacement? No. Because they didn’t ask me what he was eating. It just seems like, if you’re an emergency clinic, you might want to ask these important questions. A 1.5 lb kitten refusing food can turn bad very quickly. Once they gave him KMR, he did fine and came home.
When I picked him up, it was another $ 50. I’m not even sure for what. But it was an expensive trip to the emergency clinic, to be sure.
I’m glad somewhere was open to give him fluids, because I couldn’t have done that at home. But all the other crazy charges and bad attitudes make me want to suggest my organization research other emergency clinics to use.
If I could tell the staff anything, it’d be this:
I know how shitty your job is. You see the absolute worst of the worst every single night and you have to deal with it somehow. It’s traumatic and sucky and I’m sure you’ve closed yourself off to feeling anything for any animal that comes through those doors, and for a decent reason. Some of you are fresh out of vet and vet tech school, taking this as a first job until you get on at a calmer, private practice. But you also have an incredibly important job, that you should be proud of and you should want to do well at. You’re a welcome last-​resort for pets in need and their distraught owners. What you do is life and death, every day. Take it seriously. Take your attitudes seriously. Some of us aren’t lucky enough to walk out with our pets. For many I saw that night, it was the last night they ever had with them. Don’t treat people or animals like numbers. If that’s how you really feel — it’s time to get out.

To say that the employees of this facility lack compassion would be an understatement. Their concern is not with the well being of the animals being treated there, but rather exclusively with the opportunity to make money. Luckily, I have the ability to pay and made it clear when I walked in and threw down a credit card that I wasn’t concerned with the cost… But wanted to ensure proper treatment for my cat.
My regular vet consulted by phone on the case and we all agreed to administer a few medications and give it two hours for her to respond. During that time, they wouldn’t provide me with any answers and kept deferring to a discussion about an estimate. I assumed that the estimate would encompass her response to treatment, overall prognosis and of course, the financials. The estimate was purely a discussion of costs/​payment and it completely ignored the treatment plan that we is discussed. It seemed that since I could pay, they would rather keep her in agony for two days rather than do the humane thing and euthanize her.
I insisted on getting an update from the doctor and seeing her before I made any decisions. They agreed to let me see her in the back room, then blatantly ignored that when they made the decision (without my consent) to take her off of oxygen and move her back into an exam room. She went into cardiac arrest. The vet leisurely strolled out to see what I wanted to do and I said that they should stop CPR. I expected that she wouldn’t make it, but I expected them to one out with an update. I thought that there was a glimpse of hope when they came out and handed my cat to me wrapped up in a blanket. I looked down and saw that her tongue was hanging out and she wasn’t breathing. We asked if she was dead and they said yes. I couldn’t believe that thy handed me my dead cat without asking if I would want to hold her if she passed and without cleaning her up at all. At this point, their concern shifted to trying to get me to commit to purchasing an urn for her.
Based on this experience, I would NEVER go back here because their employees lack empathy, compassion, and class. It makes me sad to know that my beloved cat died in the care of people like this. People, who after 2.5 hours there still referred to «him» when she was a girl.
I think it’s important to give credit where credit is due, so the doctor and nurse who were responsible for this horrible experience were Dr. Gayle Gottman and the nurse/​office staff was Michelle W. Neither should be caring for animals.

I will never ever ever take another one of my pets to this place. Those that have had good ratings of the facility must have had a different vet, then the one that looked at your pet.
Our experience was horrendous in every sense of the word. The «vet» that looked, if you want to call it that, insinuated that it was going to cost us $ 3000. When asked if we can do a payment plan, her attitude became more ugly, and told us point blank We have no business having an animal if we can not pay the price for it. She wanted to do all kinds of tests on her, and we told her to please call our vet, (His name was on file there as they USE to volunteer there.) She screamed at my son and I and told us to not tell her what her business is. She had just had blood work done a few days prior at her own vets office. She refused to then let us see out sheltie lab mix. We also had to fight to get her back from the woman. She indicated that she gave her a shot of morphine, and in a VERY RUDE tone, told us «Oh and BTW, is NOT going to make it through the morning, I am guaranteeing that!» We will never forget those words as long as we live. All our dog needed was antibiotic, for gastritis.
I will drive to Columbia if I have to the next time. This place was far from animal or pet owner friendly! I believe that there is another place near by that has opened since our run in with this place that is in Ballwin, MO that is open just at night and on holidays, That our Vet recommends highly. He has since this incident removed himself from the AEC on Big bend and Route 44. I also found out that the Vets that work there are paid on consignments. That means if they can give your pet 10 Xrays, they get a commission on those X rays, if they do blood work, they get a commission on everything they do for your pet. Your pet is a dollar sign for them, not someones furry companion
I believe the experience coincides with the vet you get. For me the best solution by past them all together!

A few months ago I had to take my guinea pig here because she was on the edge of life. I know most of you are saying «It is a guinea pig. Go buy another one at Petsmart». No, it wasn’t just a guinea pig. It was one of our family pets. I needed to do everything in my power to get her care and keep her alive. So i set out to find someone near my home that could care for my pet. This happened on a Thursday morning at approx 7am so most vets around the area were just opening. After running to every vet along Highway 30 to see if they treat exotic animals and being turned down I said screw it and immediately went here. They gave her excellent care while she was there. I was seen right away. Cost was high, but my guinea pig lived which was all that mattered.

After I was referred to Veterinary Specialty Services (VSS) from my vet, I discovered that my experience here was just average. The compassionate care of all the staff at VSS and their true commitment to pet parents showed me what a 5 star experience really was.
However, VSS is about 20 – 25 minutes away from my house. On a night at 2:30am when my sister was caring for my pets, she called very worried because one of my dogs was having trouble breathing. I told her to go to Animal Emergency Clinic since it is only about 3 minutes from my house and I could hear on the phone how labored my dog’s breathing was. She needed immediate care and I didn’t trust a 20 minute drive.
A few minutes later, my sister called me (while I was having a panic attack with worry) and told me that the AEC had TURNED HER AWAY. The secretary pretty much told her there was an emergency and she couldn’t help her. My sister didn’t know where VSS was because she had never been there and doesn’t have pets of her own, so she asked for directions, but was treated poorly and basically told she was on her own before the secretary walked out of the lobby, leaving my sister with a dog in respiratory distress and frantic with worry standing there alone with no idea where to go and a dead cell phone. Luckily she plugged it in and I gave her directions. And luckily my dog LIVED thanks to the excellent care at VSS, who whisked her to the oxygen tent immediately with few questions and even met us in the parking lot to help get the process started at 3am.
I understand the triage system, but there is NO excuse as to being treated to rudely in a bad time. If this is something that happens on a regular basis, they need to have printed directions to other local emergency rooms. I won’t take the chance of taking my dog here again in an emergency. I’d rather use the time wasted being treated badly by the staff by driving 100mph towards VSS, a place where they actually take care of pets and their owners. Shame on you, AEC.

Getting xrays for the dog– not fun. Doctor was thoughtful and caring.

My poor pup, pup #1, had been having BM issues for a few days, but was still active and eating so I was waiting things out. In the past this sort of thing solidified, literally, within 48 hours or so and we’d be back to a normal potty schedule with normal BM.
But things took a really bad turn for the worst this evening. I called in and explained to the staff what pup #1’s symptoms had been up until tonight and what symptom changes had me highly concerned that it was much more severe than something we could wait out. They said that given the time frame and her new symptoms, I should bring her in.
We got there about 8pm, and the clinic almost looked closed. It’s a very small building, designed only for emergencies. The lights were dim in the lobby but when we entered the first set of doors there was a buzzer to the get into the lobby, likely for safety and after hours patients. The lobby wasn’t busy, which was good because my sweet little pup #1 did a number on their floor… exhibit A of the major issue. Yup, that would be blood.
We were put in an exam room right away and a vet tech got down the history and basic physical. The wait for the actual vet was a little longer, about 30 min. We arrived right around the work shift change. The veterinarian did a quick examination of pup #1’s belly, feeling for hardness which would indicate a blockage. Thankfully she had a soft belly which would mean no surgery, vomit inducing or enemas and that she must have eaten something that was causing inflammation and irritation in her gut. The vet was very reassuring that this sort of thing is fairly common especially given the time of year and being outside more. Her symptoms are pretty common in dogs that eat dirt, wood chips, etc etc… and it’s likely she picked up an irritant or bacteria.
Lucky for me, pup #1 showed everyone «exhibit A» earlier, because a bloody BM is a sign that the infection is a much more serious emergency and she would need to be admitted for treatment. If I would have showed up 2 days ago, I probably would be to thrilled with the clinic because I may have been sent home because there wouldn’t have been anything they could do for her but wait it out and see if she could kick the irritant out of her system naturally.
After a quick goodbye, they whisked her away and I was brought in the quote for treatment. They went through each item and why it was there, I was given a high and low estimate depending on how quickly she responded to treatment. I was required to pay ½ of the high estimate before leaving and when I returned to pick up my baby I would receive the actual costs. If it was less than what I paid I would be reimbursed and if it was more, then I would pay the balance. Here’s hoping she recovers quick and well under budget :)
SO SO SO thankful for the AEC, because I was pretty hysterical thinking about all the things that could be wrong and didn’t know what to do since I couldn’t get into my regular vet for 2 days and the hubby was out of town.
This really is only a place to go if it is a true medical emergency, which they outline on their website. You probably won’t be too happy if you come in and are charged an office visit and they can’t treat your non-​emergency.
I had another BM episode with pup #2 earlier this year that the staff was able to assess my concerns over the phone and I decided not to go in that night. Pup #2 was a newly adopted dog, under stress in a new environment, on new foods, and I was told it was common for small breeds to overly strain and have a few drops of blood excreted… but more than a few drops would be a concern and longer than 24 hours on a very small dog would also be a concern due to dehydration. By the following day things were MUCH better for pup #2 and no longer an emergency.
Phew, long story short = emergencies only, friendly staff, I really liked the high/​low estimates upfront, open 24 hrs, no appointment needed, triaged based on severity of animals condition.