Kanawha City Veterinary Hospital & Barboursville Veterinary Clinic

James Kessler

A while back My wife and I’d noticed our cat Charlie seemed off. He’d been drinking a lot of water and started peeing on the carpet when he’d never done anything like that before. At this point My wife said she thought it was his kidneys but we were told by this vet that they would need to do panels to find any of that out. So we paid for the panels and were told he didn’t have kidney issues. We were told he had a bacterial infection and sent home with antibiotics and prednisone. Jump to a few months later and Charlie isn’t doing well at all. But because we never really liked how this veterinarian talked to us, meaning she was rude and short and a bit condescending when asking follow up questions, we decided to take Charles to a different veterinarian hospital. When we got there the doctor asked if we had labs done to get an idea of what was going on. So I showed him what we had been given and after a very short time looking them over he said that Charlie’s kidneys did not look good. I asked if that was on the labs and he said yes. He said Charlie’s numbers were elevated and he was concerned. He then asked if we had been told to keep an eye on them. I told him that We had not. So right now I want to say that my wife is not a vet nor does she have any training but she still thought something was off with his kidneys and when she asked this vet here above she said nothing about them. In fact she said that everything looked fine. So, Jump back to the new vet where he said he wanted to run more labs. So we did just that and that’s when we found Charlie was close to kidney failure. A week later brings us to yesterday. None of the things, I.e. fluids through IV or anti-nausea meds, that had been given to us worked. I am providing a picture of me in my last moments with my best friend. A cat named Charlie who was the light of mine and my wife’s world and that if the vet at this location had done her job would more than likely still be alive. I am disgusted and heart broken to lose my best little guy from something so needless and pointless and preventable.

Jun 3, 2024

Kimberly Kathleen

The most caring and thoughtful team imaginable. I recently moved to the area and used the Charleston office for boarding on multiple occasions for business travel and my beloved Miniature Pincher, Penelope who was pretty particular absolutely loved their team! As do I. I had to make a very difficult decision to put Penelope down earlier this month due to aging and multiple health issues and aggressive behavior due to pain. It was one of the most heartbreaking decisions I ever had to make. This was the only time I have ever needed to put one of my dogs to sleep as the others passed peacefully on their own. The entire team treated me with such grace and Penelope with such dignity. They were absolutely earth angels and did everything they could to make such a hard decision and process peaceful and loving and beautiful. They called to follow up and make sure I was okay and provided me by surprise with a beautiful paw print of my best friend of 11 years along with a beautiful card signed by the entire team and a heart with a poem that when planted grows beautiful flowers annually so I can always look at those flowers and think of Penelope. From the bottom of my heart thank you to the entire team! ❤️. This veterinary hospital is the best place to board, seek medical attention for your animals, and if you ever need to make a challenging decision like I did. ❤️🐾❤️

Jun 23, 2023

Ann Musgrave

I want to thank them for going above and beyond for me when I had t to put my baby to sleep. The special touches from the lock of hair to the cardboard casket to the card I got with th heart of wildflowers and a paper with his nose and paw print. It touched my family so much. Best vet clinic I have ever had.

Mar 18, 2023

Jackie Venus

Haven't even gone here and wouldn't recommend them by the phone call I had with them awhile back. I accidentally put this review on another place and just how realized this. My review is based on an interaction I had on a phone call over 6 months ago maybe? I was simply trying to get prices to a place that's closer to me since I don't drive. But noticed how expensive they are. They are sometimes double or triple what North Gateway/Valley West charges for things like vaccines and such. Another one I got price quotes on how much it would cost to potentially euthanize and cremate my 14 (now 15) year old with heart disease. I am on limited income so have to plan ahead because this can happen at any moment. They claim 96.75 to euthanize and sedate. Ok reasonable but still about 10$ more than other places. For private cremation through Cooke's funeral home they claim Cooke's charges 186.82$. If you call Cooke's they tell you they charge 101$ if you drop off and pick up directly from them. They charge 133$ if they have to pick up from the veterinary offices directly. I asked Mary Ellen on the phone just why is their price over a 50$ increase in prices? She got defensive and claimed they don't make a profit, that's what Cooke's charges them. When I told her that is not the prices I've gotten speaking directly to Cooke's she said she didn't know what to tell me, except if I don't want to pay the 186$ price I should drop off to Cooke's myself. She got aggressively dismissive in tone, like I was a problem for calling out the huge price gouging they are doing and profiting off of other people's grief/vulnerability. Yet is willing to upcharge someone and not explain why and tell the person that this is what the other place charges for the same exact services with the same exact people. Something doesn't add up here. I'm not sure if gaslighting is the right word, but Mary Ellen basically was trying to convince me that she was right and that the phone call I had just last week with Cooke's didn't happen. Like I was the one lying to her when she was lying to me? If she had simply said they need to charge for storage and waste removal, I maybe could understand (but not really). But the dismissiveness then her insist that this is what Cooke's charges and she didn't even care to call to find out why the huge difference in prices; is what I find odd. Then her acting like I'm the problem for bringing bringing up the lies she's pretending as truths. I also spoke to someone at North Gateway as soon as I hung up with Mary Ellen to ask about how much they charge for Cooke's to pick up and drop off and they told me the accurate 133$ charge. Not 186$. So if it was Cooke's overcharging facilities and then lying to me, then why does North Gateway quote exactly what Cooke's did? 133$ price was also the price Good Shepherd quoted me when I was going to them. So why is Cooke's only charging 50+$ more to this facility only? Something clearly doesn't add up here and it's not on Cooke's end! Wouldn't trust them with my fur babies. Since I don't drive I'll look into other options, because I'd rather pay a Lyft to go elsewhere than here. Even if it costs more in traveling expenses it'll be worth it to not give business to people that either blatantly lie or are too ignorant to know what they charge for so if they are that incompetent how can you trust them with the life and death of your furry loved ones?

Oct 22, 2024

Jesse B

When my friend took his cat to Dr. Snyder, the female vet, in a time of urgent need, they were met with condescension and rudeness. Dr. Snyder's dismissive attitude and lack of professionalism were immediately apparent, as she failed to properly review the cat's medical charts. Her negligence and inattentiveness directly contributed to the cat's deteriorating condition, ultimately leading to its tragic death. Given this experience, I strongly advise avoiding this place and their services to ensure your pet's well-being.

Jun 3, 2024