We had a pleasure of meeting Dr. Martinez For the first time today. what a caring, compassionate…read moreAnd coupled with outstanding clinical expertise.. Granted, our dog was in for what could've been a simple ear infection but turned out to be a grooming issue. Many thanks to Dr. Martinez and.Alandra At the front desk for taking such good care of our older pooch. We look forward to having her as our permanent vet moving forward.

1 Star -- Traumatic experience, lack of post-operative care and compassion…read more I am sharing this because I truly wish I had read the warnings before trusting this clinic with my dog. On February 10, my senior dog underwent an eye enucleation performed by Dr. Evans at Soquel Animal Hospital. After having his eye surgically removed -- a major procedure -- he was sent home without antibiotics and without any pain medication. Within a few days, his surgical site became infected and began leaking. I called the hospital Monday because it was clear something was wrong. I was told Dr. Evans was on duty, but that he "did not have adequate time" to see my dog, and we were advised to go to an emergency hospital instead. What followed was heartbreaking. My dog required emergency care, additional medications, and ultimately a second corrective surgery with a specialist to repair complications from the first procedure. This meant more anesthesia, more suffering for him, and thousands of dollars in additional expense that could likely have been avoided with appropriate post-operative care and follow-up. Watching your animal suffer after you trusted a professional to help them is devastating. What has stayed with me most is the lack of humanity and accountability. Sending an animal home after major surgery without infection prevention or pain control is unacceptable. Refusing to evaluate a post-operative patient with complications is even worse. After this experience, I went back and read other reviews and found concerning patterns. I deeply regret not doing that beforehand. Please advocate strongly for your pets. Ask exactly what medications are being given, what should be sent home, and what happens if complications occur. I would never want another family to go through what we did.

I recently brought my dog Mickey to Harbor Veterinary Hospital to see Dr. Wells and her wonderful…read moreteam. Every visit reaffirms how fortunate we are to have such compassionate, knowledgeable care right here in Santa Cruz. Dr. Wells communicates with warmth and genuine concern it feels like talking to a trusted family member who's fully invested in your pet's well-being. The front office staff were pleasant and direct, even taking the time to show me how to give Mickey his medication and sharing helpful troubleshooting tips. I left feeling grateful and at ease. In today's world, where quality service and fair pricing are hard to come by, Harbor Vet consistently exceeds expectations. I've been a loyal client for eight years and wholeheartedly recommend them to any pet owner looking for exceptional care.

I highly recommend Harbor Vet Hospital! The vet on duty was knowledgeable, patient and took her…read moretime with our kitten Grayson. Grayson had a rough start to life experiencing seizures and a lot of brain damage because of the seizures. He has since made a full recovery and the vet at Harbor Vet Hospital gave him a full clean bill of health and cleared him for surgery to get neutered! She said that if we hadn't told her all his issues early on in life, she would have guessed he was a very normal little kitten and those words meant the world to us!!! Thank you Harbor Veterinary Hospital!!!

Saying goodbye to our sweet Miley, who was over 17 1/2 years old, was one of the hardest things…read morewe've ever done. The staff at Pacific and Santa Cruz Veterinary Specialists made it as gentle and loving as it could possibly be. They got us in right away, so we barely had to wait, and brought us straight into a calm, quiet room where my daughter and I could be with her. They never rushed us. We had all the time we needed to say goodbye, and Miley passed peacefully in my arms. and the whole experienceIt was clear they knew exactly what they were doing and did it with real compassion. They even let us leave through a back door afterward, which gave us privacy at a moment when we really needed it. We can't say enough about how kind, generous, and caring everyone was. If you ever face this decision for your own pet, I can't recommend them highly enough. Thank you for taking such good care of Miley, and of us.

Let me start by saying I have the utmost respect for vets and their staff. Vet care is a tough…read moreprofession. I am a seasoned dog owner who has spent many hours and has had many visits to the ER over the years. However this last visit was brutal. We arrived at 830 am and didn't get fully seen and discharged for 12 hours ! 12 hours is insane to make someone with a sick animal wait. At least be up front on check in and say. You are likely looking at 5-6 hour wait. At least that way you can make a call and decide to not put your already sick animal through more stress. I get how triage works. Most pressing cases are seen first. But to have us come back into the exam room several times just to sit and wait for at least an hour or more each time is wild. The tech calls me and ask me if I've left and I say no I'm right outside and by the time I've come in they have forgotten about us and stick us in an exam room only to sit and wait another chunk of time. The vet was lovely and she helped diagnose my dog and set up a treatment plan. That was the only plus.

Highly recommend taking your beloved animals here for care. We traveled from LA to bring our Boston…read moreterrier home with our family when she was sick. The vets in LA told us she had cancer and should be put down immediately. We decided to get a second opinion while in town in Santa Cruz and Dr. Shannon Drexler showed us so much kindness and compassion. She understood that we were not ready to let for of our girl just yet and comforted us in that decision. She let us know that we would know when the time was right, and it was more important to keep our Roxy girl comfy and happy for now. We got 2 and a half more months of love with our girl thanks to Dr. Shannon and we couldn't be more grateful. If you're looking for compassionate care, this is it ‍

We've been going here for 5 years. They are excellent! My dog caught kennel cough (from a…read moreboarding place) and they squeezed us in the next day for an appointment. Jen, the technician, took my dog's vitals out in my car. Then walked us into a private clean room for Dr Topper to examine him. She prescribed meds and he is much better. Very impressed Jen called this morning to check up to see if my doggie was improving. Thank you!

These vets and vet techs are amazing! I was fearful my dog was going blind or had a neurological…read moreproblem. The lovely lady vet did a thorough exam and said my pup needed her nails clipped to make walking easier. No vet has ever been able to clip my pup's nails! My dog has her life back. Walking, seeing and happy. I am so impressed with the level of professionalism. No up selling. None of that. I brought my other Golden Retriever in last year and received the same level of treatment. I can recommend Santa Cruz Veterinary Hospital on 41st 100%.

Zero sense of urgency from these pieces of sht…read more I come in because my dog was shltting blood as well as puking non stop and having explosive diarrhea. This was after he ate chicken wings. Cooked bones can splinter and puncture their stomach or intestines, cause massive internal bleeding and become life threatening VERY fast. I could tell from their conversations that they thought this was funny, because of the words "chicken wings" When someone (idk if doctor or nurse or receptionist) asked the girl at the front desk if the wings were cooked or uncooked, instead of asking me who is literally 5ft away the girl just shrugs and goes "who knows." Wow. So this really is just a joke to you guys. The waiting room is dead silent - you could have whispered the question to me from across the room and I would have heard and been able to answer you. You just don't give a fvck about me or my pet. Would you want somebody to shrug it off if YOU were having bloody explosive diarrhea and puking nonstop? Seriously. Get fvcked. Over an hour in the waiting room. No triage. No ETA. Just sorry excuses and zero compassion or empathy. My dog puked twice, was foamy at the mouth and had explosive diarrhea during the time that we were there. Nobody even noticed he vomited, I cleaned it up myself, these people do not care about your pets. Next time there is an emergency I will go literally anywhere else because these pompous assh0les do not give a flying fvck about the health and care of my pet. He is everything to me and you treat him and me like nothing.

We lived in LA for the first 10 years of our dog Tater's life, and veterinary care was always…read morestressful. It could take three weeks just to get on the schedule, which wasn't acceptable care. Moving to the Aptos-Capitola Veterinary Hospital has been a breath of fresh air. They can see Tater the same day or next day if needed. Unfortunately, our dog has been in a lot recently, which has really shown us how wonderful the entire tech and office staff is. I want to give an additional callout to Zach, who is a technician there, and Georgia at the front desk. I also cannot praise Dr. Hage enough. I can tell she genuinely cares for our dog and always advises us on the best course of action. She is compassionate, easy to communicate with, and we trust her completely. They never try to upsell us, Tater's health clearly comes before a bottom line. We are thrilled to have found a place we trust for the rest of his life.

This was the most horrible veterinary experience I have ever had. I have a 10-year-old indoor cat…read morewho had never really been sick before. After switching his food, he developed what appeared to be a food allergy and became very sick. Before bringing him to Aptos-Capitola Veterinary Clinic, I specifically called and told them he did NOT have a rabies vaccine and asked, "Can you still see him?" They said YES, no problem. We went in, they treated him, recommended different food, and we left happy. Fast-forward about three months. My cat was still having problems and had been vomiting for months. I had recently spent approximately $5,000 at an emergency veterinary hospital in Monterey trying to figure out what was wrong, and we still didn't have the answers we needed. I brought him back to Aptos-Capitola hoping for help. The veterinarian who met with me was extremely cold from the start. I reminded him that my cat had been through a lot and explained the months of vomiting and emergency visits. He didn't seem to care about my story. He began palpating my cat's abdomen with what seemed to me like an excessive amount of pressure, and my cat began VIOLENTLY SHAKING. I was shocked. My cat had been examined multiple times at the emergency hospital and had NEVER reacted like this during an examination. Throughout the exam, the veterinarian repeatedly brought up that my cat wasn't vaccinated for rabies. I explained that he is an indoor cat and that I was refusing the rabies vaccine. Instead of focusing on why my cat was sick, the conversation became increasingly aggressive. In my experience, his tone was rough, he raised his voice, and he continued insisting on the rabies vaccination before thoroughly examining my cat. Meanwhile, my cat continued shaking. I finally said, "I am refusing the rabies vaccine. I am here because my cat is SICK. I have been here before without this being a problem. Why is this suddenly a problem today?" The situation became so upsetting that I left the clinic CRYING with my sick, shaking cat. I actually wasn't planning to write a negative review. Then recently, I received an extremely long letter from the clinic informing me that my family and I were no longer welcome because of this situation. I found the letter threatening and upsetting. Even more concerning, the letter referenced California law regarding rabies vaccination. That is what prompted me to contact my attorney and research the law. What I learned raised serious questions about what I had been told. California does not have a statewide law requiring cats to be vaccinated against rabies. Local jurisdictions can have their own requirements, but I have been unable to identify a California law that simply prohibits a veterinarian from examining an indoor cat because it isn't vaccinated. If this clinic has its own vaccination policy, SAY THAT. A clinic policy and California law are NOT the same thing. If you tell a client something is required "by California law," you should be able to identify the law. I have had animals for decades. Years ago, when I had a working farm, I worked with the veterinary program at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, where veterinary students worked with and studied my animals. I have also spent many years researching vaccines before making my own decisions. People are entitled to disagree with those decisions. What I will NOT accept is being pressured and spoken to aggressively while my sick animal is visibly shaking, especially after this same clinic previously agreed to treat him knowing his vaccination status. My cat needed help. Instead, I left crying with a sick, shaking animal and later received a letter telling my entire family we were no longer welcome. I will NEVER forget this experience, and I absolutely cannot recommend this clinic.

Dr. Shuman and the entire staff at Westside Animal Hospital have been real lifesavers for my dog…read morethrough a recent extended illness that has been difficult to diagnose and treat. Dr. Shuman did emergency surgery on my dog when she was a puppy (she ate a bungee cord), and helped her make a complete recovery. He also did her spay and annual check-ups. More recently, he has put in a lot of time explaining where we are at while we methodically ran through tests, as I continue to navigate a chronic condition and early valve disease (including getting outside consultation), while continuing to treat my pet. I'm not happy to have a sick pup, but given the situation I know that I am in the very best practice in Santa Cruz. Dr. Shuman is calm and kind -- he is the best vet for taking care of your pet from puppy to adulthood. And, his staff are compassionate and always there to help when emergencies occur.

Taken care of my dog until 19 yrs & had to euthanize. And that was handled with empathy…read more. we now have a "rescue dog. Came to us with perforated ear drum. Again Westside Hospital Vets are excellent.

I really like the doctors and the staff. Our animals do well with them. They have been responsive…read morewhen I had questions :-)

I love Chanticleer Veterinary Hospital!!! Dr. Barton is the…read morebest Vet we have ever had the pleasure of knowing. She really cares for all our pets, and all three of our dogs love going to see her. Especially, Penny! Thanks, Chanticleer Veterinary Hospital, and Dr. Barton!!! Sincerely, Kevin

I grew up with horses, training horses, training riders, showing, trail riding, shoeing, and doing…read morea lot of our own diagnosing and basic vet care. I have also had the difficulties of having some serious medical cases in the horses in my family. Because of these things I KNOW how to interview a vet and give them real, serious questions/scenarios in the interview, and I can quickly recognize an equine vet who doesn't know what they are doing and is trying to pretend they do. I recently moved to Santa Cruz County, and, in doing my research and interviewing of vets, I was surprised and thrilled by the wealth of great large animal vets available here! There are only a few large animal vets that I would not trust to care for my horses, in this county! (Normally, there are only a few large animal vets I WOULD trust, so we are very lucky in this area!) When I interviewed Anne, I quickly found myself liking her friendly, caring manner. She is happy to help clients learn more about how to care for any condition their animals have (or might have in the future), and clearly loves to talk about animals and veterinary care in all areas! (This is a must in a vet, for me.) She is also extremely knowledgeable in a large variety of equine conditions, and is willing to try different things if the standard methods of treatment aren't working. She is also willing to contact other doctors and specialists to see what they would recommend in difficult cases, as well as recommend specialists or other vets if the clients are interested in taking their pets medical care to that level. I have been extremely pleased with the care Anne has given my horses. The only minuses about having Anne as your vet are: - If you want a vet to just shut up and do the job, Anne may not be the vet for you as she prefers clients who are interested in taking an active role in their animals' care. - To contact Anne, you have to leave a message on her answering machine. Then her vet tech (who is out on calls with her all day long) will call you back to make an appointment. This usually doesn't happen for several days or more, if the appointment is just an annual checkup; although they get back to you within a day or 3 if the condition is more serious. (If you have an emergency, they have a group emergency agreement, with several great vets in it, one of which will get back to you ASAP and arrange for your pet to get care. -- Thus, the vets get to sleep several nights per week, and those of us with emergencies get quick responses.) Anne works with horses, goats, sheep, and pigs. I would highly recommend Dr. Anne Terry for anyone who loves their horses and wants the best care possible for them!

Since finally connecting with Dr Terry I found that she is, in fact, a wonderful vet & person. I…read morehighly recommend her.......The answering service is what it is...but she does give you another number in cases of emergency.....I will be using her services in the future.

I came to give a 5 star review for Dr. Miller and Merit at Soquel Creek Animal Hospital. I highly…read morerecommend this clinic the staff and Dr. Miller were exactly what we needed during a very difficult time. He was super gracious and helpful even though we hadn't ever been in the clinic before. We did not have a regular vet due to financial hardship and had only ever taken our dog to low cost clinics for vaccines and spay/neuter programs until we had an emergency this past weekend. We received funding through a grant and had limited places we could use the funding. I called about half of the vets on the foundation's approved list. Merit at Soquel Creek was the ONLY one out of all of them that was friendly and willing to give me a real quote for specific services I was asking for without seeing my dog. He also assured me that they work with this foundation regularly and not to worry. I was assured that if I brought my dog it would all work out. Everyone else at the other clinics made me feel like it was uncertain that that I might be incurring a huge bill for myself. I saw mixed reviews on yelp so wasnt sure what would happen with Dr. Miller but the support from Merit made me feel comfortable so I went for it. Dr. Miller was super personable, calm and reasonable. He has a gentle demeanor and helped me make a plan of exactly what I should do if symptoms worsened or got better. He understood that funding was a barrier for me and was able to be supportive both for my dog AND me! Because of him I finally got clarity on how to best help my dog after 5 days of feeling like I was in an endless loop of trying to make decisions. If you want a vet who "gets it" go to Dr. Miller.

Dr. Miller and his crew are top notch. He always gets the fox tails for my senior doggy Ruby Doux's…read moreears and never needs to sedate her to get them. When it comes to urinary blockages on cats Dr. Miller is also a miracle worker in this department as well. He can do it and cheap too. Basically Dr. Miller does amazing work for the best prices. He takes no shortcuts.