VCA Garden State Animal Hospital

Reviews

• MM

  Mustafa

  3 days ago
  1.0
  I don’t recommend this hospital they don’t care about pets lives , i lost my baby dog
• MM

  Marcia

  3 days ago
  1.0
  They are all about money , i don’t recommend i lost my dog and i don’t even know the reason but they keep sending me bills
• BB

  Bedar

  3 days ago
  1.0
  They are all about money , be careful taking your dog there😠😠😡
• VL

  Victoria Ley

  4 days ago
  2.0
  I was incredibly nervous taking my rescue dog to the vet for the first time today. I chose VCA because the shelter included a flyer for a free first exam. I arrived at the appointment 20 minutes early and walked my dog around the outside for 10 minutes before going inside. My dog was clearly over-excited/scared/not calm. A new dog entered, which got my dog even more excited, but because he is a strong pitbull mix, it was becoming overwhelming for me to hold him and try to calm him. After about 5 minutes of containing him to the best of my ability, I was taken back into an exam room. The Vet tech was calm, friendly, and complimentary about my dog’s behavior, having learned he was a rescued stray who spent a year in the shelter. She was informative, showed me the plan for the appointment, the cost, and did not want me to be surprised by anything at the end of the appointment. The scale was not working in the exam room, so she took my dog back into the lobby area to weigh him. She returned shortly after and said he was a good boy for her, which made me feel a little less nervous and allowed me a moment of calm. The veterinarian entered the room and seemed to be in disarray. She almost immediately handed me a professional dog trainers card when she saw my dog panting and visibly anxious. Instead of taking a moment to establish trust with a scared, strong dog, the exam immediately began. Fortunately, my dog was friendly in greeting, but the vet was incredibly judgmental from the very beginning, having given almost no regard for the dog’s history or current circumstances. She attempted to clean one of his ears while he was held down by two vet techs, and when she went to switch ears, my dog reacted with an aggressive response. The vet looked directly at me and said “that’s not good.” It was the only aggressive sign he’d shown, having been given three different vaccines and his anal glands expressed. I kept feeling like my dog was looking at me for help … it was agonizing to watch. After telling me one of the vet techs just returned from medical leave from a dog bite, they then put the muzzle on him (for safety, which I understand) but it kept falling off so they kept having to stop and fix it. (This tech was clearly uncomfortable and nervous, which is 10000% understandable, but is not exactly helpful for an anxious animal.) The vet was not prepared for the exam, having run out of the room for something twice during the appointment; each time she left she was visibly frazzled and seemed in distress. The hardest part of the appointment for me was after the aggressive outburst, the vet said to me that it was “really nice for me to give him a chance,” but some dogs aren’t meant for homes (or something like that). She was talking to me like I was a complete moron, stressing the importance of learning commands, establishing discipline, structure and routine. Not once did she even ask me if he was able to do those things already, which he can! I will not be returning to this animal hospital/veterinarian, and I spent the next three hours crying and feeling like a complete failure. As if the progress we have made together did not matter, did not count, did not indicate my dog’s ability to be rehabilitated. As if cuddling on the couch and the bonding time each morning before work doesn’t mean our connection is growing stronger. This was a discouraging experience and I walked away not feeling positive about my dog’s future. Though I do understand there are rescues who do not fit into their new home, it was incredibly disheartening to hear this vet pass such judgement on an anxious dog.
• AB

  Anabelle Bee

  Mar 12, 2026
  1.0
  Took my healthy maltipoo in just for a rabies vaccine and internal anal glands to be done. They were so pushy and instant on giving him all types of vaccines. Vaccines I’ve never even heard of!! They pushed for blood work when he had already had records from a couple months ago from another vet he went to. If you want to take your pet for simple vaccines this IS NOT THE PLACE! They will mention all sorts of things to scare you and rack your bill up! This place is a total scam. All I wanted was a rabies vaccine and anal glands and left paying $800 for things I didn’t want done. Will never go back here. Not to mention I got there at 3:20 for a 3:40 appointment and didn’t get seen until about 4:30 due to “no available rooms”…