VCA Animal Specialty Group

Reviews

• JM

  Jimmy Mack

  Sep 15, 2026
  3.0
  My experience was a 1 star, but the staff seemed friendly and I don't know about their service. Not my usual Vet, but my pup had a serious cough so we called and they said no appointments just come in. We did and sat for an hour and a half and then decided to leave. They did offer us water. When I asked the front desk for a time they didn't know, but I was waiting for Finance to come talk to me.. and I hadn't seen a vet yet.. felt sketchy. A cought diagnosis shouldn't need a visit from financial. So we left.
• AY

  ash young

  Sep 11, 2026
  5.0
  My cat Pearl almost died from severe and sudden blood loss. She was hemorrhaging internally, resulting in severe anemia and shock. Pearl found herself in desperate need of a transfusion. Unfortunately for Pearl, she has a rare blood type and there is no universal donor for cats. She needed B blood, which is in critically short supply (please consider looking into their donor program). Thankfully the VCA in Carlsbad rushed over 2 units. Dr. Osgood took exceptional care of her and got her stabilized and worked to secure her rare blood products. I believe it was Dr. Kosmo who continued her care overnight (sorry if I got that wrong, it's a bit of a blur), and Dr. Wegner took over her care the following morning. Pearl got round-the-clock care with frequent monitoring and blood pressure checks. Pearl had to be transferred to another hospital for continued therapy, which was facilitated by Dr. Wegner. He called and prepped their team, and they were all set for our arrival when we got there. The collaborative effort between hospitals made her transfer very smooth. Dr. Wegner even called twice after the transfer to check up on her. I am deeply appreciative of the high level care of all the veterinarians, techs, and receptionists. Without their care, Pearl would not have made it.
• JB

  Jaycee Burton

  Sep 2, 2026
  1.0
  We brought our dog Keaton to VCA Animal Specialty Group after months of decline from terminal mast cell tumor cancer. By that point, she had large, visible tumors on her body, along with changes affecting the alignment of her spine and front limbs. Any burst of activity could leave her painful and stiff for days afterward, and we had reached the point where we were constantly trying to keep her still because we were afraid she would hurt herself. That loss of comfort and quality of life is ultimately what led us to make the heartbreaking decision to move forward with euthanasia. When Dr. Rachel Park sat down with us, she immediately said she needed to ask questions so they could determine what was going to happen that day. From the outset, the tone felt more accusatory than compassionate or clinical. She had apparently seen Keaton in the back appearing happy, alert, and active, and her comments and disapproving expressions left us feeling as though our decision was being questioned or framed as a lack of love for our dog. What was especially difficult was that a few minutes of Keaton appearing energetic did not reflect what her life had become. Her terminal diagnosis was known, her tumors were visibly apparent, and activity often came at the cost of significant pain and stiffness afterward. We knew our dog and had spent months watching that decline. We ultimately asked to have Keaton returned to us. Dr. Seth Wegner brought her back and apologized for how the conversation had gone. He explained that the practice sometimes encounters clients seeking euthanasia for convenience and therefore tries to confirm that this is not the situation before proceeding. We did appreciate his care and concern. We completely understand the need to ask confirmatory questions before euthanasia. Our concern is with how those questions were delivered by Dr. Rachel Park. Families making this decision are often already devastated and questioning themselves enough. There is a meaningful difference between thoughtfully assessing whether euthanasia is appropriate and making a grieving family feel as though they need to defend their love for their terminally ill dog. We hope the practice considers how these conversations are approached in the future. Clinical judgment is important, but so are compassion, context, and the understanding that a pet looking happy for a few minutes does not necessarily mean they are living comfortably.
• DH

  Dan Halabuk

  Aug 8, 2026
  5.0
  This place is wonderful. We took our cat here late at night, they gave a full exam and diagnosis, then the vet spent about 30 minutes talking to us to understand what the possible issues were and which tests would make sense now vs later. He gave an honest recommendation on which tests could wait to be done by our regular vet at a lower cost than them. The cost was extremely fair. Kitty is doing fine.
• SS

  StevenLN

  Aug 2, 2026
  1.0
  I brought my pet in w a bite. There was no one in the waiting room when we arrived. They said they needed to give her a shot in case she was in pain. My pet had no visible distress. I allowed it for examination. 4 people came in after me as I sat there for two hours. One person came in with a cat that had trouble urinating and they told this person the same thing. They needed to give it a pain injection. Mind you the injection was 169.00. The other three individuals were there to pick up their pets. My pet was sick for 2 days from the injection. She was acting happy before it. They wanted to close the wound but my pet has a history that isn't safe for the type of closure they suggested. It was a puncture the size of a pea. They gave us written instructions and medication. I read the instructions carefully. It had our information but sometimes placed the wrong sex or the wrong name but also contained my pet's name and our information as it was sent to our email. A few days went by and the wound started swelling. I took my pet to their local vet who had to lacerate the wound. The rx should have been double based on my pet's weight. My vet also said vets should never ever close a bite or wound such as the one we came in with because it will hold infection. It needs to heal from the inside out. It is apparent this vca location is negligent and it costed my pet more anguish. Giving wrong dosages and recommending treatment that only harms your pet at a very high cost is just absurd and cruel. My pet was taken back for hours with one puncture and under stress away from us only to be under additional harm from their office not paying attention. The bs reply of oh contact us directly is only to make it appear they care when trust me...they don't!

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