Dc Area Maryland Vet

[Guest jvandover]

Sorry for posting a new topic, I know there is a vet topic list, but it is somewhat out of date (at least for my area).

 

Recently my boy Chad had some trauma on his tail. He basically had a large area of skin peeled off leaving an open wound with exposed tendons. My current vet did a good job keeping it clean, and uninfected, but it didn't seem to be healing. At a friends recommendation, I took him to a Greyhound specialist about an hour away (near Baltimore) and he gave us a new recommended treatment, before we consider partial amputation. He also told us that if we did need to do a partial amputation down the road, it would cost $250-$300. This alarmed me as my current vet had given us an estimate in the $1200-$1500 range. I already had some issues with my current vet, but that sealed the deal. I need a new vet.

 

I live in Montgomery County MD, and I know there are a number of other people on here that live in the area. Can any of you recommend a vet? I am looking for someone familiar with Greys and reasonably priced for basic care (checkups, vaccines, dental) as I now know that if either of my pups has a major issue to take them to the guy near Baltimore.

 

Thanks in advance for any insight.

[vjgrey]

I'll be watching this post, as well. I'm not unhappy with our current (general practice) vet, but I'm not thrilled, either, and they do seem very expensive. We rarely get out of a routine visit (e.g. vaccinations) without a $200+ bill.

[dante2zoe]

I am curious, as well. Where in Monkey County are you? The dogs at playgroup go all over for their vet care. My vet is in Beallsville. He just retired, but my recent experience with the other vets there has been pretty good. He didn't have a lot of greyhound clients, but asked for (and received, lol) lots of reading materials about the breed. I tend to use my "regular" vet for routine maintenance, so to speak, and will not hesitate to go elsewhere for other things. SouthPaws has a lot of good specialists. Dante's cardiologist has an office at VCA in Gaithersburg. I tend to use the E-vet in Frederick, but have also been to the one in Leesburg. I guess you could say that my dogs get around!

 

I am assuming you saw Dr. Benson for a second opinion? I have been there before for a second opinion, too. I liked him, but that is just too too far for routine stuff.

 

Cindy

[BootsyCollins]

How important is it that they be a "greyhound specialist?" I'd much rather go to a vet with whom I have a good rapport and I trust to be open to the more unique attributes of my dog's physiology than pay extra or drive farther for a totally subjective label.

 

That being said, where in MoCo do you live? My parents' vet is in Rockville, and the vet we went to when I was growing up is in Silver Spring. I'm happy to get names/ numbers for you.

[EnzaFerrari]

I'll be watching this post, as well. I'm not unhappy with our current (general practice) vet, but I'm not thrilled, either, and they do seem very expensive. We rarely get out of a routine visit (e.g. vaccinations) without a $200+ bill.

 

Who do you see in VA? I go to Caring Hands and while it is pricey, I do like the doctors and I love the front office staff. I sometimes ponder switching but I've seen them handle crisis before and I appreciate how swiftly they respond. Once was an issue with Enza and once was while I was in the waiting room. This woman walked in with a dog that was in pain and even though she wasn't a patient of theirs, they rushed the dog to the back and calmed the poor woman down.

 

(okay - two of the doctors are also really good looking...I took my boyfriend with me once and he even noticed it...)

[vjgrey]

I'll be watching this post, as well. I'm not unhappy with our current (general practice) vet, but I'm not thrilled, either, and they do seem very expensive. We rarely get out of a routine visit (e.g. vaccinations) without a $200+ bill.

 

Who do you see in VA? I go to Caring Hands and while it is pricey, I do like the doctors and I love the front office staff. I sometimes ponder switching but I've seen them handle crisis before and I appreciate how swiftly they respond. Once was an issue with Enza and once was while I was in the waiting room. This woman walked in with a dog that was in pain and even though she wasn't a patient of theirs, they rushed the dog to the back and calmed the poor woman down.

 

(okay - two of the doctors are also really good looking...I took my boyfriend with me once and he even noticed it...)

 

We go to Caring Hands, too, and have stayed there largely out of appreciation for how they handled an incident with Gabe.

 

He had what was either a panic attack or a bad reaction to anesthesia following a dental. He was such a mess, they thought it might be some kind of cardiac event and did a series of tests to rule that sort of thing out. They called me immediately, and I got up there as soon as I could. When I went in, they had him in a darkened room, laying on a blanket on the floor, surrounded by three vet techs who were petting him and talking to him in soothing voices. The vet (Dr. Garcia) said "We realized that he loves people, so I gave him some people." She didn't charge me for any of the cardiac tests, saying she'd done them for her "own peace of mind."

 

So, every time I leave with a $200+ bill for a routine visit, I consider switching vets. And every time I think about them giving Gabe people, I stay.

 

They were also very kind when I had my sobbing meltdown following his Osteo diagnosis.

[EnzaFerrari]

If I were to switch, it would be to Ballston but I am not sure it is much cheaper. Alas.

 

And I adore Brenda and Enza would probably murder me if I took her away from her friend.

Edited January 3, 2012 by EnzaFerrari

[Guest KennelMom]

Waaaaaaaaaaait a sec. $1200 for a tail amp? For a kangaroo maybe, but not a greyhound! They're crazy! Good luck finding a new vet. I like them to have greyhound experience, but a competent vet that charges fairly and that handles my dogs (and me)well, is most important.

[turbotaina]

Dr. Christine Kellogg at Ballston Animal Hospital in Virginia is the best greyhound vet, hands down, in this area. I don't think the practice is cheap (she just moved over there from Great Falls Animal Hospital), but I feel it's worth it.

 

If you're looking at greyhound knowledgeable and want a good price for surgery, I think there's a good vet over in Greenbelt, but i can't remember the name. Tinymitymo goes there, so if she drops in, she can tell you

[NeylasMom]

If I were to switch, it would be to Ballston but I am not sure it is much cheaper. Alas.

No, they are insanely expensive, and would be a long drive from MoCo.

 

To the OP, I use Dr. Gardsbane at Animal Place in Aspen Hill. Her prices are reasonable relatively speaking imo. Is she a greyhound expert, probably not, but I consider her a reasonable person who is easy to work with. Having said that, she doesn't have the newest equipment - her x-ray equipment in particular is old and not what I would prefer to use, especially if osteo is suspected. That's why I took Zuri to Ballston for x-rays last month instead of taking him to her. I don't feel obligated to work with only one vet though so that works fine for me.

 

vjgrey, I forgot you had moved to this area. We use Caring Hands for many of our foster dogs - doesn't hurt that Dr. Miller is easy on the eyes. Anyway, I just wanted to mention, Neyla had a reaction similar to what you're describing after anesthesia. They called it a paradoxical reaction. She basically was spastic and would react to every sound she heard. I had to sit with her in a closet basically restraining her every time we heard a noise through the door for a few hours until a friend could come to drive us home (I couldn't drive and leave her unrestrained). It was horrific and part of hte reason I never amputated teh toe that gave her trouble, but they had used dormitor, not propofol and Dr. Radcliffe seemed to think that if we used Propofol we would be okay. I would think Caring Hands would be using propofol, but it's worth checking.

 

Sorry for the digression.

[winnie]

We use Caring Hands too (Centreville, VA office). Yes, they are pricey, but we've always gotten excellent care and service there. The two vets we deal with regularly are very knowledgeable about greyhounds too. This info. doesn't help the OP, but I found it interesting that so many of the NoVA folks use Caring Hands too.

[Pepperjack]

Waaaaaaaaaaait a sec. $1200 for a tail amp? For a kangaroo maybe, but not a greyhound! They're crazy! Good luck finding a new vet. I like them to have greyhound experience, but a competent vet that charges fairly and that handles my dogs (and me)well, is most important.

 

That's DC. Can't really compare prices to 99% of the rest of the country.

[Guest KennelMom]

Waaaaaaaaaaait a sec. $1200 for a tail amp? For a kangaroo maybe, but not a greyhound! They're crazy! Good luck finding a new vet. I like them to have greyhound experience, but a competent vet that charges fairly and that handles my dogs (and me)well, is most important.

 

That's DC. Can't really compare prices to 99% of the rest of the country.

 

I understand that the bigger cities are going to cost more, but cripes...a tail amp is a pretty basic surgery. We've had a few dogs go through them. Is a spay $3000? That's major abdominal surgery.

[Guest BlueCrab]

We use Laytonsville Vet Practice on Sundown Rd in Laytonsville (just N of Olney). We've been going there for years and have been happy with them. They're not cheap, they're not the most greyhound knowledgeable (we had to introduce them to what Trixie's corn was - the vet we were seeing that day had no idea). They are exceedingly nice, the place is clean, the staff is always nice, they can fit me in pretty much whenever I need to get in, they have extensive hours (e.g. 7 pm most nights).

 

We did go to the VCA in Gaithersburg (Perry Parkway methinks...right off the RR trax by the hotel, near the back end of the fairgrounds) for an emergency in the middle of the night before Thanksgiving with Leyland. I really liked the facility and the vet we dealt with (young female, first name "Troye" I think...can't remember last name) was fabulous. My DH has co-workers who go to VCA for their regular vet visits and love it.

 

My mom went to Potomac Animal Hospital for donkey years with her poufy lap dog and cat. I'd drive her a lot when she wasn't able to drive. Nice people, definitely pricey (Potomac prices). No idea how they were with greyhounds; had heard some staff grumbling behind the scenes about how difficult the docs may have been to work with, but the staff on the front desk always were great with me and my mom, so it may have been an anomaly. Didn't like that they'd take the animals away and do a lot of the work such as giving shots and stuff "behind the scenes" where I couldnd't watch.

 

Many years ago, went to Quince Orchard Vet Hospital on Rt 28 in Gaithersburg when we lived near there. Too many years ago to give a rating good / bad, but I was touched when one of the vets very gently kissed my old failing kitty on top of the head. Made me cry.

[NeylasMom]

 

I understand that the bigger cities are going to cost more, but cripes...a tail amp is a pretty basic surgery. We've had a few dogs go through them. Is a spay $3000? That's major abdominal surgery.

Just out of curiosity, do you know what you pay for basic services, like an exam fee, a snap test, a full blood profile sent to Antech or the other major lab whose name is slipping my mind, or a rabies vaccine?

 

I wish I could remember what we paid for my foster's tail amp, but it's been a couple of years. I do remember being quoted $1200 for a toe amp for Neyla and that was about 4-5 years ago so I'm sure it would be significantly more now.

[Guest jvandover]

First off, thank you to everyone for the replies.

 

I am curious, as well. Where in Monkey County are you? The dogs at playgroup go all over for their vet care. My vet is in Beallsville. He just retired, but my recent experience with the other vets there has been pretty good. He didn't have a lot of greyhound clients, but asked for (and received, lol) lots of reading materials about the breed. I tend to use my "regular" vet for routine maintenance, so to speak, and will not hesitate to go elsewhere for other things. SouthPaws has a lot of good specialists. Dante's cardiologist has an office at VCA in Gaithersburg. I tend to use the E-vet in Frederick, but have also been to the one in Leesburg. I guess you could say that my dogs get around!

 

I am assuming you saw Dr. Benson for a second opinion? I have been there before for a second opinion, too. I liked him, but that is just too too far for routine stuff.

 

Cindy

 

I live in Germantown. I am assuming you go to Peachtree? How do you like them, that is probably #1 on my current list because Dr. Hirth is there, and she saw my dogs on prior occasions when she worked elsewhere. She knows a lot about Greyhounds (I believe she owns one? or maybe did?) You are correct, I saw Dr. Benson for the second opinion, and I must say, he is incredible. I will use him in the future for anything major with the dogs. Driving an hour is no issue for me now that I know he REALLY knows Greys, and is reasonably priced. But I am looking for a closer vet for regular things.

 

 

How important is it that they be a "greyhound specialist?" I'd much rather go to a vet with whom I have a good rapport and I trust to be open to the more unique attributes of my dog's physiology than pay extra or drive farther for a totally subjective label.

 

That being said, where in MoCo do you live? My parents' vet is in Rockville, and the vet we went to when I was growing up is in Silver Spring. I'm happy to get names/ numbers for you.

 

I don't care about labels. It isn't like the Doctor I saw for a second opinion only sees Greys. He just happens to be the vet for my adoption group, and he has seen hundreds (thousands?) of Greys over the years. I would consider him an expert, AND he is very forthcoming and inexpensive. As far as a regular vet goes, they don't need to be a "Greyhound Expert" but I would prefer they be aware of some of the quirks of the breed. An example is my current vet, when suggesting amputation, intended to do it right above the damaged part of the tail (maybe 9" from the tip). Dr Benson was able to tell me from experience that an amputation like that would have a small chance of success, because the skin there would be too thin to reliably hold sutures in the long run.

 

 

Waaaaaaaaaaait a sec. $1200 for a tail amp? For a kangaroo maybe, but not a greyhound! They're crazy! Good luck finding a new vet. I like them to have greyhound experience, but a competent vet that charges fairly and that handles my dogs (and me)well, is most important.

 

That's DC. Can't really compare prices to 99% of the rest of the country.

 

It has nothing to do with DC. My current vet is about 45 min outside of DC, in an area that wouldn't even be considered a suburb of DC (if anything it is a suburb of Frederick). The price is outrageous, when the second opinion vet said he could do it (with more experience) at 10% of the cost of the original estimate.

 

Not only that but this vet was originally trying to charge me $80 every day, and then every other day, for a bandage change. And they told me they couldnt show me how to do it because it took a special kind of wet bandage. I talked to the director there and had the cost reduced to $54 but that is still expensive! Dr. Benson charged me $8 to change the bandage.

[joejoesmom]

I'll be watching this post, as well. I'm not unhappy with our current (general practice) vet, but I'm not thrilled, either, and they do seem very expensive. We rarely get out of a routine visit (e.g. vaccinations) without a $200+ bill.

 

Who do you see in VA? I go to Caring Hands and while it is pricey, I do like the doctors and I love the front office staff. I sometimes ponder switching but I've seen them handle crisis before and I appreciate how swiftly they respond. Once was an issue with Enza and once was while I was in the waiting room. This woman walked in with a dog that was in pain and even though she wasn't a patient of theirs, they rushed the dog to the back and calmed the poor woman down.

 

(okay - two of the doctors are also really good looking...I took my boyfriend with me once and he even noticed it...)

 

We go to Caring Hands, too, and have stayed there largely out of appreciation for how they handled an incident with Gabe.

 

He had what was either a panic attack or a bad reaction to anesthesia following a dental. He was such a mess, they thought it might be some kind of cardiac event and did a series of tests to rule that sort of thing out. They called me immediately, and I got up there as soon as I could. When I went in, they had him in a darkened room, laying on a blanket on the floor, surrounded by three vet techs who were petting him and talking to him in soothing voices. The vet (Dr. Garcia) said "We realized that he loves people, so I gave him some people." She didn't charge me for any of the cardiac tests, saying she'd done them for her "own peace of mind."

 

So, every time I leave with a $200+ bill for a routine visit, I consider switching vets. And every time I think about them giving Gabe people, I stay.

 

They were also very kind when I had my sobbing meltdown following his Osteo diagnosis.

 

I just have to say that I love hearing stories like this about vets.

[Pepperjack]

 

 

Waaaaaaaaaaait a sec. $1200 for a tail amp? For a kangaroo maybe, but not a greyhound! They're crazy! Good luck finding a new vet. I like them to have greyhound experience, but a competent vet that charges fairly and that handles my dogs (and me)well, is most important.

 

That's DC. Can't really compare prices to 99% of the rest of the country.

 

It has nothing to do with DC. My current vet is about 45 min outside of DC, in an area that wouldn't even be considered a suburb of DC (if anything it is a suburb of Frederick). The price is outrageous, when the second opinion vet said he could do it (with more experience) at 10% of the cost of the original estimate.

 

Not only that but this vet was originally trying to charge me $80 every day, and then every other day, for a bandage change. And they told me they couldnt show me how to do it because it took a special kind of wet bandage. I talked to the director there and had the cost reduced to $54 but that is still expensive! Dr. Benson charged me $8 to change the bandage.

frederick is a suburb of dc these days. my dads house he bought in 2001 nearly tripled in value in a mere 5 years due to the influx of people who were fleeing dc cost of living and consequently paid more for everything . people i grew up with who lived in frederick county all their lives now live i Washington county cause they were drive out by the outrageous jump in cost of living

 

and in the opposite direction Baltimore is cheap cheap cheap i paid less than 500 for a spay and i think dr beson is even cheaper than my vet

[robinw]

My parents, who used to breed show dogs and have had dogs for years, are very happy with the vet at PetSmart on Cherry Hill in Silver Spring. I took the there once, and he seemed very through, knowledgable and my parents' dog loved him.

Edited January 4, 2012 by robinw

[Lilysmom]

Sorry for posting a new topic, I know there is a vet topic list, but it is somewhat out of date (at least for my area).

 

Recently my boy Chad had some trauma on his tail. He basically had a large area of skin peeled off leaving an open wound with exposed tendons. My current vet did a good job keeping it clean, and uninfected, but it didn't seem to be healing. At a friends recommendation, I took him to a Greyhound specialist about an hour away (near Baltimore) and he gave us a new recommended treatment, before we consider partial amputation. He also told us that if we did need to do a partial amputation down the road, it would cost $250-$300. This alarmed me as my current vet had given us an estimate in the $1200-$1500 range. I already had some issues with my current vet, but that sealed the deal. I need a new vet.

 

I live in Montgomery County MD, and I know there are a number of other people on here that live in the area. Can any of you recommend a vet? I am looking for someone familiar with Greys and reasonably priced for basic care (checkups, vaccines, dental) as I now know that if either of my pups has a major issue to take them to the guy near Baltimore.

 

Thanks in advance for any insight.

 

 

There is a greyhound savy vet in Beltsville, Dr. Prowell is wonderful! Their prices are very very reasonable.

 

4246 Powder Mill Rd

Beltsville, MD 20705

 

(301) 937-3020

[tbhounds]

Waaaaaaaaaaait a sec. $1200 for a tail amp? For a kangaroo maybe, but not a greyhound! They're crazy! Good luck finding a new vet. I like them to have greyhound experience, but a competent vet that charges fairly and that handles my dogs (and me)well, is most important.

 

That's DC. Can't really compare prices to 99% of the rest of the country.

Sounds like a ballpark figure for NJ too.

[dante2zoe]

OP, yes I was talking about Peachtree. I have been using that practice since I moved to Poolesville almost 20 (!) years ago. My email address is houndzrus - at - gmail.com. I can give you more information about the practice, if you would like. Dr. Anderson opened that practice and just fully retired at the end of December. Drats. However, I had to go there twice in December for 2 different issues and I will be happy to give you my opinions of some of the vets.

 

I also adopted Dante and Zoe through GPA. We probably have the same rep! Roberta?

 

Cindy

[Guest jvandover]

OP, yes I was talking about Peachtree. I have been using that practice since I moved to Poolesville almost 20 (!) years ago. My email address is houndzrus - at - gmail.com. I can give you more information about the practice, if you would like. Dr. Anderson opened that practice and just fully retired at the end of December. Drats. However, I had to go there twice in December for 2 different issues and I will be happy to give you my opinions of some of the vets.

 

I also adopted Dante and Zoe through GPA. We probably have the same rep! Roberta?

 

Cindy

 

Yep, same rep. I know Dr. Hirth at Peachtree, as I said I originally saw her at Fox Chapel, and then at my current vet when she moved, then she left for Peachtree and I didn't follow. Do you find their prices to be reasonable? I will e-mail you also. Thanks for the help.

[TinyMityMo]

Yep, Dr. Prowell at Beltsville is my favorite.

 

When Bailey had fibrosarcoma and needed her spleen out plus they snooped around and removed at least one other tumor from her omentum the surgery was $600. There were some other costs like meds, hospitalization, biopsy, ultrasound (low tech level) etc but the entire thing was less than $1000. She was willing to work with and send tissue samples to Dr. Couto during the incident. She wasn't able to administer the chemo he sent so we went to a specialty place for that.

 

When we found a tiny stray kitty once she was amazing as we tried to figure out what was wrong with him. He only lived to 9 months old and when I finally had to take him to her to be sent to the bridge she never charged us a penny for that plus all the necropsy samples she sent out. She said she wanted to know herself what was wrong with him since we never found anything (some type of inborn error of metabolism). She never charged us when it was time for Bailey to go to the bridge either.

 

Another very compassionate vet there who helped with Bailey is Dr. Fink.

[Guest KennelMom]

 

I understand that the bigger cities are going to cost more, but cripes...a tail amp is a pretty basic surgery. We've had a few dogs go through them. Is a spay $3000? That's major abdominal surgery.

Just out of curiosity, do you know what you pay for basic services, like an exam fee, a snap test, a full blood profile sent to Antech or the other major lab whose name is slipping my mind, or a rabies vaccine?

 

I wish I could remember what we paid for my foster's tail amp, but it's been a couple of years. I do remember being quoted $1200 for a toe amp for Neyla and that was about 4-5 years ago so I'm sure it would be significantly more now.

 

 

IIRC (I rarely look at the bills anymore...just hand over the card), the office visit is $45. Bloodwork varies depending on which lab they send it to and is anywhere from $64 to $95. The last time I got the dogs vaccinated we did the DHPP and rabies 3 year and it was about $25/dog...a little more than the mobile vet in the area, but I wanted it all done at our regular vet this time.