Dedham Veterinary Associates

Dr. Kuo recently gave my dog Phoebe her annual check up. We arrived and barely sat down before we were brought in to the exam room. As always Dr. Kuo and her staff did a great job. They go out of their way to make Phoebe comfortable. I have and will continue to recommend them to my friends and family.

The vets and staff at Dedham Veterinary Associates are amazing and compassionate. Our 6 year old Australian Cattle Dog became sick, lethargic and unable to keep food down. We called them and got information to make her more comfortable and a same day appointment. They were able to perform x-​rays and in-​house reads of blood tests so a diagnosis could be made that day. After a thorough diagnosis they treated her. The next day, a Saturday, the vet personally phoned to check up on our dog Spencer. She now feels great after receiving such thorough and compassionate care. Also vet is very accommodating to us, worried dog parents. Dedham Veterinary Associates is the best. I highly recommend them.

The pet care here is nothing to complain about. Service is good, the place is clean, and my pets do just fine.
But it’s the single most expensive place I’ve ever been to. And of course, as they will tell you, it’s YOUR responsibility to evaluate the risks and determine which recommendations to act on. Well I acted on the recommendations (all of them) and walked out paying $ 694 for my two healthy dogs. One needed a medication for his nose, but was otherwise fine. I already had the medicine at home, so NO that wasn’t part of this obscene cost.
Are they charging more for their services? Not really — except that my prior vet always cut me a discount if I brought in multiple pets at a time. They don’t do that here. They also seem to charge more for «senior» pet appointments — even though there seems to be a la carte pricing for any special «senior» tests that are recommended or required. So is anything extra included in the exam that has a «senior» pricing premium? It doesn’t appear so.
I pushed back on a couple of recommendations (bordatella vaccine for dogs that are never boarded) and they continued with what I would call a hard sell. I’m debating whether or not to continue visiting this practice, but it’s going to take some time to compare other places. I normally don’t complain about vet pricing — I know it can be costly — but I’ve just never seen anything quite like this.

I followed my vet, Dr. Gilleece, from another practice because she is wonderful. The entire stall at DVA are kind and exceptional.

I almost forgot to add that last April I found a fast growing lump on my then 13 year old dog’s chest. Dr. Kuo is amazing and I am so happy that she has been my dog’s vet since she arrived at DVA. She set me up again with Dr. Catherine Briere, the orthopedic vet. After x-​rays she gave the diagnosis of a tumor on his chest that was cancerous. We set up surgery the following week. She did a fantastic job on his surgery and removed the tumor. A couple of days later he was back to his self. I cannot do anything but thank all of the staff who are always so friendly and caring whenever I come in or call. They always follow up with a phone call. They are part of the reason why my 14 year of rescue Beagle is alive and still very healthy besides some bumps in the road. I can never thank them enough.

0 stars. Enough said.
Would never recommend any one to this vet. First reason everyone we encountered at Dedham Vet was extremely rude and very short. Second reason they have there brand on everything so your going to pay a premium rate to have there label on any medications your dogs might need. We paid over $ 500 for each dogs yearly shots that includes there highly recommended (non needed) extra boosters and such. lastly this was the most impersonal vet I have been to. No follow up after a visit just postcards and junk emails reminding you to get more boosters and shots.
You can pay half the price and get people that truly listen at Banfield Pet Hospital. They will even call to make sure your pets doing well after a visit.
Dog lovers beware Dedham Vet As. Is not the vet you want to try!

I am very surprised to read the negative reviews. I have been bringing my 70lb dog Maya to DVA for about 3 years now and have no complaints. I actually switched to DVA because my previous Vet was even more expensive.
Healthcare for you animal is not cheap. You will be hard pressed to find a Vet that will not charge an office visit fee every time you walk in the door. The facilities are expensive to maintain and to offer good care you have to pay for it. Yes, sometimes it is frustrating but having an animal is expensive. If you want cheap care go to a cheap facility. I have found through my experience their office visit and Urine analysis tests are a fair market value, if not cheaper.
What is most important to me is that when I bring my dog through the door she has no hesitation or fear– and this is true at DVA. She happily returns time after time and I am always impressed that she lets the Vets prod and poke her– this is because they know how to handle animals and it make her feel comfortable. Also, they do not need to send your dog out-​of-​house (like many vets) in order to do more complicated procedures. They have the expertise and specialties in the building– no strangers doing surgery on your dog.
And, just because they offer you dig food and tick replant doesn’t make them bad people. They are just doing their job and you can always say no thank you like I do!

I wish I had read the reviews before heading here. I had the single most expensive vet visit I have ever encountered… and all of my pets are healthy. Nice enough people, but I wont be returning.

These folks did a great job or my pups when I lived nearby. Recently moved.

We have 3 dogs, two of them have been going for years. These people will try to sell you things you DON’T NEED. Needless shots, blood tests, nose jobs, etc. I like this place, it’s just they try to sell you too many useless things to waste your money.

Although I have had no experience with any other vet, I have for the past six years brought my dog here for all of his needs. I have found both the clerical and medical staff to be friendly, honest and professional.

I have been very impressed with the level of care and caring at this practice. While I do agree with the reviewer who said to «beware the upsell» and I do find the practice of bringing my dogs to the back room annoying, overall my experience has been good. Particularly when I brought my dog in with an emergency. They immediately went to work on her and when she passed away (there was nothing that could be done for her) everyone in the practice had tears in their eyes.

Three strikes, yer out– that’s my personal philosophy anyways in regards to any business. Strike number three happened several months ago, so I went out and found new vet.
I feel like this Unilocal review could be very long, and it would serve as therapy for me in order to get the frustration out– but no one likes to hear and respond effectively to a disgruntled customer’s complaint… including the director of the vet clinic, and the lead vet which I did approach prior to my last visit visit.
Here’s the highlight reel:
1. I feel like I’m a cash-​cow whenever I walk through the door. If my healthy dog’s in good health– I should consider buying this vaccine or this supplement to make him even healthier. Beware the upsell.
2. If my dog’s not healthy, such as his «hurt paw», they cannot help me unless I spend even more money on costly tests. Now, I understand that health care is expensive, and would not begrudge any amount which would improve the health of my dog. But $ 100 to tell me that I have the option to spend more? Really? Beware the «i can’t fix this unless you give me more $».
3. As in the other post, my dog disappeared behind a door for some kind of «special evaluation». We left, and upon his next visit, we discovered now that my 90 pound dog is apprehensive around the vet. That’s too much of a coincidence. He’s too big to be scared of the vet. Scared dogs act in unpredictable ways, I can’t have that. Now I need to undo what someone else has exposed him to. Beware the back room.
4. With the office visit, a complimentary nail trim is supposed to be included. Due to the dog’s anxious state of mind, it was not in the best interest for him to be put under any more stress. The vet agreed and suggested that I set up another appointment with the nurse. Of course, they’ll charge me for the second visit, even though I paid already with the first visit. Beware the «already paid for that».
5. No matter how much I try, I still feel as though they are actively trying to lose or up-​sell me with medical jargon as their tool. The problem is I understand much of it. «No, I don’t need a leptospirosis vaccine.» I’m aware of leptospirosis and have an idea about it’s rate of occurrence. Beware of the medical jargon, and what the data really shows.
6. Last, but certainly not least– I recognize that veterinary care is a business. Like all businesses there is a decorum and a response which is appropriate, the attending vet needs to exude professionalism and calm-​. However, the other side of this coin is that people who visit the vet’s office, need something for a loved pet. They often are in a place of emotional distress or concern. A warm response, one that is removed from the business aspect of the service would be greatly appreciated. A genuine interest, a genuine smile, a genuine light-​hearted conversation would be great. Staff at the office could learn from Sheila, the receptionist. She’s the best staff that they have.

We had two bad experiences with this animal clinic.
I would not recommend them to any cat owner.
The first time was an emergency where our Maine Coon had bleeding nails due to a misstep he did which left him hanging on the edge of a shelf.
The vet would not let me come in with my kitty, but instead disappeared with him behind a door so I could not see what he was doing. When he came back my kitty’s feet had stopped bleeding, but the vet said he had not done anything but clean the wounds. They surely charged us an arm and a leg, but nothing was verifiable.
The second time I brought two Maine Coon kittens in which we had just bought. They needed a medical checkup and their shots.
For some odd reason the vet each time took the cat away elsewhere out of my scope of vision for having the shots given. Also, the vet showed me that the kitties had lots of bugs in their fur. I assumed that she meant we should wash them, but she gave no advice nor any shots or medicine. Upon getting home (and later visiting a different animal clinic) it turned out that they had diarrhea due to an infection by the bugs, which is quite common, especially if kittens grown up with a breeder with a dog and living in the woods with outside access, like they did.
It shows how careless the vet was not to take initiative on the bugs and let them get sick. He also did not ask for a stool sample nor take any other samples, like of the blood, so there really was not a true checkup. We had that done fully at another clinic.
These vets do not seem to care about the pets, not about the owners, who have a vested financial and emotional interest in their pets (major investments that start when one acquires one’s pet). As a pet owner you need both, so your money and time is wasted here.
PS
Oh, and parking is a pain there. Their parking is designed totally wrong is hard to maneuver in.

Having moved to Boston from outside the area, and having 2 cats and a dog, I somehow found myself making an appointment at this Dedham practice. Now I’ve been going there for a year, I must say I’m very happy indeed. It’s a well kept, clean and spacious vets. The techs are very good and the vets themselves (4 in total I think) also seem great — I’ve only met 2 so far, since I decided to stick with one rather than bounce between them. They are attentive (call before for a reminder and call afterwards if necessary), and seem skilled (our kitten’s spay was very well done).
They do seem a bit pricey, although I’m not sure what they are like in comparison to others — but I do feel it’s worth the money. I’ve never heard anything bad about them secondhand (like for the Angell).
So I’d recommend them fully.