I brought my cat to Center Star because he had started urinating outside his litter box. The staff…read morerecommended neutering him, so we scheduled the procedure. My cat has FIV, so I asked several questions beforehand because I was concerned about infection risk. I was reassured that neutering a male cat is a very simple procedure. When my husband picked him up later that afternoon, there was blood in the bottom of the carrier. At first he thought it was part of the carrier design, but when he got home and took our cat out, there was blood everywhere and the bleeding would not stop. I immediately called Center Star and was told they were closing and that we needed to take him to the emergency vet. Because the emergency clinic did not open until 6:00 PM and it was only 5:00 PM, I called Helton Plaza Veterinary Clinic for advice. Even though they were closing, the staff member there stayed on the phone with me and helped guide us until we could get to the emergency vet. At the emergency clinic, we were told the bleeding occurred because the surgical site had not been properly tied off. They were able to get the bleeding under control. The next day we returned to Center Star to have my cat checked and to discuss reimbursement for the emergency visit. During that visit, the veterinarian we saw also stated the issue was due to it not being properly tied off. The manager told me this situation "never happens" and said he needed to speak with the veterinarian who performed the surgery before making a decision. From that point forward, communication became extremely frustrating. I was told I would receive a call the next day but did not. I had to call multiple times myself to try to get an answer. I was eventually told they would not reimburse the emergency visit. What has been most disappointing is the lack of communication and accountability. No one from Center Star called to check on my cat after the emergency visit. I had to initiate every follow-up conversation myself. I was also told the veterinarian would speak with me, but when I called back later that afternoon I was informed she had already left for the day. I understand that complications can happen in medicine, and I was initially very understanding about the situation. However, the way this was handled afterward -- the lack of follow-up, the lack of communication, and the refusal to take responsibility for the emergency care that resulted -- has been very disappointing. Pet owners deserve transparency, communication, and accountability when something goes wrong. Because of how this situation was handled, I am also considering filing a formal complaint with the Alabama State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners so the incident can be reviewed.

We have been going to this vet for several years with all of our fur babies. Now, after being sold,…read morewe will not be back! We took our dog there due to severe allergies. After waiting about 3 hours to be seen, they gave us meds. When the medicines did not work, we went back 2 weeks later. The doctor drew blood to be sent off to testing. It is now a month later with no response on the tests and no relief. We ended up having to go to another vet because our dog was suffering so much. After both (new vet and us) trying to call the past two weeks, we FINALLY got an answer. The employee said they would call us back with results. When we asked for all records to be emailed to us, she got rude and hung up on us. The records emailed were for our other dog, not the one with all the testing. It is pitiful that they are making these animals suffer. I personally think they only care about the money.

We were traveling through Athens when one of our dogs got sick. We called Athens Animal Hospital…read moreand they told us to come right over. The staff was so caring and took excellent care of our dog, even though we hadn't been there before. They fixed our little pup up and we were back on our way before too long. I would highly recommend this office and our dogs would definitely be regulars if we lived in the area.

Unfortunately, my wife and I absolutely do not recommend this place…read more In September, 2024 it became clear it was time to put our 16-17 year-old cat down because she had several health issues indicating that her life was near its end. We certainly didn't want her to suffer through tests, pills, injection, etc. just to prolong her life a few weeks or months. We've had indoor cats for 40 years and have been in this position before and never had problems with the doctor. Not this time! Dr. JAROD GRANTLAND was very reluctant to put our cat down. He wanted to get blood tests and do what we could to prolong our cat's life. It was clear to me that this was all about $$. I'm not sure their business is doing that well. Anyway, he tried to persuade us to his way of thinking, but we said no. He eventually put our cat down. During our time of grief, Jarod Grantland made things worse. I normally don't write reviews, but in this case I feel I would be doing our community a disservice if I didn't put this information out there. I hope they improve their practice's in end of life situations.

Always very pleased with their professionalism and how they interact with our 3 dogs.read more

We have been battling a stubborn allergy for our Jack Russel and Dr Bryan and staff have been…read moregreat. This morning they asked for a picture of his poor red belly covered with hives because it's Friday and they are booked up. Rather than make us wait for an appointment next week and poor Rudy being miserable all weekend they look at his picture and changed he's medication right away and we just had to stop n and pick them up. Awesome care for their patients. We have many dogs and Vets over the years but none as caring and concerned as these.

Lord As My Witness: We call him Dr. Dan! ((Forrest Gump, remember?))-…read more "WE" my family, friends and I have gone to Dr. Dan with multiple pets(dogs) for decades; spending every minute and every dollar gladly. He and his staff were partners in the care of our canines; never once disappointed in device, advice or technique. Even when it came to his referral to "Michael E. Newman, DVM, MS" for Buddy-Spencer's "Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy (TPLO)" surgery out-of-town about 60 miles away. Boy, what a week. But with DR. Newman's SKILL and DR. DAN WHITLOW's leadership & stewardship Buddy (@age 9) came out the winner: the perfect outcome. More importantly, I am of the camp that believes that a great veterinarian can bring solace to the family through enlightenment. What I learned from this is each Dr. is adamant that most ordeals with pets can be resolved through diet. This was true and crucial in Buddy's recovery. Bud's life expectancy was 10-12 years. God blessed us with Buddy-Spencer for 15 YRS. with the skill and expertise of Dr. Dan Whitow & staff. Thank you guys for 15 years of care. David B.

From the owner: Small animal medicine and surgeryread more

Cheap, honest and efficient. And yelp doesn't like me being concise with my words so I will repeat,…read morecheap honest and efficient.

Thank you for having an emergency site on your phone message. The internet has so many Just Answer…read moresites, it is hard to know who to contact. The Shoal Emergency Clinic was just what I needed.

I'm new in the area and asked on FB for recommendations. This clinic was recommended…read more Dr Galbraith loves animals and it shows. Yes, there is a wait (can be 2 hours or more) and if expense is no object you may not want to wait. My dog is a part of my family and my #1 question is does my vet love animals. It is obvious that all the staff at the office love the pets they see. My dog is 14 and was facing serious issues. I am retired so the wait is worth it for me.

I had a scheduled appointment at 8:45am and was not seen until 3:00 pm. I started asking people in…read morethe lobby how long they been there and a few of them said they were just a walk in and they were being seen before I was. Yes! I was told this is a very cheap vet and that's why I went but no body warned me about the long ridiculous wait! And as I was checking out the girl said "thank you for your patience" and I stated "I don't know what took so long" and she came back with a smart comment and said "we can't just push a button and make your pet pee" and I said "you never told me that's what you was waiting for and I would've appreciated it you told me that so therefore I wouldn't have been so impatient". This place is absolutely not worth it! Place was very unorganized! The forms that pet parents filled out were left on the counters falling all over the place.. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND!!

Dr Dean is always compassionate and very caring. He explains things very well!…read moreWe love our vet! Front end staff are very friendly and always helpful!

We take all of our small animals here for 5 years now. Every vet we have seen is great. Highly…read morerecommend.

Any pet parent knows how stressful the vet can be for both yourself and your fur baby. After the…read moreday me and my cat Luna had, I knew I wanted to take a minute to appreciate Shoal Creek Animal Hospital for their continued amazing work & care! They are absolutely my #1 recommendation for anyone with the opportunity to take their animals there. They truly love your pets like their own We recently moved to Florence, AL from TN so we hesitantly decided to try a vet close to our new home. SCAH is about a 2 hour round trip from where we live now & Luna doesn't do well in the car/carrier which is the only reason we considered finding a closer vet. After today though, I can say I will gladly continue to make the drive to receive the quality care we do from Dr. Pitts and his team! Luna needed to be updated on her vaccinations, have her nails trimmed, have some tests done & be microchipped. The new vet that we tried took her back and within a few minutes returned & said that they couldn't provide her any care without sedating her for all of it. I was very uncomfortable with having her sedated especially given it was our first time with this vet and she never had any prior behavioral issues getting treatment that called for it. To my knowledge, the actual veterinarian never saw her - The technician informed me that they would let the veterinarian know that the next time Luna came in she would need to be sedated for all services. Luckily that time will never come. After receiving Luna back, I called SCAH and they were able to fit me into their schedule. I explained the situation to their staff and they were very understanding. I gave the other vet the benefit of the doubt and let SCAH know that Luna may just be having a bad day and if they weren't able to provide care to her safely then I would gladly try again another day. My sister managed an emergency animal hospital in Florida so I have nothing but the upmost respect and concern for the safety of the staff. Amazingly after being told that my cat's behavior was too awful to receive care without sedation by the first vet, Dr. Pitts was able to complete each of the services I had taken Luna there to receive within 20 minutes - Including the microchip and nail trimming which sometimes do call for sedation. I am beyond grateful for the care that Shoal Creek Animal Hospital provided my Luna & I look forward to many visits with them in the future!

Took our sweet Sadie (15yrs old) to see the vet a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, we had to tell her…read moregoodbye. Dr. Pitts was so kind and reassured us we were doing the right thing. It's never easy to give up a pet, but it definitely makes it easier when your veterinarian has compassion for you. I totally recommend Shoal Creek Animal Hospital.

I love this place. Just started going here for my new puppy, Luka and they treat him with so much…read morecare. They are very helpful to a first time owner. The building does not have a smell or anything and the employees are all very nice and patient. Love it and glad I chose them!

A lot of their vets have left --- the better ones I believe have gone elsewhere which begs the…read morequestion WHY? Not sure why there is such a turn around of vets here. It is problematic when the vet does NOT record information from the visit in the notes which would have allowed for medication called for by the condition. Since s/he failed to do so it resulted in me having to bring my pet BACK to the hospital for another costly visit - which I refuse to do. If these are the practices that are becoming commonplace then I'll find another care clinic. I'm not bringing my animal back to them - I'm sure I can find better care elsewhere that perhaps is not as costly as this clinic. Besides, their arrogance is unbecoming.