Veterinary Emergency Hospital of West Toronto

We were referred here late at night by our vet who was afraid that if our cat did not get emergency surgery on a blocked and swelling intestine he might not make it through the night. The staff were so caring and talked us through what would happen, let us hold him after he was admitted and, most importantly, got him through his 2am surgery successfully. We are eternally grateful to have our little guy back home with us safe and sound.

We brought our dog here early on a Friday morning. We thought she had had a stroke, and wanted to get her help as soon as possible. I called ahead to tell them I was brining in a very sick dog. From the moment we arrived, we were all treated so kindly. Dr. LeBel was so patient with us and with our dog. She explained everything that could be wrong, and all of our options. She gave us time as a family to discuss everything. Once the difficult decision was made to say goodbye, Dr. LeBel gave us as much time as we wanted. I would highly recommend them. They made an extremely difficult day a little less so. Thank you.

Dear Dr Lebel
I want to thank you for your kindness and compassion in dealing with my sick kitten Daisy through the night. I appreciate all your kind words and I know you went beyond and above to help her. I want to thank all the staff that helped and was awestruck by everyone’s compassion towards us and Daisy.
You are truly amazing and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Sincerely,
Linda Jeffers

Our dog ingested something (unknown to us at the time) and had an allergic reaction. He went from being very alert and playful to very sick and very much in pain within minutes. We became very worried as we weren’t sure what had happened. We rushed him to VEHWT were he was seen by Dr. Riddle. Dr. Riddle took the time to assess our dog and gave us possible scenarios and options. His recommendations were based on the best options for us and our dog. His calmness and detailed explanation helped alleviate some of our anxiety and allowed us to make the best decision.
Pets are a part of the family and when they become ill, owners are often vulnerable and at times victimized by unnecessary tests and procedures that can be very hard on the pocketbook.
The knowledge, experience and Honesty of your vet is paramount in all cases, especially in emergencies.
We felt we received all that from Dr. Riddle and would therefore highly recommend this hospital because of him (though he is not always here and there are a number of other ER doctors on call; whom we don’t have any experience with).

It is 2:00 am now, Saturday March 16, 2013, and I am basically back in the door from bringing my 8 year old cat to the VEHWT. Loki had thrown up quite a few times during the day Friday, and by late Friday evening showed symptoms of something more serious. What to do, if any of you know, it is a hard decision, do we go the Emergency Clinic, or do we wait till our normal Vet office is open in the morning. It is a tough call, and can be a very expensive call, as with being a 24 hour EMERGENCY, this is to be expected.
However, after losing one of my girls on Boxing day, I was not going to see another one go in such a short time. I made the decision to just pack her up and take her in.
I have read other reviews on here about Emerg. Vet Clinics, and the term of «taking the reviews with a Grain of Sale» seemed to be prominent.
I cannot tell you to trust my review, but all I can do is to be honest and tell you of my experience there. Loki was treated by a Dr. Riddle at this clinic. After losing my other cat to complications from Pancreatitis, I did not like to hear him say that it could b just that. He took the time to fully explain everything that they want to do, and came back with an itemized amount of what I would be looking at. He wanted to start with blood work, and if this came back indicating Pancreatitis, we would have to leave her overnight so they would start fluids into her.
To try to make this not too long a read, we agreed to the blood work, hoping for the best, but expecting and bracing for the worst. The wait was about 40 min, Dr. Riddle came back and took the time to then go through the entire blood work and explain everything in full detail. He said everything came back normal, but would send us home with medication, food, and full instructions of what to watch for and what to do. We were told if we have to come back, within 24 hours, he has left full instructions of where to continue off so that we would not be stung with another examination fee.
I will tell you this, yes the bill was slightly hefty, but think about this, you and I do not pay for health care. Imagine if YOU had to have Emergency Surgery, and had to pay for it, how much money you would be out of pocket.
Dr. Riddle, the nurse (I believe she said her name was Kelly) were extremely kind, helpful, and knowledgeable, I know that sounds redundant, but it was obvious that they were not looking to see how much they could get out of my bank account as it was more how they wanted to ensure they take the time and fully explain to us in detail. Quite frankly, I was surprised at just how much time he did spend with us, and even said, if she does not need it, I’m not charging for it.
Just from my experience this evening, I would return in a heart beat without any hesitation, and I do want to Thank Dr. Riddle and the staff at the clinic for their services.
If you have read this far, I will explain that yes, I did rate this Clinic with 5 stars, as just the honesty, and the caring we received is well worth every star.