Altamonte Animal Clinic

I am appalled at what happened during and after my recent visit to this clinic. I have been a pet owner all of my life and I take very good care of my pets. They receive regular vet care, always have their vaccinations up to date and at the slightest concern, I take them for professional vet exams and treatment.
My first visit to this vet went wonderfully well. I was happy that I had, I thought, found a vet (Dr Hart) who cared about the animals, was professional and knowledgeable. Boy, was I wrong…
This time, however, the vet did not examine my dog, but I was charged for an exam after the fact. The tech was, for lack of a better word, an idiot — trying to collect urine in a ladle that was 3″ too deep for my very small dog. At my suggestion, she got another ladle that was smaller but I had to end up being the one making the collection after almost a whole day of the dog staying there. I was grossly overcharged for one of the medications that was prescribed and the other medication? It is virtually never perscribed for the «condition» of my dog — I verified this with two other vets.
The final straw? When I asked them to mail me a copy of the urinalysis — they did that and after I inadvertently lost it? After I spoke with the vet a few days later, where he knew I was not happy with what had transpired during my visit, I asked them to send me a new one — I could not believe what I saw on the second report — an ENTIRELY different diagnosis and test results were altered from the original numbers. Unbelievable ! I should have known something was up when both tests that I received appeared to be originals (written in ink on each one). You can bet that if I had NOT been stupid and lost that first report, I would be filing a written complaint against the clinic by now.
Take your pet here if you want to — and hope for the best, I guess. As for me, I will never return to this vet. if a simple UTI cannot be properly diagnosed, I would hate to see what happens with something much more serious.
I originally went there based on great reviews — I will find another vet. How could I possibly trust the vet after they changed the results of her test like that? That is crazy… I cannot believe that this happened.
If I could give LESS than 1 star I would — Shame on this clinic… and I intend to spread the word as often as I can.

Ok, have to refresh my recent review and tell you about the great customer service and care this clinic has.
New Years day my pup was ill and I had to put in an emergency call to the vet. There was not much that could be done since the office was closed so my only option was to wait till the next morning to be seen or go to the pup ER. Since it was not life or death I wasn’t about to spend hundreds of $$$ at the ER.
I called first thing the next day and scored the first appt with my vet. 30 min later they called back saying that the vet had called in for the day so I would have to choose another option, they gave me 3 (now that is some good stuff)
1– wait till tomorrow to see the vet
2– go to the ER
3– go to their sister Vet
I of course went to the sister vet and the receptionist gave me all of the information I needed and was sincerely sorry for the cancellation. She told me to keep her posted on Haley’s condition because she truly cared. That was so nice, I couldn’t even be mad at them cause they were taking such good care of us!
While I was at the sister vet I received another call from the Altamonte Clinic just checking in to see if Haley was being seen and taken care of. They basically just wanted an update — how freakin’ thoughtful is that? Now if that is not good customer service, i’m really not sure what is! I wish all doctors were more like this vet, dang!
Truly do believe this is just a fantastic service and would suggest this vet to anyone who is looking for a place that actually cares about your pet’s health!
Side Note: Puppy Update: Haley is AOK and fully recovered =)

When I first started AAC, I think I was one of Dr. Harts first patients. The office was small (he’s since moved to a bigger location) but his heart was big. Both he and his staff are extremely friendly and welcoming.
Since I’ve been using him to keep my dogs in top shape, he’s moved to a larger office, expanded his staff to include two other vets, and upgraded his web capabilities. However, with all these new additions, one thing has been lost — the personal touch.
While his staff still remains very friendly, I can’t remember the last time I actually had Dr. Hart as my vet when I went in and there have been a couple times when my wait time has been extensive. I once waited over 2 hours in the examination room following a 30 minute wait in the waiting room before being seen. Granted an emergency patient had come in but not a single member from the staff thought to let the waiting patrons know this.
I’m not a big fan of the other vets in the office but I think Dr. Hart is fabulous. He was extremely helpful when my dog broke jaw even though he wasn’t able to fix Guinness himself. I definitely recommend seeing him. And an added benefit, his prices are definitely reasonable. My mom even switched to him because he was way cheaper than her prior vet.

Even if I lived in Georgia, I’d probably travel down to the Altamonte Animal Clinic for my vet needs. Dr. Hart is honestly the closest thing to the dog whisperer you’ll find in central Florida– and I’d put money on him winning a dog-​whispering championship against Cesar Millan!
Not only is the staff at AAC extremely nice, they are the most patient people in the world. I have two crazy little dogs and they are more then willing to play with them, while still teaching them good behavior tricks. When my dogs weren’t getting along, Dr. Hart and his assistant spent about an hour of extra time walking us through some simple training tactics to calm my rambunctious puppy down– and it worked!
In addition to the excellent service, AAC provides some tools you can’t find anywhere else. They have an online login system where you can access your pet records and find out when they’re due for vaccines or check ups. They also have an extremely flexible schedule; with night AND weekend appointments. That’s practically unheard of at ANY type of doctor, especially an animal one!
Their emergency service is flawless; I got a call back within 15 minutes when my older dog was sick and a second call to check in later in the day– on a Friday night/​Saturday morning. I really can’t give enough praise to the Altamonte Animal Clinic, they are by far my favorite vet, and my dog’s, too!