Hickory Veterinary Hospital

I took my dog Myles here today as an emergency visit after he took his first seizure. The staff was wonderful. We saw Dr DelGiudice. He was excellent with our very frightened pup and gaining Myles trust. He was careful and kind with him. His medical opinion on Myles was honest and comforting. The cost of testing was clear on our end before it was done. Great experience for a very scary situation. Worth the cost of an emergency visit.

My husband and I have taken our dog here for almost three years. Yes, they are expensive, but considering the good care we received during our dogs first few seizures and throughout the course of his epilepsy treatment, we’ve always felt they were worth the price. (We also appreciate the 24 hr emergency care, and have unfortunately needed to use it a few times for our little guy). Needless to say, we’ve shelled out quite a lot of dough to Hickory, but we very much value quality in care and service and have always been able to justify the cost.
Feeling thankful that they are located near us, as they have helped our dog emergently on many occasions.

I recently brought my cat to Hickory for a mastectomy, under the care of Dr. Brown. The level of care my cat received was exceptional. The staff and vets were all very friendly, kind and professional. Hickory allowed me come in and visit my cat to comfort her, and bring her in her favorite treats to make her stay more comfortable. Dr. Brown kept me updated on my cat’s condition throughout her surgery and recovery. She was upfront with pricing and provided me with accurate estimates of costs throughout the process.
Hickory’s facilities were very clean and welcoming. I highly recommend Hickory, and DEFINITELY recommend Dr. Brown for your pet’s oncological needs. She is great!

I have been taking my pets (both cats and dogs) to Hickory since 2003 when I moved to a nearby neighborhood. Their expertise and compassion are beyond compare. They have every kind of specialist imaginable, and while my pets (thankfully) don’t often *need* a specialist, I certainly appreciate having access to them. I go to Hickory mostly for annual wellness visits and vaccinations, but once in awhile, one of the critters gets sick or injured. If the primary vet is stumped by an odd ailment, there is always a specialist who can figure it out. There is a wealth of knowledge under one roof. They have emergency services 24/​7, and because the emergency vets are at the same facility, they have ready access to my pets’ records. My animals have always received excellent care at Hickory. In addition to the veterinarians, the vet techs and the front desk staff are all a pleasure to deal with. They demonstrate compassion, patience, professionalism, and skill. Hickory is not cheap, but the care you receive is worth the expense. I have great confidence in the team at Hickory, and I highly recommend them.

I chose Hickory Vet Hospital to come to my home for a euthanasia house call.
I want to commend the team from Hickory Vet on their superior display of compassion, love, and professionalism today.
Dr Slavick and Marsella came out for an in home euthanasia visit with my almost sixteen year old boy Dozer. The compassion displayed was more than I could’ve hoped for, their knowledge and bedside manner were excellent, and their respect for Dozer before, during, and after were heartwarming.
I would recommend Dr Slavick and Marsella to anyone. I feel fortunate to have met them today and was lucky to share the journey of helping Dozer ease out of this world with them by my side.

Only 1 good experience with Xray & kind consult about a sprained leg on older CAT. Same CAT had horrific experiences 2 years ago with regular vet, when early kidney failure was diagnosed. The Clinic cares only about money. They ignored feedback that cat was dying on commercial vet food due 2 low tolerance to high fat content. CAT regained health and regressed 2 early Stage 1 for 2 years from home recipes by a Vet Nutritionist on Internet. Took 40 minutes to do BP, with DOG cuff, admitted inaccurate but charged high. Saw through window: 3 loud chatty techs scaring cat as a DOG barked barely 6′ away. DON’T have a lot of specialists & only do ultrasounds with 1 radiologist on Tuesdays. Hickory did bait and switch regarding an emergency ultrasound, my only reason 4 Sat visit. Did unneeded blood work without permission &refused 140 partial refund for false representation. Advertise Senior Discount on website but NOT at counter.

Debra Eisenstein, VMD, PhD, is the type of vet you hope treats your pets. She is smart, insightful, and caring. We’ve visited with her for regular check ups and for more serious issues. She cuts right to the chase, offers comprehensive descriptions of the issues, and plans out an thorough course of action. She is the best.
The rest of Hckory’s crew is pleasant, cheerful and courteous. They are eager to ensure the experience is as pleasant as can be when your pets would rather be outside rolling around in squirrel poop…
Hickory Vet — and Dr. Eisenstein — ROCK

We have taken our pets here for about 2 years now. I would like to break down into good and bad points about this hospital. First the good: 1: Somone always answers the phone promptly ²⁴⁄₇ and is able to help you reach the Drs/​other staff if needed 2: Someone is always at the desk to greet you. 3: The facility is spotless and there is ample space in the waiting areas 4: The emergency service is very prompt, I still recommend calling ahead if possible so they expect you and the triage tech is ready to get your pet where they need to go. 5: If your pet requires more advanced testing like X-​rays/​Ultrasound, those options are available right in the facility.
6: They are very quick about refilling meds.
7: There are many specialists that are part of the group so you typically don’t have to go elsewhere
8: Everyone is very friendly
There is a lot of flexibility in scheduling appts
So here are the bad:
1: They are very expensive
2: The is a high turnaround with the vets.
3: The emergency vets are often fresh out of school and are very eager to test. I understand testing is important but I was also used to my old school vet who provided a very in depth clinical exam and was always consistent and correct in his diagnosises. (I moved too far away from him to still go there)
4: Payment is due at time of service, if you can’t pay in full then you can apply for care credit, they do not do a payment plan separately. Care credit charges are zero interest for 6 months, we had about a 3,500 $ bill and it would have been nice if the care credit was for a year to make the monthly installments more affordable. We are trying to pay off bill before interest hits. My old vet would allow you to pay in installments without making you sign up for care credit or a financing company. No questions asked.
5:For my dog to be admitted they wanted a credit card to charge 350 $ (it was close to or around this) before they would begin inpatient treatment.
6: We boarded our cat for vacation and were under the impression that he was being kept in the pet inn rather than the hospital part and that they would be able to give him his daily meds. This was not the case, we found out when we picked him up that he was kept with the dogs and other patients in the hospital portiion and was not given his meds for 2 days because he was biting people and was very aggitated. (No one called to tell us that there was a problem before this). (The cat would have been better off to be kept in the inn and it was no wonder why he was streessed and scared). When we picked him up the secretary said oh we have a pet inn he should have stayed there– well why wasn’t this brought to our attention? It was frusterating.
7: We never see the same vet.
My husband and I decided to find a new vet for routine care because it’s just too expensive here and the costs are always higher than we anticipate.

There are many pros about Hickory Veterinary Hospital such as the extremely competent doctors especially Dr. Koch, the opthomologist, and the cleanliness of the facility. I am confident that my French Bulldogs receive the best possible care. My only negative review is the lack of respect for your appointment time since I usually have to wait 30 + minutes to see the doctors and the gals at the front desk can be a little terse at times.

My 1.5 year old chocolate lab mix has been severely sick now twice in her short life and both times, I’ve taken her to Hickory for emergency treatment. I took her to Hickory when I first got her from the rescue group because they had great reviews on Unilocal and because it was close to home. The two times she has been hospitalized, they have been great. They take her right away and have nursed her back to health both times. They haven’t been able to figure out what is causing her sickness both times, but I don’t believe that is their fault. She may have gotten into something (she likes to chew EVERYTHING) and its upset her belly so I can’t fault them for that. The only issue I have with them, is as I’ve read other reviews, that they demand payment right away; there are no options for a payment plan. As a single person on a fixed income, this has made things very tight. I obviously am not going to not treat my pet but the cost of both of these episodes has been over $ 2,000. I would give them a five star rating if they did offer payment plan options and realize that when pets are sick, its usually an emergency and not something they have set aside money for.

Last week our cat had the unfortunate presence of mind to eat a polyester carpet fiber. No, it didn’t go down easy and unfortunately became roped around his tongue as well as causing a blockage.
We were recommended by our normal vet to go to UPENN but decided since there was favorable reviews on
, we would use the local option, Hickory. My wife brought him in and I spoke with the Dr who informed via phone the total cost was going to run a fairly wide range, that of 3 – 5 thousand if everything came out «ok» and much more if it didn’t. Thankfully the surgery was without complication and Benny is making a full recovery.
Here is where the issues became apparent. I had received a call on the Friday after the surgery and was asked by the individual when we were going to be picking the cat up as he was becoming «difficult to handle.» I’m not going to sugar coat it. This cat is aggressive, nasty and quite honestly a bane to my existence but it’s the wife’s cat and as they say, happy wife happy life. I had told the person that we previously discussed with boarding him as we were out of the country (pre-​arranged trip that we could NOT cancel) and we didn’t want to further burden the individual watching our two dogs (this person works at an animal boarding facility so is quite competent) and the cost wasn’t that big of a deal since we were told it was «just a little more than normal boarding.» That is a verbatim quote btw. So people know the normal boarding I believe was $ 40 per night or something to that affect. We had also discussed what the bill was at that moment, around $ 2900.
We arrive home Monday night, pick the kitty up and are presented the bill. Roughly $ 1000 over the amount that was last told to me via phone the previous Friday. Not $ 100, not $ 10, $ 1000. We asked why the sudden jump in price and what had happened etc etc. They were not sure and we would have to speak to the office manager the next day. Next day comes (today) and apparently the boarding is not «just a little more than normal boarding» but $ 160 for an AM shift and $ 160 for a PM shift. So, $ 320 a day, 3x a day $ 960. Bingo, the magic $ 1000. When the wife questioned the price jump we were told he needed to be in the hospital boarding (vs the normal boarding) for X days because of the surgery.
From the time the surgery ended there was no indication of anything going wrong, any complications occurring, no phone calls saying XYZ happened etc so why did he suddenly need to be in hospital boarding for several extra days to the tune of $ 320 a day? This is even more confusing since we were asked on Friday when we would be by to pick him up? If I’m coming to pick him up on Friday, he clearly doesn’t need to still be in hospital boarding. Maybe I’m wrong.
So while I REALLY want to like this vet and give them a 5 star review, I simply can’t. The Doctors are clearly fantastic but there was to many communication errors for my liking. From the incorrectly quoted prices for boarding to the sudden «need» for the cat to have been hospital boarded for several days even though we were asked when we were picking him on Friday, something just feels… off. I’m not saying the office did anything malicious, or was out to get us, make a buck etc. What I’m saying is when I’m dealing with thousands of dollars things should be crystal clear. Is part of this my fault? Absolutely, and it will never happen again. I’m unsure if we will ever go back if needed besides the free follow-​up but my advice to people would to make sure that you have every single quoted item in writing.

The team at Hickory took great care of our beagle Honey — helping her stay with us thru 15 years. They were also compassionate enough to let us know when it was time to let her go. Whether it was routine shots and checkups, a late nite emergency visit or a stay in the hospital, they always treated us professionally and kindly.

This place is the best– but you pay more for the best. I took my cat here for a check up in January and took her back in April when she didn’t seem like herself. She was very sick and they offered me lots of options to help figure out why– but honestly they were all fairly pricey options. I went to another vet in my area and got almost the same options for a slightly lower price.
If you have the money, this place is amazing.

Let me just say that after my last veterinary clinic which was super dirty and the lead male vet walked around without a shirt… this was like a dream! The facility is so clean and really big! It is full of light, spacious and all of the people working there are very nice! They greeted Durango (doggie) as soon as we walked in and one of the girls even came out to give him some love when he was being a big baby and wanting to make friends (with everyone as usual).
The vet tech that saw us initially was gentle and sweet and so was Mia Bleier, DVM. They both really took the time to listen to what was going on with Durango and did alll the needed tests, gave him fluids, and preventative treatments. Mia followed up the next day with the test results and let is know that we can call at any time if we had further questions. It was a wonderful and caring experience and I am super happy we found this place for all of our animals!

I have to say that Hickory has also been very good to our cat. I brought him in for the first time on an emergency basis, and the staff could not be more compassionate. The vet tech actually got down on the floor with the cat and examined him before taking him into a private room for further checkup. The ER visit is not cheap, in fact its even more that we co pay for ourselves at the ER, but you are paying for a specialized service. Sad to say, but vets are always expensive to matter where you go. We were so happy with the ER visits that now Hickory is their «normal» vet as well. We are also working on getting our new kitten into them. Please note they also have all services right on site, which means no having to send out labwork, etc.

The folks at Hickory have been very kind and compassionate with my animals. I go to them first when there’s an emergency, even though they are a $ 50 cab ride away and UPenn vet school is a 5 minute walk. Triage is faster than Penn, services are much cheaper, and staff and vets are much more personable and kind.
Most recently, my housemate took our foster cat in with a urinary problem. He was treated quickly, competently, and compassionately, and Hickory sent information about his visit to PAWS (the organization we foster for) and told us what kind of follow-​up care we should get with the PAWS vet.
Several years ago, I was there for another emergency — I had a pet rat, and many people (including other vets) were condescending or rude to me, suggesting that she wasn’t worth caring for. The folks at Hickory were extremely kind and compassionate. I came in late at night with an emergency and they saw me quickly, were clear about my options, and were very gentle with my little pet.

I first used Hickory over 14 years ago. A lot has changed since Dr. Brown did the surgeries in her small but cozy vet office. While the new hospital no doubt has many state-​of-​the-​art features, prices have gone through the roof. You can go to Penn Vet Hospital and get the same treatment for half the price. Also, there’s a lot of vet turnover and you never know really which vet you’ll be seeing, just that you likely won’t see them again. I prefer to have a vet who I know well and who knows my dog, not just whoever happens to be seeing patients that day.
Also, it seems like Hickory is becoming like people’s health care… whereas back in the day Dr. Brown used to solve a pet’s problems with old fashioned wisdom and a good exam, now it seems like problems result in X-​rays and expensive tests. I’m sorry to say, I will not be returning here for routine care.

I have been using Hickory as my animal hospital for many years. I appreciate the variety of specialists and my ability to be seen quickly when it is required.
Recently, I brought my dog in because of suspicion of heart problems only to discover he had a spinal problem. To make a long story short, Dr Brown and staff correctly diagnosed his condition, conducted his surgery, and nursed him back to health. A dog who suddenly had no use of the back half of his body now and take log walks and enjoy life.
I cannot recommend them highly enough.

I am sorry to see so many bad experiences but I have to write a review because my experience was so positive.
We are long time pet people who have tried several other vets in the area — some that in my opinion should be shut down for lack of skills and approach, others that were simply more interested in running up a bill than providing appropriate care.
Our cat is only 5 yrs old with a history of vomiting, but had begun vomiting daily, and then started that bizarre liter aversion that they sometimes do. Long story short, both we and the cat were treated with respect at Hickory. We sat with a vet and actually had a discussion — the issues, possible causes, possible approaches and then agreed on a strategy. We followed the plan and six months later, we have a happy, healthy cat again.
The only other thing I’ll mention is that we came here after receiving many recommendations from friends and work associates. I know not all experiences are the same, but mine was very good.

You never want to have to take your trusty pet to the doggie ER, but if something happens, the last thing you want to do is figure out where the heck to call (that’s why Unilocal rules — now you won’t have to). Unfortunately I’ve had to take dear Piper here twice but I’ve had some peace of mind knowing that she was always in good hands with the vets at Hickory.
They do standard vet care and surgery, which is awesome (we had her spayed here), and a 24-​hour emergency service that is amazing. The staff keeps their cool and takes care of your pet like he or she is their own.
Hickory is also known for their oncology, neurology and cardiology care, so if your pet is seriously ill, they can help you here, too. They even do chiropractic & acupuncture!
My only word of caution is that Hickory is very expensive, so be aware. However, for many of us, when it comes to the health of our pets you suck it up to do what’s right. For the rest, I’d advise you to get a goldfish.