Cat Clinic of Seattle

I took my cat here for the first time today, she was having some leg/​hip trouble. I called and they were able to book me an appointment the very next day. Everyone was incredibly kind — the woman I spoke to on the phone, everyone at the front, the vet techs, and the doctor. Dr. Mahoney saw my cat and she was great, she listened to my worried babbling about my cat and did a thorough exam. I told her I didn’t want to spend too much on costly treatments, which she entirely understood. (Luckily, my cat’s diagnosis was good!)
A vet tech showed me how to give my cat a pill, which I mostly successfully replicated at home. It was a bit more than what one might expect to pay, about eighty dollars for the visit, plus an additional cost of pain killers, but the service was truly wonderful! The waiting room is even pleasant and quiet (for human and cat), which I *think* my cat appreciated. Definitely quieter than barking dogs!

Great first visit. In regards to all the comments about surprise pricing, they literally give a pre-​invoice and walk you through any of the charges before moving forward. Not only that, when I asked about pricing for spay/​neuter over the phone, the first thing they mentioned (in a humble way) is that since it’s a specialized clinic that it will be more cost friendly to go through a standard veterinary clinic. So I really think if costs weren’t discussed to reconsider the strong words said as it could have been a simple mix up :)
Aside from costs, the main reason I’m leaving a review is because this is easily the best pet care I’ve ever experienced. My vet clinic in MN was very nice but what a game changer having an all cat clinic. The vets here were so calm and collected, it’s so nice talking to a Doctor that specifically deals with cats all day and isn’t stressed out by however many other animals. The vet we were seeing in Mountlake Terrace now seems like a 1 star after having service like this.
My kitten was more sad walking to the car and sitting in the car than it was while getting her shots, so I think that says a lot! Thanks, I will be back in a few weeks for her 2^nd round.

This is a wonderful veterinarian clinic! My cat recently went through a very scary week. I wasn’t sure if she was going to make it, since she couldn’t keep any food or water down. I took her to the Cat Clinic of Seattle twice in one week. They squeezed me in same-​day both times, and made time for me so that I could ask all of my questions and helped me determine the best course of action based on my budget. Dr. Angel was fantastic! She called to check on my cat almost daily, and was very patient with all of my questions and concerns. My kitty is now healthier than she’s been in years. I took her in today for her re-​check, and the doctors and staff at the clinic were just as friendly and helpful as ever. They always provide a written estimate before performing any procedures, so I know exactly what to expect. Thanks Cat Clinic of Seattle!

$ 800 plus to have our cat sedated and matting removed from her fur. We paid $ 350 at Cats Exclusive. Expensive!

We love this clinic. The only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is the access/​parking. We drive from Lynnwood to bring our cats here. When we had to put down our ill kitten, they sent us a really nice card and let us take all the time we needed.

I love, love, love this place!
My cats have always hated going to the vet (read this as completely FREAK OUT when they have to go the vet), but at the Cat Clinic they a slightly more at ease, and there is not quite as much blood. :) I really think that the lack of dogs (this is a cat-​only clinic) really helps my furry children.
The people here always take good care of the cats and definitely know how to handle even irritable/​non-​happy cats.
Two down-​sides (and the reason for the 4 stars): First, there is a front-​desk woman with glasses and short blonde hair that has been quite rude and harsh on several occasions. Customer service is key when your kitties aren’t feeling well. Second, the prices are very high. I especially didn’t like when one time they had to do a procedure, couldn’t complete it, kept our cat all day, and then charged us for housing the cat for a day! Ack!
Pros: mostly great, caring, and knowledge staff that specializes in cats
Cons: customer service and prices

I only put 4 stars because I haven’t been to other vets to compare. But the staff and veterinarian were all just great with my 2 cats. The cats were terrified and the vet and staff somehow knew how to calm them down, even while giving them baths, pills and microchips. We were given a long period of time– much more than one gets with a medical doctor. She was good at listening and answering all my questions.

Hissss… Never again.
This clinic has no compassion — for example using 4 vet techs to hold down a kitty in order to continue putting a micro chip in even when the mama kitty asked them to stop.

After some good early experience with the Cat Clinic I had a recent experience that
convinced me to never use them again.
My cat, Julian, had been resisting my efforts to trim his nails and the doctor there discovered a lot of dark, crusty dirt like matter around the nails which was removed.
He then suggested a blood test, which I agreed to, and then gave me an estimate for surgery, with anesthesia and two nights in the hospital, to get tissue sample for analysis. He seemed to think that it was a fungal infection or something called Pemphigus, which is and autoimmune disorder, and said that the blood test was to make sure that Julian could handle surgery and the surgery would help us to make a final diagnosis. All for around a thousand dollars.
I was suspicious of his whole approach, it seemed excessive and expensive, so I took Julian to another hospital, Carkeek Animal Hospital, and got a second opinion. The doctor there said that he first wanted to consult with a feline dermatologist and when he called and said that all we need to do for starters is get some scraping from one of Julian’s nails and send then in for analysis. Another wards, start simple and with the obvious. The analysis indicated a bacterial infection and since then he has been on a regimen of antibiotics and shows every sign of improvement. My total costs at Carkeek have been less than $ 300.00
There is no doubt in my mind at this point that The Cat Clinic’s recommended treatment was excessive and a callous attempt to take advantage of me even if it meant suffering for my cat.
There are way to many people out there chasing after the mighty dollar and some vets. are no exception.
Please be careful about who you trust with your animal and do not use the Cat Clinic.

Very expensive.
It is nice to have a clinic just for cats, but their charges are on the extreme end of the spectrum. $ 300 for a set of x-​rays. I run a human clinic and typical payment for a series of X-​rays is under $ 50. Then a charge for keeping my cat to do tests on top of the charge for the tests themselves…
I had waited twice as long as they estimated and was in my car with a narrow window of time to pick up my cat. The receptionist told me she couldn’t even update the estimate for 20 minutes. I turned around and went to my next appintment and received a call at the point I would have arrived at the cat clinic letting me know she was ready. At that point, I was out of time and had to ask my wife to leave work to go pick her up. Now we are paying very high prices plus missing work. I think we will explore other options.

Rude reception lady, good cat care.
I have had good experience with the vet, but the older receptionist/​vet tech woman with short blonde hair and glasses is pretty rude. However, I can deal with a person with poor customer service skills if the vet is treating my kitty right, and I believe they have done a good job caring for my cats.
The vet has always been good to us, so I will definitely continue to go there and say nice things about how my kitties are treated.

I’ve gone here a few times with 2 different cats and I find the staff kind and knowledgeable. It’s as clean as a cat clinic could be with a couple of house kitties that appear to be stoked and login life.
The doctors are thorough, take their time with me and my cats and seem genuinely interested about their day to day life and health. I think it’s a bit pricey, but so it goes with aging animals I guess.

Just had my first trip to the Cat Clinic and the experience was very good.
My cat is very nervous with change and new places and Dr Lamb had such a calm and reassuring demeanor that Meow was very good through out the visit, much to my relief! Meow even tolerated the nail trim with just some wiggling (she is polydactyl & it’s a task I don’t undertake).
Pleasant staff, excellent visit and I will definitely return

I’ve been to the Cat Clinic once and will absolutely be taking my cat back again. It’s a very calm and quiet office. Pet hospitals with dogs can really stress my cat out. There are very sweet cats that roam around the waiting room that are apparently blood donors? The vet was very thorough in his examination of my cat and explained everything to me simply. There was some upsell for their brand of wet food, but much to my surprise, the vet suggested that a good alternative would be no other than the «classic» or «pâté» style Fancy Feast or Friskies. I wouldn’t say it was cheap but the care and customer service was better than any other vet hospital I’ve ever been so. I highly recommend taking your cat here.

We bring both of our cats here and they do okay. Enjoyed meeting Dr. Stern and liked her attitude.
And really a benefit has been that they referred us to a wonderful former employee, now cat sitter, so we have full confidence in leaving town with no worries for our cats.

I want to echo Jess H’s review here:
– what she said.
As for me, I’ve had four feline vets in the last four years, and more than one cat with kidney disease across the years, so I know the drill. I’ve taken my cat to TCC for serious issues, and have been unequivocally impressed with Dr. Stern who is nothing short of fabulous. She is that wonderful combination of open-​minded and knowledgeable and deeply caring AND great with humans that you very rarely find all in one vet. She’s amazing.
The one negative is that they are not cheap. I’d rate 4.5 if I had that option because of the costs. This is not budget cat care. It’s by no means outrageous, but it’s real money. Then again, it’s Seattle — a big city, a focused clinic, free parking, and a great staff. So despite being occasionally negatively surprised by the costs, Dr Stern pushes my rating over 4 stars.
In practical terms, my cat has done better under Stern’s care than any of the other vets. She’s a great vet.

I’ve been taking my two cats to this clinic for several years now, and have been pleased.
First off I’d like to say: medical issues are emotional, whether it’s for humans or cats or other animals. As laypeople, we will never be fully informed on the medical issues unless we become vets ourselves. I have the good fortune to not have had to take a cat here for a life-​threatening issue. I see that a majority of the complaints on this clinic are regarding price and specific difficult issues. Medical treatment is expensive (it would be interesting to compare procedure prices for all local clinics), and it is complicated.
On the phone: the staff that answer the phones at the front desk have been helpful, friendly, and knowledgeable. They often seem busy but customer service hasn’t suffered because of it.
In person: checkin at the front desk is always easy. They do have a couple cats that live at the clinic, so if your cat hates other cats, watch out for this.
The vets:
Today I saw Dr. Jessica Stern for the first time. She was extremely sweet, had a good rapport with my cat, a good rapport with me, and treated conservatively. She did a very good job questioning me about my cat’s recent history. She’s probably my favorite vet so far just because she was so nice and fun to talk to.
Drs. Nemec and Nevin have treated my cats in the past. I have medical training (for humans, not animals), but I can recognize when someone is BS’ing. They do not do it. I like them. They are respectful and have good «bedside» manner.
I love my cats, I’m protective of them, I want the best for them, and I’m medically literate. The fact that I would recommend this place to friends with cats is a pretty strong endorsement.

I have taken both of my cats here since they were babies and have always received the best customer service and vet care for my cats. The nurses are very sweet and gentle and Dr. Nemec is great. We had a bad experience getting shots at Petco and have never had any issues here because the staff are so gentle and caring with the cats.
It is also a bonus that there aren’ t any dogs around to make the place stink or to scare the cats.

If I could give this place 0 stars, I would. Come on Unilocal.Why no option for no stars? Some places really do deserve it, and this is one.
We had two cats, and we used to take our cats here. Every time we brought them in for a check up or appointment, a different vet would see us. This means that no vet took ownership of a patient to really try to get to know your pet and his/​her issues.
The final straw was when we had pointed out some changes in one of our cats eye. We pointed it out numerous times. At first they told us there was nothing wrong with him. We continued to raise the issue, and they continued to say that he was fine. They recommended no tests or potential reasons. Then a lump started to develop between and above his eye. They finally recommended we see a specialist. We learned that our cat had a tumor that was growing between his eyes, and sinus cavity and was attached to his skull. There was not much we could do but comfort him and enjoy every moment we could with him. When I called to tell the vet what had learned at the specialist’s office, we didn’t even get any sympathy. No, I sorry. No, I feel for you. Nothing. At that time, we knew we would never come back to this heartless place.
We now take out cats to the Northwest Veterinary Hospital at 50^th and Stone. Dr. Donavan is awesome. So caring and understanding. When the time came to put our boy down, Dr. Donavan helped us through this difficult time. The Cat Clinic of Seattle could learn a hell of a lot about compassion and what it means to be a real vet from Dr. Donavan.

I had another less then stellar experience with this business – I hesitate to call it a «clinic. A telephone call that turned my stomach. Can’t help thinking of Mme. and M. Thenardier («Charge ‘em for the lice,/ Extra for the mice,/ Two per cent for looking in the mirror…»).
* * * * *
Go ahead and call me a muckraker.
I’m just trying to make lemon juice (out of a lemon).
I am hoping that my original review aided other Unilocalers to pull the plug on the shoddy – and shady – practices of the Cat Clinic of Seattle.
«Vous etes de la merde dans un bas de soie» (Napoléon à Talleyrand).
* * * * *
Two years after I posted my review of the Cat Clinic of Seattle, when I hear that name I cannot help but murmur to myself:
Greedy, hypocritical, unethical, mendacious, incompetent, racist.
(Let’s not get into the fact that my senior, indoors-​only cat got tapeworms here, as well).
But that’s not what is most important, is it? The following, however, ARE:
Nice digs. Great-​sounding name, excellent location. Glossy cat magazines in the tastefully decorated lobby adorned with really cute – first-​rate – feline tchotchkes, of both the hanging and recumbent varieties.
Plus, they scrub the floors a lot.*
* Note: Maureen Dowd made me write this.
But I am obliged here to move on to tertiary matters, still worth bringing up: namely, their unwillingness/​distaste for writing prescriptions, preferring, for unfathomable reasons, to go to their way overpriced dispensary.
This brings up a larger problem:
Washington is one of the states* where there is no law requiring a veterinarian to follow the ethical standards of the American Veterinary Medical Association (the vets’ answer to the AMA) that state that «Veterinarians should honor a client’s request for a prescription in lieu of dispensing [sell from vet’s own stock].»
In Virginia, a vet’s refusal to prescribe would be deemed «unprofessional conduct.» In Vermont, it would be considered «profiteering.» Even in states where veterinary statutes and regulation do not require vets to prescribe, pharmacy laws may.
* 25 (including the largest, e.g., California, New York) DO. 25 do not yet. The majority of vets in this country are required to prescribe rather than dispense medications.
A senior member of the Yahoo Chronic Feline Renal Failure group wrote me saying that he had removed the Cat Clinic of Seattle from his list of recommended clinics precisely because he had received too many complaints about their refusing to write prescriptions.
It is difficult not to admit feeling a sort of pity for those individuals who defend a business’s reputation – when that very same business is intentionally ripping off consumers like you or me – just out of a misguided sense of personal «loyalty.»
If there’s any «loyalty» in it at all, it’s definitely not personal: it is $eriou$ bu$ine$$.
Don’t think for a second that – unless she’s experienced a sudden conversion from way on high – , if you weren’t constantly putting a lot more than a quarter in her ‘ol «parking meter,.» she would care at all about you, your dog, cat, OR your mother.
She wouldn’t lift a finger to help my cat who had only a few more months to live. Dealing with Ms. Nemec felt like dealing with a (professional) blackmailer.
Her office manager seems to have walked straight out of a documentary about the reaction of white Americans after the bombing of Pearl Harbor towards Japanese-​Americans.
If you can’t see behind the contempt barely veiled behind the hypocritical smiles and reassuring empty words, at least look at your pocketbook.
(In this economy, standing up for consumer rights might be a good thing. I probably could have bought a pretty decent High Definition TV with the money that they overcharged us).
And if the spineless Washington State Board of Veterinarians were not bedfellows with the very veterinary clinics they ostensibly regulate, this would actually be a good place to begin a statewide investigation of professional incompetence.
But you won’t find any statistics on the success (or failure) rate of surgeries at individual veterinary clinics, etc., for obvious reasons.
And, yes, five years after the fact, the name Dr. Carrie Nemec still induces nausea in me.