Companion Pet Clinic – Cascade Park

I came here desperately trying to get help for my two year old dog. I had just moved back into the area after two years of living in Chicago and was extremely low on money due to the move and just starting a new job. My dog could not have gotten sick at a worse time. I took him to this vet after seeing online that they offered some of the lowest prices in town and hoping that I would be able to afford his care. It turned out that he swallowed a whole pair of boxers which was causing blockage in his intestines that needed to be removed immediately. At this point my dog had been throwing up for two days and lost all interest in eating. By the morning I took him in he was shaking and unable to walk. Knowing that it was an emergency the vet took X-​rays and did blood work right away to get the proper diagnosis. Within 20 minutes they had him in surgery and he remained hospitalized for the whole day. When I picked him up he was groggy and his eyes were barely open but he was already wagging his tail when he saw me. That alone showed that he was already feeling better. Over the next two weeks he was in and out of the vet for check ups with the doctor and surgeon. He was on prescription food and about ten different medications. Every few days he seemed to feel better and better. We were told that the first week after surgery was a sort of danger zone, and until he made it past that we couldn’t be 100% sure that he would make it. Today we are three weeks post surgery and he is doing great. He got his stitches out and is walking around and trying to play. I have been in with appointments and walk ins and I’ve never had to wait longer than 20 minutes. Over all my experience here although stressful, was very positive. The staff was very sweet with my dog and most importantly they saved his life.

If I could give no stars, I would. Actually, let’s say this star is for the few staff members that have been helpful here over the years. Today was the last straw for me at Companion. My husband and I have taken our three dogs here for MANY years, and we were able to easily disregard much of the typical sales pitch at each visit (which happens at most vets). Today I waited for a half hour only to be told that they couldn’t trim my dog’s nails because she hadn’t had her annual exam, when she had just been in for her boosters a couple of months prior, and again, has been see here for years. My dog has an appointment at a specialist in a few days for the same issue that Companion recommended her to a specialist for in the past. Why would I pay for two exams within a few days of each other? And when I know they will tell me they can’t do anything and to take her to the specialist? I know the nail trim will cost more at the specialist, but I’ll feel much better about giving them my money than giving it to people whose main interest is clearly in profiting and not in the health and comfort of my dogs. We don’t spare any expense when it comes to the health of our dogs, but we do know what would be a complete waste of time and money. I know Companion has great prices, but in the long run, they will find a way to get the same amount of money out of you that you would paying a bit more somewhere else.

A zero would be more appropriate. We’ve taken 3 dogs and 3 cats to this clinic over a 17 year span. Prices were low, we liked we could walk in (long waits) as needed, and they appeared to be capable of basic care of our animals. Melissa is rude but most of the staff is friendly and caring. The problem, I discovered, is THEY ARE NOT CAPABLE OF CARING FOR AN ANIMAL IN DISTRESS. If something goes wrong, they do not have the proper equipment and they have no plan/​knowledge to fix it!
By administering medication my dog SHOULD NOT have had, he went into respiratory distress. HE COULD NOT BREATHE! Dr Joe’s response was to call me, 30 minutes away, and tell me I needed to take him to the emergency vet, another 15 minute drive from the clinic. 90 minutes and $ 637 later, my healthy 6 year old dog was dead. Our family is devastated and I live with incredible guilt for my misplaced trust in this business. It is not worth the convenience/​money saved to watch your dog struggle to take his last breath as you are racing to get him help at 90 mph, running red lights whenever possible knowing that had you just NOT taken him to Companion that morning he would still be alive.

Update 7÷15÷15 — I am changing this to three stars. Today I called for results from a test for our kitten and spoke with Melissa at reception. She single-​handedly provided excellent service allowing me to feel comfortable in giving this vet office a second chance. She answered all of my questions, was compassionate and concerned. She helped me get the answers I needed and plan the best course of action for my pet. We will only see Dr. Dobry in the future and really appreciate Melissa’s care and great listening and problem solving skills.
Original Review: 7÷14÷15 — I have so many issues with this place I have to break it down. 1. Every time we call and get a quote, then go in for the service, they end up charging us $ 25 or more than what they have quoted for the exact same service we inquired about. Reception blamed the doctor for not knowing their fees. 2. They offered if they could clean our pet’s ears but did not tell us there is a charge for it. We found out at the counter upon check out it was $ 14.50 to clean our cats ears! 3. The customer service is lackluster and apathetic. Reception was in the middle of talking to me, answered the phone and didn’t even say excuse me to answer it or ask me to hold a moment so she could answer it. She just stopped in the middle of our conversation to answer it twice. 4. Dr. Johansen talks over you, treats you like you are wasting her time. Gave us no more information that we already found online. Didn’t slow down to spend time with us and answer questions and is like talking to a textbook. We brought in a mite treatment to see if it was okay with Advantage 2 and she knew nothing about either product and told us to consult the product website. Felt like we wasted $ 49.50. It was a thanks for nothing situation. 5. The ONLY reason why this place gets ONE star is Dr. Dobry is the a decent, friendly, caring vet. She needs to move to a better clinic which respects their clients and is more knowledgeable. If you absolutely MUST go there ask to see her and pray to the heavens reception doesn’t screw something up.

This is my normal vet that I’ve taken my dogs too and recommend everyone to take there’s too. I love the veterinarians and their assistants. They’re helpful and make sure youre leaving with a great understanding. However, the girls at the front desk are not pleasant at all. Last week I took one of my dogs in for a normal visit and from the get go the lady named Melissa who helped me was very rude an short with me. She did not greet with a smile or anything. When it came time to pay and leave she was just as rude. We did have a late appointment and it was the end of the day so I was conscious that she may have had a bad day and it’s not our fault. A week later (yesterday) I bring my second dog in for a visit with an appointment first thing in the morning and enroll her as a patient since she’s new to the family. Another lady (who I didn’t get her name because she wasn’t wearing name tag) but an older lady with short blonde hair was very rude as well. She called me up and handed me paperwork and just didn’t say anything. After asking her if I need to sit it down and fill it out she said yes. I handed her the info I had gotten from the humane society and she was snobby about it. The lady sitting to the left of her with brown/​silver hair was pleasant and always is. I’m considering changing vets. While they are reasonably priced a vet bill still isn’t cheap and why should I give you my money if I’m not going to be treated like a valued customer as soon as I walk in.

I have been going to Companion for over six years with more than one dog. I absolutely LOVE Dr. Jo and Dr.Phipps. I am not familiar with any other Doctor or front staff except Melissa and Cori, and both have always been compassionate and kind. Today, we had to put our six year old dog down. They are very familiar with him, and know how much we care about him. We called this morning to see if anything was available, and Melissa said she would be sure to hold a room for us, as she did. They even brought in a warm blanket for him to lay on. All of the girls and Dr. Jo came in to say goodbye to our boy. They gave us all of the time we wanted with him, as well as made us a paw print for us to take home. They were all very kind and made it as nice as possible. I will forever be grateful for there consistent care and kindness. For the record, we had no wait at all, and didn’t have to wait in the lobby to pay, they took care of all of that in the room for us and made it as private as possible.

I am livid with these people. Our old vet got too expensive for us, so we switched over to Companion Pet Clinic, because we heard the provided excellent care for good prices. Well a couple of months ago my husband took one of our dogs in for her annual exam and vaccines. He was told she was up to date on all vaccines so they just did the exam. So last week I took both dogs to get groomed and they checked to make sure they were caught up on vaccines. Our other dog was, but not our female. So I call to see what’s going on and the lady was extremely rude. She told me that they needed to check with our old vet for records since she hadn’t been given any vaccines there. So I called and they said no she’s behind on everything. So I call again and they lady is rude to me again, but they talked to my old vet and figured something out. Companion Pet Clinic can’t read charts, so when our old vet faxed their records over they put the DUE DATE as the date given which made it look like she was up to date. And then they were still rude to me after it was their fault. We are looking for a new vet again.

Horrible customer service! I tried making an appointment, I was told walk in only. Show up and the lady just pointed at the sign in sheet where it states «We suggest making an appointment!!» Are you kidding me? An hour and a half later I was «helped.» The vet was no help at all. They sedated my dog and ripped off his dew claw (the nail itself) instead of removing it. $ 200 later my dog is in much worse condition. I call them two days later to tell them he is bleeding, and was told «Bring him in, we have walk ins.» NO way am I waiting hours to be seen to have them do what? NEVER will I recommend this place.

Horrible heartless people! My cat kept losing weight so after the first vet we went to wanted over $ 1500 for tests we thought Companion was a bargain for only $ 1000. The tests didn’t show anything helpful and he rapidly lost more weight until he was only skin and bones. He started having horrible seizures and I had already borrowed all I could for the tests, I was out of money. You could tell he was suffering and in pain. Each seizure worse than the last. I called in tears begging them to put him to sleep since we couldn’t save him. I could post date a check or give them my debit card until my next payday 4 days away. They said no, then recommended I call the pound to see if they could help. My poor cat ended up dying in my sister’s arms on our way to the Humane Society. He had one last horrible painful seizure then stopped moving all together. The compassionate manager at the Humane Society confirmed he was dead and didn’t charge me for taking care of his remains. They now get an automatic donation out of my check every month. This Companion location obviously cares more about their money then the animals. I was already an established patient and wasn’t asking for anything free. They honestly need to find another career because veterinarians are supported to care about our fur babies, not turn their backs when they are needed most.

Pricing is great. I think the front desk staff could be a little friendlier… but I’m still a fan of the place.
The Vets are friendly and seem to genuinely care about my animal. I have not had a major medical emergency with my pup so don’t know how they handle complicated medical issues, but I am definitely a loyal customer when it comes to the everyday medical needs of my pet.

So glad I found this place. They are all hard working individuals, and the Dr.‘s are fabulous, they actually care, and show it. Can’t imagine any complaints. I trust my sweet little girl to their care, and that says a lot.

Slow, Rude, The front desk was helping some guy make dogie picture frames while my dog waited in pain. And the freaks that were in the waiting room, get a life.

DON’T TAKE YOUR PET HERE!!! Go to VCA Instead.
My friend brought her pet kitty there for his final visit. After 20+ years of taking the cat there for check ups, etc., it was finally time to put him to sleep. (As a pet owner you know it’s difficult to make this decision of letting go …) The clinic knew the end time was near, especially on that Saturday morning when my friend had to get her son to drive over an hour to bring her and the cat in for their afternoon walk-​in time.
«Bethany» was very rude to my friend and didn’t give her an appointment knowing the situation. «It’s the rules» she said. Even after pleading with her and the other receptionist that this was inhumane and uncompassionate to make my friend wait another minute. The place was packed, but at this delicate time, THEY WERE JUST ABOUT THE MONEY AND THE RULES!!! Well, F**$ that.
We proceeded to go to VCA [416 NE 112^th Ave Vancouver, WA 98 684 (360) 892‑0032] and they had absolutely no wait, very nice receptionist, the doctor was SOOO COMPASSIONATE and the procedure didn’t take that long. As a matter of fact, they let us stay as long as we needed and did everything we asked without any question. My friend left with an angel kitty pin and PEACE OF MIND. In the mail this past week was a beautiful card signed by the entire staff acknowledging the cat’s life. VCA East Mill Plain Animal Hospital is a class act. Even though my friend had never brought her pet there before, they treated her like she was FAMILY. I highly recommend VCA, NOT COMPANION!!!

My parents ended up taking their sick poodle, Joey today in on emergency visit to Companion Pet Clinic while visiting Vancouver.
Dr. Richard Hill was incredible! Though he was on his lunch hour, he responded immediately, giving Joey very attentive care and took his pain very seriously. He didn’t even charge them an emergency rate!
He’s already called once and plans to call again tomorrow.
Honestly, it’s incredible when you find a true animal lover in a vet who doesn’t even know you! Though I’m scared about why Joey is in such pain (cause undetermined still), I know he’s in excellent hands.
Paws down!

We switched to this vet over one much closer to us because of their reasonable pricing and the better care that they take with our dogs. They are friendly and gentle with our dogs, and they genuinely seem to care about their welfare. They also provide a pricing sheet so you can elect to add or forego certain treatment depending on your budget, but will happily answer questions so you can make an informed decision and still do what’s best for your beloved pet. We appreciate their drop-​in hours as we regularly have to take our male dog in to get his nails clipped. My only grumble would be the layout of their waiting area. This place gets busy and the reception desk is right in the middle so if your dog is not friendly with other dogs, it can be hard to hold them close, keep the other dogs away (some people aren’t considerate and let their dogs wander around on a long leash) and pay, all at the same time. Best bet when it’s super busy is to keep your dog in the car (not on a hot day). I’d recommend this vet over the more expensive one in Fishers Landing any day. All around much nicer staff, happier dogs, and better service.

Been bringing our dog here for over a year (vaccinations, check-​ups, surgery). Very affordable visits. Of course, this is contingent on what services your pet requires (or what you the client elect), but we’ve never felt ripped off. Dr. Phipps has been our pooches primary vet, and she has always been open about treatment options. Don’t get the «corporate greed feel» comment in Jey’s review.
They permit walk-​ins every day, for a couple hours in the morning, then in the afternoon. Walked-​in recently in the afternoon, and I only waited about 10 – 15 minutes. The front-​desk staff is always friendly, and the facility is nice and clean.

This place has a very corporate greed feel. They made us pay half upfront was not very friendly and did not explain our cats problems very well. Called to let us know the cat was ready to come home… made us wait 45 mins in the lobby after we got there for a quick pick up. And the so called 29 dollar exam was really 190 bucks. will never go back