VCA MacArthur Animal Hospital

Before I thank Dr. Polk, I want to say something (a «bark out», I suppose) to those who complain about high prices, no private parking, etc: animals are not cheap, and you are bringing home a family member who will hopefully live for many, many years. Vets have gone through many years of schooling to become your animal’s Vet, so if you want cheap medical treatment, read Google and try home remedies. If you want private parking, a location within the DC city limits may not be for you. Now, enough about all that ~
I called the office on Sunday afternoon in a panic because the Beloved Goldendoodle needed an appointment and I will not be home in Boston for another 5 weeks to get him to his life-​long vet there. I spoke with a nice woman who made an appointment for me, sent me an email to confirm, and even told me to print out the coupon online for a first exam free (thank you for the $ 93 savings!).
Fortunately, I had all of the Doodle’s vet records and told Dr. Polk what had happened in the past, when and what was prescribed for him. Excessive seasonal allergies and scratching is ailing the boy, so Dr. Polk took care of the hot spots, injected an antibiotic and suggested an OTC medicine (available at CVS directly across the street). The charge for the antibiotic and cleaning him up was $ 163, extremely reasonable considering what I said above, and hey, I didn’t go to med school and I don’t have a supply of medication for the pup either.
It’s been 3 hours since we left, and the crazy scratching has decreased already. While I hope to not have another emergency while we are away from Boston, if it happens, I will call Dr. Polk ASAP.

As someone who recently moved to DC from California it has taken a while to acclimate to poor East Coast customer service. That being said, I was very pleasantly surprised by the courtesy of the people at the VCA on MacArthur. I ended up being 40 minutes late for my appointment and they were very accommodating and pleasant about it. The vet I saw, Dr. Polk, even stayed after closing time to help. He was funny and friendly, and had lots of tips on how to take care of my new cat. I highly recommend going here!

This is a fantastic location for veterinary care for your pets. I have been pleased with the personal attention, honest and caring advice from the veterinarians as well as the competent and friendly assistance of the technicians.
Dr. Polk is very pleasant to work with; he shows such genuine care and concern for the pets. He is also extremely professional and discusses pet’s issues and treatments in a very plain-​spoken manner.
it is a relatively small clinic by standards of this area making it more intimate and assuring more time with the technicians and veterinarian. In each of our visits the vet has spent far more time with us and our pet than I would have thought and, certainly, more time than at other clinics.
Would highly recommend for primary care services for your pet.

Great staff. Great Doctors. Amazing hours.
My dog, Tucker, and I are very grateful to have such a great vet!
Oh — they also file your insurance claim for you if you want them to.

Prior to yesterday, VCA was my cat’s vet. I didn’t love them, but they were close to my apartment (10 minutes away) so I lived with it. Now? I will never be going back.
Yesterday I noticed that my cat had blood in her urine and also was displaying some hesitancy in her flow. This concerned me quite a bit (obviously), so I called VCA immediately. It was about 3:20 in the afternoon and they close at 4:00.
The lady I smoke with was UNBELIEVABLY rude. Upon hearing my cat’s symptoms, she said «You know we’re about to close at 4, right? Where do you live?»
I said I lived in Rosslyn, and she responded (in the worst tone), «Where? Rocklyn??» and I said, «No, Rosslyn,» spelling it out.
She said: «I have never heard of it.»
Now, I ask you, fellow DCers: how can you live in D.C., work in Georgetown and have never heard of Rosslyn? However, I gave her the benefit of the doubt, and said «It’s in Arlington,» to which she responded «OH, then there is NO way you can get here before we close.»
At this point, I was just confused — I was actually googling the number I had called to make sure I hadn’t accidentally called some random vet in another state or something! But no, I had called the correct vet in the correct location (I confirmed with her over the phone). So I said to her, «Actually, I’m 10 minutes away from you. Do you think we could see the vet?»
She said (in the most ungracious possible tone) «Well, are you going to be able to get here in the next 15 minutes?»
Now, they didn’t close for another 40 minutes, and I knew that I actually COULD get there in the next 15 minutes, but at that point I felt so completely unwelcome that I didn’t believe there was any chance that my pet would get the care she needed, even if I did show up. So I made my excuses and hung up the phone.
VCA, you most definitely lost a customer.

I’m a neurotic pet owner that just moved to DC. After my Kreature got into chicken bones and chocolate I was frantic. After calling every vet in town I was referred to this Vet from Union Vet Hospital. I drove across town and don’t regret it at all.
The receptionist was patient, the vet techs understanding and the Doctor so friendly. They never even charged me for the visit and the store next door gave me 5 free bags of dog/​cat food on the way out.

Knowledgable staff and doctors, nice facilities. That said bordering on unethical in terms of their billing practices. Both times I have not left without a bill of less than $ 400.00. In both cases being pressured to obtain additional services where all my dog had was a urinary tract infection and was constipated. Not worth the x-​rays and additional procedures. I even called ahead of time to get advice from a doctor but none would talk to me without a paying appointment. I would have given 4-​stars if I did not feel so used after leaving.

Although the staff is very friendly, «obscenely overpriced» is an understatement. Even with my free exam coupon, my first visit for my puppy and first round of distemper/​rabies vaccine was $ 250. We just returned from the office for his second round and lepto vaccine which was $ 300. $ 100 was for blood work in order to neuter him. The vet gave me a quote for neutering… $ 780. No thank you! We will be finding a new vet asap. If I could give zero stars I would.

Recently adopted a cat from a shelter and needed the initial wellness exam. The shelter gives out coupons for a free exam at a VCA Animal clinic.
Even with the coupon, I was a little worried about cost. The reviews on here had me a on edge that I was going to be up-​sold, but I had nothing to worry about.
First, everyone was very friendly, from the front desk, to the Dr. They were gentle with my cat and took their time in examining him. When it was time for his rabies shot, they distracted him with food so he didn’t really notice it was happening.
After the exam, the tech came in with a breakdown of fees PRIOR to charging me anything.
The exam ($ 80), antibiotics ($ 20) and fecal/​giardia test ($ 60) were covered by the coupon. The rabies vaccine was $ 46.
I agree that this is steep (my vet in suburban California was $ 30/​visit), but I did shop around a little and it seems that these prices are pretty standard for this area.

After a terrible experience at Friendship Animal Hospital, we brought our cat here and we’re much happier. The staff were very nice and our cat was treated very kindly and gently by the vet and techs. We used VCA when we lived in LA, so we are familiar with this chain. They did a thorough exam and battery of tests to figure out why our cat has suddenly changed his behavior, but no answers yet. Our LA experience was a heads-​up that it would not be cheap, and it wasn’t: $ 747 for x-​rays, exam, lab, etc. Unfortunately, we are in DC, so prices are high. Perhaps there is a much cheaper vet around, but probably nowhere close to home (a friend in AA County tells me his independent vet charges $ 48 dollars for an exam, but that’s 45 miles from here *sigh*). High prices aside, I am happy with the treatment and care our guy received here. On the downside, this vet is in a small building and the waiting room is tiny, so if you have a cat that is frightened of dogs, or a dog that hates cats, there might be a problem.

I recently moved to DC from NYC, where I lived for 7 years and took my dog to reputable vets in Manhattan during that time. After moving here I did some research and was referred to VCA from my old vet in NYC, so I found MacArthur and scheduled an appointment.
They accommodated me quickly and nicely — my dog has dental infection and needs a dental cleaning procedure asap, which is a procedure I have done almost every year for the last 5 years.
In NYC I paid around $ 400 each time, once I think I had to pay $ 500 or $ 600 because they had to extract a tooth.
The vet at VCA MacArthur was fine, obviously experienced and sensitive to my concerns about my dog’s procedure. However, the estimated cost was wildly unexpected: $ 1000. The assistant thoroughly and patiently explained the cost break-​down, but I left still unclear why they would charge more than 2x the going rate as other reputable places. They claimed that they give more pain killers (which are «more humane») than other places, and that is why the cost might be more, but the math didn’t add up. Of course I want my dog treated humanely, but as another reviewer aptly put it — this place is «OBSCENELY expensive». I refuse to believe that I have to be ripped-​off in order to have my dog treated «humanely» and I found at least one other local vet that estimated the procedure ranges between $ 400 and $ 600.

My family has taken several pets to MacArthur over the years. The older doctors were excellent and have retired but we’ve also been very pleased with Dr. Hassell who’s now been there for several years. He clearly has a passion for veterinary work – you can just tell he was a kid who dreamed of being a vet. He remembers our pets (not us and that’s ok). He knows all the latest studies and presents options in a reasonable, humane and clear manner. He really seems to care about our pets and knows when to treat, when not to treat and when to refer to a bigger hospital. He always calls us back (usually at the end of the day) and takes time with us on the phone. When he’s referred us to hospitals for more advanced care, he’s stayed in touch with their doctors and with us – a true primary care doctor. Front office staff and vet techs seem to vary in friendliness and competency – some have been great. The place does seem very expensive but every other vet or animal hospital we’ve been to is as well so I’m not sure how MacArthur compares. Not sure there is a cheap, good vet in DC. Since it was bought by VCA, the hospital does seem a little too corporate but the doctor quality is still excellent and that’s what matters to us. It is a little disturbing though that VCA profits not only from the hospital but from the tests and food they tell you to get. At the same time, we’ve never felt that the doctors prescribed something we didn’t need.

Honestly, this is a hard review to write. I thought that the vet I saw was kind and knowledgable, but all in all, it was not the greatest experience and OBSCENELY expensive.
I moved into a new place in the District a few months ago, and somehow ended up on the mailing list for this vet. I received a special offer for a free first exam/​visit and free vaccinations for up to two pets. I’d been taking my cats to a vet in Virginia, so I thought perhaps moving to one in DC made sense. And free exam and shots? Why not!
First of all, there was no parking nearby. I toted my two cats in their carriers from far down the street. No one attempted to help me with the doors (there were two – and they didn’t shut automatically behind you, so I had to place the carriers down, open the door, put carriers inside the door, close the door, then open another door, put carriers through, then close the door). Considering it was quiet in the lobby, I was surprised the woman at the desk didn’t even glance in my direction.
I had to fill out some paperwork and then waited in the lobby for quite some time. One of my cats gets REALLY worked up at the vet and so being in the lobby with dogs running up sniffing his cage is not a good combination with his general vet anxiety. Finally we were taken back to an examination room, and a vet tech came in. By then the male cat was so freaked out that the tech couldn’t even touch him. He went and got a «party hat» (muzzle) to put on him, but couldn’t even manage that, so he turned his attention to the female. By the time the vet came into the room, the male had jumped down from the counter and worked himself into a total frenzy. They decided that he needed to be partially sedated to complete an exam, so I agreed. However, although I am quite aware of the fact that my cat is an asshole, he has never had to be sedated for a vet visit before.
The vet tech brought out an estimate with the various services, and I was pretty shocked at the figure, but showed him the coupon I had brought and so he went away and came back with an adjusted one. I was charged $ 99 each for the exam (whereas before it had said $ 199). The vaccinations were without charge, but I was charged for two fecal exams and two urinalyses. I was charged for the sedation, and bought three months of Heartguard for both. So even with the «free» exam and vaccinations, I paid over $ 750 – for a WELLNESS check. They weren’t even sick! Imagine if one of them were ill – I really cannot even fathom what the visit would have cost me.
Now I get postcards in the mail every two weeks telling me Cosimo and Stella need teeth cleanings, and more shots. Um, no thank you. I’m broke for the next few months, thanks to you.
For next time, I’ll be seeking out poor, non-​profit employee affordable options for my pets’ care.