Jones Stephen M Dvm - Queen Anne Animal Clinic

One star is generous. The summary: the whole office is condescending, rude and inconsistent. I have moved the care of my pets to a different vet clinic. Since Queen Anne Animal Clinic was so close to my new home I thought I would give them a try. My husband and I have both been unhappy with them since the first visit 8 months ago. First, Dr. Spencer did not bother to take a look at the pile of vet records we had provided that would have given him a thorough history for the first visit. He insisted that many tests needed to be run in order to continue on the long term and even short term medications both pets were on despite clear good health in their physicals and the fact that similar blood tests and were already provided in the vet records we brought. So, five hundred dollars later (this visit was meant to be a basic physical for both animals mind you) we managed to walk away with a short term refill for the dog (surprise! her blood was normal!) and for the cat, also a refill (surprise! she was stable!). Throughout the process of getting prescriptions refilled for the cat over these 6 months I have been treated poorly by the receptionists at the clinic. I have repeatedly been given the attitude that they know better than me about the animals I have been taking good care of for many years. They have been condescending and giving false information since the beginning. Then we come to our most recent encounter (already unhappy with the service, I have only been going back to this vet for refills and have already established a relationship with a different vet hospital for future care). I had a vial of the cat medication that stated I had one more refill. When I called the refill in, I was told by the receptionist that I had to bring the cat in for a semi-annual exam before they would dispense the medication. Since I only had a few days' worth left of the medication the receptionist agreed to give me a few days' worth to hold us over until I could have a conversation with a vet. I didn't get a call the first or the second time I was told the vet would call...I finally walked myself over to the vet and said it would be nice to get a call from the receptionist when she knew that the vet wouldn't be able to get to my file since he was (in her words) ""so busy and his stack of files is THIS high and he doesn't even take lunches"". Dr. Spencer finally got to my file and called at the very end of his day. He set a very negative tone from the start of the call and didn't let me get a word in, repeatedly interrupting me when I tried to state my case. He spoke to me in a very condescending and patronizing tone of voice, was lecturing me as if my parent, even feeling the need to define ""hospice care"" to me when I tried to explain our cat's condition. Dr. Spencer insisted that we had ""agreed"" that I would bring my cat in at 6 months, that he didn't know how to jog my memory of that, that he wasn't a drug dispenser, and that I am the ""author of this"" situation. I let him know that I still had a refill left and that I called it in with a few days to spare, that I know my animal and know what to look for in terms of symptoms of illness due to the wrong medication level, that this cat is most likely days from dying (by euthanasia) because of her physical condition (paralysis and general immobility) from an old accident that is unrelated to the medication in question, and that putting her through a vet visit is unnecessary was something I was unwilling to do just because he said so. He has agreed to give me 2 more weeks of medication and said he will not give me anymore after that. The whole interaction was patronizing and shocking. I have had dogs and cats with challenging veterinary problems in my care for many years and have never had a problem with a vet prior to this encounter. The least I expect is some consistency, respect for clients, and a willingness to clearly walk me though my options. They provided us none of those things. more

\r Dr. Spencer, the new owner, refused to see my dying cat because I saw another vet. I consider this professional misconduct.\r \r It was the previous vet-owner, Dr. Stephen Jones, who built up the reputation of this clinic. \r \r Spencer misdiagnosed speckling on my cat's nose as precancerous lesions based on a nonchalant two-second examination, handed us the estimate, and let us know he was ready to do surgery. \r \r He generously told me that he could clean my cat's teeth and remove the lesion at the same time, provided that I submit the cat to an ultrasound cardiac screening ($500). He did not explain the risks involved in such surgery on a geriatric cat.\r \r He examined my for a total of two minutes and showed no genuine interest in my cat. His approach can be described as ""shooting-from-the-hip.""\r \r He summarized the first office visit by saying that my cat was in terrible shape. The next day, however, after he actually looked at the lab results, he reversed himself. Then he stated that I could stop--cold-turkey-- the sub-cutaneous injections. This is advice that I strongly believe, in retrospect, harmed my cat and led to his premature death.\r \r His expertise on felines is frankly nil. Claiming that a cat with chronic renal failure, just based on numbers, is back in a ""pre-crash"" phase flew in the face of common sense--kidney function does not regenerate--and was misleading. \r \r I should have known better when, before deciding whether to go here or not, I interviewed the vet tech. We were suddenly pulled out of the room by a staff person who gave me a dirty look and had me presented with a bill for $40 (no one had even seen my cat!).\r \r One positive note: they do write prescriptions so you don't have to feel ripped off buying medications from their limited dispensary (cf, Cat Clinic of Seattle).\r \r Not a good place to bring a cat, in any case. \r \r \r Pros: Write prescriptions upon request Cons: Incompetence, Unprofessionalism, Gossipy more

I take my puppy Cha Cha here and I love it. The staff is friendly and helpful. The only con is that they are a little expensive, but when it comes to my pet's health I am more than happy to pay for great services and care. Pros: great care Cons: price more

Two stars means "ok", not bad, but not great. I'd give it 2.5 stars if I could. Certainly serviceable food, but nothing I'd go back for. We bo... more

I just moved to Seattle in June 2007 and needed a new vet/clinic for my two pugs. I initially chose Queen Anne Animal Clinic due to close location of my home. \r \r Both my pugs had what was diagnosed as ?warts? on their legs from my previous vet in Florida. In making my first visit to Queen Anne Animal Clinic, Dr. Spencer noticed the ?warts? and advised me that there was no real way to know for sure if the growths were warts or something else. He explained that I could have a simple test performed to confirm what the growths were. NO PRESSURE at all to have the test. He just made me aware of the test, which my previous vet had not done. \r \r I opted for the test and found out that both my pugs had Canine Mast Cell (cancer and if you are not educated about this, plenty is available on the internet). I was nervous and to some degree skeptical I now had two diagnoses (one from my prior vet in Florida and now something different from Dr. Spencer, which was much more serious). \r \r As I did not know anyone else in the Seattle area and this was a serious diagnosis, I decided to get a second opinion from another vet. I went to another vet in the Seattle area and it was confirmed with that second opinion that Mast Cell was the case in both my pugs. I returned to Queen Anne and scheduled the surgeries for both pugs with Dr. Spencer. \r \r Not only Dr. Spencer, but the entire Queen Anne staff as well as the Greenlake Animal Hospital staff (owned by the same team as Queen Anne Animal Clinic and the surgical hospital for Queen Anne patients) have been outstanding and amazing. \r \r The folks at both Queen Anne Animal Clinic and Greenlake Animal Hospital are not only knowledgeable, but also caring, passionate and professional with very fair/reasonable rates. As long as I live in Seattle I will ONLY go to Queen Anne Animal Clinic and would recommend this team to anyone.\r Cons: NO CONS OR NEGATIVES AT ALL more