Colima Animal Hospital

One day my dog suddenly stopped eating and I noticed blood in his mouth. I took him to Colima Animal Hospital as quickly as I could. I've been with this hospital for a long time, and they never gave me any problems. So I assumed this time would be the same as any other. So the doctor looked him over and decided to keep the dog overnight to do some blood tests. The next day, they informed me that he has a couple of growths in his mouth that would need laser surgery. Now my dog was pretty old, about 12 years old, and I told the nurse that if he was in too much pain, and the surgery had a very low chance of success, then I would rather you put him to sleep. I would not want him to suffer anymore. But they assured me that ""We could cure him."" So since they sounded so confident in their ability, I relented and hoped for the best. The next day, I get another call saying they finished the surgery and that he was doing alright, but still bleeding. That struck me as kind of odd, no one comes out of surgery, human or animal, still bleeding. But they said it would stop ""in a couple days."" He was still sleepy, and would probably still be unable to eat, so I decided to let him stay there and sleep with the IV Fluids, and the hospital agreed. The next day in the early morning, they called to inform me that my dog had died overnight due to bleeding to death. My first thought was, why was there no one there to watch him? The hospital gave me a perplexing reply ""We are not a hospital."" Um you name is colima animal HOSPITAL. Second of all, why on earth did you not stop the bleeding immediately after surgery? Is gauze too expensive or something? After all this, they still asked for payment. Payment for what? Gross negligence? Murder? Not only that, they had the audacity to be angry with me. Completely unprofessional. Also, every single time they called me, it was the nurse who called, never the vet. I didn't speak to the vet since the day I brought the dog to the hospital. So do yourself a favor and pick any other animal hospital. The place looks completely unsanitary and your pet will most likely walk out even worse than he or she went in. That is, if it is lucky to walk out at all. more

I am a cat breeder and dog owner in Laguna Beach .I drive all the way ( an hour in each Direction) To go to Dr Sam .He is the best surgeon I know. He is the only one I let do C-sections on my cats. He has the kittens out and the mom standing in the carrier with in a half an hour, My babys are nursing on the way home. His prices are fair. more

i love this place. I have a pit bull a jack russel terrier. and 2 cats all of them are patients of dr. sams. the girls are great they are always efficient and on top of everything. any questions i have they always are friendly and helpfull especially the technician ANNIE shes very knowledgable. The Dr. there is excellent caring compasionate all of the above ....I love Colima animal hospital more

DR Sam has been my vet for many years and I have always been treated good the staff is so kind and helpful they always take care of all my needs and yes there busy but all great places are thats why everyone keeps coming back so don't let dumb people who write untrue mean things all over the internet stop you from coming to the only honest and helpful place were all you pets need will be taken care of . more

I wish I could give it 0 stars. I've been taking my dogs here for YEARS and thought that this place was fine, just like any other animal hospital..but I was WRONG. This place is NOT well-maintained: it ALWAYS smells like urine and something else unrecognizable. The staff is typically very busy running around trying to multi-task, so items easily get misplaced, brushed over, or labeled incorrectly (ex: they had printed the label of my dog's medicine under a different dog's file); the phone constantly rings off the hook so callers have to wait only to be spoken to rudely by a staff member running someone's credit card and filing a chart at the same time. Just recently, I brought in my dog to do a simple check-up on his blood work which they requested after his recent surgery . The large woman at the front TOOK my little dog to the back. He was scared (of course, who wouldn't be?) and was trying to keep her from sticking him. She had to get 2 other girls to hold him down. I heard him resisting and trying to escape. They were only back there for a minute or two. Then she came back to speak with me at the front desk with my dog under her left arm, and his leash and harness, as well as the exposed syringe in her right. (Now seeing that was a red-flag to me. Isn't that..just.. you know, WRONG?!) She said they couldn't restrain him to get his blood because he kept squirming and putting his paws up but when they tried to hold him down, HE TURNED PURPLE!!!!!!!!!!! What the hell? Three full-grown women who work at an animal hospital couldn't figure out how to restrain a Pomeranian?!?! That blew my mind. As I was trying to make sense of what she was telling me, and attempting not to punch her in the face for STRANGLING my dog until he turned PURPLE, she quickly offered to sedate him so they could proceed. (oh HELL NO.) In the most polite manner I could muster, I told her that I would wait to speak with my brother first about the situation (he's pre-Vet, but I didn't need to tell her) and took my dog back from her. She answered back telling me that my brother doesn't know anything about how to hold a dog (as if she does) and that they should just do it now. That upset me more, so then I just assured her that I would wait, reached for the leash and harness (she was still holding the exposed syringe in the same hand), turned around in disgust, and left. I am NEVER going back there. Cons: bad location, always too busy to care, overpriced everything more

This place will kill your animal. I recently went to see Dr. Sam for my dog who was having hind leg problems. We took some x-ray and saw that my dog had a disc. Dr. Sam gave my dog a shot of dexamethasone and prescribed him Rimadyl and Prednisone. 9 days later my dog had to be put down. I was never warned of any side effects of these drugs and told that they were perfectly harmless. After my dog starting having blood in his stool and starting have seizures we took him to another vet and was told that Rimadyl should never be given with Pred or dexamethason, and that the dosing for the pred alone was very high by itself. Secondly after going on the website of the manufacturers of Rimadyl, it said that Rimadyl should not be given with dexamethasone or prednisone. The vet at the emergency hospital also said he never prescribes Rimadyl with dexamethason or prednisone. Please don't make the same mistake I did, it cost me my dog's life. Cons: Kills your pet more

Colima animal hospital is the best hospital in town.....I love this hospitall.....yes the wait is long but well worth it , and on the other hand its a good thing because lots of people means good service and good prices.....yes the hospital is small but i would hate for him to move because then where would i go....... with all the dogs in the office and people bringing dirty dogs in with lots of hair.... it makes the floor dirty.......the girls in the front are really nice and sweet but when people are nice to them......... i feel sorry for the girls in the front noone ever wants to pay their bills the clients always have an attitude with them..........you get what you give,n treat others the way you want to be treated. The dr. there never ever rips people off infact he works with rescue organizations... and helps them Cats in Need, all breed dog rescue.... good dog dog talk......anybody who loves and rescues pets the dr. gives a special price to them and gives them free stuff how is that in it for the money....... he is the least expensive vet in all of LA county. and not only that but the service is sooo good he really cares about the people on a one on one basis.....he has excellent bedside manners, hes an excellent surgeon, and dr...... i will never ever take my pets any where else..... do not trust any other hospital . Pros: best hospital in town Cons: busy lots of clients good and bad more

This hospital looks pretty old and run down and the entire staff isn't very friendly, caring, or sympathetic. Sitting there in the waiting room was ridiculously long even if it was for a quick checkup. In my opinion the doctor seems very shady and is just looking to make a few hundred bucks even if my dog doesn't need certain procedures. I took my dog in for 2 surgeries and i was horribly overpriced. Although the surgeries went completely fine I never feel a sense of welcome or warmth when I enter that hospital, which to me is very important. The staff at Colima Animal Hospital should take a Veterinary Office Procedures and Hospitality class. I've seen busier vet hospitals yet the staff are very nice and caring. I don't recommend this place. Pros: Good surgery work. Cons: Bad hospitality and long wait. more

I have been a long time client with Colima Animal hospital, and have brought many patients in over the years. Dr. Sam and his staff have always been friendly, and caring for my pets, which are like my children. If i were a person searching for an animal hospital and i read these reviews i would be scared to death to bring my pets there!! BUT TO BE HONEST.. Dr. Sam is a true animal lover, that cares very much about his patients and his work. His staff is awesome they work as fast as they can multitasking between phones, walkins, treating animals, and cleaning the area. This clinic is a walkin hospital, that takes walkins six days a week so there tends to be a wait when coming in for a visit, but other hospitals require appointments. what more can someone ask for! most people who tend to have a problem with their visit have time to post degrading comments.but people who have no problems with a great experience, dont tend to run and praise about it on the reviews. I hope this honest comment will persuade people to not believe everything they read from these people. Pros: loving and caring staff & doctor /walkin clinic/ low cost more

We brought our baby pitbull in to have her ears cropped. Colima Pet hospital was recommended by our vet in Costa Mesa, CA, since not many places do ear cropping anymore. Everything seemed to be okay, she was just groggy from being sedated. This was done on Friday and early Sunday morning the stitch on her ear FELL OUT! mind you that she had an E-collar on at all times! We then had to rush her to the emergency room where she had to be put under again. (which at that point I started to cry cause I didnt like the way she looked and felt after Colima put her under) This cost us an additional $150.00 which I would pay no matter what circumstance if my puppy was hurt. I called Colima first thing Monday to tell them that my dogs stitch was not put on tight enough and they need to reimburse us for the emergency clinic. All they could say was ""you shouldve waited another day to bring her to us"" Which is when I told them about her ear bleeding and the cartlidge and open wound being exposed!!! They dont care at all about animals, very unprofessional and NOT Friendly. Especially store manager Gina, and another worker there named Trish! They had no sympathy for us. I really just have been so upset since this and feel like there is no one to help us or on our side. :( VERY SCARY and BAD HOSPITAL. The office did look old and dirty as well. more

Very Nice Vet. Excellent surgeon. Pros: Great job, reasonable price Cons: long wait , crowded place more

We took our sick kitten in on 10/29/2007 at 3 PM, the doctor said she had Panleukopenia, and suggested to leave the kitten there overnight for treatment. When I called the next morning at 10 AM, the doctor gave me the bad news, the kitten died at 8:30 PM and said I can come to collect the body. Pros: Walk-in til 6 PM Cons: Vet and staff show little caring about animals, and staff members are rude more

Honestly, I don't even know why Dr. Sam is still practicing veterinary medicine. Rumor has it his daughter is doing a lot of the surgeries lately and she's supposed to be better, but I don't trust the place. Pros: convenient hours Cons: treatment and care of pet were negligient more

Back in 2003 I brought my alaskan husky in to get spaded. About 9 month later, I realized that my husky was getting bigger and bigger. Next thing I knew she was pregnant. How can this be possible? I brought it in to get spaded. After having the puppies, I brought my dog back in to this so called ""doctor"" He actually had the courage to ask me if this was even the same dog!!!. I told him to pull out the medical records, and they ended up telling me it was missing. With the receipt in my hand, he eventually tells me, he'll redo the surgery at no cost. All I have to say is that they have the most incompetent workers and doctors. I have heard so many pets being treated poorly at this clinic. Beware of the big fat worker in the front desk (I think she was the one who destroyed my pets records. If you want a bad experience, pleasae go ahead and see him. I just hope someone with the right authority would take charge and close this killer hospital down. Cons: If you wanted your pet to die...please go ahead. Poo and urine all over the floor and front desk. more

The best animal hospital ever! Pros: Great vet and staff, Great price, Cons: long wait to see vet, worth the wait more

This place is the worst animal hospital anyone can take their pets to. Just two days ago my cat's back two legs couldn't move, it seemed as if his legs were paralyzed. I immediately brought him to the hospital. The doctor seemed so impatient. We were billed $300 and had to pay $150 on the spot, the $300 included giving my cat an x-ray, take samples, boarding there, and fluids. When I went back around 7:30P.M to go see my cat the nurse sighed and in a RUDE voice said ""We are cleaning and I am already late to pick up my kids, but I guess."" When I asked her how my cat was doing she lied to me by saying how she was only the cleaning lady and doesn?t know anything. Yet she was the one that was picking up calls in the afternoon. The next day around 7:30A.M. I called to see how the cat was doing,a nurse picked up the phone and said that the doctors won't be there until 10A.M.I asked how the cat was doing and she said he looks good. Around 10:30A.M I get a call from the hospital and the doctor tells me that the cat had just passed away. I didn't know what to think so I asked him if he tried curing him and the doctor says ""DID YOU NOT HEAR ME, HE PASSED AWAY!!"" I went down there to pick my cat up with my friend and asked him what caused my cat?s death,he said the cat PROBABLY ate something poisonous that spread throughout his body and into his liver. I asked for a copy of the shots he gave my cats but he REFUSED to give me a copy of the card and DID NOT even allow me to look at it myself. They said they could only give me a copy of the report they took. The nurse billed me for $363, but it was $300 yesterday.I told her I already paid $150 when I came yesterday.She was like ""Ohh!? and then subtracted $150, I was like what kind of hospital are you guys running here. If I didn't tell her that I already paid $150 she would have charge me a total of $513. I felt like all this hospital wanted to do was take my money and NOT HELP MY CAT. DO NOT SEND any of your pets there!!! Pros: NOTHING Cons: Doctors, Nurses, everything there more

After routine lab work, teeth cleaning and skin tag removal. My pup is in pain and in shock! We have had her teeth cleaned on three occasions by our Vet in New Mexico. Never have I brought her home in this condition. When I picked her up (after a 45 minute wait) she was completely frightened and shaking. As the medications wore off, she was in so much pain that I couldn't even pick her up. All night long, she layed there in shock and was still in that condition the following day. more