Southern Arizona Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center, Tucson AZ

Very kind staff unlike many clinics, long wait but there’s nothing they can do. The receptionist kept checking on me till it was my turn to make sure we were okay.

My regular vet has been treating unsuccessfully my dog for weeks now & I was looking for a second opinion from a orthopedic vet on the cause of my 4 year old dogs limping now for over 6 weeks.
Southern Arizona refused to see my dog without the vet’s referral, that is not helpful at all!

I like this clinic. Whenever my cats sick, they treated very well. My cats feel better then. Thank you so much for this clinic treatment.

Just moved here and couldn’t get into 5 different vets for an urgent appointment. Walked in here and was placed in a room right away. Paid for the urgent care exam fee and my dog was examined. Our total time in office was 3 hours, but as a walk in urgent care/ER this was expected. The tech brought my pup a bowl of water and checked in with me often. The place was clean and so was the restroom! They gave me an estimate of costs and my bill at the end was well within it. If you’re worried about your pet and can’t get into your normal vet I would definitely recommend this place!

Be Aware… it could happen to you

This has been a very unpleasant experience. I will try to make the story as short as possible, which is very difficult to do. In October 2022 my little dog Sammy, 5 years old, underwent an operation to remove the cataracts in both eyes. The process for this surgery consisted of a preliminary study to determine if Sammy was a candidate for surgery, at a cost of $1500, we decided to carry out the process.

We think that if we treat the problem in time it would be better for Sammy to have a better quality of life. It is important to note that the cataract appeared 3 months before taking him to the eye doctor.
Sammy did not show any signs of losing his vision.but we all know that's what comes with cataracts. After the study, they gave me the good news that Sammy was a candidate for surgery, which consisted of implanting new lenses to improve his vision. The surgery would cost almost $6,000 for two eyes. The day arrived, the doctor called me to tell me that the surgery was a success and that everything went well according to plan. He explained to me that he put stitches in both eyes to prevent for him to touch and cause any damages to the new glasses. Time passed and we noticed that Sammy could not see up close, I mentioned it to the doctor and he told me that he had to adapt to the new glasses, I needed to give Sammy more time. After a month and a half, the problem continued and the Doctor keep telling me the same thing, give it time.

After repeated visits to the eye doctor, in one occasion the doctor's assistant was there and I asked her why it was taking so long for Sammy to adapt to the glasses. Reviewing the medical chart, she told me that Sammy did not have glasses, I insisted for her to check again because must be a mistake. I emphasis he had glasses and the doctor warned me that he had to adapt to them. She reviewed him again in a more detailed way and confirmed that he definitely did not have lenses implanted and because of that he would never be able to see up close, because that could only be possible if he had been fitted with glasses. She left the room and I was shocked.

After 10 minutes she returned to the room with the doctor. The Doctor looked at me with a big smile, asking me how was everything. I said very calmly, you tell me, how long we have to wait for Sammy to adapt to the glasses and see up close again.

Muttering, he said, well, he doesn't have glasses, but he's better than when he came, he no longer has the cataract in his eyes. I couldn't believe what cynicism, he lied to me all that time and now just because I found out by accident he pretends that everything is fine. I told him how he was better if he couldn't see up close and why he had been lying to me about the glasses. He told me that it must be a misunderstanding. That Sammy had to adapt to the glasses that he does not have any longer because he removed them when he operated on him, woow what story. And he mentioned that there was a small discount on my medical bill because they didn't put the glasses on. I stressed that he had been telling me to wait. And he ignored me and told me happy holidays sorry for the misunderstanding and he left.

Southern Arizona Veterinary Specialty & Emergency Center Is awesome. I took my puppers there do to an emergency. Ended up not being life-threatening, yet, an emergency that required attention.
The staff was professional, personable, kind and caring. Everyone in the waiting area was tended to, and kept informed of what was going on.
Yes, the wait can be long. Considering what’s going on with the different level of emergencies, it is quite understandable. I appreciated the empathy shown by the front desk, and the attention and caring to both animal and human by the veterinary staff.

We’ve been here twice (unfortunately?) and each time they have been great. Mercy’s not the biggest fan of vet visits, but she somehow doesn’t seem to mind the urgent care. The staff have been super friendly and compassionate the two times we’ve been here, and I think that’s been a big factor in Mercy’s comfort and confidence in visiting here.

For urgent care needs, I definitely would recommend SAVS.

I am reviewing the oncology department specifically. I will say the urgent care was kind and quick to help when out pet was dying because of the poor care, or rather lack of care at all, of the oncology department.

Our cat was initially diagnosed with small cell lymphoma of the GI tract and underwent surgery at another emergency vet location. Because they had no oncology department, they recommended this office and told us chemotherapy needed to be started immediately. It is important to note that we were told if this condition was left untreated, the prognosis for this disease is about 4 weeks. I would imagine an oncologist would be aware of this.

When I called to make an appointment, they initially told me they wouldn't be able to see us for a month. No medication. A cancelation got us in sooner. However, we were met with delay after delay. The bloodwork at the previous location wasn't good enough, have to do that first. No meds. We want a new ultrasound as well, but our tech is leaving, so you'll have to wait til next week. No meds. I asked several times if we could just have the chemo medication called in so we could start, and was denied because more testing was needed. Perhaps I should have pushed harder for the meds, but I trusted the professional who was supposed to be more knowledgeable on the subject, and they refused to call in the meds. I was initially told that the ultrasound was not required, but then was told they wouldn't call in the chemo meds until we did one. Why? Knowing what the prognosis for untreated lymphoma was, why couldn't we just start the meds? Knowing our pet would die fairly quickly without treatment, what harm would it have done?

We finally got the meds and were supposed to start this morning, and we never got the chance. Our cat crashed quickly. When we attempted to get help, we were told we needed to wait for several hours while she was suffering and passing blood. More testing, more delays. We were watching her deteriorate as we sat there. She began having difficulty breathing. They told us we could just leave her there for more testing, and then discuss palliative (end of life) care. More delays, more testing.

So we went to the urgent care next door where they finally put our cat to sleep. They acted immediately and were very kind. Almost 4 weeks exactly since the initial diagnosis. Seems the prognosis for untreated lymphoma was spot on. If only we had been able to start treatment in a reasonable time frame.

I don't think I can forgive what I see as gross incompetence. Knowing what a brief window we had to start treatment, they kept delaying in favor of expensive tests. The few appointments we had were delayed as the vet dealt with personal matters, and as I stated before, the ultrasound tech is apparently around very little. Our cat, our family member, made it through a difficult surgery which turned out to be pointless. Had I known the oncology team would care so little, I would not have put her through that. If they had acted promptly, we likely would have had a few more quality years with her. Are all of the patients treated this way? If so, why does this office exist at all?

So I suppose if you want to be met with tests and delays when your pet needs immediate help, choose this oncologist. If you want to be told that your pet has a good chance, but then be denied treatment until it's too late, choose this oncologist. If you want to be told to wait while your pet vomits, passes blood, and struggles to breathe, choose this oncologist. Personally, I won't be back.

Thank You for being SO kind to me and my family. You have gone above and beyond and accommodated me after the passing of our beloved pet, Taffy. I really cannot express what your generosity of spirit has meant to me. Thank You. -Tina

Good staff and care. Don't complain about paying more for on the spot service, as most vets have a long wait list.

Amazing and friendly staff. Walked us thru every charge and there was no pressure in making the best decisions for us financially and for our dog. Genuinely concerned for the animals under their care.