M A S H Main Animal Services of Hopkintn Vtrnrns

I have had two visits with Dr Roman, one regular checkup and one emergency for a cut. I could not be more happy. Going in you need to understand that Dr Roman is not your traditional vet, she researches and advocates for solutions that are more natural and less intrusive than most vets. She won’t just pump your dog full of Rx meds and vaccines or do unneeded procedures.
She also recommends lots of oils, natural supplements, and especially a raw food diet. This stuff seems expensive but when you consider the preventative nature of her recommendations your are potentially saving thousands on future illnesses and injuries. I’m ok spending some extra money monthly to prevent thousands in vet bills down the road. If you are questioning some of her methods do the research on them after your visit and you will see their legitimacy.
My dog suffered a nasty cut on his foot that looked like it needed immediate attention– I called the office 5 minutes after closing time and Dr Roman and her technician were happy to stay open while I traveled 30 minutes to get there. They then gave my dog a lot of love and kept him very calm while they treated him. I highly recommend taking your animals here, if you know what you are getting going in I think you’ll be very happy.

Margo is fantastic. She is extremely well-​trained and trains others in holistic veterinary approach. She cares deeply for the animals and fully explains all areas to the owners. The staff is also great. It can get busy in here — just cuz of the high quality of care. Patience is a virtue.

What can I say… if you love your pet as much as I love mine and you have hit the end of the road or are facing what seems like and insane diagnosis with regard to traditional medicine Dr. Margo Roman is the person you want to go to bar none…
*** Note to the reviewer Katherine go spend $ 7000 at Angell Memorial hospital without results and then come back and talk to me. geesh…
Here is my story:
My dog, Stovin (an almost 4 year old white standard poodle) has been struggling with Addison’s disease for over a year and has always had gastrointestinal issues since he was a puppy. Since the beginning I have turned to traditional veterinary medicine for the answers (Angell Memorial Hospital in Jamaica Plain, MA), which makes sense… well at least it did until I decided to try acupuncture for my own self care a few month ago. In mid-​March of this year Stovin was 47 Lbs and on literally 10 different medications and was facing GI surgery and a diagnosis of epilepsy when I turned to Dr. Roman having found her in a directory as a homeopathic veterinarian that offered acupuncture (if it is good enough to make me feel better I was hoping it would help my poodle).
During Stovin’s first vet consultation he could barely lift his head, I couldn’t sleep because of worry, and I could tell I was losing him because he stopped eating entirely. He had been hospitalized at Angell Memorial Hospital twice between March and April at the tune of $ 7000 (i kid you not) and here we were in Dr. Roman’s clinic and he literally couldn’t stand up for more than a few moments at a time…
It is May 1^st as I write this review having returned from Dr. Roman’s and Stovin is a puppy once again full of energy, bright eyed, and weighing in at 59 Lbs. The answer to his turn around: Dr. Roman, nutritional supplements, homeopathic medicine with O3 treatment. MASH saved Stovin I have no doubt about it…
To say that Dr. Roman’s clinic isn’t busy would be an understatement she is saving pets literally by the car load… when I was there last week she had a dog that was coming from Tufts because the owner was told that it had to have a leg removed and Dr. Roman was trying to help. Emergencies happen and honestly go to an emergency room in a hospital and one can wait for a few hours. When you take your pet to MASH have the time to spend, check your expectations at the door this is not traditional veterinary medicine and that is why one gets results. Dr. Roman and the staff at MASH truly care and I thank them and drive all the way from Jamaica Plain to have the privilege of having my pets truly cared for.

I, too have had to wait a while for Dr. Roman, but I took my elderly cat there after her allopathic vet had told me that in order to clean her teeth, they would have to sedate her (uh, not happening) and it would be at least $ 300 (more if they had to remove teeth). This cat was almost unable to eat by the time I took her to MASH. Dr. Roman put some? frankinsence? on her and in about 30 seconds, got the plaque off her teeth (I’m talking HUGE chunks) and sent me on my way. $ 45 and a very happy (and hungry) kitty. Having used alternative methods on myself, and having gone to a naturopath for a number of years, I knew what I was getting into, and hence, didn’t necessarily need to fill out the paperwork/​watch the video, etc. This may be more information than people want, but it’s better to be overinformed than under– I think. Anyway… Office visits aren’t cheap, but I feel better taking my pets to MASH than to a traditional vet.

I’m so angry, I can’t write the review. $ 191.39 for 15 min of face time… I’ll be articulate in 48 hrs when my rage subsides. Meanwhile, don’t waste your time, money, or risk jeopardizing your pet’s health.
7÷16÷09 Update: I’m no longer angry, I’m informed. Based on my experience, I don’t recommend this facility. If you’re looking for alternative or complementary care, search further.
First, it took hours completing 4 pages of paperwork, watching the required, pre-​appointment videos, reading their website articles, surveying their every web page, and driving to Hopkinton to arrive at building camouflaged by weed overgrowth. We arrived 20 minutes early as requested, during that time we stretched our legs in the back of the building where we stumbled upon several heaps of feline, or small canine dung. So far, it’s not looking promising. We enter their waiting area where we were greeted by pleasant office staff, 4′ tall L-​shaped desk, and another form. During our 40 minute wait, I observe and hear Dr Kabler, an associate vet, read several of her emails aloud until she gets to one where a woman describes her dog’s symptoms. Dr Kabler’s response was, «This woman sounds like an idiot.» She didn’t sound like an idiot, she sounded like a lay person whose dog was experiencing issues, and was giving Dr. Kabler an update on its condition. I continue to appear deaf and innocuous, but continue to take it all in. Minutes pass, Dr Roman enters the room when Kabler goes on to praise herself for the positive responses her article received. «…No. Not the one about nutrition. The other one. The wordy one.» Now who sounds like an idiot? Careful, when you spit in the air, it will come down and hit you in the face.
Finally, Dr. Roman is ready to see us now. (I must have been a cat in my last life. Despite better judgement, gross curiosity continues to get the best of me. So, I sit, usually unamused, waiting for people and their businesses to redeem themselves). We enter the exam room to receive our hour long, $ 175 holistic intake evaluation. My 15 week old shelter puppy had issues — respiratory, throat, tennis elbow, eye discharge, constipation to diarrhea that smelled like a rotted, Serengeti carcass in summer. Dr Roman spent 5 min. examining her gait, promoting the benefits of chiropractic care, which could be obtained in the office downstairs, 5 minutes listening to my dog’s heart, lungs, and eyeing her teeth, 2 seconds giving an unmeasured dose of suja, and 10 minutes promoting her Integrative Pet Health Expo in Fitchburg, for which she is seeking volunteers. Shortly thereafter, she left the room saying, «I’ll be right back.» About 5 minutes passed when a staff member came in proclaiming, «You’re all set!»
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point!
Are you kidding? I’m being Punked, right? Stepping up to the desk the cheery receptionist says, «That’ll be $ 178.»
«Excuse me, I had questions, and a scheduled 1 hour appointment,» I say, «for which Dr. Roman was 40 minutes late».
«We’re sorry about that, but Dr. Roman didn’t think a full exam was necessary,» she retorted.
«My dog has been starving for 18 hours, at your request, and she wasn’t given a blood test. I have a stool sample that I’d like checked for worms! The shelter diagnosed her with 2 types.»
The stool sample was added to my bill bringing it to $ 191.39. $ 100 of that amount was described as an «extended office visit».
Giving more energy to this negative encounter is draining my chi. You get the idea. In the end, I did not pay for the extended office visit. However, I did pay for her vitamins ($ 35), which I later discovered through muscle testing, disagree with my dog. All have been thrown away. In 24 hours of tossing them out, her biting at herself and tail chasing have ceased. $ 41.25 for stool testing, $ 12.75 for Interceptor, a heartworm preventative, and $ 2.39 in tax. An expensive lesson. Lesson learned. Curious, past life cat satisfied. Never again.