Montclair Animal Hospital

I wasn’t happy with my previous vet so I decided to try out Montclair animal hospital. I was impressed right from the start! The girls at the front desk were very friendly and cheery. Dr. Scriffignano was amazing with my pet and it made me feel so at ease to find someone I could trust with my pets well being. Im thrilled that I found a doctor who shares the same passion and for animals that I have.

For 15 years we took our dog to Montclair Animal Hospital. My dog recently died and I don’t think I will use them for future animal care.
Here are the pros:
* Easy to get an appointment at one of the two facilities (the other being in Verona)
* normally not long wait times
* Attentive staff
* Dr Scrib really seemed to like and care about our dog
So why only 3 stars? Because they did everything in their power to get the most money out of you. They would do vaccinations at uneven intervals so you had to pay for more visits. They did tests that were unnecessary. They once charged me for full visits and wellness care on 3 separate visits for the same issue. Each visit was $ 600 or more!
It is too bad that vets are often getting a bad rap for their practice of maximizing charges but that is what happened.
Now to find a facility I can trust with my wallet as well as my pet.

After seeing us with our dog on Saturday morning without an appointment we left with conflicting feelings. For an ear irritation we were almost taken for an expensive and we felt unnecessary ride of various procedures which are all probably in the vets book but not all needed to apply. Usually our vet just gives us a medicated lotion and a steroid. We were offered a bunch of expensive tests and procedures amounting to over $ 600. We insisted on the ointment only since for example an ear medicated wash was offered at $ 70. The entire bill at our vet would have been $ 170 for a visit and an ointment, and here it was $ 150, so we saved $ 20. Again I can’t really tell if the veterinary doctor we saw was caring or not since we felt she just tried to sell us every trick in the book for our dogs ear. We definitely get more detailed oriented attention at our regular vet place.

*I wrote this on the Verona Animal Hospital Unilocal page, and I only have experience at the Verona location. However, as the Montclair location is also a part of this organization, I want to post this here as well.
These doctors seem more interested in over charging you and having you come in for multiple visits than they do for the care of the animals.
I adopted my dog last year and immediately noticed he had an ear infection, red swollen eyes, and he was scooting a lot. Over 5 visits and well over one thousand dollars later he still had these issues.
The last straw for me was when at the 6^th visit to the vet, the doctor says that his eyes look irritated and they should be treated… a condition he probably had since puppyhood … I asked the vets about his red droopy eyes EVERY SINGLE VISIT. The vets at Verona always told me it was normal for his type of dog, and I trusted them; I never had this breed before so I believed what they said. I am LIVID that my dog has been suffering for months (and possibly his whole life) with red irritated eyes, especially after I brought this to their attention numerous times. It’s unconscionable that after all those visits the vet finally say there was a problem.
Though I have been suspecting this animal hospital wasn’t the greatest, I didn’t want to believe that the veterinarians would purposefully prolong my dogs symptoms just to create more follow up visits and thus more cash for their business… but that’s what I believe now! I’m disappointed; I trusted these people with my dog and instead of helping him they squeezed every penny they could out of me. Just to echo other review complaints: (1) the waits are long, (2) they do most procedures in the back where you cannot see what they’re doing, (3) exams are expensive, everything is expensive here [most vets can be pricey, but they’re on the higher end of expense with lacking quality of care]. I’m mad at myself for choosing the convenient location of Montclair/​Verona Animal Hospital instead of driving a little farther for better care.
I now know that the vets at Verona and Montclair are completely irresponsible with the health of the animals owners pay so much for them to examine, and I’m an idiot for staying with them this long. How dare they charge so much for their lack of expertise and recklessness with expensive follow up appointments (my theory being that instead of dealing with all symptoms at once, they prolong addressing present symptoms to different appointments so you have to come back multiple times at $ 200+ every visit)
*I did medicine as they directed. I’ll admit I’m a new dog owner, but I did everything they told me to.

On 12÷8÷14, after months of research I came across Montclair Animal Hospital and set up our appointment, I have a little boy cat called Leo. When I walked in unlike many vets offices I have visited there was no smell, next the staff in the front were so friendly made you feel special. Very promptly we were taken in to the room for our visit, again greeted by another staff personnel very kind and caring. I was nervous because I have never loved a animal so much, in walked Dr. Paul Schubert OMG, the most gentle man/​Dr I meet. Leo took to him right away so I knew it had to be a good thing. Had up date phone calls during his stay there. We went yesterday for a recheck, Desiree (got to love her) was so happy to see leo, with in moments leo and I enter the exam room and again greeted by someone who loved Leo and couldn’t wait to see him. Dr. Schubert then entered, and my cat was happy to even see him, which made me say I want Dr. Schubert to care for leo. I have a animal hospital right up the street from me in Wayne. And my pets never got the care and love I seen in this office. Without a doubt I highly recommend for anyone who have a loving pet and need a vet go there!!!
Debra Gruber

Went in for our first visit this week and I was thoroughly impressed. The desk staff were friendly, our appointment was honored on time, and they were sweet with my dog. They took us in for the exam and told us what vaccinations we needed and what else they would recommend, then gave us an estimate of what it would all cost! I’m not sure I’ve ever had a vet who gave us that kind of warning. We got our dog up to date on all her vaccinations and held off on a few of their ‘recommended’ treatments, but will absolutely be back for the rest.
The day after the visit I got a follow up call just to make sure my dog didn’t have a reaction to the vaccinations, and an email with an account on their website so I can keep up to date on her visits. A+ service all around!

We have been coming to the Montclair Animal Hospital for several years, but I just now have been compelled to write a review. I have recently had major medical issues with both of my cats within a month of the other. The first cat, Monty, ate several of my hair bands (don’t ask!) and basically had to have a kitty stomach pump. We found this out on a Saturday afternoon, and the office closed at 12. Rather than sending me away to the animal hospital, the vet stayed several extra hours to perform the procedure herself. After the weekend, they had me bring Monty back and they did a check up and another ultrasound to make sure they had gotten everything, free of charge.
The second cat, Obi, has been losing weight and looking ill. After several tests, Dr. Scriff informed me that he most likely had cancer, but they needed to do two different biopsies to know for sure. Knowing I couldn’t afford it after the three grand I had just put out for the other cat, I told him that I would just have to make the cat comfortable for as long as he had left. He said, in light of the money I had just spent, he would do all the tests at cost. After these came back inconclusive, Dr. Scrif continued to work on the case, free of charge, and even offered to have a second opinion, until we finally were able to come to a decision on what to do.
There are some not great reviews on here. But from this experience, I can tell you that Dr. Scriff (the owner of the hospital) is just a wonderful human being, and your pet could not be in better hands. He is a vet who does things because they are the right thing to do, not because it’s going to make his hospital $$$. That is an extremely rare find!!!

Amazing place! Love this place! Doctor and nurses very sweet!
Honest and amazing service with my cat.

I took my dog here three times, and will never go back again. I have several complaints. 1) The wait times are long. 2) The atmosphere is very sterile and my dog hates it. While some might like that, I want a more homey feel where my dog feels welcome. 3) They allow you in the room for the basic exam but when it comes time to administer vaccines or perform any other service, they take the dog back into a separate room, and prefer that the owner not come back. This is the only vet where I’ve ever seen this done, and my dog is terrified without me there. They say that they have found that the dogs behave better without their owners there? I don’t know that I believe that — it made me very leery about what was going on back there. 4) It’s way too overpriced. I came from Nashville, TN and always took my dog to the most expensive vet in town, and even that pales in comparison to the rates here. $ 75 to have the vet feel around my dog and listen to her heart, calling it an exam?
The last straw was when my husband took our dog in to get her toenails trimmed and anal glands expressed. Her anal glands need to be done every couple of months, and for the past five years at various vets we’ve taken her in and been out with around a $ 40 bill ($ 25 glands/​$ 15 nails). When my husband came home and said it was $ 130, I nearly died. We called back, and they said that they performed an exam on her in addition to the other services, and that any time we took her in they would have to do an exam, even if we were only coming in for glands and a nail trim. Please note that they could not explain why this was necessary. Pay $ 130 every two months for a 10 minute service? I think I’ll pass.

I’ve been taking my dog here for a few years. I find their staff to be very kind, and I like Dr Roberto.
However, I continue to be disappointed with the care my dog receives here.
In the past, they’ve performed «wellness panels» which have turned up a million «irregular» results for her. I adore my dog and would do anything to make sure she’s healthy, but after thousands of dollars (literally) in followup tests, the vets come back with no conclusive results or recommendations… and I’ve been left wondering what value these vets provide.
Also, the wait times in the office are really long. I just got back from there, where I waited 35 minutes trying to calm an anxious, whining and pulling dog — all for her to receive one vaccination.
For me, the convenience of location is outweighed by the fact that if any test results come back irregular, I always have to end up going someplace else to find out what’s actually going on.
(I’m also going to post this for Verona Animal Hospital, since it’s the same clinic with the same vets, staff, and experience for me.)