Mt Tabor Veterinary Care

I went to Mt. Tabor Veterinary for years, but they just quoted me $ 800-​$ 1,100 for my dog’s dental work — — and then charged me $ 2,200 when I picked her up after the procedure. Without letting me know about the increase. This is a classic bait and switch strategy — an incredibly bad business practice. The vet had the nerve to tell me she’d hurt her wrist extracting one of my dog’s teeth, as if that justified the fact that the price was DOUBLE the high-​end quote. The vet also told me that if she had given me the quote (instead of the nurse who did my intake meeting), it would have been higher. It seems to me that clients shouldn’t have to interview all members of the staff to compare quotes — Mt. Tabor should have stood behind the quote given by their nurse. At the very least, they should have called me during the procedure to warn me of the increase. When I expressed dissatisfaction at all of this, I was told I had to pay the $ 2,200 — they wouldn’t take no for an answer. I reported them to the Better Business Bureau, but there’s really not much more one can do. They said they’d send me to collections if I didn’t pay it. I was really surprised at how hard-​nosed and evil they got with their business practices. I loved them for years and felt they were folks with integrity. This whole situation really shocked me. They were the ones who made a mistake by not calling me and telling me about the increase. I shouldn’t have had to pay for that mistake.
Also, since this has happened, I’ve compared notes with friends who go to other vets in SE Portland. It turns out that Mt. Tabor’s prices are WAY higher than other vets in the area. It’s not something you ever think to check, right? You’d probably never think to call five area vets and ask about dental costs — I know I didn’t. I just assumed they were all about the same and that I’d be getting a fair price. My friends who go to other SE PDX vets (and who had also had dog dental work done recently) were shocked at Mt. Tabor’s pricing. For example, one friend took her dog to Milwaukee Animal for three tooth extractions and three mass removals (my dog had two tooth extractions and one mass removal) and it was just $ 700 for the whole procedure vs. my $ 2,200. So, the lesson here is to do your research. Also, don’t be fooled by Mt. Tabor’s lovely waiting rooms, the way the offer you tea, the way everyone is so sweet. They’re milking their clients for everything they’re worth, and they’re nasty business people.
Needless to say, I won’t be going back. I highly recommend that you avoid this business.

We have had several dogs and lived in different cities. This is by far the best experience, best care, and nicest people we and our dogs have experienced. Dogs and humans are welcomed and made comfortable in examining rooms that feel live your living room at home. But it is the genuine love for animals and compassion for their humans that make this a special place.

We were just looking for a nearby vet for our kitten and have been very pleased with what we found. All of the staff, from the front desk to the vet to the assistants treated our new family member like he was the most important pet there! The office is clean and up-​to-​date and I definitely trust their advice. I would highly recommend this clinic!

I’ve been bringing my Chihuahuas here for about 2 years and I couldn’t be happier with the service and the care they provide my dogs. A few days after I got my first chihuahua she got a crazy skin infection, after I had gotten home from work in the evening I realized she needed medical attention. I was about to take her to an emergency vet but decided to call Mt. Tabor Vet just to see if they would see us. It was about 6pm and my dog wasn’t even a patient there and they were still so accommodating and told us to come right in. The entire staff always go out of their way for their customers, always so nice and very professional. My dogs see Dr. Williams and they both just love her… My dogs hate everyone so this is a big deal for me! Not only is the staff awesome but they know what they’re doing so I don’t have to worry about my dogs not getting good care. It’s hard to find trustworthy businesses these days so I’m very happy I found this place!

This place was wonderful – it felt more like just hanging out with my dog in a coffee shop than taking her to the vet. They were very gentle and seemed genuinely interested in the dog.
The prices were reasonable but most importantly they were nice and made us feel welcome. Dog was calm the whole time – the cheese helped but it was ultimately the leather couch and wall décor that fooled her ^.^ the place just had a chill vibe.
The staff was really knowledgable as well — and they made the whole process (2 vaccines and some medication) painless. They also had arguably better medications and vaccines than most.
We will be going back here for sure :)

Let me start by saying the staff is very friendly & caring (they earned a star there) and the place is nicer than a (human) spa (earned another star) which could explain why their prices are so high.
But they fumbled my first visit. They forgot to give me the container for a urine sample (which I’ve NEVER in the 15+ years of owning dogs ever had a urine sample for any reason & this was a routine exam) so they called to ask me to come back to get the container and then go home and get a urine sample and bring it back. That alone would be an 45 min trek round trip for me just for a piss container that they forgot. (yeah, not gonna happen!) Then I gave them my fecal sample during the exam visit and when I called a week later to get the results they informed me they forgot to tell the lab to process it so the lab threw the fecal sample out and that I would have to come back again to drop one off to be tested. (really??! wtf, first the urine now the fecal) Needless to say I asked for my refund on the fecal test that I had already paid $ 52. They politely obliged once only after I had to call back since the nurse was embarrassed and didn’t know if they could process a refund. But I will say, the CCA at the desk was super nice about the refund and I was grateful for that because I was already fired up about the incompetency I was experiencing with the nurse.
I also got a quote for dental work and they informed me it would start at a minimum $ 650 and go up to $ 1800. I’ve lived in many MAJOR cities (NYC, Atlanta & Los Angeles) and I’ve had dental cleanings on all my dogs (I have 3) including x-​rays and extractions. I’ve never EVER paid over $ 500. I moved here from Brentwood — an upscale neighborhood in Los Angeles where the last dental I received at a VCA Brentwood was for one of my boys last years cost me at total of $ 438. So I was I was floored when I got the quote here. I called around to VCA North Portland and they too quoted me that= «special» Portland price of starting at $ 650 & up. I polled all my fellow breed owner friends on Facebook about their dental bills (this particular breed is prone to chronic crappy teeth) and EVERYONE was floored by the price quotes I’m getting in Portland. Only 1 of 18 people who replied said they had to pay $ 900 for a dental b/​c they had so many extractions. But no one else was over $ 500. So I’m not sure how or why the Vets here think they can charge that much. But this is clearly fleecing of dog owners in Portland.
So while this place is very beautiful, clean and the staff are indeed friendly… the sticker shock pricing & the lack of competency on my first impression/​visit was enough to never go back.
I did find a great dental place in Vancouver! I did a review of them. They charge $ 185 for routine cleaning including x-​rays.

Over a year later and I still can’t express how grateful I am to have found such an amazing team. My pup is pretty smart and had gotten hip to our routine of wrapping him in a blanket then giving him his shots in the bum. This past week we had another visit, and knowing that my pup gets anxious knowing he’s going to get a shot, Dr. Sulis devised a plan to have a vet tech (who he particularly likes, and has even puppy-​sat him) carry him into the hall while she clapped and distracted him, and ANOTHER vet tech ran up behind him to give him his shot.
Where else do you get this kind of attention?! And all because they *genuinely* care about not only the physical wellbeing of their four-​legged patients, but the mental wellbeing as well. My dog pulls me TOWARD the vet when we walk down their street! That says it all.

Greedy, money hungry … charge *steep* prices … and don’t try to get a same day RX unless you want to pay a «sets» fee, ridiculous

First of all, the swag is not important, and if you choose a vet because they give you french press coffee or have nice décor, you’re doing it wrong. But this is in fact the best vet clinic in town. By far. This vet clinic is the Beyonce of vet clinics. Flawless.
I stopped going there a month ago for logistical reasons that are not relevant. The vets are utterly devoted to pets, like we’re talking some next-​level worship of puppies and kitties. I will never ever forget seeing Dr. Williams somehow get my ornery, previously abused Cavalier King Charles Spaniel onto her lap, belly up, which is not something he tolerates from anyone, and then lean her head in and cuddle with him. What a sight. I almost cried.
All 3 vets are legitimately brilliant. And they give you a quote before doing any test or procedure, and they will honestly tell you what can wait and what is urgent. I seriously loved this clinic, and since I left, I have had zero luck finding anyone even in the same galaxy of good vet-​ness.
I wish I could find another vet clinic that I could trust with my sick dogs’ care. Alas, there does not seem to be one. I’ve tried a couple, and one vet almost killed my dog (literally) with a wrong prescription (and I had to stay awake an entire night to make sure she didn’t die as a result), and another clinic was all about making profit off unnecessary treatments while shaming me for being a negligent pet owner, without even knowing me before that appointment. So I’m pretty bummed I had to leave Mt Tabor, since my dogs are now without good care and are therefore the ones suffering, but I did have to leave, and that is just the immutable fact of it. I’m pretty pissed at the situation.
Go to this clinic. You won’t regret it. Shoutout to staff Matt, Theresa, and Josephine. Y’all need to ditch the snazzy photo booth and give those 3 a raise. :)

Mt. Tabor Vet is the absolute BEST and I dare anyone to argue that fact with me.
Here are just a few reasons why:
1. When you arrive, they’ll ask if you’d like anything to drink — coffee? water? When you say coffee, they bring you your own single cup french press!!! Who does that?
2. Their lobby has a wall dedicated to clients’ pets that have died. It’s awesome.
3. My pets are always relaxed there because each room feels like you’re visiting a friends house rather than a doctor’s office.
4. The vets AND vet techs get down on the floor with your pets and interact with them on their level. Face kisses and all.
5. When your dog has to get shots, they distract them with a bowl smeared with easy cheese. EASY CHEESE, PEOPLE! It’s the best. You get to be the hero and hold the bowl of cheese while they administer shots and whatnot.
6. And not to harsh your mellow, but my dog recently passed away and I can’t imagine going through that experience without their support. They helped me the whole way with information, personal stories, hugs and even tears.
Call them. You can thank me later.

Chai, is my nine year old lab mix. He’s energetic beyond belief– at nine, it’s like having a dog on ecstasy and wearing rocket skates. Chai is also very friendly, affectionate and playful, especially for being an older doggie.
However, Chai’s normal gregarious personality disappears when his toe nails are trimmed… A dark cloud descends upon all in his presence with a thunderclap worthy of a scene from Jekyll and Hyde, and Chai becomes aggressive. He’s also large. Did I mention this? So, trimming his toenails could be accurately described as wrestling a lively burlap sack filled with animate, chomping bear traps.
Mt. Tabor’s nursing team to the rescue! Matt, and another tech (I FORGOT HIS NAME I’M A TERRIBLE HUMAN) coaxed beast-​mode Chai into accepting his toe nails trimming with about five minutes of «Gooood booooy, it’s okay!». Their smooth talking and quick work made the process less stressful for everyone, and now Chai is peticured of his long nails.
I cannot recommend this place enough– Chai has been here for several visits, and the quality of care delivered never deviates from outstanding. Take your furry friend to Mt. Tabor for excellent care, and a relaxing, home-​like environment for your pet. Because let’s face it– you and fido both hate the vet. Go somewhere that you can both breathe easy.

I love this place. They have a great ambiance, the staff is friendly and extremely sweet, my dog LOVES his vet. He actually enjoys going in to their office — which is a first for him. Also, the prices are extremely reasonable. I used to spend more on a much less friendly vet clinic that my dog was terrified of going to.
Not only are they amazing when it comes to their level of care when you are in the clinic, they are fantastic over the phone. I have had two medical emergencies with my dog since I began going to Mount Tabor. One was that he broke out in hives due to allergies and the other was an illness that wouldn’t go away without medical care. Each time, they answered my frantic phone calls with prompt service. They provided over the phone help completely selflessly.
Their prompt and amazing service and over the phone help PREVENTED ME from having to take my dog in to their offices. By being helpful and offering free service, they have sold me on staying with their clinic forever. I know they won’t lead me astray and that they will help my dog — even if it doesn’t profit them at all.
This is a fantastic clinic.

Ruff, Ruff, Happy Noise, Ruff, Ruff, Tail Wag…
Oh sorry, our dog Booker just took over the keyboard. Allow me to translate:
«I’ve been going to Mt. Tabor Vet since I was 3 months old and man do I love it there! Everyone remembers me, gives me treats and is always available when my crazy dog mom has questions. And trust me, she has a lot of them. Even though I’ve had a few shots and procedures done there, all I can remember is the love and attention that they show me each and every time. Nurse Matt is my favorite. He answers any and all questions with a smile!»
OK Booker, time for your mom’s two cents. Clean, comforting and caring. Three words that I’d use 1,000,000 times over to describe Mt. Tabor Vet. They are so good in fact, that on our daily walks, Booker stops, smells the door and wants to go in to say hello to his friends.
«Stop it mom, you’re embarrassing me!»
Well, overall, four paws up and two thumbs up for what in my mind, is the perfect veterinarian.

The ambiance is great– quite peaceful, beautiful and spa-​like. I can appreciate their choice décor but after a year+ of bringing our dogs to this spa/​vet, I came to the realization that the cost of the building was really being passed down to us. I was paying not only for the services rendered for my pups but for the office’s prettiness. Does my dog care about his spa-​like environment? No. Do I care if the quoted price for dental work is $ 600 more than another vet’s quoted for the SAME EXACT ITEMIZED procedure? Yes. It seemed like since they knew we had dog insurance, they assumed we wouldn’t care about how much money we spent. In the end, we decided to move our pups to P*ow*ell Blvd Vet Clinic. They answer the phone faster, dispense rimadyl at a reasonable rate and provide excellent care.

Today, I had a vet emergency. I had walked to the bank, and when I got back, my dog had gotten into my medicine drawer and had eaten his whole bottle of NSAID arthritis medications. I looked up an overdose in that medication, and saw it was potentially fatal. I quickly looked up how to induce vomiting in dogs, but saw that it involved hydrogen peroxide. I didn’t have any, so panicked, I rushed him to my vet — which was closed. I hurried here, because Unilocal said it was the next closest one and I was heartened by the good reviews.
Unfortunately, we had a pretty bad experience. I was really harried because I didn’t know how early on into my walk my dog had eaten the medication and additionally, we had already wasted time by going to a closed vet. When I got to this place, the receptionist was slowly entering data into her computer. Finally, I interrupted her and said, «Not to be alarmist or anything, but my dog ate a whole bottle of medications.»
She replied that she’d just be a minute because her computer was sticking, which REALLY wasn’t what I wanted to hear. She finally called a tech who took us back. She didn’t check my dog to make sure he was stable. She didn’t do anything. She just told me that there was nothing they could do because they had one vet and she was busy.
At this point, I was shaking and asked if they could at least induce vomiting since I had been unable to do that at home and I didn’t know how much time had passed and I had read that if the medications went into the small intestine and got absorbed, that was really bad news. She said she’d go back to check.
When she came back, she said no, they wouldn’t even induce vomiting. Instead, she sent me to a place ten miles away, saying she was just following orders. They didn’t call them to let them know I was coming, nothing. They DID google the address on the aforementioned «sticky» computer which was taking so long, I just said, «you know, I can look that up faster on my phone» since I was so worried about the time issue with my dog.
When I got there and they heard how much time had elapsed since my dog had ingested the whole bottle of medication, the veterinary hospital was pretty concerned. I explained that I had been to 2 other vets previously, one closed, and one that had refused to induce vomiting. They were shocked and asked me which vet this was Well, it’s this one.
Luckily my dog lived — he had to get his stomach pumped, take in two bottles of charcoal, have iv fluids, etc. But I’ve never encountered a vet so callous that when a dog presented with an emergency, they just sent them away as time ticked down as their body absorbed the poison. Could you imagine if this was a human scenario?
«Oh, I’d like to induce vomiting since your son ate all that poison, but. We’re all really busy. Why don’t you try ten miles away? I’ll bring up that address for you… Hold on.»
FYI, their website says they’re set up for urgent care:

I can’t say enough good things about this place. From check-​ups and last-​minute emergencies, to kind follow-​up phone calls, you can tell they really care about your pet and you. I personally love that they are willing to offer pet advice, big and small, over the phone. Also, my cat isn’t particularly vet-​friendly and even when they’re facing his claw-​filled tantrums – their response is sympathetic and caring.
If that’s not enough, the waiting area is lovely and the main examination rooms offer the ambience reminiscent of a classy Portland hotel. My cat gets twice as classy, just being in it.
Bottom line: I’ve never received such personal care and undivided attention from a vet (or doctor, for that matter). If they saw humans, I would go there, too.

Mt Tabor Veterinary Care is excellent. They take the time to really get to know the health history of each animal and they are very thorough in their approach.
You can tell that these folks genuinely love dogs (and I’m sure animals in general). They didn’t try to push unnecessary procedures, supplements and medications on us and were willing to work within our budget.
I wish we’d found them sooner! Highly recommended.

I love Mt. Tabor Vet Care.
The staff is super friendly and attentive, and know me and my dog by name. I’ve never once had a bad experience at this clinic, even with a very special needs dog (I’m also a hi maintenance human counterpart).
Mt. Tabor Vet has always gone out of its way to accommodate us, and to make us as comfortable as possible. My dog has been treated by every vet at this clinic, and I couldn’t recommend them more.
Bonus = vegan free trade chocolate is offered in the waiting room.

The greatest and most compassionate service we have received so far from Mt. Tabor has been in their care of our sweet, gentle, very elderly dog, Tinker, whom we adopted in November of 2012. We knew her days were numbered when we adopted her from the shelter, and we adopted her without hesitation despite this knowledge. But we were surprised when the end came so quickly. From the beginning, she was on a cocktail of anti-​inflammatory drugs and pain medicine. Mt. Tabor worked with us regarding where we chose to get the prescriptions filled, and they provided us a written prescription that we could fill affordably. This was a simple transaction, which we greatly appreciated.
After an unexpected evening at an ER clinic, we followed up with Mt. Tabor only to learn that what we suspected — cancer run amuck — was indeed what was happening with our sweet girl. We chose to end her suffering after having had her for such a very short time, but we did not feel rushed to decide. Neither Bud nor I hesitate about making these important decisions. We both believe that ending suffering is a gift that we can give to our animals. We chose to spend some time alone with her. To fill her up with bowls of canned cheese product and to love on her and scritch her ears and cheeks. And then we chose to let her go.
We had never experienced this in a non-​emergency vet clinic. It was oddly beautiful. Those in the room with us were part of her transition and not simply performing a necessary procedure before moving on to the next appointment. It was our time. Her time. And it was peaceful.
We feel more connected to this clinic now than ever before. We have certainly advocated to friends and anyone who would listen that they provide great services. But what they did for Tinker, we will never forget the compassion and the caring and the tears and the humane ending that we were able to provide to her. That is more than a treatment option listed on a price sheet, more than a service rendered. The memory we have of Tinker in this moment is treasured.

The vet care at Mt Tabor is very attentive and the atmosphere is spa-​like for owner and pets, however, I am changing my review given their apparent inflexibility over one issue.
Mt Tabor Vet refuses to allow an online and reputable company, Drs. Foster and Smith (that sells Heartworm tablets) to call and verify that our dogs had received heartworm tests and were negative. They will give the script to send out, but refuse to call or to be called, even though we have been ongoing clients for a couple of years. They say the reason is because the heartworm pills may not be safe (yet, they are packaged in the same way as at the vet’s office).
We’ve spent thousands of dollars at Mt Tabor, and though we’ve been very pleased with the attentive care, we are extremely displeased with their lack of flexibility. Clearly, they want us to buy our heartworm pills from Mt. Tabor, which, like most vet offices, are marked up, especially compared to the online prices.
Here’s the thing: Mt Tabor is extraordinarily expensive. Perhaps this is because it doesn’t feel like a hospital, and you can get french press coffee while you wait, or organic, mint chocolates. It’s all lovely, but we want to be able to choose what we do with our animals. In addition, Mt Tabor Vet does not offer after-​hours care, should you have an emergency.
Sum up: Mt. Tabor Vet offers exceptional veterinary care, but their refusal to do something so simple (to just take a call from the online Drs Foster and Smith) is going to cost them our business.