Webster Groves Animal Hospital & Urgent Care Center

Wow. Just had the most terrible experience with this hospital. It was vaguely rectified but I’m still really upset at how I was treated-​particularly by a lady with gray hair and light blue scrubs. I had brought my dog in for a check up and had told the receptionist at the end that I needed a health certificate in order to fly back to NYC with. Apparently I was a day too early (10 days is the cutoff) and she told me to come back and get it at a closer date-​easy.
I called today (my flight is tomorrow) and asked the woman on the phone if I could pick up Moose’s health certificate at some point tonight (they’re open 24 hours)-she said no problem. GREAT! I stop by a few hours later and they «can’t find» the certificate so I say I’ll come back later because I’m in a rush.
THEN I get a call 10 minutes later and the woman on the line says she doesn’t know who I spoke to, but that I have to come in and be seen by a vet again in order to get the certificate-​at an emergency fee because there are no appointments left. I’m obviously pissed, so I ask that because of their mistake, that I at least get to pay an appointment fee. «There are no appointments left, Hun”-alright, well then at least waive the fee. There’s no manager in. After one more press to fit me in, to ask the doctor, I get HUNG UP ON! I call them back and speak to someone else who says I can fill out a dispute form. Nicely. If that was my only option, the first receptionist could have told me that.
THEN. I walk in for my «emergency» and the woman who hung up on me admits it’s her and says she got the fee lowered but not before saying that the reason she hung up on me is because essentially she couldn’t listen to me any longer. Ok. I’ve worked with difficult people on the phone before (I realize I was being difficult, but only because the office should have taken responsibility for their mistake) and it is NEVER okay to hang up on a client or customer.
Thankfully they made it somewhat right, but I’m just kind of in shock at how I was treated. That lady definitely needs some customer service lessons.
Other than that, this hospital is fine-​they are part of AAHA which is always a good sign, and I like that they have a little store inside.
PS I should also mention that I feel they try to push unnecessary treatments on your pet. I brought Moose in because he randomly barfed a couple times in a week and he’s had worms before-​the Doctor looked at the vomit sample I brought in and didn’t see any worms or eggs but then talked me into anti-​nausea medication and tried to get me to give him an X-​ray. I don’t play those games. I said yes to the nausea med cause I thought it would make him feel better (which was admittedly, probably dumb), but said I’d wait on the X-​ray to see if it cleared up after a couple days on rice & chicken and it did.

We have used Webster Groves Animal Hospital for the past 4 years and have had many issues with their timeliness for scheduled appointments. Today was a prime example. We arrived on time for a scheduled appointment only to wait and wait and wait. 55 minutes had passed from our scheduled time and we decided to leave and take our business elsewhere. This was at least the third time we waited more than a half hour past a scheduled appointed time, so I don’t believe it’s a coincidence. If I could rate below 1 star I would. Consider this review when selecting a veterinarian. This office is all about volume.

Never, never take you pet here! Charges that you & your regular vet feel were for unnecessary procedures, no recommended follow up treatment (only that you bring your pet back there).
When I called to complain about the treatment my dog received I was told that it was being processed and I would receive a call at the end of the next week?
I have always heard bad things about this place but since it was recommend by my vets office I thought it would be okay — how wrong we were!

I could not be more unhappy with my experience here. My dog, at 11 years of age, took an ugly turn one evening, and she had to be rushed here due to the location. This place has a voicemail for every dept., they never return calls, all while your dog is in their care. They say, I’m so sorry, but then do it over and over again. They are very pricey, nickel and dime you for everything, and I will never go back here. The only pleasant experience I had was with Tom in accounting. He returned every call and worked with me. Past that, I wouldn’t recommend this place.

The highlight of this place is the friendly receptionists and the kind Vet Tech. Took my 8 month old wiener dog in to get the rest of his vaccines. Told them I wanted the cheapest bundle and they still charged me an extra $ 39 for a test I opted out of. Watched the vet basically body slam my 10 pound dog on the table and muzzle for acting *aggressive* which is something that hasn’t been an issue before. It made me upset even though I know it was a precaution. Total visit ended up costing almost $ 160. It’s not worst experience I could’ve had, but probably not the best.

I am appreciative they worked us in for fluids but… terrible vet tech. Let me start over the staff in general seemed a bit incompetent. Save your money and go somewhere else. I have a very nervous cat and the tech would not listen to me and let me get her situated. She peed all over herself. Then when the tech gave her a shot I warned her that she would need to hold on but nope! Very tramatic for all parties involved. She flew off the table and hit the door. Needless to I was super pissed. NEVER again will I go there. Very Very incompetent! I can not stress that enough. It’s worth the drive to chesterfield or kirkwood!

We use to take our German shepherd here. This was the first hospital we took him because the shelter we got him from had a connection with this hospital. However, as he got older, we came to this hospital more frequent, and as much as I love one of the girls that work there named Alicia who was the pet trainer, everyone else there just seemed to have an attitude or liked making things hard for clients than it had to be. He was misdiagnosed with kidney stones and UTI issues which required $ 200 xrays and culturing that was another $ 100 – 200, and also surgery which was in the thousands plus stay at the hospital and anesthesia. I got so frikin stressed and nervous I went and bought him insurance the next day bc I was afraid he would die if we couldn’t afford it. But I went over notes and the doctors word carefully and everything I was experiencing with my dog, and the everything just didnt match up. I finally decided to go to Belkin animal hospital for a recheck on everything I had heard and our German shepherd trainer recommended them. Webster grove animal hospital told me if i dont get the xray and surgery, my dog could potentially die.
At the end, the doctor at Belkin found nothing wrong with my dog and even called Webster grove to tell them they made a mistake and to transfer all files and history over so I wouldn’t be going back to them. Thanks Belkin for saving my ass so I didnt spend thousands of dollars for nothing. It’s funny because the doctor we have now doesn’t criticize my dog or just tell us what we need to get done just to make money. Rather he explains the problem, gives me advice, and always works with my dog. So, thanks but no thanks Webster Grove Animal Hospital!

Dr. Rachel Williams totally misdiagnosed my cat’s condition, stating he had a fracture of the calcaneus and tarsal tibia. Only one x-​ray was taken and there was no radiologist at the clinic to interpret the film correctly. Apparently Dr. Williams has limited knowledge regarding feline anatomy. I then took kitty to a professional clinic with experienced veterinarians AND a radiologist and learned he had a broken pelvis. I do not recommend this pseudo urgent care clinic.

Facts first: they have an «internal medicine» department that will take at least 48 hours to return your call, and they will likely make errors in prescriptions for your pet. They do not answer the phone, they only take messages. In addition, the doctors are completely unavailable and you’ll have to deal with poorly educated staff members for all communications. They are only allowed to text the doctor, who himself is arrogant, rude, condescending and disrespectful (especially with women) and generally not all that competent or caring of your pet. You represent dollars to them and nothing else.
We had a dog diagnosed with a pheochromocytoma tumor, which is quite rare. David Burgener claims to know how to handle it, but in the end he just contributed to a painful death for our dog. He and his staff, as mentioned, made numerous mistakes in prescribing medication and was dismissive of some severe diarrhea our dog suffered from shortly before she died. It’s not enough that he and his staff are rude and uncaring, they’re also of questionable competence and ability.
Overall, Webster Groves Animal Hospital is an utterly inhumane, horribly run, unprofessional, unkind, pathetic excuse of an animal hospital. David Burgener and his staff – Jackie and Jen – are the worst offenders, and their callous, indifferent, and consistently disrespectful behavior makes this a place that you’d be wise to avoid if your beloved pet has serious problems.
And to echo what others have noted, their front desk staff is unbelievably rude and apathetic. Are there worse animal hospitals? Probably, somewhere. But there’s no doubt there are innumerable better ones.

The women at the front desk are unpleasant & condescending. Don’t ask questions about the procedures and paperwork for your animal, unless you want to be talked to like you’re an idiot.
I can’t speak for all of the women there, but I’ve had bad experiences with three of them.
The Doctor was very nice; The assistant in the room was also friendly.
But first impressions stick with me and the women at the front desk ruined this hospital for me. I will not be back!!!

On of my cats was passing blood. He just got over an urinary tract infection. I thought it was urgent and my vet refers to them when he is closed. I was promptly put in an exam room and proceeded to wait. After an hour and a half in the exam room and not being informed of the reason for the delay I began to pack up and leave. Then the vet entered. I conveyed my agitation. Instead of an apology for the delay all I got was excuses. Apparently a cat passing blood isn’t critical to them. Therefore my pet would have to on deaths door and they were the only facility open before I would return.

I do not recommend this animal hospital/​vet group. First their phone customer service when you call to make an appointment sucks. We have a new puppy and of course needed guidance on what he needed and the person who answered seemed annoyed when I asked questions. We went in for the first appointment just to make sure everything is ok. It took 20 minutes to get signed in, another 20+ minutes waiting to go into a room. So 45 minutes after my appointment time we see the vet who pets him says he looks good and needs to come back for shots in 2 weeks. Then we wait another 10 minutes after we are done to check out out. I was thinking it was probably a bad day and gave them the benefit of the doubt so I come back for the shots and wait 15 minutes to check in, with total chaos in the waiting room. Then sit and wait… and wait… and wait… I gave up and left 40 minutes after my scheduled appointment.

They took excellent care of my sick dog. It was clean, quick and they were very professional. I would highly recommend to anyone.

Our four year old dog had a bad reaction to a vaccine (not given at Webster Groves). He was shaking, in pain whenever you touched him, and his heart was racing. It was late Sunday night when the symptoms set in. Not sure what to do, I found Webster Grove was open ²⁴⁄₇. We were seen quickly by the tech, as well as the vet who gave him a steroid shot to calm, and the reactions, down, as well a Benadryl shot. Only $ 100 later and my dog is much better, eating again, and no long in such visible pain. The place was clean, the front people were efficient, and the vet was kind.
Sure might have been slightly more expensive than a regular vet, but its URGENT CARE. Just like for humans, you go to urgent care when its urgent and can’t get in anywhere else. For that, I am grateful to Webster Grove!

We have used Webster Groves Animal Hospital for the past 6 yrs and never had anything but good experiences until this past week when we took in our 15 yr old cat when we knew she was really sick and would probably have to be put to sleep.
From the assistants to the Doctor herself, the staff were very compassionate and very helpful in explaining what our options were. Never did we feel pressured to spend more to try and save her or made to feel guilty with putting her to sleep. After assessing her health and discussing our options, we knew that putting her to sleep was the best choice for our beloved kitty.
The staff gave us as much time we needed with her and were extremely compassionate as we had everything done with us in the room.
To me, these are the times that a vet really shows its true colors and for all of the bad reviews on here, all I can say is that our experience was all we could have hoped for.
Thank you Webster Groves Animal Hospital for helping make a very hard visit a little easier to handle.

The people are very nice but this place seems to be all about the money. Our kitten had elevated levels of something and they decided that he was probably dying and did two blood tests, an ultrasound, and other things that are expensive even on humans. They said he had an elevated heart rate, high potassium levels and kidney failure. They called a few days ago and said he could be in liver failure and probably has Addisons Disease and they need to do another blood test even though we had one done a week and a half ago. They just want us to spend more and more money and make up the worst case scenario up to get us to spend.
We took our kitten to Millis a few days instead and they said he’s perfectly fine and they’ve never heard of Addison’s disease in a kitten before.
We won’t be going back to this vet in Webster again. Spent over $ 1000 on finding something that wasn’t there.

Been here multiple times… the wait can be massive (over four hours on a Monday night WITH appointment), but let me remind you people, this is THE big emergency clinic in the area. So, when they bring in pet after pet that are dying in people’s arms… you get bumped. SO, that can be bad. BUT, one of the doctors, Dr. Kerkhoff, is fantastic, we request her, and has treated Chewbacca and Lucy very well. They would have FIVE stars if it wasn’t for the unpredictable waiting times… sometimes.

We are heading to the Pet Parade tomorrow, and I felt like the worst dog owner in the world because I realized my dog was out of date on his vaccines! I would never expose him to the public unvaccinated, so I was calling everywhere trying to get an appointment. WGAC told me to bring him on up and had a tech vaccinate him. I found the front desk helpful, and the staff to be very kind.
I did have quite a long wait, which could have been better, but other than that great service and caring people.

Our puppy ate our carpet and on Christmas Eve the vets office that we switched to when moved refused to treat her so we drove an hour to Webster groves and we got in right away and she was kept for 3 days if we would not have taken her she would have died so I’m very thankful for the great vets and great staff

I can’t speak to the previous experiences listed here. I’ve had nothing but good interactions with the staff at Webster Groves. At the very least I’ve had unremarkable interactions. Nothing bad. It was the recommendation from the breeder where I got my first dog and I haven’t had a reason to go anywhere else. Then again, I’ve never had to deal with major medical issues with a pet (knock on wood). Yeah. Its expensive. But when isn’t veterinary care pricey, honestly? The only thing that gets annoying is when they give you the price of a procedure but then upsell you on the optional «comfort package.» I get it, its business, but I end up feeling like an asshole for even considering not paying for the extra care.
I haven’t had a bad experience with any of the veterinarians, which is really why I come back. They have all been pleasant and knowledgeable.