I am a physician and my wife is a nurse and we were trying to find a place to board our new 16 week old puppy for a weekend trip to a medical conference. I called several places around Gainesville and found Oaks Veterinary Hospital. The front desk quoted me a price of ~$50 for a weekend, which was slightly more expensive than some of the surrounding areas but it was located relatively near our house and so we went with them. My wife's father is a vet and provides most of the care to our puppy. He was up to date on all his vaccines and has received two physical exams since we have gotten him. We had established veterinary records with us. Since he had just turned 16 weeks old, it was time for him to receive his rabies vaccine which we figured we could give to him while he was at the kennel. The facility also requested to give the bordetella vaccine, which we were fine with. This increased the bill slightly above the previously quoted $50 mark but this was ok. Then came the day to drop off our pet. It turns out that the quoted $50 fee previously was actually $50 for them to basically put your pet in a kennel. He would not receive any play time and would only be taken out for feeding/elimination. To have them actually play with your dog, you would need to pay essentially double the cost of the original quoted price. On top of this, they also then charged another $50 for a "new pet exam" prior to giving the vaccines. Also on top of this they also charged another $50 for "standard labs" which had already been performed. They found residual hookworm eggs (my puppy had already been treated for hookworm and was still being treated with a dewormer). They did not contact us for consent to treatment and began it anyway (without our consent, which fyi in human medicine would constitute assault). We would not have consented to treatment, as we would have likely just purchased the dewormer ourselves and finished the entire process much cheaper. After all the hidden fees, additional fees, and additional charges our pet bill went from the quoted $50 to $250, with no improvement in our puppy's overall health. Although the office staff were very friendly, the vet was very rude. She was talking very rudely about my wife and I just outside of the exam room which was easily audible from our point, and was also very rude regarding my wife's father. Further, the vet's "exam" that we paid $50 for was a quick look at our dog's mouth to make sure his adult incisors had grown. Although indicated for Rabies vaccination, our father in law, who again is a licensed vet, had already done this and included these records in our new paitent information. Overall, much of the interventions performed at this clinic were forced on us. The fact that they also would not take your puppy out of the kennel to play with him unless you paid them twice the listed price was very frustrating. There were numerous hidden fees, charges and gross dishonesty of the staff towards us and our puppy. We were very dissatisfied as there are several good veterinary hospitals in the Gainesville area who see your pet as a family member and not as a dollar sign, which is very much how my wife and I felt at the end of all of this. Overall, I would strongly discourage anyone from using Oaks Veterinary Hospital in the future as any service they provide carries a slew of hidden fees and they do not have your pet's best interest in mind, only the interest of their rude veterinarian's wallet. Also, when considering the positive reviews on this page, keep in mind that several of them have been from employees of this hospital.

I just moved to Gainesville and went to this vet because it was close to my house. The vet charged me twice what my last vet charged for my dog's yearly check up. I LOVED my last vet, so I may be a bit biased here. I also took my dog to the vet for a skin condition, which the vet glanced at and immediately called allergies (I realize skin conditions are hard to diagnose but I felt that the visit was rushed). Since then, the spot has spread and I have called to speak with the vet and not received a call back. I will say, however, that the vet and the tech were extremely nice.

I have been taking my greyhounds to this veterinary hospital for almost 15 years. I can't imagine anyone there trying to cheat anyone, or lie to anyone, or be anything but helpful and kind. The vets are knowledgeable, compassionate, and highly skilled. As for the teeth - you probably should have listened to Dr. Dean - she knows what she's talking about.

Fact: this office has charged us for services that we didn't ask for/wanted/needed numerous times. (They were "happy to take off the charges" when we were smart enough to look at the itemized statement, but if you're not looking...) Fact (or at least a Very strong impression): we have been pressured or "guilt-tripped" in to services that, I don't think, our cats needed at all. Example: one vet recommended going as drastic as teeth removal for one of our "babies", to show how much the dental problems were hurting him, the vet jammed her fingernail into cat's gums until he yelped; another vet (a year later) simply recommended teeth cleaning. I have been dissatisfied with the antics of this office for a long time, but was tolerant and endured... However when (Fact) they lied directly to me and member of my family regarding an attempted pet adoption and got caught in their lies, that's when I knew that these are Not the people to be trusted with the care of my pets.

Dr. Dean is so awesome. I have had really good experiences with other vets there as well, but Dr. Dean is my latest. She really helped me with my sick cat over multiple appointments and was so sweet with me after she passed (i was literally falling apart in the office). She has been great with my 10 year old tabby and my new adopted cat as well. She is always friendly, approachable, no question is too dumb and she never makes me feel rushed like she has other patients to see or better things to do. She is very smart and reassuring while being also very sensitive and a genuinely nice lady. Also, a word about Dr. Hammerslag. My ex bf was receiving services from Dr H with his 17 year old cat Milo. My ex is this big hulking football player type who was very close to his cat that he raised from a kitten. Dr. Hammerslag was so sweet to him, kind and patient as she tried everything she could do over the weeks to save Milo and finally had to put him down. Her kindness and gentle explanations to my ex made it easier to accept that it was time to let Milo go. Oaks Vet is great. And the office staff is very friendly as well!!! They remember me by name! :-)