VCA Firehouse Animal Hospital

Been bringing my dog here for years. Everyone here is very kind hearted and welcoming every time I come. They get along with my dog very well.

I really want to like VCA Firehouse. Its a block away and with six pets it’s nice to have a place close by.
I think the quality of care is fine if not good. The front office staff is prompt and friendly. It’s easy to get appointments. The vets seem knowledgeable but…
I always feel like the vet’s primary objective is to maximize their revenue from my visit. The list of «things we could try» typically runs well over $ 500 for various pet aliments and in one case included surgery for what turned out to be constipation in one of our dogs. I feel played by the vets.
I’ve had better success with other vets who still prioritize pet/​owner needs over their own financial stakes. Unfortunately, VCA is not one of these.

I took my dog here for the first time today and am instantly in love. The staff is super friendly and the place is immaculate from the lobby to the exam rooms. You get a free first exam as a new customer, which was nice as I only needed to update my dog’s boardatella shot for boarding. (I was referred by Camp Bow Wow LoDo.)
Free coffee and snacks while you wait but I wasn’t waiting long. The doctor was in to see my pooch shortly and we were on our way. As a another major bonus for our first time, the reception assistant offered me a free bottle of wine as a gift after checking out! Such a pleasure to find a no hassle, affordable, friendly, clean vet in the neighborhood. Highly recommend VCA!

Nice people, too expensive with un-​necessary procedures and prevents purchasing heart worm meds from 3^rd party (though they have offered in the past to price match.)
Whenever we order heartworm meds from 1−800-pet-meds firehouse denies the request and requires a follow up. For a perfectly healthy young dog to have to go in for a checkup to get a lifelong medication every time it needs to be renewed is ridiculous. We got shots from another vet the last time we got heartworm meds which in turn made Firehouse this time suggest we go through them since firehouse wouldn’t approve w/​o followup.
Keeping an animal healthy should be all vets primary concern, at the point that you know I’m not coming in for an un-​necessary checkup and blocking a lifelong med, you’re just preventing me from keeping him healthy!
As nice and knowledgeable as the people are I simply cannot recommend them as they make it feel like me having a healthy dog and being a responsible owner is a cash grab for them.

Update: This place is kind of a rip off… I mentioned my new dog had the runs and they were all gung ho to do a fecal exam for $ 65. Of course because I already told them he had the runs they come back with a diagnosis of giardia (sp) and required a $ 31 medicine. His runs have stopped on their own without the medicine but since he was a rescue dog I will still give him the 5 days of meds to ensure there ins’t a parasite. Then this is where they pissed me off… they recommend a second fecal test just to make sure the medicine worked. Okay no problem, that makes sense… except they want to charge a full $ 65 fecal testing fee again. I believe this should be included in the first fee but this is probably how they get their money back from the «Free Initial Exam». I’ll be finding another vet

I cannot say enough great things about Dr. Sean Lawson and the staff here! He is always so caring and goes the extra mile during every visit. He does a wonderful job at making us feel as though we are the most important patient whenever we come in.
I have been taking my dog here since we adopted her 6 years ago and I am continually impressed at each visit. I would not trust anyone else with her. Their compassion for animals is insurmountable!

My pets are my family and I would not trust their care to anyone else. The staff here is amazing. Always super helpful and friendly. Dr Hafer has been my vet for seven years now and I have never met someone who is more loving and caring to my pets than her.
She never recommends any services that my dogs don’t need and is always respectful of keeping costs of services as affordable as possible. She takes her time to determine where we can start off with treatment and never jumps to recommending anything unnecessary.
I love that they always remind me about dentals and other services that will keep my pet as healthy as possible. They provide reminders of appointments, you can request one online and you can even access a pet portal where you can view everything about what your pet needs. With three dogs on separate well check and vaccine schedules, that is super helpful to me.
I drive over 30 minutes to go to this vet because of the care and attention they pay to both me and my pets. They are my babies and Dr Hafer and her staff treat my pets as if they were their own.
If you love your pets as much as I do, there is no place better than VCA Firehouse!!!

I lost trust that these folks weren’t manipulating me into spending way too much money on unnecessary procedures for my aging dog. Once you’ve hit the point where you’re being «sold» to, it’s hard not to be on edge. It also becomes difficult to differentiate what treatment is necessary, and what is excessive when your vet’s advice is coming from a money making mindset.
Last year, we had to go through a $ 1000 surgery that turned out to be 100% unnecessary (they called me 1 hour into it to tell me that, once he was already under anesthesia). I thought that it was just Dr. Spencer’s attitude that guilted me into performing a surgery I didn’t think was necessary or right, so I tried to go into VCA for another check up this year with the head of the practice instead. It turns out this must be a practice wide behavior, as Dr Hager (the head) was even worse.
During today’s visit, the only things that were addressed were procedures (they ALWAYS push dental and extractions) I should be putting my dog through or supplements we should be buying. I found the exact same supplements on Amazon that we bought with 150 pills total count for the same price VCA charged me for 84 pills! She even shamed me for buying our heart-​worm medication through 1−800-Petmeds and not through VCA. I was only able to get my specific questions about keeping my dog healthy and his muscles toned as he ages answered when being very direct. The vet did not even comment on his benign cysts until I specifically asked. Additionally, his poop habits have changed and she offered no suggestions or reasons for this. Also, they forgot to give me our supplements until I asked AND they forgot to administer his Bordatella shot until we had already paid our bill. The visit was rushed, uninformative, and I somehow still left feeling guilty for not spending as much money on him as they want me to.
As of today, the message I am receiving is that I need to be spending $ 415 2X per year on blood work for an older dog plus around $ 550 for dental care including anesthesia. So, before any real health issues or emergencies may arise, VCA would like me to be paying close to $ 1500/​year on basic maintenance. This isn’t sustainable for a number of people. More-​so, it’s hard to swallow an annual cost commitment like that when I’m certain they will find more things to «treat» or «test» that may or may not be beneficial to my dog, but will certainly be beneficial to VCA’s wallet.

I am so grateful to the entire staff, especially Kelsey and Dr. Cassie Todd.
We had 4 cats, 2 of which have been having regular wellness exams at VCA-​F since our terrible experience with Banfield Glendale. Unfortunately last week, it was evident that one of our oldest cats was really, really sick. VCA fit us in same day, that evening.
Me, my husband, and my mom walked in — all crying, carrying a cat carrier, and probably looking like we were on drugs… the reception staff was so caring, got us in a room immediately. It was clear after Kelsey and Dr. Todd examined him, he was dying, most likely of lymphoma. She didn’t act impatient or annoyed that I wanted to have his pawprint in ink that I will have tattooed next month. They allowed us all the time we needed to say goodbye, to cry, and even as it was being administered I was allowed to hold him — Dr Todd even crawled on her knees under the table and knelt to do the procedure. She also never got mad at me and my husband crying, him yelling obscenities, or me becoming hysterical when his eyes didn’t close. It was clear we were the last appointment of the day, and I love that Dr. Todd, Kelsey, and the front desk did not appear annoyed that we had to take some time to make the decision, and spend a few minutes with him. Dr. Todd herself looked like she was tearing up.
She offered us as much time as we needed during every step, was very honest about prognosis, and the front desk was very caring and waved the exam fee, explained our options, etc. Even when I came back to pick up his ashes in a beautiful urn, a clay baked pawprint, etc, Kelsey came out and saw me and hugged me, and the front desk was very loving and compassionate. We got a card saying a donation had been made in Cole’s name at the Morris Animal Foundation, in memoriam, and that is amazing.
Lindsey has also been very helpful via email re: scheduling, asking if the clay paw was already baked, etc.
That is compassion, and I will always take my fur babies here. I am not a thank-​you card writing person, but I sent them one, and am writing this review. Doctors should have compassion, and these vets honestly do.

I really can’t say enough good things about Dr. Todd She is thoughtful, compassionate, and thorough. We had to bring our dog in a few months ago and turns out he has a type of heart murmur. As you may imagine this kind of news can be scary. Dr. Todd ran tests and also had another doctor look at our pup just to double check what she was finding and hearing. She provided us with information and resources for if his condition worsens. We also got a follow up email with instructions and notes from our appointment.
It is evident that Dr. Todd cares about what she does. We will never take our dog to anyone else because we trust her so much. I strongly recommend taking your fur baby to her if you are in need of a vet.
She is amazing. Thank you for all you do Dr. Todd!

First, let me say that I’ve never had a vet experience that I felt compelled to rave about on the internet. Sure, a little word of mouth here and there, but not full-​on Unilocal-​level lauding. But the folks at VCA Firehouse go so above and beyond, I just couldn’t keep it to myself!
My two fur sons have seen several doctors here, including Dr. Hafer, Dr. Longo and Dr. Spencer, and we’ve had great experiences with each and every one! I feel that the doctors at VCA Firehouse truly go out of their way to spend quality time examining each animal, and will take a generous amount of time explaining things to neurotic pet moms like me. Dr. Hafer has been kind enough to email back and forth with me to check in one of my cats when he was sick a while back – very personal, caring interactions. That same cat just recently had to have several last-​minute tooth extractions; Dr. Spencer was sweet enough to call me several times *during the surgery* to give me updates!
In addition to the great doctors, the support staff here is great. From the vet techs to the front desk, everyone I’ve encountered at VCA Firehouse has been so friendly and helpful, and seem to genuinely care about every animal that comes in. If all that weren’t enough, they gave me a free bottle of wine on my first visit to thank me for my business. Who could ask for anything more?!

I used the VCA Firehouse once and I highly recommend it. I went in because my dog was very sick and asked them to go over pricing before running the each test or x-​ray so that I could stay within my budget. They worked with me to get a CareCredit loan that was able to help with the costs. I eventually had to make the decision of putting my dog down and this was by far the best experience I’ve heard of. They put us in a comfort room that is similar to a studio apartment with couches, candles, and all the comforts of a home. They even gave my dog a blanket to wrap up in. Once they put her IV in they wrapped her paw in a hot pink cast and added a bright red heart. They let me take as much time needed before giving the go ahead and as much time needed on to leave after. A week and a half later I received a clay paw in the shape of a heart with my dogs name in it and a card from everyone at the hospital. I also looked over my final bill and it’s very comparable to other places in the area if not slightly cheaper. Overall I had a great experience for the circumstances I was under.

I cannot recommend this place anymore. Had good experiences in the past, but…
Took in a sick kitten twice within a couple weeks. Saw two different doctors, and neither of them were the slightest bit helpful. One even went as far as saying I may have to put him to sleep without providing me with any explanation or running any tests!!!
I decided to go to Alameda East. The doctor here explained everything in detail and provided me with multiple treatment options.
Need to ask for files or paperwork? Forget about it. I spoke with two different people about getting my pet’s information transferred. Took them over a week before anything was sent and it wasn’t even complete.
If you care about the well being of your animal and prefer to see doctors who are willing to give you their time, then do yourself a favor and go to Alameda East.

Vet: Dr. Longo
Animal: Cat
Total time in and out: about an hour
Cost: $
Pros: Clean, Seen promptly, Professional, nice, summary email, vet caught something another vet hadn’t
Cons: ??
Today I took my cat in, a recent acquisition from Craigslist. She wasn’t eating her dry food and had two goopy eyes. I didn’t mention this to the vet because I didn’t see the point, but her foster family had reportedly had her checked out by a different vet and the vet had declared her «totally healthy» except for the goopy eye, which was supposed to be all better when I picked her up (oh well, great cat, no ragrets).
Well, looks like Dr. Longo caught something the other vet hadn’t. She had a cracked tooth, exposed pulp and needed an extraction. I’d much rather catch that now rather than later. The vet was very thorough and good with her (she’s pretty shy and leery of strangers) and, to use some woo-​woo, very «present» and responsive to my questions. Dr. Longo arrived promptly after I was put in a room and spent a good solid 25 minutes with my cat, asked me about her past, and seemed to be glad to meet her. If you see cats all day, I’m sure they all run together, but the Dr. had a good personal touch. The email summing everything up arrived within five minutes of me walking out. Nice not to have to write anything down or remember it.
Having the first exam cost excused is really nice. My first visit came to a pretty reasonable $ 130 (including eye stains, exam, and two antibiotic prescriptions). The recommended procedures are more pricey, but I understand that tooth extractions entail anesthesia. For the top of the line tooth extraction (x rays, cleaning, drugs, antibiotic), I think it’s going to be about $ 500, which honestly isn’t that bad.
The demeanor of everyone there was very nice and professional, including the Dr., two vet techs, and the receptionists. Definitely recommend it. Total peace of mind. And free coffee.

I’ve been taking my dog to VCA Firehouse for quite a few years. I initially chose Firehouse because Dr. Beth Spencer is there. She was one of the vets I took my last dog to at another hospital. She is very caring, knowledgeable, and gentle and I knew my dog would be in good hands.
Since starting at Firehouse, we’ve actually seen a lot of the vets and vet techs who work there and, like Dr. Spencer, they are all very caring, knowledgeable, and gentle. I really couldn’t ask for better doctors for my dog and she seems to like them too. Dogs are usually afraid of the vet, but my dog likes to just pop in for a visit. Everyone there is so nice, she feels quite comfortable with them.
The fact that Firehouse is in a convenient location is a bonus.

We like this vet quite a bit. We were recommended them by our friends when we adopted our 3 month old rescue puppy. She had been spayed, but otherwise only had 1 vaccine. They have a package for the first year of a puppy’s life that allows you to pre-​pay for all of the vaccines, microchipping, visits, fecal tests, and even canine influenza and leptospirosis. This ends up being much cheaper than getting them one by one at the vet. Though it’s a bit more expensive than going to PetSmart or PetCo or the Dumb Friends League, etc., for those of us that prefer to have an actual vet to call whenever we have questions about our puppy (and trust me, you will!) and also to make sure that your puppy is getting officially checked out for worms and mites and kennel cough (which they can still get even with the shot), it is well worth it.
We see Dr. Bobbi Hafer, and she’s amazing. She’s so caring and sends a detailed report via email about your pet after your visit via email. This is great for sending along to any training facility you might be taking your pup to because they’ll require you to provide vaccination history. Also, once you get rabies, they will give you a tag and forms/​envelopes to send in for licensing to Denver. What’s more they always make sure you’re scheduled for your next visit so you won’t be behind in your pup’s life. AND, they will follow-​up the next day to make sure he or she is doing okay. If only our real doctors were as caring!
If you have an emergency, you can also go to one of the other VCA hospitals, and it is very easy to have them share records. We had an emergency and felt like we were part of the same group of doctors, so that was nice. We even got a follow-​up call from our office.
At the end of the day, pets are like children — and children are expensive. They do provide a payment plan if some emergency arises, and they offer insurance that is much better than some of the other ones I’ve seen available. It’s worth it to make sure your pet has the best care. You know he or she would do the same for you!

What is it with these people at Firehouse?
I took my oldest cat in for a check up. She is scared of everything, including her own shadow. Five minutes after Dr Spencer and her tech came in, my fraidy cat was flat on her back on the examining table proudly showing off her white tummy and graciously accepting scruffeles around her head and ears. She’s been different at home, too — more accepting of outsiders.
She had to have some teeth extracted (she is 15), and the cost for that was about half of what I would have paid at our last dentist. Then, when I had to take her in for her follow up, I had been involved in a ski accident, including concussion, black eye, cracked ribs. The next follow up call, Dr Spenser checked on me first!
I could go on, but these guys have our return business

I honestly can’t say enough about this place. I relocated from Ohio a few weeks ago. Last week, my twenty pound puggle, Delilah, had a two-​day stretch of diarrhea that inspired me to get her checked out. VCA Firehouse was friendly and responsive and appropriate and just generally excellent in their responsiveness, their delivery, and their attentiveness. Everyone on staff obviously very much cares about your pet. They’re mailing me a free ID tag for Delilah as a gift for new pet customers, and they handed me a bottle of wine on my way out the door for new people customers. Unilocal also has a coupon for a free initial exam, which they applied to my bill without me even asking.
This place is definitely pricey, and I probably won’t use them for regular shots and toe nail trimmings and the like, but if you think there’s a problem with your pet, get thee to VCA Firehouse. These folks are as good as they get.

Yesterday the most unimaginable thing happened. I had finished a walk with alfi, let him off leash and was about to head in the house when something caught his eye and he darted across the street and then the most horrific boom/​crash I have ever heard as he was hit by a car coming up the street. I was too shaken to call the vet as alfi barked and cried in pain, trapped beneath the car.
My neighbor who was more composed than i called VCA firehouse and like little angels they showed up with their stretchers and stethoscopes as alfi breathed his final breath. We all stood there in shock hugging and crying.
You know they might be a little expensive but there is no price tag you can put on knowing that they aren’t just a business they are united in the love you have for your pet.
Thank you vca firehouse for being there with me throughout the worst day of my life and showing respect and dignity for me and sweet alfi.
And to you dog owners who think maybe you can let your dog off leash just this one time. Please for me and for alfi. Just don’t.

Firehouse was where I took my dog when we lived downtown. The front desk staff was always friendly and attentive both on the phone and when we went in. Sierra, my American Dingo, hates the vet and gets really nervous (I doubt any animals LIKE going to the vet…) But, I saw a couple of veterinarians here, and both were very sincere and cared not only about my dog’s well-​being, but also my concerns as her human.
Once, Sierra was acting out of the ordinary and I was very concerned about her. I called them up and they were able to see us the same day, and got her fixed up. They called to follow up with me and ask how she was doing, which I always appreciate.
On a couple of other occasions, I called to see if Sierra’s symptoms were worrisome enough to bring her in, and instead of just making me bring her in and pay for an exam, each time they put me on the phone with either a vet assistant or a veterinarian, who asked me more detailed questions about Sierra’s pertinent issue.