Advanced Veterinary Care – AVC

Great place! They do a really good job diagnosing problems with your dog. I would recommend to anyone.
Cody Williams

Every individual we dealt with from the receptionist to the doctors were just perfect!

Been here too many times already this year, and it certainly isn’t cheap. But emergency medical care isn’t cheap for person or animal.
Positives:
— Available 24hr
— Knowledge and skill (operative)
— Patience and willingness to field 100 questions in the middle of the night
— Understanding of different levels of willingness to pay for care. There is nothing wrong with offering the range of treatments and letting you decide what you want for your pet.
— Good communication, follow-​up, and responsiveness over the phone
— Coordination when you’re away (such as when your pet makes a visit from a kennel)
— Overnight observation option
— Up front cost estimates — you will know the price range (which is wide, but accurate) before you sign and get started
Negative:
— Cost. Though when we compared bills for similar care at the general, by-​appt vet and emergency care provided at 10pm on a weekend night, they were pretty similar. Some items are slightly more or less at each place, but AVC has a greater range of services they’re able to offer and can do overnight observation of your pet.
Stories (in case you’re interested):
1. January 2016. Hayden finds and eats a bunch of chocolate (wrappers and all), but we won’t know that for 2 more days because she was sneaky and left all the trash outside in the middle of winter (brrr… who goes outside then?!). We get home and have no idea what’s wrong with her, but she’s not acting right. Stumbling, not wagging tail, barely can lift her head off the couch. Off to AVC. They examine her, labs, and abdominal xray. Enlarged spleen, but not exactly sure why. They’ll keep her and watch her closely overnight, give some fluid. Phone call the next day — she’s no better, recommend operating. Go over all the costs. No pressure, they understand she’s almost 11 yo and might not recover well. We decide to go ahead — she was just jumping and swimming at Barley’s 2 days ago; this must be something acute and fixable (our hopeful belief). Her stomach is bloated from a partial obstruction from the wrappers, and this caused her spleen to swell and twist off its own blood supply. Splenectomy and gastrostomy to remove the obstruction. Several more days at AVC and a very long week of recovery at home. She’s back to jumping into the pool at Barley’s less than a month after surgery.
2. April 2016. Blood drops on the kitchen floor in the morning. She’s dripping from her mouth, but can’t tell where. Otherwise she’s doing fine so we decide to watch it. A few hours later and still going, but she’s acting normal so we go to the regular vet. They keep her all the rest of the day, get labs, and sedate her at 5pm to look in her mouth. Small pinprick area, they try to cauterize with silver nitrate and it seems to stop. Labs are abnormal — coagulation factors are off, probably got into rat poison or something similar. She comes home. A few hours later more blood. More than before. She’s still acting fine, but the Vitamin K will take several days to correct her coagulation factors. It’s 9pm, so off to AVC. They recommend plasma to quickly correct her coagulation factors and correct the bleeding. No pressure, but with factors that low, she’s at risk for spontaneous bleeds elsewhere. It wasn’t pushed, this was our understanding based on our own experiences in medicine. They’ll need to keep her overnight to do this. In the morning her factors are normal, no more bleeding, and she comes home. When we had a minor scare 2 days later at the Utah Dog Park the vet and techs at AVC worked with us over the phone to do a quick check up. A small positive to note: their Vitamin K prescription was cheaper and had more tabs (the total amount actually needed for the prescribed duration) than the Rx provided by her normal vet (the one she saw first). She’s still jumping into the pool at Barley’s.

if you follow me on Unilocal,you know 5 stars is not my norm, but honestly, AVC has one of the crappiest jobs yet manages to do it with panache.
When you think about a human emergency room — people of all walks of life walking in with all sorts of issues, and doctors having zero background on the patient except what they can tell them at that exact moment — imagine doing this with a patient who can’t speak. Now you understand their job. While we were there, one dog had to have vomiting induced because it ate chocolate, and I know they had to put down another young child’s pet. Crappy job.
My ultimate testimony to AVC is this: they’ve treated/​seen 2 of our dogs, both which had to be put down, and I’m giving them 5 stars. I’d have them for our regular doctor, but I don’t need to tie up their time giving vaccines; they need to do what they do best, and that’s emergencies.
The first Greyhound they treated had an onset of unusual neurological issues that baffled our vet. AVC treated her within the parameters we set: ultrasound, oral medicine & recheck. Within a week she was walking into the clinic under her own volition for her recheck, and the staff was truly excited to see her. Alas, her progress plateaued and the disease won when we put her down 1.5 wks later. Less than 2 weeks later a wonderfully worded condolence card arrived. Thank you.
When the second Greyhound woke up wobbly on a Sunday (less than a month later), we immediately called to see if we could get into AVC. They said yes, call when you are on your way. They were ready when we arrived. We didn’t win this fight either — advanced cancer and internal bleeding — but we cannot say enough about how wonderful the entire staff was and how they cared for us and for our dog for the six hours we were there.
Were they cheap? Nope. Were they expensive? Not compared to Texas, our prior home for 16 yrs. Were they available on a Sunday? Yep. Were they easy to contact (no recorder)? Yep. Did they treat my animals as if they were their own? Yep. Would I recommend them? Absolutely.

We were brand new to Salt Lake City, in fact it was our first night (Sunday) in the downtown apartment we now call home. Our 15 year old Coton had a Grand Mal seizure late in the evening. Frightened and unsure, we didn’t know where to turn or what to do. I found AVC online and phoned their 24 hour line. The woman who answered calmed me down, told me what to do after speaking with a Vet, and we made an appointment for the following day. AVC took all the necessary tests, perused the documentation sent from our former Vet, and were professionally empathetic. Medicines were changed, and our dog is doing better. I thank AVC, and it is comforting to know they are there if an emergency arises. Every pet owner knows what I mean and can relate to my feelings.

I’ve had to let some time pass before I decided write this review. I am terribly dissapointed in this place. Unless you have $ 2,400 to spend up front … don’t go here. That’s how much my boyfriend was greeted with if we wanted to hospitalized 2 poodles that we were nursing back to health before finding them a home. We told the vet tech that was rediculous. We asked if there was a at home alternative. They sent us home with $ 400 of stuff. Some things with large amount of quantity which we didn’t need after one day and some we didn’t even use like a sub q fluid bag. I called them to see if they would take it back because it was brand new and never ised and it had only been a few weems and they told me «you can donate it » … so they probably use it rip off another person .This place does not care about animals. They just care about taking advantage of people who are in a bad state of mind.

DO NOT TAKE YOUR PET HERE! They ran so many test on my dog and wanted to keep her over night I couldn’t afford it and they treated me like crap! She almost died and I took her to my vet and she had an EAR INFECTION!!! They didn’t even check her ears when I was there! Don’t take your pet here!!!

If you want to support a heartless soulless clinic and help them to stay in business, yes continue to bring your pet, family member to Advanced vetanary clinic. My beautiful kitty, one year old rescue, fell I’ll quickly. Within a day she was loosing blatter control, etc… I ran to this place, my angel wrapped in my robe, her favorite, I explained to the receptionist the nurse, lost my job four months ago, I have a new job where I begin Monday, day after tomorow, please please I begged, I have no money now, I have a little money next week, please just keep my kitty alive whatever it takes, I can pay next week. I can give, id, address, social, I can prove job offer letter etc. I can sign promise to pay in payments of whatever they ask,.I begged they let me speak with the Vet on duty. I explained, even through my hardships I have honored my obligations and creditors are working with me. I am unable to use care credit because I suffered a minor stroke in the past year and used this resource. Through this past year, my kitty has been the only friend that has been there for me. Everyday, how are you mommy, meow meow, can I make you laugh mommy meow meow, through all the tears the moves, she has been there for me. They refused, not only refused to help her, they refused to do the minimal just keep her comfortable, keep her alive till I can pay next week. I rent a home, i hv a car, i am a functioning human being. I was laid off from my job, this can happen to anyone. When I asked, may I at least speak with the Vetinarian and get any recommendations how I can help my kitty? Knowing I presently had no money, they told me, and I quote «the Vetinarian said if you want to talk to her even just to get a recomendation, she said you will have to pay us $ 85.00.
I left with my kitty in my robe sobbing. I drove to Rite aid spoke with the pharmacist there. He was so helpful and recommended baby liquid vitamins with extra iron… we are on day two and my baby is suffering and I’m trying but she can’t keep anything down.
I pray that Vetinarian never is in the situation I am in with a family member. As difficult and painful as this is, I know at my core I would never, never refuse someone my help when I’m in the position to do so, especially in dire circumstances. I can not begin to imagine the soul crushing regret of doing to another human being what this Vetinarian did to me last night. Refusing a few minutes of council to a woman loosing her best friend. I pity this Vet. I pity the vacuous multi colored hair, vets aid who treated me like an inconvenience at loosing my cat.
Advanced Vetinarian Clinic is not only an oxymoron, it’s a place without a soul.
If you have money and are able to pay at the time of service, God bless you. However it is not a reflection of lack of character when bad things happen to a person, year after year and they are lunged into poverty through no fault of thier own. I have been well off the majority of my life and have exhibited kindness and generosity when I was able. Lifted those around me when I could… God help me through this and help me forgive this Vetinarian and this place as I loose my beautiful girl, if I’m unable to forgive father, forgive them for me.

I was concerned that my dog was suffering from BLOAT (highly deadly and fast acting malady). I called and asked if they were busy as my primary provider for my mutt was booked for the day, and bloat is considered an emergency. They quoted me on the phone how much it would be just to walk in the door, which I appreciated. (Although $ 40 more than my standard vet).
They got me in quickly, and even had a tech come and see my dog in the lobby to determine how severe the situation was; which i really appreciated. Asked me about her medical history, how long symptoms had been carrying on, etc. They quoted me for an x-​ray which was the first course of action to determine whether or not it was bloat, an obstruction or something else.
When she was given the all clear (literally), they came in and ran down our list of options, most of which, given the verdict of her condition (or lack there of), seemed superfluous and I was already looking at a high bill for bringing my girl there. Even a shot to provide her with relief from vomiting and diarrhea was $ 72 dollars (?!).
I appreciated the fast and professional service; I didn’t appreciate the attempts to up-​sell a pet-​owner under duress. And I especially didn’t appreciate that my dog went with them to get an x-​ray done and came back with a shit-​stain down her side they hardly cleaned off of her?
In a moderate emergency, try to find more affordable provider. In a serious emergency, you can probably get in for a second loan on your mortgage.

Our regular vet sent us to AVC yesterday morning because our cat, Ricky, was lethargic and not eating. His glucose was also hovering around 500 (normal is in the 100s). AVC did an ultrasound and immediately diagnosed pancreatitis. They admitted Ricky and he has had 24×7 ICU care and is showing a great deal of improvement. Dr. Simmons did a very good job of explaining what the problem was and the future treatment (insulin shots) that we would have to do daily if Ricky survives, which is looking better all the time. The staff has been wonderful, they call with updates, allow us to call for updates at any time and allow the customer to visit every day between 10am-​10pm. They have shown nothing but compassion and caring coupled with professional behavior. Yes, this service is expensive but I feel it has been worth every penny so far and would recommend AVC to anyone for pet emergencies that can’t be accommodated by a regular vet. This is the difference between going to a GP physician versus a highly trained board-​certified specialist for humans.

I have a dog who is highly allergic to just about everything and every now and then, she will go into anaphylactic shock. She puffs up into one giant hive, throws up, and just generally scares the daylights out of me. Every time this happens, I call AVC and tell them we are on our way in. As soon as we get there, we are helped immediately. A place like this could easily gouge you because let’s face it – it’s an emergency situation and your dog’s life is in their hands. Their prices have always been fair but more importantly, they save my dog every time! The staff are all super nice, calm, reassuring people (which is exactly what I need during a crisis). Thankfully, they are only a mile or so from my house. One time I had to take my dog in for one of her episodes, and she ended up having to spend the night. The next day, the nurse told me that one of the techs had stayed with my pup all night and held her while she slept because my pup was so scared. It brought tears to my eyes because I was so worried leaving her alone in a strange place by herself. I couldn’t ask for a better doggy ER!!!

Excellent care. They have seen my dog for routine care, emergencies, and surgical care. The care and attention to detail is always outstanding. Their prices are higher than a standard vet, but they are MUCH better than any vet I’ve ever taken my dogs to. They are thorough and kind.

Unless you want a Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) treatment I wouldn’t go here. *I would take a dog here that had a cut for stitches. The have done that well in the past for me without pitching the HBOT.
OK some back story; We were watching a dog for a friend while he, wife and kids took a much needed family vacation. The dog is a bit older (11) but she was still happy and fairly active. After a week of having her I left her in the back yard for a short time to sit in the sun. She loves sitting in the sun. When she came in she had a bit of a swollen lip. No big deal, I thought. I’ve dog sat this wonderful dog many times. She has a bee allergy and I had to deal with this before. I gave her a Benadryl and figured that would solve it. We kept a watchful eye and it didn’t get better. The swelling started on Saturday afternoon. By Sunday she was puffy on both sides. She was breathing fine so a couple more Benadryls and I figured she’d be OK.
By Monday it was clear she wasn’t getting better. Rather than taking time off to take her to my Vet we took her to AVC after work. They quickly diagnosed her condition as a snake bite. I live in the middle of the city by Liberty park (west side of 7^th east) thus I felt this was impossible. Plus I have two very active dogs that run the entire fence each time they go out. Further more they said the bite was likely in her mouth. This is a Husky mix so clearly I doubted this even more after seeing no dead sneak in my back yard. This is assuming that if bit in the mouth she would bite back or have been in the process of biting while getting the bite.
That’s when the sales pitch for the HBOT came in. A simple few treatments and she’d be fine. just 2ishK. Not buying it we left with our friends sick dog after they advised us to do so.
Shortly after we took her to University Pet Clinic. They quickly realized it was not a snake bite and needed to do testing. I left her there for the day and after great communication and lots of tests it was determined that she was dying of advanced cancer. The owner was 10 hours a way so I asked them to make her comfortable and do what they could for her so should would last till they got home.
The good news is that she did make it. After seeing her family again she made it several happy days. It lit a wonderful fire in her eyes and I was so happy that I could see them reunite.
The bad news (aside from the obvious undertones of this review) is that after a bill for 200+ AVC blew it. I got the feeling they got a new toy (I looked online and they aren’t common with Vets and aren’t cheap) and needed to pay for it. Even after us telling them a snake bite simply wasn’t possible they stuck to their guns all the way out to my truck. I total understand the need to pay the bills but when you are talking about a mans best friend quality care should be the focus. It was not at AVC.
Also I would like to recognize that maybe they made the best call they were capable of doing. Maybe they weren’t trying to sell unneeded services. I am just expressing my experience.

The Dr. Who put both my dogs down was kind n kept saying we were doing the right thing.
They gave us all the time w/​my dog before they put him down n and after.
They did charge me 60 dollars for a pain injection. 6 hrs after I left them to come back and be charged for injection 30 n 30 to give it to him. Wtf really when your dog in pain n they charging to just inject. Rape!!! I would go to cottonwood vet there nicer n cheaper n ²⁴⁄₇ hrs

A few months ago, my mom’s usually spunky, bitey, rambunctious kitten was so sick she could hardly hold her head up. AVC told her she’s fine and to give her some water, charged my mom, and sent her on her way. This kitten was DYING. My mom took her somewhere else and was told it was a medical emergency (duh) and helped save her life.
Later, a friend of mine took her pneumonia-​ridden dog in and AVC refused to take him in without $ 1,100. They did some bloodwork and took X-​rays and told her to wait 5 days for results and still refused to admit him to make sure he’d survive. She took the pup to a different vet, who was much less rude and much more understanding and got the peace of mind she deserved. The other vet gave the dog an anti-​nausea shot and some cans of food for free. AVC treated her like garbage because she didn’t have the money upfront. If you want a vet with compassion and listening skills, skip out on AVC.

My dog Sully ate a mouse that must have been infected with rat poison during a recent stay in park city. It was Christmas Eve, so all of the local clinics were closed and I was freaking out (throwing up, lethargic). The AVC staff was helpful, full of expertise, compassionate, and comforting (hah I could barely hold back tears). At the time, I was unaware that the resort I was staying at had used rat poison, so I had no clues for what was making her sick. They took an x-​Ray and did blood work to be sure but didn’t find anything crazy. Some anti nausea medicine and a saline hump later, she made it through the night. I truly think Sully would have died without their help. Thank you for saving my best friend :)

The clinic staff where amazing super sweet and fast with my kitty when we went in, unfortunately we had to be referred to go to see the eye care for animals clinic that is in the same building and that’s where it all went wrong the staff was rude they treated me as though I was a horrible pet owner and all they wanted was a ton of money and a lot of tests when I asked them if we could try abx before spending thousands of dollars on mri and surgery they again treated me horrible I DO NOT recommend ANYONE to the eye care side!!!

When my ex-​BF texted me with news that our little dachshund had injured her back and her back legs were paralyzed, I felt like my stomach hit the floor. The vet he initially took her to had her transferred here and she could not have been in better hands. After an MRI, the doctor advised surgery could repair her injury. She had the surgery, had some complications, and ended up back in the ICU here for a few days. The staff has been phenomenal– patient and knowledgeable about her condition and so sweet with her. She is on the mend and will hopefully make a full recovery– she’s already getting feeling back and can stand for a short period of time! They are open 24 hours a day and visiting hours go until 10pm, even on the weekends. I was glad I could go see her– both because I love my dog and because I was able to witness the first-​class care she was getting. Furry family members deserve excellent care just like humans do and these guys provide it.

I took my boxer to AVC after he had an urgent issue on a Sunday (I’ll spare you the gross details). My regular vet was backed up with other appointments and emergencies so they recommended AVC.
The staff was awesome. They listened and handled my dog very sweetly. The bill was steep but for an emergency situation it was to be expected.
They sent their assessment records directly to my regular vet, including recommendations for follow up.
I will use AVC again if needed and certainly recommend them to friends.

These folks saved my standard poodle’s life, so how could I not think that they are as good as it gets?
My dogs and I were driving back from an extended trip to CA and happened to stop in Salt Lake City. Within about a half hour of getting into our hotel room, I realized that my dog’s restlessness (inability to settle & retching) were not signs of stress from being in a new place but rather that she was bloating (suffering from gastric dilatation-​volvulus, a life-​threatening, emergency condition). I called down to the front desk (at the Hotel Monaco — awesome pet-​friendly hotel, I’ll be updating my review soon) and asked them to find an emergency vet and get us a cab so we could get there ASAP. As we were leaving I also asked that they call ahead to the clinic and let them know that I was on my way with a dog that was bloating.
When we arrived at AVC, they were pretty much waiting for us. They immediately took Layla back to confirm the GDV diagnosis, got her on pain meds and began treatment to relieve the pressure that was building-​up in her abdomen. With my permission, they also started prepping her for surgery. The surgeon who would be doing Layla’s procedure was just finishing-​up on another case but would be able to start in less than an hour (it stressed me out a little bit when I heard that — of course I would rather have Layla attended to immediately). The staff was great about updating me – letting me know how Layla was doing, letting me know when surgery started, when it finished, that she was coming out of anesthesia, etc. After she was awake and all of her tubes were out they let me visit with her briefly before I left for the night and let me know that they would call with an update at 7AM.
All the while, they were understanding of my situation while balancing Layla’s best interests. They knew that we were traveling and anxious to get home, but advised that I should probably stay in SLC for at least another 24 hours. Although they would have liked to keep Layla for observation a little longer, she seemed to be weathering it all pretty well (eating, no problems w/​pottying) and seemed anxious at the clinic, so they released her to me early in the afternoon so she could continue to recuperate at the hotel. They provided and went over detailed discharge notes and after-​care instructions, then sent us on our way with a couple of cans of soft, bland food and sedatives for the car ride back to Colorado.
Oh, and the charges turned out to be ~$ 150 less than the low end of their original estimate, and their estimate was on-​par with what I would have expected to pay at the CSU VTH at home. A great big thanks to the doctors for saving my dog’s life and to the staff for making such a stressful situation that much more bearable with good communication and an understanding for my needs.