McConnell Veterinary Service

Dr. McConnell is great! Very friendly and thorough. So nice not having to lug my golden into the car and drag her to the vet. She hates car rides!

Anyone who knows Dr. Ty can tell you, you don’t need to interview him. And yes, he is that busy ’cause he probably spends too much time at each appointment doing what he does best, customer service.
Our 115 lb. German Sheperd hated going to a vet clinic. As soon as he got there, he wanted out and trying to control him was not easy. Dr. Ty was recommended and all issues were resolved.
Dr. Ty shows up at your house. Our dog would come out in a great mood cause he knew there was a cookie and a gentle hand. The cost was around the same as any other vet, but the value is amazing.
When our best friend reached his end somewhat unexpectedly, Dr. Ty showed up to our «HOME», in the morning, no appointment. With great compassion and sincereity, he relieved our dog of his torment. Trust me, it was not easy with two emotional wrecks and a dog who was scared and confused. Dr. Ty made it as easy as possible and we could never thank him enough.
Almost a year later, another dog, a Golden Retriever, needed a home and a call went out to Dr. McConnell. Things didn’t change, just the dog. Wonderful Man, Wonderful Vet, no interview neccessay. Your’ll know that the minute you meet him.
PS — His office staff is nice. Never a problem.
January 22, 2016 — Well… today we just lost our Golden, Katie. She had cancer and was days away from 11 years old. My wife and I are heart broken. Doctor Ty fit us in and as before, was the same compassionate person we have come to know and respect. A new best friend will find its way to us down the road and Doctor Ty will have a new patient.

Dr. McConnell is the best vet we have ever had. He’s kind, compassionate and deeply cares about our animals. We would highly recommend him!

Ty has been our vet for over 30 years! He is the best vet a family could ever ask for. He has been so gentle and kind to our animals (3 dogs 5 cats) over the years. He has seen them as puppies and kittens into old age and helped them end their lives when it became time.
I could write pages but if you read the other reviewers posts it tells what a great legacy he has in Santa Cruz. Good luck to any of you who need to find a vet. Also, did I mention he comes to the house and saves the animals the anxiety of traveling to an office. A true friend one in a million…
Ed and Madzy Lang Scotts Valley

The best. Compassionate and professional.

Dr. McConnell is the BEST! He is so kind and so gentle and has been our Vet for over 15 years. SO convenient doing house calls, which is so much less stressful for the Pugs to be at home and easier for me! I HIGHLY recommend him!
Thank you Ty!

Sherry is the rudest person I have ever talked to in customer service. Ty is one of the greatest Vets in the area, love working with him. As far as talking to Sherry on anything, she needs to step away from the phone and have someone else handle business. Asked her to have Ty call, will see what happens. Since she took no information from me.

Ty was recommended to me by a friend and I was thrilled with his care of my aging cat. I just wanted someone to start coming to see her now and not be schlepping her into a vet’s office. (plus I don’t think she needs all the shots and things the vet’s were recommending) He was very patient listening to me tell him her history and gave me information to read about glucosamine for arthritic joints. I agree with his ideas about which shots she should have (if any) and her food. Just all around thrilled to have found him.

Dr. Ty is great! It’s nice to have a local Dr that still makes house calls ! My cat is less stressed about visits now. It was a major effort to corral my cat each time for a vet visit. No longer! Thank you!

Dr McConnell is the best vet in the area. He has cared for all of my families pets since we moved to the area and we don’t trust anyone else. He has saved on the verge of death, surgeries and countless routine/​unexpected visits. I would NOT recommend anyone else to care for your pet and beloved family member. He will treat your pet as if it were his.

Ty is the best! He has taken care of all my dogs and cats for 20+ years. Would not use anyone else

I would rather not click even one star! HOW do you review a monster who is so stupid he can’t deal with «something he’s never seen» when I read everywhere it is 20% of all skin tumors? He just kept saying «Wait» until the poor thing was dead. Of course, I had to endure the agony of putting him down. If the tumor had been removed AS I REQUESTED, my pet would still be alive, or at least not dead from that cancer. McConnell is either an idiot or he simply doesn’t care. OH — his receptionists are among the worst of ANY vet or doctor I have ever called. I despise him and pity anyone who still trusts him. You will find out the truth eventually, I’m afraid.
I deliberately left out whether the pet was a cat or dog.

We’ve had Dr. McConnell for our family vet for more than 20 years. He’s extremely competent, kind and compassionate. As a mobile vet he’s always been as prompt as the nature of the job allows (traffic, unexpected complications with patients elsewhere… its to be expected with any medical occupation). His staff are very professional, caring and polite.
He’s extremely knowledgeable and is always willing to share information, discuss new practices, offer advice on pet care practices. In short, he’s one in a million. I hope he stays in business for ever!

Dr Ty is the best! Compassionate, knowledgeable, kind and fair. I’ve kept a variety of animals over the decades and subsequently have been to too many veterinarians in search of a keeper. Now my best buddy is a 100 poundish Newfoundland mix, a doll who doesn’t quite care for veterinary clinics. She tends to go all Gandhi when she doesn’t want to do something, so having Ty come to the house is a massive kindness. Poor darling was misdiagnosed and made quite ill at Pajaro Veterinary and Dr. Ty brought her back without emptying my wallet.
For those folks complaining about his staff — no worries, she doesn’t ride along and doesn’t provide care. Nice, spiffy, shiny clean offices and professional well trained staff are simply window dressings — Pajaro is a prime example. Everyone was very nice, but the very nice, tidy looking vet nearly killed my girl and cost me well over a grand in doing so. I wouldn’t take a rat there. Appearances are not everything.
Dr. Ty is the very best, even on his worst day.

Dr. Ty McConnell has been our family’s Vet for 12 years. We have 4 cats and 2 dogs and he helped us with the dreadful task of going through the end of life is 1 dog and 2 cats. He is THE most knowledgeable veterinarian in Santa Cruz county. His office is his truck and he is out in the «field» literally caring for large animals up the coast of Hwy 1 like Hurley Goat farms, Pigs, Horses, even Ostrich’s. He keeps very current on the pharmaceuticals and antibiotics and really knows the best treatment options for sick animals — all creatures great and small :)
He must get up at 5am in the morning to go to those farms and then head back into town for us residential animals (farms– ha). (So Mr. G.E. who left a 1 star review… He sometimes looks tired because he is up at the crack of dawn). And he is always is within ⁵⁄₁₀ minutes of the appt time sometimes early!). Dr. Ty spends as much time that is needed — not the structured 5 minutes you will get in a regular Vet’s office for twice the price!
Dr. McConnell is a real country vet. Our family is so blessed to have him! His bedside manner with cats is pretty funny and he loves dogs! … he is a no frills kinda vaccination giver too! That’s how we like it! Just get em’ done, quick and painless! No hesitation to get anxious or scared.
He also uses Valley Oak in Scotts Valley as his operating room. Our lab has had a surgery there and 1 cat. Both times, the staff at Valley Oaks were so kind. Also, when we need refills on our Lab’s maintenance medicine, his secretary Sheri (who is super nice) can call in the prescription to Valley Oaks and we can pick it up there even on a Saturday!
All in all Dr. McConnell is one of a kind and if he is still accepting patients consider yourself lucky to get a spot!

Forty-​five minutes late.
Was told several times by his receptionist that he was almost there (not true).
Looked hung over.
No reason, not much of an apology.
Oh well.

About four months ago, Dr. McConnell performed surgery to remove a cyst on my dog’s eye. He stated that the surgery would remove all of the cyst and that it wouldn’t grow back. He removed the cyst, but there was lingering conjunctivitis that we tried to treat for two weeks before calling Dr. McConnell back.
Dr. McConnell’s secretary, Sherry, became RUDE, HOSTILE, and CONDESCENDING when I asked about the cost for a followup visit to attend to the problem that had not yet been resolved. I explained that we spent hundreds of dollars for treatment that had not fully worked. Yet Sherry dismissed my concerns and stated rudely that «you bet» there would be a new round of costs for continued care. When pressed, she finally admitted she had no idea about the specifics of our case or what Dr. McConnell would do, but she was confident that she knew enough to speak to me not as a customer or concerned dog owner, but as an idiot who needed scolding.
Fortunately, Dr. McConnell called me back a day later, had me bring the dog in again, looked at him and gave us some antibiotic ointment at no cost. He was also genuinely concerned about our dog’s well-​being and seemed to feel genuinely bad that he had not solved the problem the first time around. He stood behind his work 100%. He even called us just a few days ago to check on the dog, who is now doing marvelously.
Obviously Dr. McConnell is one of the best veterinarians in the area. His quality of care and prices should make him a first choice. I only hope that enough of these reviews make it to his attention so that Sherry sees the light and learns how to treat people better.
I definitely recommend Dr. McConnell. If you have any issues with the care, however, I do not recommend wasting your time talking to Sherry. Just ask her to have the doctor call you back.

I am so happy we found Ty! I have 2 chocolate labs, and 2 young sons. It is very difficult to haul them all into the veterinary office… Ty comes to our house, and he is so good with the dogs (and the boys) and so reasonably priced! We have many friends and family who use him, very grateful to have found him!

I’ve never had any complaints against this place until I had an emergency for my cat. The lady was rude on the phone and didn’t even give a suggestion to take my cat to the emergency care in town. I only found out after calling a vet place near my house. The other lady on the phone was more understanding to our needs and recommended Pacific Vet in Capitola. I feel bad for the doctor that I am giving such a bad review. I wish I could give a review on this particular staff worker. She failed majorly.

I contacted his office to set up an appointment to interview him as I am looking for a new vet and his receptionist basically said he was too busy for 15 minutes of questions for a new client.
Now if he is too busy to set up a scheduled call with me for 15 minutes I would be willing to bet he is too busy to work with me and to be there for my dogs.
Either get a new receptionist Doc or some interest in increasing your clients with quality owners who care about the type of care their dogs receive.