Cats Exclusive Veterinary Center

We have been bringing out cats here for 5 – 6 years now. We have had through the years anywhere from 4 – 7 cats (7 currently) we we’ve had a LOT of experience with CE. It hasn’t always be super-​awesome-​fantastic, but any time we’ve been unhappy they have worked hard to address our needs. They were especially wonderful when I had to put my old guy, Boomer, down a couple of years ago. I had stated that I wanted to be there to hold him as he crossed the rainbow bridge, and they were very sensitive and walked us through the process, as well as giving us as much time as we needed to grieve and be with him as he passed. They gave us options for what to do with him after. We chose cremation, and they took a paw print and gave it to me as a memento.
They are not the cheapest, but we feel that they are the best in the city. Their store is super helpful (we have one guy on a special diet) and reasonably priced. I am usually greeted with a smile from their staff (they all know us by now). We highly recommend Cat’s Exclusive.

Been coming here since late 2012 to buy prescription cat food after moving over from Tri Cities where the prescription originated. Never a problem for over 3 years. Always the same happy faces, until this morning. Grabbed the usual bag of food (because I’m low and I’m heading out of town) and went to counter to b greeted by not so happy face of Ayesha… Never seen her there before. She informs me that the prescription was only good for a year and she can’t sell food to me… What the What?!? I’ve been buying it for over three years!!! And never a word about renewing the prescription! After pleading she sold me one last bag and said she was putting a block on my account. Horrible, horrible customer service. I am still in disbelief. And she said prescription was from 2013, and it was from 2012. Probably a new person but I doubt I will b back.

Really nice staff and doctors, great environment, and wonderful cat supplies store in the building. Highly recommend!

Dr. E was excellent with our little girl. He was very thorough with his exam and showed a lot of compassion and care for her. Highly recommend!

I have been taking my cats here for several years. I have seen several different doctors and have found them all to be knowledgeable and truly caring of my pet’s health. I currently see Dr. Jessica Stern who has been helping my little guy with ongoing issues. She does a great job and has earned my trust.
I also have found their prices to be very competive perhaps 10−20% more. What I get for that difference is peace of mind that my cat’s health will be placed first.

I have searched high and low for a place where I feel safe taking my cat! Everyone at this office from the get go was kind, professional, caring and knowledgeable.
Reception was a breeze and very tranquil. We got in right on time. Dr. Stern was amazing… generous with her time, thorough, sensitive to my cats needs and very willing to customize care. She was extremely personable which really put me at ease.
The location is easy to find, very clean and the hours are great. I would highly recommend this place.
Thank you Cats Exclusive!

I have been bringing my cats to Cats Exclusive for almost 15 years. I have been very pleased with the care my «kids» have received through the years. My primary vet is Dr. Lora Schuldt and she is fantastic. I have seen at least 5 other vets at the facility through the years when Dr. Schuldt was not available and felt very comfortable with their care as well. I always refer friends to Cats Exclusive and will continue to do so.

When it comes to actual experiences with the clinic, there’s not much I can say that the other 5-​star reviews haven’t covered already. It’s really great to have a waiting room where my cat isn’t being terrified by a German Shepherd or a shrieking Cockatiel, and the wait times have always been short enough (never more than 5 minutes) to ensure there isn’t a bunch of cats in the waiting room making each other anxious.
Maybe I’ve just been lucky, but I would definitely disagree with other people saying they’ve been «bounced around» between vets at the clinic, as that certainly hasn’t been my experience. Maybe if you only make your appointments on short notice? But the front desk staff has always been sure to ask me if I preferred a certain doctor, and scheduled my appointment around that. I’ve been there at least 10 times by now, and my cat has seen the same person (Dr. Fligiel) every single time.
As far as cost goes, it may be slightly more expensive on paper — but it’s not Whole Foods expensive. You won’t be paying 4 – 5 times more for a similar product or service. I’d guess it’s around 10−20% more. But in my experience, that slightly higher cost reflects your *actual* bill, unlike some other vets I’ve been to. $ 60 might seem high for an exam, but they’re not in the business of «selling razorblades.» That is to say, they’re not offering cheap exams to lure you in so they can try to upsell you on all kinds of unnecessary products and make their money that way. Personally, I’d much rather pay a bit extra and not have to be conflicted on whether or not my cat actually NEEDS some ridiculously expensive toothpaste or medication, or the vet needs to make a car payment.
I’ve even been saved from multiple follow-​up exams just from being able to communicate with the doctor and give status reports via e-​mail. Which is great both from a financial standpoint and because my cat is absolutely terrified of car rides. They most definitely care about the animals (and owners!) there as well; when I mentioned that it was difficult for me to afford supplies for my diabetic cat, I ended up walking away with enough donated supplies and samples to ensure he was well taken care of.

This is an extremely difficult review to write. And let me preface this by saying it’s taken me 3 months to try to put the words and thoughts together to appropriately describe my experience here.
I can’t say it enough. Do your research before finding a vet. I contacted Cats Exclusive about seeing if our new cat would be a good fit as a patient here and everything seemed great. They were kind, the reception desk was quick to answer emails, and though they were expensive, I totally bought into (and still believe) the idea that cats are well suited for a veterinary experience where they are the only patient. No dogs, birds, snakes, goats, etc. This is a fantastic veterinary center for most cat owners. It really is.
Without getting emotions involved or explaining a long winded story about our cat, I will just say that though the intentions here are great, I did find that because the facility is so large and the staff is so large and because the vet staff changes from ay to day, you might not get the custom experience you’re looking for. We are (or were, rather) the owners of an exotic breed. We came here to see one vet and only that vet because this particular vet had a lot of experience with this same cat type. But in the case of an emergency or last minute appointment, you might not get your preferred vet and that’s where things can get stressful or even deadly for your pet.
Now bear in mind that while you should plan for emergencies, you shouldn’t be too paranoid or make rash decisions about not becoming patients here because you insist your cat see always the same vet. I think we had a unique situation with a rare cat. Typically this shouldn’t matter. But if your cat has special needs or you have such specific preferences, find out if this is the right place for you.
Here are things that troubled me. We had a cute cat. He was beyond cute, in fact. And one day we brought him here for an appointment and his cuteness caused a stir at the reception desk and 4 or 5 people fawned over him. It was a real ego boost. When you spend $ 5000 on an exotic cat, it feels nice when people freak out and beg to hold him. But here’s the deal… and here’s the first yellow flag I had about CE. Someone eventually took him to the mysterious back room and then about 5 mins later he was back in my arms. We paid the bill for the appointment and drove home. About 30 mins later (as they were closing for the day) we got a supremely apologetic call telling us that our cat was so cute that everyone was distracted and that even though the whole office held our cat, no one actually examined him or gave him his shot. And when we asked to come back in they suggested we come back the next day. Fortunately I work from a remote office but driving around the city in traffic is not something I want to do if I can avoid it and having to do it again because of a silly mistake was a little frustrating. I’ll be clear though, they did apologize profusely and also offer us some kind of discount to purchase things in their store. And we were totally happy with that. But this was just the first of a series of strange missteps that led me back on the hunt for a primary vet for our surviving cat.
Another thing that was ‘off’ for me was that because this is such a massive operation and there are so many people involved in the day-​to-​day operation, you are not memorable here. I have (or had, rather) two cats while we came to CE and every time we were there it was not clear to the technician that we were the owner of the same two cats. Records were confused, I had to constantly give my phone number or address and it just felt so impersonal to repeat information that clearly should have been in their system. «Now which cat is this?» And we had a male kitten and an 8 yr old female. Two totally opposite cats and two different breeds. I didn’t expect people to know or remember odd things like their personalities, but asking, «Now which shots has he gotten?» or «What number should we call?» seemed bizarre. Isn’t that all in the computer? And our appts here were weeks apart because our kitten was getting a round of shots and a neuter. It wasn’t months or years between appts, it was days and weeks at most.
And finally, there’s a note on all their paperwork that says something to the effect of, «Haven’t heard back from us? Call us!» And at first I noticed it and thought nothing. But we had at least 3 appointments with our specific vet and every time we left the exam room the vet would say, «Ok. I’ll email you!» And she literally never did. Not once. And if we were expecting a follow up call about a refill or lab results, no call. You really do have to call yourself because they’re way too busy/​distracted to do it. They always answered emails/​calls before my cat was a patient. Once we were paying customers we had to do the calling.
So do these people love cats? Yes. Do they have great intentions? Absolutely. Are they the best? Not for me or my cats.

Pros: Nice facility, lots of friendly staff, knowledgeable doctors, great care
Cons: So expensive you may not be able to afford them at all and they do NOT help you think through other options in a time of crisis. They have to pay for their high overhead somehow, so they can be 2 – 4 times the price of another vet.
If finances will make or break your decision on how to treat your pet
CALL ANOTHER VET FOR A SECOND OPINION!
I lost my cat Baxter over a year ago when he quickly developed a fatty liver problem due to suddenly stopping eating. Dr. Jennifer Fliegel was *great* and very caring and responsive, but I could not afford overnight care for Baxter and I will never know if keeping him at a vet vs. doing home care myself would have made the difference in saving him.
Now I have a wonderful cat Cedar who suddenly developed a blocked bladder (I think due to too much dry food especially so-​so quality like Iams and Science Diet he’s been eating at the neighbor’s house).
I took Cedar to Cats Exclusive as soon as it was clear he had a problem and was in pain, and it had happened so fast but his bladder was already the size of a grapefruit: very serious situation, life or death. The C.E. vet doc said he could die during the anesthesia operation if there was too much bleeding. She said it was about ⁶⁰⁄₄₀ he could make it. I appreciated her candor, but the quote they drew up was between $ 1500 – 2600 for the operation and couple of nights of overnight boarding. I had no way to come up with this money in time and they wanted about $ 1000 down before proceeding. They said if he did not get the procedure or things did not go well, he would die a painful death, so euthanization was even discussed, this is how serious it was!
Now, when you are faced with this decision: A) come up with $ 1000 immediately and $ 2500 in two or three days, or B) euthanize your beloved pet because you don’t have enough $, what do you do? Option C:
CALL ANOTHER VET FOR A SECOND OPINION!
We called Maple Leaf Veterinary Clinic and they have been great. Small no-​frills office but they were ready to admit him for around $ 400 and the total was no more than $ 800 after several days of care. They performed the clearing procedure and had him set up with a catheter, and now he is on the road to recovery, eating on his own and going home tonight. Euthanization was not even discussed — they were confident they could and should take him right away and moved a less-​critical appt. to later in the day so they could go ahead.
I learned a big lesson in this — sometimes you can get «poor service» by not be presented with all the options in the time of crisis. This is when you and friends/​family need to quickly think creatively and see if there are any other options. Normally I would think this way, but it was hard as I was so stressed out at the moment, luckily I had good advice on calling Maple Leaf Vet from my friend Aaron, Cedar’s co-​owner, but Cats Exclusive did not suggest that we might be able to save him by taking him elsewhere.

I CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS PLACE HIGHLY ENOUGH!!! Omg, this has got to be my favourite vet that I have ever been to for my cats — and I thank them so much for dealing with my problem child Bengal. I selected a vet that also had hybrid cats so that he would know my pain — and he does SUCH a great job with him. They are very accommodating — they will spray the room with Feliway before we even arrive because they know my cat will throw a fit when he realizes where he is. (to give you an idea, when my cat was brought out to me SCREAMING after he had to stay all day, everyone in the whole clinic knew his name). They are also very good with him during the exam because he is kind of a terror, and I am so grateful that they are still so gentle and awesome with him. I have another cat who likes to eat things and she’s her own separate type of crazy, just look on their blog for an article about cats eating things they’re not supposed to. The picture is of my little poster child O_​o.
The same vet that I see also takes care of my mom’s cats, and he recently had to do almost a full mouth extraction on her three year old cat. She only has like 8 of those teeny tiny little man-​eaters in front left — the rest had to be pulled because the gums around her teeth were essentially rotted out and causing her a lot of pain.
What I enjoy most about this vet is that their answer isn’t always «oh yeah just come in immediately.» They will give me at-​home remedies or plans to try out before coming in there for an issue. I have called several other vets, and they are just trying to get you to pay an exam fee so that they can make money.
I also love the retail store here — they always have the most amazing and useful products. If you are looking for a new vet — THIS IS THE PLACE!!! I recommend it!

I expected much better service from Cats Exclusive. I had a difficult conversation with the manager of boarding services to let her know where Cats Exclusive dropped the ball.
Before we initially contacted Cats Exclusive, we went to their website and watched their videos about the facility and boarding townhomes. I made an appointment for the cats to be examined and screened, and we received a packet of information about the facilities and an estimate for the boarding. I asked the receptionist if we needed to do anything else and she replied, «You’re all set. We’ll see you August 2^nd!»
When we arrived to the facility, it quickly became apparent that we did not have a reservation in their system. This was the first of many red flags. To their credit, the Center was able to board our cats in a townhome. We went into an examination room with the technician to weigh the cats and talk about their daily care.
A technician should have reviewed aloud our feeding instructions to make sure the information was correct. My partner did not write the feeding instructions clearly which resulted in our cats being overfed and then running out of food.
I gave the Center my mobile number as the primary contact while we were in Europe. My partner received the voicemail from the Center about the feeding issue, only we have no idea when the issue started because there wasn’t a date-​time stamp with the message. I checked the paperwork when we returned to retrieve our cats and I am still unsure as to why I was not the one contacted as we stated.
Being in Europe, we were not exactly sure how to contact the Center to check on our cats’ health and happiness. I used a generic catch-​all email address for the Center. The first reply came within 24 hours; the second email regarding the feeding issue was addressed 72 hours later, and from an email address no-reply@. We are in Europe, we are paying a premium for boarding, and receiving an email from a no-reply@ email address is never acceptable.
In the midst of all these issues, and while still on our vacation in Europe, I received reminder emails from the Center for the cats’ annual vaccinations. Why, in the name of all things sacred, would I return our cats to the Center with all the issues we experienced?
When we picked up our cats, the technician let us know that the cats enjoyed the substitute wet food they received. Good information to know but I was more concerned about the cats’ health due to the overfeeding. We received an initial packet of information when we first went to the Center, but all we got after retrieving our cats was a receipt.
The manager asked if we would like a phone call from the Center to check in on the cats returning home and adjusting to their environment. I told her I would rather have the Center fax all pertinent information to our vet.
If you are considering taking your cat (s) to Cats Exclusive for boarding, make sure: you receive a confirmation call for your reservation; you verbally walk through instructions for your cats to make sure every t is crossed; you receive a list of contact information that allows you to directly talk with boarding; and you receive follow-​up documentation on the cats’ health. We didn’t receive any of these services with our cats’ boarding, and this is why we won’t return to the Center for future boarding.

I am surprised to see negative reviews on such a great place, and since this have been my vet for almost three years I thought I would share my great experience. First I understand they are not the cheapest vet around and not everyone can afford it, but I want the best for my cat I am not looking for the «cheapest» option when it comes to caring for my furry children. This is a place that is worth every penny in my opinion. (When I was super tight on money I went somewhere else, they had one patient room for the entire place, always insanely busy and not very hygienic or professional)
My cats are so calm here and I attribute it to, partially at least, the fact that this is a cat only vet. There are no dogs or dog scents to be found and for one of my cats that is phenomenal. He is scared to death of anything unknown. Everyone here so far has been kind and patient and Dr. Stern answers all my questions and I never feel rushed or on the back burner. Also when Stern wasn’t available one day Dr. Lester was a great substitute.
I first came in because both of my boys were having urinary issues. Stern worked with me on figuring out a plan and suggesting different foods. They are both doing great now, it definitely doesn’t happen over night especially since each cat is different and their bodies don’t work the same with every food. One is doing great on Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried Raw and the other on Tiki cat.
Im thankful for the patience and time to make each of my boys better and I know they’ll live longer and happier now because of it. They also have a great store with food, toys, climbers, brushes bowls, and even cat gifts socks, mugs etc.

We’ve been taking our cat (Pan) here for several years and they’ve been top-​notch every time. We’ve seen multiple vets and liked them all. They’re always very calm and careful when handling and examining our cat and never try to sell us on unnecessary or stressful tests that he simply doesn’t need. Our cat had a long-​standing vomiting issue that they diagnosed as a treatable parasite in about 60 seconds — and they were right! Our cat also has a sensitive tummy, and they were able to give some good food and litter recommendations without being pushy. We’re both biologists, and we love that the vet will talk to us on that high level of detail if we ask.
The staff is friendly and open, and you get the sense that you always have their full attention during your visit.
We hate putting the cat in the carrier, but we love taking him to this vet!

Quill and I have been with Cats Exclusive for about 6 months. He is a senior kitty with hyperthyroidism. Dr. Mattick is great! I ask a lot of questions, because I like to be informed and she answers all of them no matter how inane. I have never felt pressured for any expensive treatments or drugs — in fact, when I asked about a different drug for Quill’s hyperthyroidism Dr. Mattick actually told me that it was the more expensive drug and as long as he does okay on the pills there was no need to swap him to the more expensive drug.
The staff has all been very friendly. Their space is clean. They are open on Saturdays, and are somehow always able to get me an appointment on Saturday, which is important to a full time student who works! In addition to being friendly and knowledgeable they have gone out of their way to make convenience a priority for owners. Including text message reminders about appointments and the ability to mail prescriptions to your home, so that you don’t have to pick them up.
I have a year old kitten as well as my old man and I will definitely be taking her to see Dr. Mattick when the time comes as well.

I have brought my 3 cats here since I moved back into the Shoreline area and couldn’t be happier. All of the staff and doctors have been gentle, caring, taken the time to answer all of my questions and even call me to see how the kitties are doing after they have any procedure.
On a recent customer service email response I had mentioned an additional charge that wasn’t quoted and that I wasn’t happy about it. The practice manager called me right away after reviewing my fees and agreed that it was an overcharge and immediately refunded the charge. I did not expect this and was very pleasantly surprised.
Others have posted about their high costs. Honestly, yes, they may cost a LITTLE more than other vets. However there are no dogs or other animals/​smells to stress my cats out, I never wait more than a few minutes for a visit, I am quite pleased with all of the staff and the quality of care provided, and most importantly my cats remain calm during their visits. For me, that’s definitely worth it.
I’ll keep coming here even if I move out of the area!

I forgot to update my original review, but wanted to provide an update to my fellow Unilocal-​er cat ladies (and men). Since my last review, a lot has changed. As soon as I voiced my concern, it was immediately rectified. I got a personal call back from the doctor, whom I now communicate with regularly and I couldn’t be happier with her. Dr. Fligiel is really fantastic and knowledgeable, and she is genuinely interested in helping my cat get better.
As I mentioned before, a lot of these reviews are written when people’s emotions are running high and they might have just lost a feline friend. I’d say that you should really try and give this place a shot if you are dissatisfied with or even just feeling a little iffy about your current vet. I was pleasantly surprised with this place, and despite the hiccup, everything’s gone smoothly since.

This place doesn’t even deserve the 1 star the system made me give. Dr. Faith Vaughn should have her license taken away… she killed my cat. Seriously. She left a surgical sponge in his intestines that was discovered a year later by a subsequent surgery to find out what this «obstruction» was that was showing up on x-​rays and ultrasound. A different surgeon performed the second procedure which my cat did not survive through. His body was so stressed out. This second surgeon found the sponge and came clean about it. Had it been Dr. Vaughn I am sure she would have lied. The first surgery that Vaughn (she doesn’t deserve the title of «Dr.») was the first surgery my cat ever had so it was known who’s fault it was immediately.
So my poor baby was sick and in and out of that office BECAUSE HE HAD A SPONGE IN HIS INTESTINE for an entire year. And I’ll never forget her words to me before the first surgery, «I am the fastest surgeon here.» Oh really? I can see why since she rushed through my cat’s surgery! Those words ring in my head to this day.
PLEASE do not take your cats here and those who have lost a pet during surgery there (or after surgery) should start asking questions. This place is horrible! Faith Vaughn can roast in hell as far as I’m concerned.

This is my favorite vet if you have a cat that you can actually take to one (City Cat Mobile Vet is great if you want/​need the vet to come to you). Every time I walk in, I am greeted by helpful staff who give my Jack a ton of loving — he really does have a cute face.
The exams are pricey at around $ 56, but the vets are very knowledgeable and take the time to answer all of your questions and never make you feel rushed. The last time I was there, Jack needed medication for a little bug he caught and the techs made sure that I knew how to give it to him before I left. They even demonstrated by giving him his first dose.
Cats Exclusive also has boarding services which I’ve used three times this year when I went on vacations. I have tried other boarding for my cat before, but this is by far the best. They have townhouses with three levels for Jack to climb around on. They also play nature videos twice a day. For an extra $ 10/​day you can get a play package where they will play with your cat for 15 minutes. I think the base price is around $ 22/​night, more on holidays. I do recommend bringing your cats blanket/​bed/​favorite toys as they don’t really have furnishings.
One other great service is their cat store. Realized that you also need to pick up cat food? They have it. Need a new toy? They got that too. Kitty would love a new climbing tree? They got you covered.
I have yet to find something about this place I don’t like. Though I recently moved to West Seattle, I’ll still drive up to Shoreline to give Jack this great level of service and care.

This is my favorite cat vet of all time.
We have a barnyard cat who hates every person, ever. She had an allergy so we took her on down to Cats Exclusive.
The vet there (I wish I remembered her name, she was amazing) was literally the only person I have ever seen who was able to relax this cat of mine. I’ve had her for over two years and she still barely lets me pet her (the cat, not the vet). Vet got her to lay still and purr like a kitten. Vet clearly explained what was wrong and was able to slip her some antibiotics. What a pro! Seriously, you don’t know what an antisocial personality this cat has. It was mind blowing. This profession is her calling.
Reasonably priced, too. Even with insurance, I can’t get out of the doctor for less than I paid the vet to fix my cat!