Looking for top-notch pet care in Plymouth Meeting? Hickory Veterinary Hospital is here to help. This veterinary practice specializes in routine pet wellness services. We encourage you to contact the location directly to verify address, hours of operation, and service offerings prior to arrival.
5 Reviews on “Hickory Veterinary Hospital”
I have been with this practice for over 20 years and 9 pets. Only had to wait for an appointment 1 time due to a medical emergency. I have had a few medical emergencies, but so happy my pets got the care they needed and happy to wait for others in need. One pet I didn’t count was a 3 day old baby gerbil. His leg was terrible swollen. They put him under a microscope to find the issue. A thread of a cotton ball around his leg cutting off circulation. It was removed and the limb was saved. We named him Lucky. No charge! Front staff and clinical team are the best!
AVOID!
go elsewhere if you can!!
Pharmacy will DENY ALL CHEWY CLAIMS. this is so that you are forced to use their in house pharmacy and pay extra fees. this would be fine if the pharmacy would actually do their job and fill medications. [What GP doesn’t help retain clients by working with online pharmacies to help pets get their meds??]
If you came through ER and saw one doctor and need a refill, GOOD LUCK. The request will be bounced all around the hospital and left unfilled until it’s forgotten about.
In regards to other parts of the hospital, Hickory is open til 2, soon to be 24hrs, but employees are underpaid, overworked and understaffed but still manage to find time to play Sudoku, watch movies in treatment areas, eat cookies and order food rather than save your pet.
The lobby is full of ringing phones and CSRs yelling over eachother and talking about clients in a derogatory way. The water fountain in the lobby also tastes of lead and metal, but you can buy a cold fresh bottle from the vending machine (which is not owned by Hickory) but be careful as it has a surcharge added at the end that every customer is unaware about until after dispensing your item. The lack of a comfort room for when your pet is eventually to be euthanized is disturbing. Your last moments with your beloved are in a bright tiled exam room that has hard benches and is the most uncomfortable atmosphere to say goodbye to your pet in.
With having their own crematorium on property, seems like a money move that a majority of ER cases are cremated (which to me seems like a conflict of interest).
But to quote Dr. Timothy Geis: “This is a Business”.
If you care about your pet, take them elsewhere like Metropolitan, Penn, or literally anywhere else. The wait is worth it and you won’t rack up a huge hill full of unnecessary tests, radiography, and you will have a better chance at bringing your pet home with you and not in a box cremated.
I followed my current vet, Dr. George Motley, from a previous to location to this wonderful facility. All of the staff are caring and helpful, the hours are great and they are available for emergencies. I would not hesitate to use any the vets here!
If I could give this vet hospital a 0 I would. I came back here because my dog needed surgery. (My primary vet is Heart & Paw in KOP and I love it, every single employee there is kind and you can tell loves animals.) The difference is night & day… Hickory is the complete opposite of our regular vet.
Some (not all) of the staff at Hickory are very rude & act they they can’t be bothered. You want to walk into a vet office feeling like they love dogs and are excited/somewhat happy to see your pet. It makes you feel at ease and your pet is going to be well taken care of. That is def not the case here. But, let me get to it…
Dr. Stephanie Dobins is rude and unprofessional. It started at my initial appointment when she went over the surgery for my dog. When I tried to ask a few questions to feel comfortable moving forward with his procedure she glossed over what I was trying to discuss. I felt like I was being rushed out the door so I said how I was feeling and asked for a few extra minutes of her time. She admitted she was busy and was rushing me out the door because she was overbooked. My appointment cost $500 and I was about to spend $5,000 on surgery. I think I should get my questions answered and feel comfortable and confident in my dog’s surgery. I tried to let it go, move forward.
Post surgery she was just as bad if not worse. We ran into an issue post op. My dog’s leg was double in size and solid. He couldn’t move and we were treated like it was no big deal. Dr. Dobins couldn’t even evaluate if my dog’s leg was still hard or not when she got in the next morning. She called for the doctor who was on duty the night before because she couldn’t give me any answers. Not exactly what you want to hear from your dogs surgeon. She can’t look at notes pick up his case & feel for herself if his leg feels normal or hard?? Any person could do that let alone a veterinarian.
After his release was scheduled and a plan was agreed upon for my dog, the next morning I woke up to an alarming voicemail saying we needed to develop a plan. This was news to me and honestly made me think something happened overnight to my dog! She now suggested a plan to go through with $3,000 worth of testing. When I asked if he needed it she said no it was to “give me an answer”. This doctor was willing to put my dog through unnecessary surgery and a CT scan for 3 grand just to shut me up. Not for the greater good of my dog… I said I wanted a new surgeon/vet.
While she was booking an appointment with the other surgeon I had asked if I could come pick up my dog, Dr. Dobins freaked out & very rudely told me “to come get my dog” and hung up the phone on me. Real nice, right?! So unbelievably unprofessional.
If you are considering this office I urge you to find another if not, at least book with another surgeon.
UPDATE:
I wanted to update my review. I will not change what I wrote above because it is a true testament to everything that happened and I want to help anyone I can who possibly would book with Dr. Dobins.
I did speak with the manager after everything and she was so incredibly kind and willing to hear me out. She sympathized what I had went through and was concerned about the issues I raised and said she is going to be moving forward with speaking to the surgeon & staff. She and the owners wanted to help right a wrong and did give us some money back. I appreciate Donna and the time she took to speak with me.
One day later I received my first check in call about my dog 5 weeks post surgery… 5 weeks a little too late. My primary vet and our new surgeons office called 1-2 days later post visit and a phone call. Again, the differences are night & day. But, management and the owners do care and I hope for any other clients it will get better.
Our visit Thursday evening was everything we needed in a moment of crisis. We called ahead and I was pleasantly surprised to find that Hickory had availability to see us as soon as we arrived at the door.
Dr. Stottler was professional and compassionate to an exemplary degree. We brought our dog in after a missed diagnosis at our primary care vet. She heard our concerns, validated our experience and quickly intervened to diagnose and begin treatment for a mast cell tumor. Her interactions with both us humans and our dog were patient and kind at every turn. The staff at the desk, whose names I regret I did not catch, were particularly gracious and thoughtful and helped us make the best of a late-night stressful visit.
We were promptly scheduled for a consult with Dr. Rosenheck for surgery. Dr Rosenheck was able to accommodate us next day, which was an incredible blessing given the stress of missing the diagnosis in primary care, and the significant discomfort our dog was experiencing. Drop off for surgery was difficult given my intense worry for her outcomes-this was handled gingerly and professionally as well.
Our dog usually does not eat when she is in foreign environments. The report of her eating well during her hospitalization is a testament to the wonderful care I’m confident she received while she was recovering after surgery.
Now that Tessa is back in our laps after the stressful week she’s had, we can’t thank Dr Stottler, Dr Rosenheck and all the staff at Hickory enough!