I had bad experience with Banfield as well. I took my puppy there to get her spayed when she was 5 months old. the vet tech at banfield told me that she might have liver shunt b/c her ALT bloodwork is elevated. then they sent a sample of my dog's liver to a lab, never told me anything about the result, just keep telling me to wait and see, during the main time, so many blood samples were drawn, and the same reply: wait and see. My dog is almost two years old now, there is no sign at all showing she has shunt. during the one and half year period, I spent thousands of dollars on vet bills on top of the cost associated with the puppy basic plan and so many trips to the vet, but have seen and talked to the doctor maybe for 5 minutes. I took her to another vet that my friend recommended a couple weeks ago, they did bioacid test as well as all the other tests associated with liver shunt, and they came with the conclusion that nothing was wrong!!!
can't tell you how angry I am, about to sue them.

BTW, I live in orlando, the one I went was on the east side of town in the waterford lakes center.

Az Banfield
 

All Banfield Hospitals are franchise units that are bought into by indvidual vets. So each one is only as good as the Vet that purchased it.

Our Banfield is a good one. They have taken care of our Goldens and our 4 lb Yorkie. We know our vet so well, that we call her by her first name and she is extremely caring.

If you live in Mesa AZ area, I would recommend the Banfield there.

That is the Banfield I go to! How old is your baby?? Maybe we could set up a playdate :) Keelyn LOVES making new friends! She's 10 weeks old!

Hey did you try the one in at the store I groom at? Or does the plan limit you to the vet u signed up at? The one vet there is a yorkie person and has 2 of them. I love my vet to much to try them out, I may use the shot clinic
The staff seems really nice..

Never Again Banfield!
 

Frankly, I don't see how they're allowed to stay in business! The web is full of horrific Banfield stories, there's even an entire website dedicated to them! Banfield Sucks!
I'd like to add that if somebody is happy with them, go for it but please research the clinic's policies! Only because the Vet and staff seems nice, does not mean they can't harm your pet!!!
I was on the wellness plan for several years for my senior yorkie as I got sucked in by their advertisement and the subsequent guilt they're more than willing to sell to you! I don't know about individual Vets actually buying into the franchise as I was told it's more of a lease type of deal and the Vet has to abide by company policy. Every time I went there, it was a new Vet and the staff was horrible! I switched locations so many times until I figured out the problem was with the whole corporation and their practices in general. Real case scenario; you bring in your dog for spay/neuter surgery. While your pet is under, he/she is getting vaccinated all at once, including for things regular vets don't even vaccinate anymore including lepto and corona. Oh, and while we have him laying here, let's also clean his teeth! No wonder pets routinely die in their care not to mention the inferior dog food they push on people! I did my own research after my yorkie almost died after coming home from them! Sitting in the emergency room all night and $1200 later, I was ready to cancel my subscription but of course I was locked in for another year which cannot be canceled! I paid (had no choice) but never went back to them again! The plan really doesn't save you any money because their prices are grossly inflated! My dog is over 12 years old and I've been to many Vets in his lifetime and from one location to the next; Banfield is the worst of the worst! Somebody mentioned that Banfield is the McDonald's of Veterinary care and I totally agree! During those years that my yorkie was being seen there, his health declined so dramatically that he almost needed to be put to sleep!

I've never had anything but good experiences at Banfield. I take my cat and yorkie there. The vet we have is very loving and so are all of the techs and nurses. The only problem I have with them is they gave my baby 4 shots all at once! Benedryl (then waited 10 mins) then corona/lepto? rabies and the kennel cough one.

My baby was in the worst pain in his life... Couldn't move, couldnt lay down, couldnt walk, SCREAMED when we tried to carefully pick him up... But so far that was the only incident.. We ahve decided not to give him all his shots at once but to do one every month for his boosters, then yearly or every 3 years...

We have saved over a thousand dollars just in one visit for my cat, and saved 900 bucks in one visit for Bentley by using the health plans.

So all in all with the experience I've had with my cat and yorkie there... I am happy.

I really love the vets at the local Banfield. My Gypsy was really bad with kennel cough and I believe they saved her life. The people there are very kind to the animals and to me. They know I worry so much and they are quick to answer my questions. They space her shots out and give her benedryl before the shots. In fact I took our new chihuahua pup there today to get some shots.
While your baby is under anesthesia they will only do what you have agreed to have done. So if you do not want them cleaning thier teeth, tell them so. One of the vets is an owner of that location. I really like the attitude there. In fact today they did not charge me for the benedryl shot cause I had to wait more than 15 minutes after the shot before the dr could get back to me. There was a problem with a cat they were treating.

OMG...all shots at once!!
 

A first year vet student knows better than to vaccinate a Yorkie all at once! Shame on them!

Oh...also
 

You can save a few dollars and one less needle for your baby by giving the Benedryl by mouth just before leaving for the vet! :D

I dont like the Banfield we went to either. They marked Duke as biting and scratching after 1 visit there and the doctor only saw him for 10min where he was scared and didn't even move.

Where in South Jersey do you groom? I'm looking for a good groomer for Duke around NJ/NYC? Also do you know if the grooming salon is connected to the vet? I'm thinking that might be the only reason why they marked him because he scratched a groomer once before when he got his nails trimmed there.

I could tell story after story about Banfield-but I won't. But I will say I have 1 MORE MONTH left on my wellness plan :D And I will be done :D:D:D:D. For those who like Banfield--ask about wellness hours-you can get shots for your pet as long as they are healthy and do not have to pay the office visit charge. So you save atleast $30. Heres the thing these hrs are first come first serve so you will have to wait.

It's kind of a hit and miss with Banfield. Some are good, some aren't. We have one right down the street from us that I had started Chip on and I will NEVER go back there again. The vet was awful and I almost pulled her across the table a couple times with the way she talked to me. She even could have caused Chip a lot of pain. I ended up transferring to the one that is like 15 minutes away and they are amazing! They've saved Chip's life and given us great advice on everything. They really care about animals at that one.

We started Gucci at Banfield and are in love with the vets as well as their assistants. They know Gucci and ask about him if I happen to be in the Petsmart without him. They are caring and call after each visit to check on him. Couldn't ask for a better staff.

Yes everyone is correct it is the doctors that make all the difference. If anyone is in the winston salem, nc area. Dr. Keiya Scott works for Banfield and she does a :good job: and is great. I would go to Banfield IF I could have her as my vet. She is super nice and explains things to you and she really cares about the well being of your pet. And her spay/neuter surgeries are top of the line.

Banfield is a corporation
 

Every store is run individually. Like a McDonalds. Or a Target. Or a gas station.

Saying "Banfield Sucks" is ignorant.

Saying "The Banfield in Des Moines, Iowa Sucks" makes 100% more sense.

That single veterinarian at your Banfield location could possibly quit and start their own practice. You could easily say, "East Park Pet Hospital is run by Dr. Joe Blow and he SUCKS. He used to work at Banfield but they fired him. I can't believe he's not out of business."

If you have a problem with a particular vet at Banfield, someone did some crappy hiring. And you go to CORPORATE about it and complain. Not the stinky, lying internet.

I wish people would stop saying "BANFIELD SUCKS".

Just......how stupid.