North Boros Veterinary Hospital

In 2005, my cat had an eye ulcer which formed an area of dead tissue on his cornea called a sequestrum. I had to take him to a few different vets until I was finally referred to a veterinary ophthalmologist and the cat had surgery. So, in April of this year when I noticed an ulcer forming on his other eye, I knew IMMEDIATELY that I needed a referral to the ophthalmologist. The one we'd seen before had retired, so I absolutely needed the referral in order to take him to the new ophthalmologist. Dr. Bolens told me, ""No, I don't think you need to take him there. I'm confident that this will heal up in a few days"" , despite my concerns that another sequestrum might form. He sent us home on Gentocin drops. About a week later, the cat was scheduled for a dental exam and I asked for a repeat eye exam while he was under anesthesia. The ulcer was not improving, and I again asked for a referral to the ophthalmologist. Instead, we started another antibiotic; this time an ointment. I wanted to trust Dr. Bolens' judgment, but I called the ophthalmology practice and again I was told that I needed a referral. I called North Boros back and the woman answering the phone (Kate? I can't remember her name.) told me that Dr. Bolens would call me the next morning (Friday). I told her that I had been told that atropine drops would help to alleviate the discomfort. The receptionist said, ""Atropine doesn't do that; it just dilutes the eye."" Perhaps she meant that it ""DILATES"" the pupil, which of course I already knew. I didn't realize that an uneducated receptionist was qualified to practice veterinary medicine. They refused to prescribe anything at all for pain. The receptionist said, ""The doctor said that this medicine won't burn his eye."" Again, the receptionist is the middle man and she has no idea what she's doing... I'm thinking that maybe it's not just the medication and possibly the GIANT ULCER in his cornea is causing him discomfort? Of course it was, but they wouldn't give us anything to help him. The weekend went by with no return call, so Monday I took him to the emergency vet, b/c I knew he'd get in with the ophthalmologist the next day. He went to surgery that afternoon, and now he needs a 2nd surgery to further repair the cornea. Dr. Bolens only called me back after the emergency vet had faxed him the report and the request for lab results that were done a week before the emergency room visit. His message? ""Hi, it's Dr. Bolens. I received the report and I see you took him to the ophthalmologist on your own. Just calling to touch base."" Thanks for nothing. Oh, after the surgery, the ophthalmologist did prescribe both atropine drops and buprenorphine for pain. Finally, my cat had some relief after a MONTH of suffering. I feel so foolish for trusting this veterinarian and not taking my cat to the emergency room sooner, or not trying harder to at least get him seen by the ophthalmologist. Hindsight is 20/20. Maybe I should submit a second one-star review because of what happened there in the 90s: the burns my family's dog aquired all over her back from a heating pad at North Boros while undergoing a spenectomy, again under the care of Dr. Bollens. For real, take good care of your pets and stay away from this place. They don't provide compassionate care, don't believe in pain management, and don't respect the pet owner. Your pet deserves much better than this! For what it's worth, this review referrs to Dr. K Bollens Jr, NOT his son Dr. K Bollens III who also works at the practice. more

The Doctors and Assistants are great Been takeing my dog here for 6 years never had a problem and my dog is a hand full more

We have taken our eleven year old Akita to North Boros since she was a puppy. The care has been first-rate, caring, and professional. No medication or procedures were suggested that were not necessary. Dr. Bollens even recommended that another vet perform knee surgery on our dog because he was more experienced at that procedure. One dissatisfied patient wrote that she was unhappy the doctor told her how to feed her dog. Since I am not a vet, I am very pleased at the feeding regime Dr. Bollens recommended as it has made a big difference in our dog's health. I would recommend any animal lover go to this vet. Competence and caring is a good combination. more

My cat Fatty had gotten ill a few months back. My boss had always taken his dogs to North Boros and I decided to take Fatty there... I was never "over the top" about the other places I've been for minor things so I decided why not. I got a same day appointment! And never was scheduled more than 3 days from my call actually. We found at the first appt that Fatty had developed a disease with fluid build up in her chest... She was doing well for a while and we took her to multiple "re-checks". In between those check ups we received phone calls to see how Fatty was doing from Dr. Judy herself. Fatty disease got the best of her though this week after a good long fight. We went in to North Boros and although Dr. Judy wasn't there... we saw Dr. Bollens and after a long talk decided it was best to put her down and out of her suffering. My husband and I are expecting our first baby... we both work full time jobs.. and the bills from North Boro never brought tears to my eyes, which has happened more

My devoted golden retriever was never in better hands than at the time of his death. Bailey's Vet was located in the town where I worked as a convenience to me. But when the decision to put him down was necessitated due to blindness, hip displasia and cancer, I needed a Vet closer to home. I called the North Boros Vet Hospital and they made arrangements for us to arrive after the other patients were gone. We had total privacy and consideration for the solemn event. The staff and Dr. Bollens could not have been more consoling and kind to us during the procedure. We were not rushed and encouraged to take as much time as we needed. Dr. explained the steps completely and prepared us for the physical reaction that would occur once Bailey revceived his shots. I was devastated over the loss of my companion and the compasion the staff extended to me was overwhelming. I vowed that I would come back to this Vet if we were to own another dog. I'm delighted to report that we have indeed more

I have been taking my 6 yr old brittany spaniel mix and 4 yr old DSH cat to both Dr. Bollens, Jr/III. and sr for about 3 years now. I had previously spent a fortune at another vet hospital for emergency visits, meds and flea meds. Dr. Bollens has open hospital hours and scheduled appointments, he does not charge for the outrageous emergency fees like some hospitals do. I trust this hospital, because my dog had a very bad skin infection, to which no other doctor was able to diagnose. Dr. Bollens. investigated and diagnosed my dog and after being on an antibiotic for 3 wks - Chance recovered. I am so thankful that Chance is still able to enjoy the summertime with his family, if North Boros Veterinary Hosp did not treat his skin infection he could have suffered, and I couldn't live with an unhappy pup.\r \r MONEY should never be an issue with a dog, cat or child. LOVE, UNDERSTANDING AND PATIENCE is what you look for in a vet. For whoever wrote that North Boros Veterinary Hosp is looking to more

I have always received excellent care by Dr. Bollens III he is compassionate, understanding, patient and always has a pleasant demeanor. The staff is kind and caring. Dr. Bollens goes above and beyond explaining procedures and taking his time with each pet. My rescues as well as my own dogs have always received quality care at North Boros. more

I chose to release my beloved daughterdog of 14 years on December 12, 2008 with these drs. Since I visit my daughter in Pittsburgh often, I had established a relationship with these vets for the last 4 years. They have always been understanding with my concerns since my dog had health issues with seizures (medically controlled), hypothyroidism, and arthritis. When it was time to euthanize my dog, I called them, actually the day that we had decided. They kindly arranged an afternoon time when the waiting room was empty. The whole event was handled with extreme loving care and concern. We had all the time we needed with our sweet dog. I highly recommend this veterinarian group. more

We have been taking our three dogs and one cat to North Boros for several years. The care our pets received has not only met expectations, but has, in fact, exceeded them. Prior to North Boros, we had been taking our pets to a veterinary practice for 26 years. It was very expensive and the attitudes of most of the staff were often problematic at this previous practice we used. While financial issues weren't the primary focus in choosing North Boros (we had moved to Shaler Twp.), we were surprised to find that their services were less then we had been paying at the previous facility we used. The veterinarians with whom we have interacted at North Boros have been courteous, pleasant and most importantly, knowledgeable, to an extreme degree. And we have never detected any sort of attitude with the staff. They are respectful, friendly and professional, and appear to interact amongst themselves in that fashion. Someone might be upset about a bordetella vaccination and decide to write off more

I have been using this Vet for many years and have never felt at any time that they were only concerned about the almighty dollar. Lets face it, they are providing a service for a price, just like any other establishment or doctors office. You will never please everyone, all the time, under any circumstances. I have had several animals put to sleep there and they have always been compassionate and talked through the final moments and guided us through the tough decision and even advised against lengthy, prolonging, costly care. Feel free to go somewhere else but don't condemn an entire business based on your, emotional opinion. more

I have had three animals cremated at North Boros, all of them were handled in a very caring way. I have had alot of my friends also take their pets to North Boros. The doctor was understanding and took the time to help me when I had to make the difficult decision to put my pet to sleep.I highly recommend this facility. I've gone to this hospital for years with all my pets and always felt I had good care. more

I have recently within the last month had a dog of 14 years put to sleep at the Etna Emergency Vet Clinic. The Etna facility is great. I chose to have my dog cremated. They sent her to North Boros for the cremation and told me that they would call me when it was time to pick up her remains. I got the call to go and pick her up.\r \r I took my daughter with me (same age as my dog was) for moral support. When we went in, I stated the reason I was there, and then a piece of notebook paper was slapped down in front of me and I was told to sign it and the woman walked away.\r \r I signed the paper, and then she came back with a pouch, ripped the tag off (not gently, but ripped, literally) and then she handed over the remains in this pouch with a faux smile and said, "here you go, have a nice day!"\r \r I immediately broke into tears and walked out and my daughter made the comment that it was just like getting a hamburger at a fast food place.\r \r This is the kind of people they have working h more

We have been patients of the facility for 4 years with our dog and we have always recieved expert advice and loving care with all of our visits. Nurses are attentive and compassionate. Vet took the time to answer all of our questions as needed. more

I wrote this for the wrong place. I have never been here. Sorry I don't know how to delete this. I wrote this for the wrong place. I have never been here. Sorry I don't know how to delete this. more

...don't try here. This is not our regular vet, but we had an emergency and couldn't get to our regular vet quickly. They were pretty good about getting us in quickly (same day appointment). But I did not like the fact that they pushed unnecessary drugs and were openly disapproving of my method of feeding my dogs. I would keep this place in mind for emergencies only. more