Excellent for cat care, you can tell they genuinely care about each patient. Have used them for routine and emergency appointments as well.
I did an ultrasound for my cat here and it was a very distressing experience. They asked me not to feed her from the evening before and to bring her in at 8:30am, but then they kept her there all day until 5pm without food.
She was already unwell and often peeing blood, and it was very upsetting to see her like that.
I would avoid this hospital if you care about your pet.
Saved our FIP cat’s life
My partner and I are immensely grateful for the vets here. Our cat at the end of last year was displaying worrying signs of not eating, lethargy etc., we were with another vet at the time who ran tests and did not really take the signs we mentioned seriously.
Our gut instincts told us to get a second opinion, and after asking around we decided to go with Highcroft.
though it is much more of a hassle to travel to, the care and attention this vet has given to our boy is unmatched and is worth it.
They immediately took the signs we said seriously and began testing. Highcroft also has more access to external labs, specialist vet advice than our old vet which we believe made a big difference. We were told he might have FIP, and immediately began treatment for it.
If it wasn’t for the quick diagnosis and treatment, FIP is a death sentence for cats. The signs are often elusive, so we’re grateful that the vets actually considered this disease. 3 months later, he is now back to normal with bloods and everything
Thank you to the lovely team here for all the support and care ❤️
I don’t wish to criticise the vets (they were v nice people) but my leopard tortoise recently died and was left to suffer terribly for weeks by what I feel was inconsistent and slow treatment.
I feel if they had treated this case involving a fatal infection with more urgency, she may well still be with us.
Jambo had become very ill a few weeks earlier - gasping for air, not eating, lethargic, coughing.
I took her to the vets v alarmed. They said she 99 per cent probably had a very serious infection (mycoplasma) that could prove fatal.
She would need antibiotics, but I was strongly advised to do a swab first. Not wanting to go against this advice, I chose the swab and waited.
The results took 8(!) days to come back, while Jambo just got worse. I was so worried, but when I asked again about the antibiotics, I was advised by a different vet to wait for the result. Again, I stupidly listened.
Jambo had the infection. I booked her in for a tube to be fitted for antibiotics, but she laid eggs and couldn’t have it. I was told to take her home, and see if she got better.
I was also told I could give her oral antibiotics if she began eating. She ate a tiny amount so being totally clueless, I opted for this. But Jambo was so ill, she stopped eating. She was gasping for air, making terrible noises, unable to walk.
At one point, I rang the vets, told them Google and AI said she was going to die, and I was reassured this wasn’t so. I also told the vet Jambo hadn’t eaten for weeks, and was told this wasn’t a problem as tortoises could go for months without eating.
Throughout this time, I was totally distressed – trying to do all these totally pointless things the vet had suggested, such as vitamin baths and nasal flushes. They offered bloods, x-rays – all kinds of pointless things – when she just needed urgent antibiotics.
The mixed messages just left me so baffled. 1) your tortoise has a deadly infection 2) She needs urgent antibiotics 3) Let’s wait 8 days for swab results. 4) Oh, she’s laid eggs, so maybe now she will get better. 5) Tube or oral antibiotics – no big deal, you choose.
Because of these totally confusing messages, I began to doubt my own instincts. I literally told myself that the vets were chilled, so I just needed to chill out.
By the time I had organised another antibiotic tube to be fitted, Jambo had died. I literally drove her in, dead. The vet told me – on examining her body – that she was utterly emaciated.
Jambo died gasping for breath, unable to walk, absolutely starving and with weeping eyes. I spent so much time with her in those last weeks, desperately trying to care for her and getting her to eat, probably distressing her. And it was all pointless.
Fundamentally, she died suffering. My partner and I have been left absolutely crippled by guilt that we let her die and suffer, and that we didn’t get her the treatment she needed in time to give her a chance. How is this okay?
We have sobbed for days & felt very angry.
The vets have said they are sorry she died, but that they followed antibiotic protocol, that I was always given a full range of options, and invited back for appointments. They say I made all the decisions about Jambo’s care – not them. This is all completely accurate.
But… where was the common sense? Where was the leadership? Where was the urgency and experience? Could the protocol not have been ignored for a pet this ill?
Why did they not just say: “She is seriously sick, may die; we need to treat her immediately.”
I basically feel that I let my pet die, and this is something I will have to live with forever.
Awful experience with Carolize today, to be told my partners terminal illness “didn’t matter and was irrelevant” to the decision regarding our pet was both cruel and reductionist. The mental health of the owners and how these situations are handled matters greatly, and care should be taken when having these conversations. I was completely shocked when I heard her say this and honestly am appalled.
This was by far the best vets we have been to. We originally called and communicated through email. Everybody involved was very helpful. We then came in for a consultation. The staff at the desks were incredibly kind, helpful and professional. We were seen by both exotic vets who were so informative, friendly and very reassuring. 5 stars from us.
Terrible service. They have computers and equipment, yet no one seems to know anything. It’s all about procedures with zero flexibility and a complete lack of competence. You come in with a specific problem and they just follow scripts, passing you from one person to another. Total waste of time and nerves.
The team here were fantastic with my guinea pig when he needed an abcess removed- Carolize was brilliant, explained everything thoroughly and showed tremendous care and respect for my boy. Initial consultation was great as he was scheduled for his much needed surgery the very next day! Cannot fault the team here at all- very happy client here 😀
After reading other reviews regarding losing their beloved pets to highcroft, we felt it is important to share what happened to our dog, Marlee.
Marlee went into highcroft vets for an operation to clean her anal glands. A couple of days after Marlee started to be sick and blood was coming from her anus. We were very concerned and called Highcroft. We then came in for an urgent veterinary appointment where she was given an anti sickness jab and tablets. We were then assured that after a few days she would be okay. She was checked over by a vet at Highcroft and we were told she was very healthy.
Just after midnight there was a significant amount of blood that Marlee was passing, so we called again for an emergency appointment for her to be seen. We were then again assured that this is normal. We stressed our concern where my dad even described it as like a ‘murder scene’ again we were told this is completely normal and to be expected and wait till the morning to see how she was.
However, by 6:30 in the morning it was too late and we found her passed away in her bed.
As her owners, we knew she was deteriorating and trusted the vets to guide us. We were not taken seriously, and the advice we received was, in our view, dangerously inadequate. Highcroft’s failure to provide proper aftercare following her operation had devastating consequences.
When we submitted our complaint, the response addressed only the appointment from the previous day and made no acknowledgement or accountability for the phone call we made just after midnight.
I would also like to say how we chose this vet for the benefits of the out the out of hours care, which we felt we did not receive.
The only thing we had hoped to gain from speaking up was for meaningful changes to be made so that no other family has to experience the same heartbreak we have.
Brilliant service looked after my puppy Hendie very well through his surgery and post op care was informative and very helpful ! Definitely use this vet
