King Edward Veterinary Referral Hospital

Staff displayed care and passion while maintaining a professional environment. After the diagnostic study was done we received a concise report and advice on how to care after our pet and its condition. We are completely satisfied with our encounter from start to finish. Your pet will be in good hands, rest assured.

We've been going here regularly for a couple of years or so and liked the specialist vet. Our dog had a stroke this month but was recovering her mobility by the day. The same day she had the stroke, x-rays were done for the first time and a lung mass was discovered. A week later we went back for a checkup. I asked about the mass and was told that it's too small to cause a problem. Then she developed breathing issues during the second week of her recovery. I alerted the clinic that I suspected she needed oxygen therapy. It turns out this is not an uncommon treatment for dogs following a stroke, but it was never mentioned to us as an option or warned that her breathing might become compromised. We rushed her to the clinic expecting that she would be helped. I swear she received oxygen for about 30 seconds before the vet casually announced that she wasn't responding and needed to be put down. We weren't asked. We were told. We were frantic by the abrupt way this news was delivered. My partner was on his knees. I was frozen. The vet had another appointment coming in soon and to my shock I realised that she was prepping our dog for euthanasia without waiting for us to agree or even discussing further treatment options or tests. No questions asked of us about our dog. She had been sleeping well and appeared a bit better that morning, more alert. I felt very hopeful when we brought her in. Everything was just a case of this needs to be done NOW, the vet is in a hurry and rushing everything and us. This is a vet we trusted and I never expected this total lack of compassion. It was like being hit with a sledgehammer. We were given no time to think, ask questions or prepare emotionally. We were in absolute shock and put under a lot of pressure. Suddenly, the vet said that "well we already knew her lungs were a mess". Only a week before the opposite was said about the mass! Everything happened so fast. We thought she cared about our dog after treating her a number of times for bladder infections. However, the way she went about the final procedure and aftermath you would think she was euthanizing an ant instead of a much loved dog. Smiling even a number of times and generally carrying on like it was nothing. If I had my wits about me I would have carried my poor girl out of there at the start and to her usual vet to at least give her a chance and run tests. Even if there was no hope, this vet really lacked empathy. I even had to ask her to please stop and she looked at me in surprise and asked if we wanted to be there for the end! This is a question you ask before hand. A caring vet doesn't simply go ahead as if it's her dog and her decision. If I hadn't spoken up she would have gone ahead without us comforting our dog and saying goodbye. Looking back, I realised that we trusted and held this vet in much too high esteem which is why we felt we were not in control. Her nurses are lovely and kind; serious and not smiling during our trauma. I never thought I would say this about the vet though: she's obviously been in this business too long and has lost her compassion. In addition, after all the visits here and thousands upon thousands spend, we actually never got any solid explanations regarding her reoccurring bladder issues and what the root cause could be. Our dog was losing a lot of weight prior to the stroke, but we were told that it's fine despite our concerns. I used to respect this vet, but no longer. I will always regret not taking my dog elsewhere to give her a chance with a vet who wasn't rushed because they had another appointment arriving soon from Jeffreys Bay. Please don't let her degrees impress you into trusting blindly or think they come with compassion.

Very professional and caring! Dr Bohm truly is helpful and informative. Will recommend any pet lovers to go to her if possible.

Dr Marlies, Melissa and Danni at the King Edward Veterinary Referral Hospital are so incredibly caring, friendly and kind. If your fur-baby has issues they are going to find out what it is without doubt. Highly recommended, thank you everyone at the hospital.

Excellent staff. Very knowledgeable, friendly specialist assisted with a scan for our fur baby. They were most helpful and understanding and it was a calm experience in a strange new place for our puppy. I would highly recommend this practice.

The Eastern Cape is lucky to have Dr. Bohm. Her astute and dilligent analysis saved our young dog's life. Moreover the compassion shown by her and her excellent team made the whole experience much less stressful than it should have been, both for us and our beloved dog. Keep up the good work!

Dr Marlies and her team were so gentle and sweet with our furry doggie and treated us with such empathy and kindness too. We had a very sad outcome but the compassion of the staff really touched us and comforted us.