New house, new vet!

August 6, 2007 9:46 AM

PDXkittyfilter: Help my kitties find a new veterinarian!

Does any Portland Mefite have experience with the North Portland Veterinary Hospital? My wife and I just moved into NoPo and our old vet's way too far away for the cats (one who's 12 and one who's 2) who don't like to be in the carrier or the car for more than about 45 seconds - this hospital's really close to our new place and would be ideal, if it's any good.

They don't have any health issues or special needs, we just need to find a more convenient vet; if you've had any experience (good or bad) there, or if you know of a good vet somewhere close to Lombard (west of Interstate), I'd love to hear about it.

posted by pdb to pets & animals (11 comments total)

My landlady recommended North Portland Veterinary Hospital to me when I asked her for a recommendation in the area. She has two cats, and has lived in NE for 20 years. So not direct experience, just passing on the recommendation I got from her.

We are planning on checking it out, so if I get there before you do, I'll let you know what I find out.
posted by ugf at 9:59 AM on August 6, 2007

Funny you should ask...

We just took a stray that we'd recently adopted to the North Portland Veterinary Hospital for an abcess on his cheek. They did a blood test and found out he had feline Aids....

Anyway, not to get too depressing, but everyone at the hospital was beyond helpful. I really can't sing their praises enough. We'll definitely make them our regular vet when we get a new cat.

Good luck.
posted by sharkweek at 10:59 AM on August 6, 2007

sharkweek - great to know, but my condolences about your kitty. What a crap way to find out about a good vet.
posted by pdb at 11:02 AM on August 6, 2007

I've heard nice things about North Portland Veterinary as well, though we've never used them. We needed an emergency appointment with a vet when our cat was behaving weirdly one morning, but NoPo Vet couldn't fit us in, so instead we took her to Lombard Animal Hospital, just east of MLK.

The folks at Lombard Animal Hospital were perfectly nice. Kept her for observation, did some bloodwork and hydrating... ultimately it all worked out just fine, though I'm not sure it was anything in particular that they did. Just an older cat being odd and straightening herself out in the end. It was a good experience with Lombard Animal Hospital, as far as I'm concerned, and affordable as these things go.
posted by mumkin at 12:01 PM on August 6, 2007

I've also had good experiences at Lombard Animal Hospital (including a cat tooth-cleaning involving light anesthesia); I now live by Burnside but still go up there.
posted by lisa g at 12:12 PM on August 6, 2007

Yep, I took my two cats there until I just recently moved. Their rates were reasonable, and everyone was nice. Plus, they have weekend and evening hours.

Now I'm looking for a vet in inner NE Portland (Lloyd Center area). I don't know if anyone here has recommendations? If not, I'll probably just keep making the trek up north.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 12:59 PM on August 6, 2007

croutonsupafreak: We went to Hollywood Pet Hospital. (hollywoodpet.com) Dr. Sams was our vet for our two cats (one jumpy, one not), and he was great. Middle-aged guy, experienced, gentle, good-natured. There was a younger vet we also saw, that I can't quite recommend. Their staff was good.

If you're down for a trip into SW, I can't recommend Dr. Marla McGeorge enough. "The Cat Doctor" and "Cat Calls Mobile Cat Clinic." She and her staff only work with cats, and they're absolutely super. I haven't done the mobile clinic, but her office (which is listed wrong on Google maps — she's two doors down on Corbett) is pretty convenient.
posted by thomsplace at 1:31 PM on August 6, 2007

croutonsupafreak: we went to Broadway Veterinary Clinic when we lived down thataway. Good people, recently remodeled facility. You could do much worse.
posted by mumkin at 2:11 PM on August 6, 2007

I hope your kitties never need this, but Dove Lewis in Northwest Portland is the best emergency veterinary clinic I have ever used. Just FYI.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 5:38 PM on August 6, 2007

I have a friend who is a part time vet at North Portland Veterinary and likes working there. But she recommends Cat Hospital of Portland in the SE. Not because NP isn't good (it is), but because the person who runs Cat Hosp is an outstanding specialist. So it depends whether you're really looking for the best.

Seconding Dove Lewis for emergencies.
posted by media_itoku at 7:27 PM on August 6, 2007

I would second Broadway Veterinary Clinic; it's right next to a bus stop, good outings around it (for non-vet visits), and the vets there are pretty awesome. I've been taking my cat there since May 2002.

(Give Chez Jose across the street a try, lime-chicken enchiladas!).
posted by hyperlith at 9:02 PM on August 6, 2007