I brought my cat in stable condition, with a urinary catheter, and IV in place, to have surgery to alleviate future urinary blockages (known as a "P.U").A pet mom, with 7 animals of my own, and 7 fosters, my paltry income has been getting wiped out by vet bills. When J.C. fell ill, I originally took him to LIVS.The care is top-drawer, the staff is too.They unblocked him, and he was in good shape, but I couldn't afford the surgery he required, I ran out of credit accepted there, I had to take him elsewhere.Central Veterinary Assoc. advertised they would work with you.They were fine when I brought him in, and opened an additional credit line, The bill was twice what they stated, so I had to increase ANOTHER credit line(both borrowed from a friend.)After waiting the equivalent of an epic movie on phone lines over the following days, I was finally able to visit him. It was HORRIFYING AND HEARTBREAKING!.He was barely breathing, completely dehydrated, drooling, covered head to toe in his own dried urine, and so severly anemic that I knew he needed a transfusion. I ran to get the doctor to point this out. Neither the Dr. nor the techs had noticed this.Then they tried to jam a large ventilator tube down his throat as he struggled, After, when I confronted them on their 'treatment', I was assaulted by a trailer-trash, woman (tech?) with so much makeup, she looked like an Avon truck casualty.Saying I was "In her space" 3 feet away, trying to talk to her, she shouted me down, put both hands on my shoulders and shoved me backward to the cages. I was told JC was on an IV, there was none. That he was being force-fed, there were a few dry kibble in a paper dish in his cage, which he couldn't eat. There was no litter box. His gums, eyelids, normally dark pink, were snow white.He was wheezing, struggling for every breath, No one noticed or cared. He had no E-collar to keep him off his stitches."Go home, " they said, "He's fine.This is normal after surgery.(Surgery was 5 days ago.)"Call tomorrow".Suddenly the older (uncle) Dr. Vine decided he must have fatal Hemolytic Amemia. I demanded his blood counts. Dr. Vine said they had done blood work and his values were "low end normal". They never did blood work.Dr. Vine admitted he had no idea of my cat's status, though he was responsible.They refused to give me his records, threatened to call the police. Then they wanted more money for copies. I called the police. I couldn't leave for an hour. JC couldn't be off oxygen.Basically, after a brutal surgery, they left him to die miserably. Dr. Vine told my friend, "He was dead when he got here".Quite the contrary. He was stable and doing well. They almost killed him.They charged me $6000, at a 33% interest rate. I ran with him back to LIVS. X-rays showed he was so dehydrated and starved, that his intestines had stopped moving ("persistalsis"), filled with gas and shut down.He could not get a needed, immediate blood transfusion (which Central refused, then saying they'd maybe get to).As I write this, I am awaiting his blood counts, and news whether or not he will die, and now going another $2200, into debt to try to undo THEIR damage.I'm being laid off in a couple of days.They also tried to sell me the kitchen sink for my other pets.(Even the phone recording does it.)THESE PEOPLE ARE DISGUSTING AND A DISGRACE TO THE VETERINARY FIELD.They should be shut down and jailed, subjected to their own care. As a medical professional, and EMT, I know what I see. God help those who don't in a place like this! STAY AWAY! TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW WITH AN ANIMAL THEY LOVE! If they've done this to you, hold them legally accountable! Contact the proper authorities and agencies that govern unscrupulous organizations Central Veterinary Associates. ADDENDUM: JC struggles for his life now at LIVS. He was, in addition to all this, mutilated in surgery. If he survives, he may require another surgery to fix what they destroyed. I am now $20.000 in debt, and may lose my 'teddy bear' because of CVA.

8-14-10: We visit the vet weekly. Today, two months later, he is still sick, bleeding internally from their butchery. I now have to perform subcutaneous daily dialysis to keep him hydrated. At present, I cannot get him to eat or drink, and is on daily medication, as I struggle to pull him through. I have no doubt, the contraindicated dog vaccines they gave him against my wishes (and charged me for), as well as the ligaments they randomly tore out in surgery didn't help...

I was a customer of this animal hospital for over 10 years. I had two cats (mother and daughter) that I would bring there regularly. When I would bring the two of them for an "annual" check up, the cost would be over $500!!! As both cats aged, they developed more health problems. One became asthmatic, and everytime I needed to bring her in, tests and medicine ran into the hundreds.

After she passed away, our other cat became diabetic. We had to put her on insulin shots and there were often emergency trips to Central Vets if her sugar dropped and she became hypoglycemic. We became enraged when the vet on duty refused to even look at her until we gave a deposit. The last visit we made there, they charged us a "deposit" of $600!!! They always kept her a day or two to monitor her sugar, and the bill always came to over a $1000!!!

After the last time, a friend told us about Westbury Emergency Hospital which is open all night on weekdays and all weekend. It is staffed by veterinarians that work at other hospitals. They would give our cat an injection to raise her sugar, and just hold her overnight to observe her. Needless to say, the cost was a fraction of what Central Vets would charge, and she didn't need to be hospitalized for days.

We now have a new vet who is knowledgable and not money hungry like Central Vets. After reading so many complaints about this facility, I know we made the right decision.

took my 9 week old min. pin. puppy to this hospital and was shocked by the Outrageous behavior of veterinarian Karen O. Liss who's acts reminded me of a heartless butcher. I agree that some procedures can be painful for the puppies but first of all, a professional doctor MUST advise of the alternative ways of getting a test done, advise whether or not this procedure is necessary at THIS PARTICULAR time and ask if the owner of the dog is consenting!!! Second issue with the aforesaid veterinarian is that she seems to be "just doing her job" .
Even a painful procedure can be done gently and with care and that is exactly what I DID NOT see in veterinarian Karen O. Liss!
Needless to say that I changed my dog's vet place same day!