Circle C Animal Hospital

Since 2007, Circle C Animal Hospital has been providing Animal Hospital Services, Pets And Other Animal Specialties from Austin.

We have been taking 3 dogs and 1 cat to see Dr. Rafferty and his fabulous staff since the clinic opened and have always had a positive experience. We recommend this clinic to everyone we know and could not imagine going to another vet. Dr. Rafferty and his staff have always taken the time to listen to our needs, never assuming any treatments or services without discussing our emotional or financial needs. We do not have endless means to care for our pets, yet CCAH has always been able to find ways for us to give care without breaking the bank. They also helped us out tremendously when our long-time dog, Massimo, passed away in April 2009. We had never experienced such compassion from a vet. So glad they are a part of our community!

We love Circle C Animal Hospital. LuLu, our poodle, loves it, too! She is spoiled rotten by the staff and fabulous vets there. They give the highest quality service and truly love animals. They even let you drop off your animal for a check up and pick back up later. They also have donated a lot to the community.. helping humanely deal with Circle C's wild cats, contributions to silent auctions, buying ad space in school publications. I think that is great! Almost everyone I know in Circle C takes their pets there and I have never heard a negative comment. GREAT JOB CCAH!

I have been going to Circle C Animal Hospital with my pets ever since the clinic opened and have been extremely happy with the service. Dr. Rafferty has diagnosed a rare bone degeneration disorder and performed surgery on one of my cats who is now in great shape, running around and happy. Another cat had congestive heart disease and in the end, Dr. Rafferty worked after hours to give my cat every chance possible for recovery, yet he patiently allowed me to say when it was time for the cat to pass, a decision I could make based on the detailed, clear and thorough information Dr. Rafferty provided me on my cat's condition. I would have wanted no other experience for myself and my cat in that situation. I have moved across town but still continue to go to Circle C Animal Hospital because I know that these people care from their hearts for both the animals and their owners. In addition Dr. Rafferty has shown an understanding of all of the possible conditions that could be contributing to an illness and he takes each one into consideration during diagnosis. I am surprised at the disparaging review below, it doesn't sound like the same place. I also have good friends who have raved about the clinic and have warm and excellent experiences with Dr. Rafferty and his staff.

I "HAD" 3 dogs there. I no longer do. I am filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.. They only care about how much money they can squeeze out of you, and will upsell you everything they can.
It started with the "mandatory" unidose of Frontline at $19.30 a pop (they sell 12 months worth online at $4 a dose) and $24.50 for a unidose of Sentinel (heartworm medicine) on a first puppy visit (which I returned when I realized how I could buy an entire box for not that much more).
Then the fecal flotations (testing for worms) they push on all their first time visitors (at $22 a pop), including the puppy who was getting de-wormer anyway (at $23 a single pill): why test for worms when you are treating them anyway???? Then the $75 or so for 6 months of heartworm medicine, and when I ordered them online at $50 for 12 months, they refused to send the prescription to the online provider, and lectured me about how those sites were not regulated and were sometimes selling expired, counterfeit drugs from China.... I am talking about entirelypets.com etc. (pretty reputable online providers).
I also dropped of one of my dogs for a shave and regular set of shots one morning, and when I picked him up they made me pay for a $30 ear ointment he did not need. When I tried to return it, I was told their policy was to not take back any medications. When I asked them for a copy of that policy, they did not have one. Then when I told them they already had taken back the Frontline and the Sentinel, they told me that somehow they took the Frontline and the Sentinel unidoses back because they were sealed, but they could not take the sealed tube of ointment back because I could have open the metallic seal and put it back on it!
About the lack of knowledge:
the puppy had a leg condition that the vet had to research online as he did not know much about it.
One of the dogs was given radios at the nighttime emergency vet one night (accident), and when I brought those in on a CD they had given me during the day time, the vet never figured out how to open the documents and look at the radios (even after I told her how to, as I was able to pulled them up on my own computer the day before).
The older dog was not looking healthy, so I did let them perform a seniors blood work for about $150. The vet never could interpret the results, just recommended another blood test in a month to see if the values looked better? I went back to my old vet for a second opinion (no longer works on Saturdays, which is why I had tried Circle C Animal Hospital)
Dr. Rosebrock, near BUDA, is a country vet. But he is THE BEST VET EVER, and cheap too! My appointment was at 9:30am. At 9:31am, he saw my dog, took 5mns to look at him and the blood sample results from Circle C, listened to the symptoms of heavy drinking/urination, loss of hair, constant hunger and diminished activity, and already had a preliminary diagnosis, and I quote: “classic textbook case of Cushing’s disease”. He of course proceeded with the urine analysis and the blood tests to confirm, and sure enough, that is what it was.
Personally, that tells me those are second class vets at CCAH, and they are grossely overpriced: $45 for the visit $150 for the blood test (or about $200), with no results really. I paid $200 at Rosebrock’s for a visit, a urine analysis, a shot, and not one but 2 blood tests (oh and by the way he ran the first one in his office, got the results in 15mns, and was able to read the results himself immediately, and did not have to send that one to an outside lab and wait for 5 days). I was out of there at 10am with a diagnosis and no web search.
Stay away from the Circle C Animal Hospital: they prey on gullible people, and try to rip them off any way they can, all the while providing poor quality services (you pay for the fancy dancy set up with the big screen TV in the lobby, the syrupy welcome, and the premium location, though!)