Banfield Pet Hospital South Elgin, Illinois

I get it; it’s Covid but there’s absolutely no interaction with the vet or tech to help me understand my pup’s needs even after the visit! It’s all a big sell for their monthly wellness plan and they seemed very disinterested when I didn’t want to pay. Lots of confusion at the front desk too and they acted like I was the crazy person! They keep your dog for hours when my old vet could do a visit and all vaccines in under an hour! Very disappointed.

Banfield is fantastic. They really care about the animals. We use the care program and have for nearly 20 years and 3 animals. It's been well worth it.

I love Banfield hospitals. They are always helpful and efficient. They also take a personal interest in your furbaby.

For four years, our dog was on a wellness plan that included a yearly dental exam and cleaning. Two comprehensive exams, vaccinations, and discounts on meds are also included. At the time of our most recent exam, I stated that I no longer wanted our dog to have the dental exam performed, as the dog is put under anesthesia. At the last dental cleaning, our dog took most of the rest of the day to shake off the effects of the anesthesia. Since our wellness plan was about to expire, I started a lesser plan that didn't include the dental. The cheaper plan also doesn't perform a urinalysis and the discounts on meds are less. When I picked up our dog after the exam, I expressed my displeasure with how the plan change occurred. I had been paying for the "full service" for four years, and now my meds were more expensive. I questioned that I should have changed the plan AFTER the exam instead of before. I was told the location manager would call to answer any questions. Now this is where the wheels fell off. It took the South Elgin Banfield location manager NINE days to return the call. During the call, she brought up the fact that our dog hasn't had a urinalysis since the first year, and she would "comp" us one if we wanted. How nice. Offer us something for free that was already paid for. Now I felt really cheated. A closer look at our dogs vaccination records clearly show the last urinalysis was done years ago. Another call to the manager was never returned. It was at this point that I wanted to cease business with Banfield. A couple calls to the Banfield corporate office only resulted in more headaches. I was required to pay the 11 month balance. I asked why the cost of the missing urinalysis exams couldn't be used as compensation for the plan balance. Now get this. I was told that the missing urinalysis tests were on a prior plan and there was nothing that could be done !!! I never had a problem with the staff or vets. It was the location manager and Banfield corporate who bear the brunt of my anger. So....if you are on a wellness pan with Banfield....make sure they are performing all the procedures that you are paying for !!

I am speechless! I called Banfield in South Elgin earlier this day to make an emergency appointment for my dog I was told by the receptionist that they couldn't fit her in for a week and a half. I was taken back at her response. This was an emergency. She said I could go another Banfield or emergency vet hospital surprised again at the of sympathy.I told her that I would not be taking my dog to Banfield again, she replied, OK bye-bye. My head is still reeling from that one. Before you take you pet to this Banfield, please rethink your decision before entrusting your pet to these people.

Overall, my experience with Banfield at the South Elgin location has been extremely disappointing. I have a 6 month old puppy, so I enrolled in the wellness program. He received some of his vaccination shots during his first visit to Banfield. Being a new pet owner, I asked the vet tech what vaccinations my pup received that day and what they were for. She looked at me with a blank face and told me to ask the front desk. When I asked the front desk assistant, she directed me back to the vet tech. Yet again I went to the vet tech, and she instead directed me to the app. Now, the app was helpful, but I was very thrown off by the service. If that was my only bad experience with the vet then I could forgive and forget. Unfortunately, that was not. I tried to make an appointment not too long ago because my pup had a severe runny nose and tremors. I was very concerned considering tremors could mean a variety of bad things. The assistant who was making my appointment seemed not concerned one bit and scheduled the appointment for a week and a half out. I was upset but understanding. When I finally brought my pup in, they told me they couldn't do anything about the tremors without a video (why they didn't mention that before?), and they said his nose was not very runny but prescribed him medication anyway. Rest assured, I took my pup to another vet for a second opinion, and when I mentioned the tremors, they scheduled me RIGHT AWAY. He was diagnosed with severe allergies and is now getting the medication he needs. The new vet also assured me the tremors are intentional and not something to worry about. At the end of the day, our dogs are our family, so good customer service is VERY important for a vet hospital. Banfield gets 0 stars for that. Also, I heard horror stories from two different friends about their dogs getting neutered at Banfield, so please be careful if you are taking your pup here for that!!

Took great care of our new puppy!

Appointment cancelled for my sick cat after 30 mins of driving because we were going to be 3 mins late. I called in the morning to confirm the booking I made online the evening prior and I was NOT informed that we needed to come 15 mins early. I called on the way there to be polite because we hit traffic and they said they will not take my cat. I understand that it’s our responsibility to be on time, but perhaps mention that new clients have to come early. And if 3 minutes is going to make or break an appointment you shouldn’t be making it. The veterinary industry is brutal as is because it’s a huge cash grab. But bonus points to you for being heartless. Enjoy your lunch break.

Dont let them "squeeze " you in and dont be late by a millisecond or they'll cancel your appointment after you drive 30 mins. Just so the seconds your late dont cut into their lunch time. Garbage excuse

You can't trust what they tell you. Agree with another review: "The wellness plan is a way to trap you and not the value they make it out to be".

The vets are great, but no one ever answers the phone when you call. I always have to stay on hold FOREVER!

Hospital itself was always kind, responsive, and caring to my dog. The cooperate structure and billing, however, were absolutely maddening and unprofessional. The credit card for my wellness plan expired, so payments were missed for 5 months. In the madness that is life I did not notice. Turns out they were using a 3 year old address, so I was never notified of the situation. After 4 months of missed payments, the plan is void and you are responsible for the entire year's worth of payments. Now they didn't have the decency to CALL when there was an opportunity to rectify the situation, they had no problem sending it to collection for a call once it was too late. So now we're fighting because they want payment for a year's coverage when I received 5 months of services. Help a small business/local vet and not this corporate nightmare. The wellness plan is a way to trap you and not the value they make it out to be.

My local Banfield closed and I have a difficult time getting an appointment at the South Elgin location. They also don't call to tell me if my pet is due for his shots or exam, like the Geneva location did. Very disappointing.

This place is always great! I have one pup that gets a bit anxious and they know just how to help make her visit as good as possible that she doesn't want to leave when I come to pick her back up. Employees are always so friendly and informative. Always willing to help in anyway possible. Just great vibes and environment

They are always helpful and the fact that it is located inside Petsmart just makes it more convenient.

I have been really pleased with the care of Kayloo and the help I have received in trying to keep Kayloo in good health.

I wish I could give this place zero stars. They are very disorganized, didn't tell me about the costs of tests that I thought were under my plan , and missed items that I asked to have done. The very was very nice, but I still wouldn't recommend this location to anyone.

Lucy is always treated with compassion and great care.

Do NOT use Banfield - Very Poor Quality

I booked a vet appointment online, with the specific location a week before the visit. I canceled my client (work) to make the appointment. Then I get a call 2 days before the appointment and they told me they could not do that appointment time and that I should not have booked on the website. How was I to know that?

Love anything that has to do with animals. Even spend money.lol

Several years ago, we began experiencing financial difficulty when my husband was laid off. We had 3 dogs at the time, and found that we couldn't afford to bring all 3 in (yearly exam & shots) at once, as we had in the past. That meant only 1 could go on schedule, 2 would have to wait - 1 for 3 mo, the other for 6.... So how do you decide who was going to be protected? Which 2 were going to put at risk? I was frustrated and felt guilty. After sharing this with our daughter who is a dog trainer, she recommended her vet, Dr Boland at Banfield. Not only did she absolutely adore her, but Banfield offers wellness plans ( covers the cost of all routine exams, tests, shots as well as a 20% discount on all non covered services, for about $35 a month). Long story short, we love Dr Boland too, and she has been our vet ever since. Along the way, we lost 2 of the world's best dogs (both living beyond their life expectancy) and her compassion was beyond words. Although we always schedule our appts with her, on occasion a sick pet means you see another Dr - which is how we met Dr Sitkowski, who is wonderful as well. The entire staff there is outstanding, which leads me to believe that Banfield has made the effort to staff it's hospitals with only the best - from front end & office staff, to the vet techs and Drs, the service and care is excellent!

Love Banfield on Randall. Very professional and loving people! They always greet my dog Louie and he is very shy, but he has no problem going with them which helps me as a dog owner feel a sense of relief. And it makes me sad to see all these 1 star reviews because These people need to actually stop bashing on them and see how good they really are! Because They truly do care about your animals! Y’all just need to cut them some slack because they do get overworked!!! I’ve seen them working there hardest to get to each and every pet! I appreciate you staff! Thanks for taking good care of my Louie! And I know he appreciates you guys too!????

Don't bother making an appointment. They will cancel it and leave you hanging

The person who answered the phone was very pleasant, however, administrative staff is lacking training, follow-thru & organization. My vet almost had to send them a prescription for the 3rd time although I had confirmed they had it after time #2. I had corrected my phone number, the person looked up info with my corrected phone number, but hours later when someone ran in for me to get something, my phone number wasn't in the system. Really?

Even with paperwork stating I had a year of heart guard paid for I was forced to pay 5 months to get my pup thru his last months of his wellness plan. This place is a joke. Avoid coming here! I will not be renewing with them.

Sent me to collections without even notifying me for a pedicure I never asked for because I do my dogs nails, and bloodwork she received for a dental cleaning that I spoke to someone about. I was told it comes with the bloodwork and since the bloodwork came back bad that I would need to pay to get it again before they can do her dental cleaning. Well she was wrong! Apparently it only comes with the bloodwork if it comes back ok. If it’s bad then you have to pay for it. Makes a lot of sense. They claim they left messages saying I owed money. Only messages I recall were about results and again when I was told that I had to pay for the bloodwork I spoke to a girl, which unfortunately I don’t know her name, who said it comes with one and I would have to pay if I got it again. To top it off I told them multiple times my dog lives with my mother and to please put her phone number in the account because she is easier to get ahold of due to my work schedule. I only just found out I was sent to collections when my mom tried to get a prescription refill for my dog. I’ve already talked to 4 employees about this. None have been able to help me yet. Supposedly I’ll be getting a call from someone who can look into this further. They need to train their employees better so they know what’s covered and messes like this don’t happen. The wellness plan is a rip off. I told my mom to take our dogs somewhere else from the beginning when the blonde with curly hair treated her like she was dumb. My mom has a thick accent but is fluent in English. She asked her multiple times if she needed someone to translate just because my mom didn’t understand something she was trying to explain. It wasn’t because she needed a translator it was because she was explaining poorly. Then when I intervened because my mom is too nice I said “she speaks fluent English she doesn’t need a translator.” she gave her a pamphlet in Spanish!!!! How offensive!!!

Affordable pet care and friendly Staff.

ok.It's ok. We had a cat in a bad way which had to be euthanized, they referred us to a clinic.

My name is Kim and I am mom to Duncan and Monkee; a Pug and Pomeranian. They are both insured through Banfield and the care they have received has always been excellent! On Saturday afternoon we took the pups in the yard for a walk and Duncan came inside with blood on his neck. He had apparently scratched himself against a rose bush or branch. We treated the wound with Hydrogen Peroxide and a Benedryl topical. He seemed fine yesterday but by the afternoon did not look good. I called Banfield and their response was "get him over here now". Now bear in mind this is a Sunday afternoon. Once we got there they immediately ushered him in for treatment. Dr. Sentowski tended to him and then administered an antibiotic and suave for him and assured us he would be fine in a couple of days. The staff was incredible and even followed up with us this morning to see how Duncan is doing. I would very strongly recommend Banfield to anyone regarding pet care! Thanks Banfield. We love you guys! Kim