Dogs and Cats Emergency & Specialty Bowie, Maryland

Overall great service. I was kept informed of my pet’s condition daily which was greatly appreciated.

This is an awesome vet speciality group. Our dog has IBS and Dr. Guma has been so amazing to work with. In just 2 months we got a pretty major flare-up under control AND he is coming off most of his medications. The assistants and other staff are kind and generous with their time. The facility is clean and welcoming. Sorry for our pup that we have to use them, but given that he needs this kind of care, we could not have found a better vet!

Not my first visit sadly but, My most recent visit was nothing short of amazing. Brandon the technician was great and friendly with my dog. Dr Blades was very attentive and compassionate to the concerns I had with my dog. She took her time to listen, develop a game plan and was incredibly detailed in explaining my dogs abnormal labs along with a detailed long term plan for success. Thank you DCES! Top Notch service! Incredibly compassionate and attentive staff. Even during Covid-19 they not only have your pets health and well-being as a priority? But your health and safety too. They’ve notably seen an increase of cases since the beginning of the pandemic as several primary veterinarians have closed (much like my own) so I’m thankful they remain open and staffed to help me when I need them.

They took great care of my cat. They were clear regarding cost, treatment, and there were no surprises. I also appreciated that they were very respectful during the decision process. They kept me updated and call me several times to let me know how my cat was doing. Both doctors I spoke too during my visit were excellent.

Staff was friendly, supportive, and knowledgeable. Dr Forte kept me informed on what was happening while my pet was there. She was able to answer all my questions and was very professional.

Dr. Forte and the staff were kind, compassionate and caring in providing care to my elderly cat with multiple disease states. Making appointment and registering was easy and convenient through their website. We appreciated that we did not have to come in with a sick cat and wait long time in the waiting room. Although not much could be done to improve Nana’s condition, we nevertheless appreciated the staff’s genuine care and compassion for our cat. Thank you.

I am trying to find the right words to explain how incredibly well the staff here treated my dog. I had bought him in after being seen by 2 different veterinary clinics. He was so weak he couldn't hold up his own head. He had a massive seizure that lasted over 30 minutes. His fever reached above 108. It was a very scary few days but my dog is now recovering. I am really thankful for the love shown to him while he was there. The outstanding diagnosis. The complete testing. I highly recommend this hospital.

I have brought my dogs in Dogs and Cats several times foe illness and injury. Once two of my dogs tore each other up. I was applauded at what they did to each other. They were supposed to be in the back yard playing. Instead, they somehow got in a fight. They tore the fur of each other so it was hanging down off their shoulder. It was guersome. We took both the dogs to emergency Dogs and Cats and the surgeon took them in right away. The little dog hsd more damage than the large dog. The large dog was able to go home with us. The little dog had to stay in the hospital about 3 days to receive intravenous antibotics and fluids. The were afraid of infection from the fur being torn off the shoulder. Well, thanks to their excellent medical service, both dogs recovered and they actually are the best of friends today. They do everything together. Two weeks ago, we brought our german shepherd mix dog in sadly with a diagnosis of cancer. We met with Dr. Julie Gilman, an oncologist. She is the best doctor I have ever seen. She was a wealth of medical information, listened to us very intently, answered any and all questions from us, did not rush us. gave a thorough examination of are dog, reviewed the case file before we got there so was familiar with our case, and was a very kind person to both us and our dog. I feel very luckly to have found Dr. Julie Gilman. Dr. Gilman was very well read and keep up with the newest treatments for cancer with animals. She told us of a new cancer drug that was not chemo that would help our dog with cancer. It would help our dogs cancer stay in remission. So, now with give our dog this drug Two times a week in her food. She isnt even aware we are giving her a medicine. Dr. Gilman is going to test our dogs blood in 2 weeks to see if this new drug is keeping the cance in remission. so, she is actively keeping up with our dogs health. She has given us HOPE, the most important thing. Im so glad Dr. Julie Gilman is our doctor. I think Dogs and Cats are excellent in all the times we has bought our dogs in. They have received excellent medical care and I highly recommend Dogs and Cats Vet. in Bowie for your animals medical care.

We took our dog here when he was having an allergic reaction to one of his vaccines. They were able to process him quickly and return him to normal. Price was fair considering the urgency of the situation. Very understanding staff and Dr. Roberts was an amazing veterinarian.

My dog had to have surgery, they were very gentle with him and took good care of him. He is healing nicely and they called to check on him the day after and reiterate instructions and schedule follow up visits. I am very impressed, I have been rushed at other facilities and I felt at ease here!!! WE thank you!!!

Update 1:45pm- Received a call back from them. Questions were answered about my dog's health and it sounded like they genuinely cared this time around. Reception staff was going to be spoken to regarding calls following up after original visits. Thank you guys for taking care of my concerns quickly! Original Post: 2 Star Review I took my dog in on Thanksgiving to be seen. I was met by a very welcoming staff, which eased my worries. Both the receptionist and the vet tech were incredibly warm and helpful. The vet was not as warm, but was very knowledgeable and I believe she helped me choose the best course of action for my sick pup. The online check-in process was awesome as you didn't have to sit in the parking lot and wait to be seen. When I picked my dog up, I was told to call them with any questions I had. My overall experience with them would have been a 5 star review before today. I called to speak with a tech on the following Monday (yesterday) regarding side effects of the medicine my dog was given while there. I was told 3 emergency cases came in at once and all techs were busy, which is completely understandable. My question isn't as important as saving a pet's life. The lovely receptionist told me a tech would call once available, so I waited. I hadn't heard back as of this morning (Tuesday) so I called again to follow up. This time, I was met by a very stern receptionist who basically told me to call around to other vets or pet ER's and ask them my question about side effects of treatment. I explained that I wasn't local to the hospital and I had just recently moved and no local vets were taking new patients until 2022. She still told me to call around as no one had time to answer my question. After spending a huge chunk of money on treatment to then be shoved to the side afterword is not a great feeling, especially when you have a sick animal. I completely understand that you can be understaffed and overworked, but to turn down questions about treatment given in your facility is absolutely baffling to me. If you can, consider taking your pet elsewhere as you will not get the same service a few days after your pet is seen.

Highly recommended. Even though we got the worst news possible about our baby girl Bella the Dr was super understanding, gave us our time, and was very supportive of all decisions. Unfortunately they found Bella had cancer and it had metastasized and she was bleeding internally from a rupture. We asked Dr for her advice and even though it was hard to hear we knew they did everything they could for our baby. Thank you all so much for your support and professionalism.

The entire team was pleasant from start to finish! They put us at ease!

Everyone at Dogs & Cats were very friendly and compassionate about taking care of the animals. They answered every question I had and explained the situation so that I was able to understand what was going on with my dog. Even though it’s a distance for me to get to them it’s well worth it. Thank you to the wonderful people at Dogs & Cats.

Everyone here is so awesome. Our dog started severly vomiting for approximately 7 hrs and half way through started vomiting blood. We saw Dr Shah and he was so great and very smart. He explained the treatment he felt our dog needed. He was right on point. Within 24 hrs he was much better, and we were able to take him home. He was severely dehydrated when we got there. We feel they literally saved Ryders life. Thank you all so very much. What a great place with a very caring staff.

I am so appreciative of finding a vet that is thoughtful and caring on the same level of our previous vet prior to moving to this area not too long ago. This team is awesome and has not disappointed even in the emergency situation where they called to check in on our pup to ensure he was ok. This was unexpected and solidified our choice of choosing this location to care for our pups. Thank you!

My pup spent two days in Dogs and Cats ICU . The doctor called me multiple times through the day to give me updates. All of the staff was so caring during my stressful days while my little guy was sick. He’s back home with me now and I received clear instructions on his remaining care and medication regimen. They took such good care of my pup and I’m eternally grateful !

Every single person we dealt with was helpful and supportive. The vets took wonderful care of our dog, and updated us twice daily while she was in the hospital. We could not have asked for a more caring or professional group of folks. Thank you for taking such good care of Miss Lucy!

So we had a terrible experience with this place many years ago, but they are one of the only places who claim to have a neurologist on call…so I made the bad decision to try them again as our Golden has sudden unexplained paralysis in her back legs. They have not improved. They ask you to “check in” online under the guise of letting you “wait in the comfort of your own home.” After four hours of waiting, I called to get a status. They didn’t know who I was or what was wrong with the dog…pretty sure they hadn’t really put us in queue. Then they told me the wait could be as long as 36 hours…even for a bona fide emergency like a dog who can’t walk. Mind you they didn’t bother to notify us of that before we waited four hours and missed out on the opportunity to go to a better/more responsive place at a decent hour. This place is notoriously arrogant and self-satisfied, and decidedly unapologetic for poor service. There are less expensive, kinder places with equal expertise who don’t blame COVID for providing slow, non-responsive service. Try Anne Arundel Emergency Vet. They are wonderful.

I have had good experiences with this place before. They were very kind when they euthanized my dog a few years ago. I also received good service when my pup had a health concern last year while her vet was closed. I called today because she has been walking around for about 15 minutes peeing uncontrollably both inside and outside the house. She received a penicillin and kenalog shot yesterday and I wanted to know if that was a side effect. I wanted to speak to someone first before heading out. The guy on the phone proceeded to tell me that it does not qualify as an emergency, that I should wait to contact my vet on Monday, and that I said incorrectly said "Cats and Dogs" instead of "Dogs and Cats" when discussing my vet's reference here. While my dog is still peeing like that. I just hung up. I will be going to Anne Arundel Vet Hospital. It's further out, but they don't treat you like that.

The staff is super friendly. The clinic is very clean. The doctor my cat was lucky enough to get, Dr. Rohan Shah, was excellent. I appreciate everything about him.

Customer Service really needs improvement and my rating is solely based on the customer service I have experienced for this encounter alone. Seeing as there is conflicting information in there recording as well as in the text notifications once you sign up to be placed in que to be notified to bring your pet in, is really frustrating. I have been waiting since about 1:30am Saturday for my dog be seen for an Urgent Care visit. Ever since we moved to this state 2 yrs ago, she has developed hot spots and has been brought in by my husband in the past to be seen at this clinic for them. The voice recording says someone will call you to come in. The text notification says you will receive a text telling you when to head over. I have regularly been checking the number of patients are in line waiting to be notified for treatment. Not hearing the voice recording until this morning while on hold, I was under the impression I was going to get a text notification to bring my dog in. I had set alarms to check the number every hour last night so I could get some sleep. I woke every time my alarm went off and checked the site. It hadn’t moved in over 12 hrs. I start going thru other stuff in my phone and see that I have a missed call from after 11pm. I go to check to see if there’s a voice message, and there’s none. So I call the number only to find out it’s from the clinic when the lady answers the phone and then puts me on hold. That is when I heard the notification that someone would call. The lady then gets back in the phone and said because I didn’t answer when they called they moved onto the next patient but will put me back in to be notified and hung up before I could say anything. My experience from working in an ER, we have several teams cover Critical Care and Urgent Care cases so patients are still seen and treated in a timely manner. This doesn’t seem to be the standard at this clinic. I know when I had to take my son into the ER while on vacation last month, the hospital we visited also had different teams so patients could be seen. Yes we waited 5 hrs before being seen and my son was miserable and in pain the entire time, but we were still seen in a timely manner. I understand all too well that critical cases come in, and members from the Urgent Care team will be pulled to assist the critical care case, but 22 hrs later, someone calls and doesn’t even leave a message of any sort notifying the person that they are calling, who is calling, why they are calling and due to not answering they will move to the next patient. If animal still needs to be seen, please call back so they can assist. Seriously! Customer service is that simple. It’s called communication and apparently this clinic doesn’t have it. So here it is, more than 24hrs later, my dog still has not been seen, I’ve been trying to get a hold of her regular vet to see if they can get her in, and my dog is miserable. Her leg has been visibly shaking since I noticed the hot spot and I’m trying to avoid the outcome that she had with her last hot spot where her skin lifted away like a flap.

Great experience. Dr. Steele is amazing -- really knows her stuff.

We had a minor cat health issue and were able to be seen at Dogs and Cats within two hours (our regular vet was fully booked and unable to see us the day of). The staff kept us informed and were very helpful. Dr. B. was thoughtful and provided compassionate care for our cat. This was our third visit to Dogs and Cats (for two different pets; three different reasons) and we consider them a trusted partner in managing the health of our pets.

D.C. Emergency Hospital is hands down a great place that serves Bowie with emergencies 24/7. My fur baby was attacked at the local dog park on a Saturday and my local vet had just closed, so I instantly called here and once I completed an online check-in, they told me bring him right in (practically ahead of any other non-life threatening emergencies) and they instantly saw him. They made him comfortable and told me to go back home and they would call me once they were done with his procedure and that the vet would also call me. The vet Dr. Cargill was awesome to work with and she explained our options. We understood that the high prices were due to it being a hospital, so don't expect to come here and get your regular vet prices for emergencies. Luckily we have insurance so I was not too worried about the pricing. He got his surgery to clean up his wound and stitch it up and while he did also get a drain put in, we came back for them to take it off for free and will come back to get his stitches out for free as well. Overall, he is good and it's all thanks to Dr. Cargill and the team here.

My 13yr old dog just had a complicated surgery. They were amazing, even called to check on her the next day!

I have taken 2 of my cats to Dogs & Cats, both with severe emergencies. The staff and doctors and extremely kind and understanding. They truly care for their patients and owners. In both cases, they worked quickly and kept me in the loop through every step. I have been to different vets across the country, and they are by far the BEST! It is extremely terrifying and emotional when your pet has an emergency and I am so grateful to Dogs and Cats for everything they did in both cases.

Everyone one was very welcoming. Very helpful. My dog is a bit rude and they handle him very well. Explained everything and made sure I understood. Definitely recommend!!!

Dr. Shah is a highly skilled, thorough, and knowledgeable Veterinarian who was able to give a very quick and accurate diagnosis of our dog's emergency condition, and provided support in a gracious manner during a very devastating situation. In addition, he gave appropriate referrals to us that we were able to utilize, and continued to reach out to us as follow up; encouraging us to feel free to reach back out to him at any time. Words cannot express our appreciation for his kind, and compassionate care.

Every single person we came into contact with was incredible: friendly, optimistic, compassionate, and gentle with our injured dog. Check in was straightforward and allowed us to wait in the comfort of our home, and then car, which kept our dog calm and relaxed. We were given clear discharge paperwork with a summary, medicine information, and next steps all in straightforward and easy to understand language. We felt like our dog was truly in the best hands.