Evans Animal Hospital

Write a Review706-868-0479

OPEN NOW - Closes at 6:00pm

For the past 5 years I have been happily taking my dogs to Evans Animal Hospital. I have experience with them for boarding, bathing, vaccinations, and surgery. Each time I have called or went in, the staff has been friendly and caring. I highly recommend taking your pets there!

I recently had a rather alarming experience after taking my dog to Evans Animal Hospital. I have a 5 year old female lab who developed a small cyst like lump on one of her teats. I was not particularly concerned because it is not that uncommon for un-spayed female dogs to occasionally develop mammary cysts. In most cases, these cysts resolve on their own without treatment and are nothing to be concerned about. However, I did decide to have a precautionary vet exam. Here's what happened. I went to Evans Animal Hospital. I waited almost 2 hours (I was told I did not have an appointment despite having called and confirmed the appointment earlier that morning but ok, fine - mistakes happen). When the vet finally came to examine my dog she did a cursory physical exam, manually palpated the lump and then proceeded to inform me that my dog had cancer. She also told me the lump would likely swell to "grapefruit size" within a few weeks and that immediate surgery was needed to remove the lump and spay my dog. She informed me that spaying would prevent any more cancer from developing. Lastly, she told me that all of the above could be done the very next day for about $800. Ok, so what's wrong with the above you ask. Well, apparently she gambled on me being a gullible, uneducated idiot. I have been working with animals (breed quality bitches in particular) my whole life. Mammary cysts are common and normal (particlarly in female dogs who have never been bred). Secondly, as someone very familiar with medicine, you cannot, i repeat CAN NOT diagnose cancer by manual palpation! A biopsy is required. Thirdly, spaying and neutering your dog DOES NOT prevent cancer. I will not pretend to know what the motivation or circumstances behind the particular events of my one and only trip to Evans Animal Hospital but it is hard to not wonder if maybe the surgery census for the week was low. What concerns me even more is that I have subsequently learned that my experience was not an isolated incident. After describing what had happened to a friend, I learned that he had been told his show quality English Pointer stud needed to be neutered immediately due to "cancer". He was also told that if his dog wasn't neutered right away he would die within a few months. Needless to say, it has been almost two years and the dog is healthier than ever despite retaining his manhood. After my visit to Evans Animal Hospital, I did take my dog to another vet for a second opinion. He wasted no time in diagnosing a mammary cyst which subsequently resolved completely on it's own. He also assured me that there is no conclusive research supporting the spaying or neutering of dogs as an effective way to prevent cancer. So, to sum it all up. Please don't freak out (particularly if you go to Evans Animal Hospital) but just be aware. Don't turn your brain off the moment you walk in the door. Vets are people and people make mistakes. I sincerely hope that my experience was indeed simply a mistake and not the result of some underlying financial or spay/neuter motivation. I am confident that Evans Animal Hospital has helped and successfully treated many animals. I simply choose to go elsewhere now.