Southern Alberta Veterinary Emergency (SAVE)

So so so thankful for the vets and staff at SAVE! The staff were so kind and compassionate. The vet who cared for Malibu was very knowledgeable and thorough and didn’t miss a detail. Once through the consultation they did not skip a beat getting Malibu the immediate care she needed! Malibu was in great care here and we couldn’t thank you all enough!

Doctor Pereira was not friendly at all, it seems that she doesn’t like dogs at all, called my dog stupid that is very unprofessional. She couldn’t properly check my dog’s eye. She looked scared. Even our groomer can communicate with him. To be a vet, person has to at least ike animals. Couldn’t get proper check up.

We are so grateful to everyone here for helping our silly chocolate eating dog. From the first interaction to going over meds everyone was lovely and kind. Pascal was great and kept us in the loop as to what was going on and the cost was much less than I thought it would be for the outstanding care. Thank you!

Called simply to follow up on a dog that was trapped in Okotoks and sent to save for safe keeping. I was interested in adopting the dog. The woman who answered immediately huffed at me and told me she’s not telling me where the dog went. Wouldn’t a vet clinic want an abandoned dog to be adopted rather than staying at a rescue. She would only tell me it went to Edmonton. This place is brutal.

From my initial phone call with Pascal to sadly having to say good-bye to my sick, old dog, I was very impressed with every aspect of care and communication. Amazing team!

So thankful for all of the staff at SAVE. They were absolutely amazing treating my dog. Arianna was extremely thorough and so caring. I would definitely recommend bringing your animals to them!

I'm so incredibly impressed with this clinic! They were immensely helpful when our dog got to the Amazon package of melatonin gummies we had purchased for him before we did and consumed all 120 gummies in one sitting! Thank you for bringing calm to our chaos and making sure our dog was safe!

Words cannot describe the compassion and care that comes from SAVE. I went to SAVE a few years back for my little Gizmos leg surgery and now we are unfortunately back again today for other reasons. The staff here are fantastic and I can feel they all genuinely care. A huge thanks to each and everyone of you. Also thank you so much Dr. Fairfield and Joy

Though I’ve been to SAVE a few times. Most recently I took my dog in for an ongoing issue with their back - the vet was phenomenal and prescribed an anti-arthritis and pain medication. I felt taken care of upon leaving the clinic.

The aftercare is really where my experience turned terrible. Twice now I’ve been prescribed medications for my dog, he’s had an adverse reaction (puking, and extreme shaking) - I called SAVE to discuss the medications they prescribed (within days of the initial appointment) and they have told me to stop medication, with no reason or rationale, or further explanation (even when asked) and further that if “I’m really worried about him” I should bring him back in for further examination.

Thankfully I have been able to contact another 24-hour vet clinic and get the answers I need about the medications prescribed to my dog (even when my dog has never been a patient of theirs).

I will no longer be taking my dog to SAVE, I often go there because of proximity in emergency situations and it’s not worth the convenience anymore if I’m not able to get a straight answer or have confidence about the medications being prescribed to my dog. I asked to talk to the vet who prescribed the medications - to get more information and was told that it wasn’t possible. All I wanted was some more context, and information on the medication he had been given and how stopping it would affect his healing.

I know there are two sides to every review and I try to always treat every scenario calmly and with respect - to me this was really yucky and I feel like a bad dog parent for allowing it to happen a second time by taking my dog to SAVE who obviously is not able to stand behind or further educate on the medications THEY prescribe.

This place does not care about your pet, only money. My cat was seriously injured, beyond help, and in agony. They would not help without me spending more than $500 more than other more careing places. I suggest never using this place.

I cannot say enough good things about SAVE. Last night was my third time using their emergency services and I am beyond thankful for their help! My dog decided to eat a portion of his blanket while crated for taking in too much water while swimming. They took him back as soon as we got there and within 15 minutes they had my options laid out for me. Another 20 minutes passed by and they had accounted for most of the blanket! Their service is top of the line and the prices can’t be beat compared to any other emergency vet. Bruce and I thank you for all your help!

Terrible experience here. We had brought our dog here because he stopped eating for 2 days and was vomiting a lot, and he started to vomit yellow. They diagnosed him with an upset stomach, gave him anti acid medicine, and told us to give him a clean diet for 7 days. Ok, great. We bring him home he only seems to get better for 36 hours, and then it all turned sideways. He had now stopped drinking water completely and kept vomiting. So we rushed him back only for them to take him to the back and put him in one of their cages for 4 HOURS! When they finally get to see him they tell us he is in so much pain and his stomach is knotted, they can do surgery for 7 grand but the survival rate is very low and that's if he makes it out of surgery. So the only option we had was to put him down. It breaks my heart that my dog spent the last 4 hours of his life in a cage, then with his family. This place is the worst, they should have at least let people sit with their dogs until they get seen by the doctor. I would have loved to sit, even in my car with my dog, for his last 4 hours of life.

Not impressed at all! First we made made to wait outside because we have a large dog. Told it was a 45 min wait. That’s fine. My. Issue comes after an hour of waiting with a sick dog they come and inform us that it will be another hour because a bloody cat came in! I’m sorry my dog has been throwing up for days now. This is your priority! What a joke! No offers of water for my dog in the heat! No waiting inside because of the large breed! I would not recommend this place to anyone with a dog! It’s obvious they are a cat clinic! On top of that they wanted to charge us for waiting!

Terrible experience!
Brought my dog to Save around 11am because my dog was vomiting and had severe diarrhea for the last 24 hours and wasn't eating or drinking water. They told me I had to go back to my car and call from there to check in. Called from the car, waited about 30 min until someone came out to triage, waited another 20 min for a lab test. They finally invited me in and told us to wait in a room, waited another 30 min when an assistant came to measure temperature and basic vitals. She told us that would take about 1 hour for the doctor to come. After 1 hour she came back saying it would take another hour and that was better to sign a drop off form and pick up the dog later. Several hours later I called back and my dog was still waiting. Called. A couple more times and the excuse was always the same saying there were other priorities. At 6pm I called for the last time and since he was still waiting I told them I was going to pick up my dog and take it home. I felt there was no concern for my dog's wellbeing. When I questioned what the priorities that kept them from checking my dog they said they couldn't disclose. The front desk said there were 2 doctor available. I definitely feel I need to find a better and more humane animal hospital for my pet.

We had a 2 year old female mother of 7 4 week old kittens that got sick 2 weeks ago. They tried everything they could to save her with home treatments and in house. Unfortunately last night we had to bring her in to put her down but the staff there made thing as easy as possible. They were so compassionate caring and just understanding how hard it is to go threw putting an animal down. From start to finish They were great and I will never go anywhere else and already have recommended them.

SAVE was so kind and compassionate as my dog was dying. My regular Vet in the city said I needed to make an appt for our 12 year old dog that was dying in my arms and had been their patient for 12 years when SAVE came to the rescue. I quickly made the 25 minute drive to Okotoks and was received with such love and compassion. They made a terrible experience as comforting and caring as they possibly could. I had our dog cremated and was blown away when I picked up her ashes and they had put together such a lovely package to cherish forever. Thank you to an amazing group of people.

My doggo unfortunately was hit by a car last night. We came in around midnight and called ahead. They were ready for him and took him back for emergency care within literally second of coming through the door. The vet and other staff super supportive and professional. Also discussed the financial part clear and concise! All went above and beyond. Saved his life! Well done and thank you. Zuko (puppers) thanks all of you most of all!

We said goodbye to our beautiful boy Jackson in the middle of the night last night. They were so incredibly kind and professional. 24 hour care is the best!

First time here, the amazing staff here have done an outstanding job with making me feel at ease and looked after our cat with prices that were quite a bit lower then I had anticipated. Thank you!

We had to take our pitbull in for emergency surgery and drove two hours to come to SAVE because he decided it would be fun to eat a sock! The staff at SAVE were AMAZING I’ve never been to a vet who genuinely care about the animals as they do here, everyone was so knowledgeable and explained everything thoroughly so we could make a decision. When making our decision to do surgery or wait to see if he could pass it we went to the car and we’re in and out and they kept our room open for us to pace. I recommend SAVE to anyone for any vet needs.

This group made an unimaginably difficult situation bearable. Everyone was helpful, compassionate and comforting.

Myself and my partner were so grateful to the staff at SAVE today.
We said goodbye to our beautiful boy Jackson and they were all so incredibly kind and professional.

My dog began limping two weeks ago and his vet had xrays done. The xray showed a piece of metal in his right paw and they referred us to SAVE. The vet sent the scans and upon initial review, SAVE suggested we soak his paw in an epsom salt bath and see if it comes out. A week later, he was still limping and I called SAVE again. The doctor on site stated that they'd be willing to attempt surgery to remove the metal and to come in for a consult.

We went to the clinic on Monday and after nearly 2 hours of waiting, one of the staff came and told us that it's a busy day and that if we wanted to come back Wednesday afternoon at 4, the doctor will be available for an appointment. I told her that from what I understood, they don't do appointments. She said that's correct, but this will be what she would call a "scheduled walk in. " We left and planned to go back Wednesday.

Wednesday arrived and we got to the clinic 30 minutes early. 4 hours later, one of the staff told me that the doctor might not get to us today. When I asked about the 4pm "scheduled walk in, " she indicted that they couldn't do anything about it. I expressed my frustration and said that we will be leaving and that we will have to consider putting the dog down as the metal is horribly uncomfortable for him. She asked me to wait while she talked to Doctor Williams (which is the doctor we were told would see us at 4). She came back and asked us to return the next day at 2.

While I appreciate that the receptionist was simply the middleman, this is unacceptable. I've now wasted two days with this facility and they're asking for a third day so the vet can grace me with their presence? The drastic unprofessionalism and disregard is inappropriate and detrimental to the animals that they are supposed to assist. The lack of respect for the caregivers of the animals is deplorable and I am disappointed that their behavior is so grossly out of line. After leaving the clinic, incredibly upset by the disrespectful behavior, my spouse called the clinic where they then told him that his wife "thought she had an appointment but didn't. "

There was no accountability on their part for the situation at hand or acknowledgement of the fact that our return at the requested time was what the staff stated on Monday. They then suggested that their patient care manager would call on Friday to discuss the situation. What's the point? To waste more of our time? Do yourself a favor and don't waste your time or energy here.