Castle Vets Pet Healthcare Centre

Vito has been exceptional. He has looked after our beloved cat who was found to have a large mass in his kidney. Vito went above and beyond in delivering this news to us then calling us at every opportunity, reassuring us whilst being realistic about the procedure and the prognosis. He rang us regularly whilst our cat was in recovery and the aftercare was excellent. He always put our cat first and helped us through the insurance process, as did the rest of the team at Castle Vets. I am really pleased to say that our cat is well and truly on the mend and that's thanks to the care shown by Vito and his team. Thank you so much.

My little Jack Russell managed to get hold of some chocllate last night, and Castle Vets was the out-of-hours vet we were referred to. Lexie was promptly given a drug to make her sick, and nursing & reception staff were amazing, understanding and non-judgmental. The vet, Paul, was just awesome. He took the time to explain everything properly (even though he was very busy) and in a non-judgmental way. Lexie seems absolutely fine this morning, thank goodness. I am very grateful to Castle Vets' prompt and professional (yet kind) treatment and would recommend them without hesitation. Thank you!!!

I've had good experiences with Castle Street in the past, but today was not good and will make me seek somewhere else from now on. £150 for the privilege of having our pet not even assessed before being put down. They were in a bad way but we'll never know remotely what was wrong. The staff were very indifferent throughout the entire process

Out 17 months old cat was very poorly with pancreatitis and an infection. She was admitted as an in patient for 48 hours. The vet kept us informed of her progress and when we called for an update the team were really helpful.We cannot thank the staff enough for helping our cat when she was really poorly. Our cat is doing really well at home on medication. Thank you so much.

My Jack Russell Terrier recently underwent a major surgery during Christmas to remove a mammary tumour. Our vet, Vito, at the Reading practice was nothing but superb throughout the whole process. Taking the initiative to ensure my pet's comfort wherever possible, he was always happy to send me any additional information whenever required to put my family and I at ease, and keep us informed throughout the process. His genuine interest in my pet's well being was clear from the time and patience he showed towards her, and his own request to remain up-to-date of her recovery post surgery despite being on leave over Christmas (another vet handled our case during this period). Five stars for Vito. A huge thank you from the Morgan family!

Some five years ago Castle Hill vets probably saved our dog’s life (it is likely the dog had been poisoned) and, of course, ever since then we believed this veterinary practice to be the best on the planet. Recently our dog developed a potentially life threatening lump (on his toe) but because of our location we took him to a more local vet. However, as soon as the local vet started talking about amputating the dog’s leg we raced back to Castle Hill. Initially everything seemed good, veterinary wise. Expensive but good. But, unfortunately, with hindsight, this didn’t really last. The vet we were seeing told us our dog has weak pulses at his aft end and charged quite a lot of money to ultrasound his heart – which turned out to be fine. And then they were unable to get any cells (from the biopsy) for analysis – and I got a bill for over seven hundred pounds (which, from a results point of view, was actually for nothing). After discussing the way ahead with the vet we decided the best follow-up action would be to amputate the dog’s toe. A date was selected and at 0900 that day the dog and I presented ourselves at the practice. Unexpectedly, we were then presented with a form which included listing a whole pile of nasty stuff that would happen to us if we failed to pay the forthcoming bill. I was more than a little unhappy with this and even more unhappy with the attitude of the receptionist – and I made this very clear. A few minutes after I had finished reading this form - the vet I was seeing called me ‘aggressive’ and ‘domineering’ and said that ‘if I wasn’t happy I could go somewhere else’. And then she said, “Oh, that was the wrong form – you shouldn’t have been given that form…” (Make of that what you will but remember, I am stood there, with my dog, waiting for him to have what I consider a major operation). Then the vet who, up until now, had been telling me she was going to do the operation, next informed me that someone else would be doing it. And I was very not-happy about that too. However, off the dog went. When I collected the dog a different receptionist gave me a bill for over sixteen hundred pounds (which I paid on the spot) and she informed me that even though it was a lot of money – it included the follow-up visits, bandage changing etc – and, at least, I wouldn’t have to pay any more. So, you can imagine my surprise when, as I was departing after our second follow-up visit, the receptionist who had previously given me the incorrect form arrogantly asked me (well, my back), “Are you aware that there is charge for the bandaging…?” Because it ought to have been blatantly obvious that I wasn’t. And this question is doubly strange because, if this was the case, why didn’t they ask for payment after the first visit? To be honest, this was a final straw with these rude people and I felt it better to take our dog to another veterinary practice for the final follow-up checks. Ultimately, I had a discussion over the phone with the practice manager which I followed up with a letter documenting the sequence of events – but the practice manager has never replied to my letter. Until today, some weeks later, when she has sent me a bill. She is not interested in the events, just the money. I put around £2,500 pounds in their till, they were arrogant, rude, inaccurate – and now they are sending me a bill for £40 which they said I didn’t have to pay. So I’m not. I believe that the operation on our dog’s toe was well done (and, whoever the unknown vet was, I thank you for that) but the money orientated arrogance and erroneous actions of the reception team are unacceptable - as are the vet’s misleading comments and her resorting to name calling when I stood up for myself. And the practice manager should have investigated and responded to my comments. So, now, you've lost a customer and got a 1 star review. Well done. Feb/March 2019

Unfortunately we had to have our Hamster (Sosige) put down here, he was really healthy and never had to see a vet before. We rang for an emergency appointment at 10 and we were seen at 10:45 which was really quick. Then when we were there we had plenty of time with him to say good bye and pick out an urn etc. Everyone we dealt with was lovely and professional, we're forever greatful x

Really fantastic and caring vets. I have been going here for the last 3 years with my guinea pigs until they recently passed. Everyone here took time to explain things clearly and were very knowledgable with small furries. They looked after my Masie so well after an op, calling me to keep me updated. I was treated with respect and dignity when both my pigs passed. I can't thank them enough and recommend using Castle Vets.

Wonderful vets who are not only considerate of the pets but also their owners. They have always been great with our cat but Clare, Christel and Alice were very understanding when his health suddenly declined and we had to make the horrible decision to put him to sleep. They were patient and gave us very detailed updates to make sure we had all the information needed to make the best decisions for our cat. They also made sure we could say goodbye to him in our own time despite the measures we had to observe as a result of the pandemic. We have since adopted a new kitten and had no hesitation in registering him at Castle Vets!

Fantastic vets. Just had a phone consultation with Peter Jackman and he is arranging a prescription for me to be collected today for my flat coated retriever's ear infection. Peter is the best vet we have been treated by, we moved from another more local vet as they weren't getting to the bottom of the problem. The reception staff are always friendly and very helpful. I highly recommend.

12 years I have been with this practice and have no doubt spent thousands over the years and last Saturday morning at approx 7:50am in my hour of need, I was told to lift my 30 kilo Labrador that had just collapsed and died on our walk to lift and carry her to my car parked over a mile away and contact another vet as they could not help me. They only had 2 vets on the premise and was not prepared to help due to Covid obviously. Can you imagine what that felt like to be told that ? As you can expect I was in total shock and challenged what I had been told , the female person I spoke to responded abruptly and said clearly I wasn’t listening to her and so I would need to speak to a vet !!!. I hung up as my beautiful girl was laying motionless on the floor and called another vet in Beechwood Avenue Woodley who was only to glad to assist in my hour of need. To say that I am appalled is a complete understatement and can you believe that when I hung up I never received another call from Castle Veterinary to even check if I was remotely ok . Shocking shocking service. I will be de registering shortly and will never return to this ridiculous practice

I have been looking at the reviews for castle vets after an untrue response from the owner to my previous review it is obvious that they have a severe problem with a rude receptionist that has a problem with her temper also her word against mine. I had two witnesses to her lies that I was not aggressive in fact she was. The owner should look at the other reviews that confirm my complaint instead of protecting someone who is loosing their customers.

Very patient and kind staff.

I have been taking my pack of dogs here for over 10 years. These people are miracle workers! My dogs have had surgeries here they have cared for my puppies when they were born and cared for the pups mum and dad. To this day no matter what problem I go there for I know that my boys are in the best hands possible. Thank you so much for always being there for me and my dogs, thank you for being awesome x

I have been with Castle Vets for over 20 years and been so impressed with them until recently. My pregnant cat Ruby became very ill a few months ago and what looked like to be an infection. She was treated with oral antibiotics which wasn't working and the condition got worse. This went on for about a month and she should have had iv antibiotics after the 1st week of the oral ones not working. The vet advised after she gave birth to be spade while she was still infected and poorly and I went along with their professional advice. After already spending hundreds of pounds on an xray...antibiotics that were not working she then went to a 46 temperature and was in a dreadful state. After seeking professional advice from another outside vet who advised me that she should never had been spade as her condition then deteriorated and the vet had checked her nipples before birth and now looking back no milk was being produced so no wonder her kittens passed away. I feel this was true negligence on the initial treatment of my beloved cat and miss her still every day. Pics of her 1st trip to vets and the condition deterioration of her condition after a month not treated correctly.

Holly, our 11 month old Bernese Mountain Dog suddenly fell ill, exhibiting a "non-textbook" set of symptoms. I live abroad and selected Castle Vets because of the excellent reviews on Google. They were justified. Miranda is the best vet that I have ever dealt with and is a credit to the practice. She genuinely cares for her patients and showed a level of commitment to diagnosing and treating the illness that was well beyond anything that I have experienced before. The staff at reception were also very helpful and always managed to accommodate Holly on her many short-notice appointments over 10 days. Thanks to Miranda, Holly is now recovering well and I am extremely grateful. I would not hesitate to recommend Castle Vets.

Cant rate this vets high enough lovely caring staff I would highly recommend onistly the best vets in Reading..Clare was brilliant with our dog blaze couldn't thank her enough she was support to us right up to the dreaded day we had to make the decision to put our boy to sleep it was a long 2 months trying different medication to help him she was there through it all and comforted us in our grief when we lost the battle she sent a beautiful hand written card in the post after which we thought was lovely again thank you to clare and the staff at castle street vets.x

Excellent service and treatment of our dog.

At the begin of this week we've had to put down our beloved dog. Dr. Clare Hepher has an amazing knowledge and was very comforting. Today we've received a card with condolences from her. It is the best service we've ever received and the fact that she took the time to send us this handwritten card is an amazing proof of how much she cares for her patients and their owners. Thank you to all the team for being supportive and understanding!

Called in to ask if any appointments are available for tomorrow, a flat out busy till Saturday not even asking what is wrong with our Puppy not a care about what the issue may be, contacted another local vet who asked what the issue was and explained the process for an emergency appointment.

We recently went to visit the out of hours staff at the Castle Vets and they were a real help to us in a time of such sadness. We took our dog who hadn't been acting normally that day and had the shock of finding that she had internal bleeding. The staff kept us informed and did everything they could for our dog we couldn't have asked for a better team at that time. They not only looked after our dog but us. The support was superb. Thank you for everything!

So grateful for the wonderful care my cat received while he was at Castle Hill following a car related accident. Made so much difference to me knowing that he was cared for so well. The level of professionalism,expertise compassion was incredible to me. Can’t thank you enough. Been attending Castle Hill for 4 years. Always an excellent service in every level.

I cannot rate highly enough how professional and helpful Christel was in diagnosing and treating my 5 year old Golden Retrievers severe lameness. In the space of 6 weeks he's gone from a hobbling old man who struggled to walk 100yards back to the playful bouncy boy he used to be. As they say, the devil is in the detail and the expert advice Christel gave on medication, hydrotherapy treatment and change of food which is more Arthritic friendly has made a huge difference to the quality of Archie's life. Thanks again to Christel and all the team at Castle Vets. :-)

Brilliant practice. Honest and kind. Always a great service and so clean. Love the separate cat and dog receptions too

Fantastic vets practice. Great staff. They always do a great job with my dog, and they are very helpful and answer all questions. All I can say is a massive thank you

We've been taking our cats here for years and the service has always been great. Two of our cats got neutered recently and they were running around and back to normal the next day as if nothing had happened!

A wonderful experience! One of my cats is a feisty lad when it comes to trips to the vet, but Leo handled him brilliantly! We were extremely impressed with the care given. Would thoroughly recommend Castle Vets. Thanks Leo!

Quite easily one of the best vets I've used to date. The Castle Vets team are very professional, friendly and accomodating. I had to book in an emergency appointment as one of my pets unfortunately fell ill suddenly. Sadly, he had to be put to sleep due to a neurological condition, which was untreatable. The vets and receptionist team were fantastic, fitting us in last minute, which was very much appreciated.

IF YOU LOVE YOUR PET, TAKE THEM TO ANYWHERE ELSE BUT HERE! ESPECIALLY IN AN EMERGENCY!

Managed to get an appointment quickly..Receptionist very polite.. nice waiting room and the vets were very attentive ..kept me informed and were very caring. I would recommend this vet.

We used the emergency service on Sunday night (Vets Now). Very helpful and friendly, if a touch on the pricey side (even for a vet). The vet we saw, Jacob, has very good English, but he could speak more slowly and clearly

Amazing vets. Possibly not the cheapest but for all the years I have used them they have always been professional and very caring. Worth every penny

Promise free appointments with nurses under the health plan and even for general check ups are so persistent to constantly push you to see a doctor. Just avoid.

It's so often the case that at times of sadness we see the best side of humanity: 1) Oz (our 15yo cat) was badly injured in a road accident at 5-30am in the morning, and our wonderfully kind neighbours leapt out of bed and drove him to Castle Vets. 2) Unfortunately, he was so badly injured that he had to be put down, but the professional, sensitive and empathetic way in which vet Christel van Veen explained the situation and help us make the choice was hugely appreciated by us all. She was obviously extremely technically capable, but just as important, a really nice and caring person - she even sent us a card of commiseration the next day containing sentiments that were so touching and so much appreciated by us all. I would recommend Castle Vets to anyone who cares for and loves animals.

Odie, our much loved Golden Retriever became very ill, very quickly on February 14th 2019 - Terry - the vet based that night in Castlewellan was exceptional in his care and attention to Odie. We had some very difficult decisions to make, but we made them fully informed of all possible outcomes- with consultation and communication every step of the way, the care our gorgeous boy received was first class, unfortunately, we didn’t get the outcome we wanted and our boy fell asleep after surgery - we will be eternally grateful to Aoife who had to give us the news that Odie had left us unexpectedly forever - not a nice task, but one that was delivered as well as it could be. Every aspect of Odies passing and cremation was handled so well - we can never thank Terry, Aoife and Julia enough! We decided to attend the surgery with our other dog following Odies death, for us, there is a “connection “ to the surgery now - our second dog, Flint, has had treatment for an ear issue and again, the vet who has treated him was amazing... cannot recommend these guys enough. Sincere thanks to all of you for your care, attention and empathy - it has made a difficult journey a little easier. Tony, Mary & Owen Cullen.

I live in Qatar and have done for a while, since popping out here for a single 2 week project. The issue I had was that on my short term move across, expecting to settle here my dog was in the UK, being looked after by a close friend. After contacting Castle Vets and explaining my situation, they advised me what to do, whom to use and how best to tackle the situation of freight to Qatar. After a number of visits to the vets, we were ready to ship. The level of service in and out of hours from the Surgeons and team member's was second to none - even though I was over 3000km way I felt as if I was the other side of the reception counter. Phoenix is now here and is loving the warmer temperature, long beach walks and the extra space. With out the top class support of Castle this would not of been possible and I thank them for all the support and had work, looking after us. With warm regards, Two happy customers!

Fantastic vets, they were very lovely to my puppy and provide an excellent service. We were recommended to go here by a local pet store worker and I'm glad we went here.

Its a veteran deal with all your pet Medical needs. Big and small animals. Mainly domestic animal care centre. Pricy place expensive. Professional staff here. Reception as you walk in to make appointments. On Castle street as you head from town to Tilehurst road area.

Very expensive couldn’t afford my new puppy his vaccinations because of how much they charged me just to have a look at him and a bit of advice which I could of got anywhere I didn’t know I would have to pay that amount just for some advice I don’t have much money and would love to give my puppy the best just a shame that it’s all about money however the receptionist was lovely very empathetic and very helpful if anything the money should go to her for been a decent human being

Absolutely disgusted I got charged double The price for one of the products and 75% more for the second one I needed. when I check online pet superstore yesterday I would have paid less even with post. I feel so ripped off. I will still bring my pet here but will be asking for the names of the products they want my pet to have. To say I'm angry is an understatement......this was the first time I'd seen this vet and he was more interested in up selling than how my pet was.. I will make sure he dose not get to see my pet again... I've been using this vets for 14 years and never had reason to question what they tell you until yesterday.

They obviously care about animals. It isn't simply a business but somewhere to help and promote the wellness of pets. A friendly environment with extremely competent vets.

Excellent service, my cat is seen regularly as she has medication for epilepsy, always friendly and helpful vets and staff

Worst experience ever. Very rude, charging £230 for 10 mins which is greedy! I asked several times how much it would cost before the treatment but they refused to tell me or even give some indication of the cost then get lumbered with a massive bill. I understand that my dog is comes first over anything but the vets are a rip off it's a joke. Going back to my old vets that are fair unlike these scammers who charge stupid amounts as in what I earn in a whole weeks hard work they get for 10 mins it's daylight robbery and shouldn't be allowed! Not happy with the service I'm taking it to trading standards.

Always lovely to come in here. My cat broke his jaw and my mothers friend recommended Castle vets. The vet immediately sent him away to Swindon for special treatment and xrays and sorted his problem out. Very happy with the customer service and the nurses and very nice. The only thing my cats hate at Castle vets is the thermometer.

My poor black lab Bert had an awful ear infection for months, eventually we decided to move to Castle Vets for a second opinion. Within less than a month with Castle Vets treatment plan Bert's ear infection has gone and he is now a happy chappy. Thank Leo and the your team at Castle Vets

Great vets. Warm and welcoming with friendly helpful staff.

Took a guinea pig in to the overnight sister service when she broke her leg one night. Quite expensive but she was looked after and X rayed. She was seemlessly handed over to the main day service where all options were discussed from micro surgery to euthanasia. Thankfully the vet found an option where she thought we could just take her home with pain relief and make her better. We later got a call from her after she had discussed our case with a piggie specialist and offered further options that we can do at prices that make them a no brainer. The care of this one vet makes this a 5* review from me.

METACAM 32ml £11.86 online. Castle Vets £32. Such a rip off.