Post by themisfittoys on Jul 8, 2013 16:14:15 GMT -8
I'm not sure how many of you are in IL, but there are a few good vets in this state. In Central IL - Peoria to be exact - there's a clinic called All Pets. I went there a couple times with my best friend's gerbils when she first got them. Dr. Rhonda Borgeson was absolutely great with gerbils and any other small pet I wanted to bring to her. I took my baby rats to her at one point before I had to rehome them. I can't say enough good things about Dr. Borgeson. She even performed a free ultrasound on one gerbil to determine if she was pregnant or not. The gerbil came back a little gooey from the stuff they had to put on her for the ultrasound to work, but otherwise she was none the worse for wear, and not even a little bit upset.
In Northern IL there are three vet clinics that deal with exotics/small animals. The first is Bellwood Animal Hospital. I have yet to take my gerbils there, but I have taken my chinchilla there several times over the course of the eight years that I've had her. I don't remember the name of the exotics vet there, but she was always very thorough, gentle, and genuinely cared about the pets that she took care of. She was also knowledgeable about the small animals she worked with, and how to handle them. I would definitely recommend Bellwood Animal Hospital to anyone who has an exotic/small pet in this area.
The second clinic in Northern IL is called Dogwood Animal Hospital. I myself have not been there, but my mom took my chinchilla there a couple times while she was taking care of Munchkin for me. Again, I don't know the vet's name, but there's only one exotic vet at each of the Northern IL clinics, so it wouldn't be hard to find them. At Dogwood Animal Hospital, they were again very gentle, thorough, and exceptionally knowledgeable about small animals. The next time I need a vet for my gerbils, that's where I'm taking them. They're a little bit more expensive than the other clinics in the area, but it's worth it to know that your pet is going to be taken care of properly.
Now, a clinic that you should be wary of. Hillcrest Animal Hospital in Northern IL has an exotics vet, but I won't ever take any of my small animals to her again. I took Nicky and Riley there today because they're a walk in clinic. You don't need an appointment. The exotics vet there picked up Nicky by her tail when she discovered that Nicky is hard to handle. Then, when it was time to weigh them, she tried picking them up by their tails again to shove them upside down into a small cardboard box. I was appalled when I saw what she was going to do. I ended up taking the box and holding it so that Riley and Nicky could climb into it once at a time to be weighed. They had no problems crawling into the box on their own, and it was a lot less traumatic than being picked up by the tail and shoved into a box. Thankfully neither of my gerbils lost their tails today, but it was a close thing. Both Nicky and Riley were prescribed meds for respiratory infections that they may or may not have. She didn't listen to their chests at all. She just noticed that they both have a bit of mucus around their noses. She determined by that alone that my gerbils had infections. Even though I told her that I believed it was allergies to the bedding that they had been in at the pet store I bought them from. But longer story short, if you cherish your gerbils and live in Northern IL, DON'T take them to Hillcrest Animal Hospital!
In Northern IL there are three vet clinics that deal with exotics/small animals. The first is Bellwood Animal Hospital. I have yet to take my gerbils there, but I have taken my chinchilla there several times over the course of the eight years that I've had her. I don't remember the name of the exotics vet there, but she was always very thorough, gentle, and genuinely cared about the pets that she took care of. She was also knowledgeable about the small animals she worked with, and how to handle them. I would definitely recommend Bellwood Animal Hospital to anyone who has an exotic/small pet in this area.
The second clinic in Northern IL is called Dogwood Animal Hospital. I myself have not been there, but my mom took my chinchilla there a couple times while she was taking care of Munchkin for me. Again, I don't know the vet's name, but there's only one exotic vet at each of the Northern IL clinics, so it wouldn't be hard to find them. At Dogwood Animal Hospital, they were again very gentle, thorough, and exceptionally knowledgeable about small animals. The next time I need a vet for my gerbils, that's where I'm taking them. They're a little bit more expensive than the other clinics in the area, but it's worth it to know that your pet is going to be taken care of properly.
Now, a clinic that you should be wary of. Hillcrest Animal Hospital in Northern IL has an exotics vet, but I won't ever take any of my small animals to her again. I took Nicky and Riley there today because they're a walk in clinic. You don't need an appointment. The exotics vet there picked up Nicky by her tail when she discovered that Nicky is hard to handle. Then, when it was time to weigh them, she tried picking them up by their tails again to shove them upside down into a small cardboard box. I was appalled when I saw what she was going to do. I ended up taking the box and holding it so that Riley and Nicky could climb into it once at a time to be weighed. They had no problems crawling into the box on their own, and it was a lot less traumatic than being picked up by the tail and shoved into a box. Thankfully neither of my gerbils lost their tails today, but it was a close thing. Both Nicky and Riley were prescribed meds for respiratory infections that they may or may not have. She didn't listen to their chests at all. She just noticed that they both have a bit of mucus around their noses. She determined by that alone that my gerbils had infections. Even though I told her that I believed it was allergies to the bedding that they had been in at the pet store I bought them from. But longer story short, if you cherish your gerbils and live in Northern IL, DON'T take them to Hillcrest Animal Hospital!
