Hartman Animal Hospital

rude desk worker. I was a patient of Dr. Carlin's Cat Clinic in Conway. I absolutely loved his services! He and his secretary were always the sweetest people and wonderful with our animals. When Dr. Carlin retired, he sent all of his patient's records to Hartman's. I was under the assumption that this meant they were a good place to take our girls.

The first clue I received that things were not going to be so easy should have been when I called to make an appointment. The secretary answered the phone with "Please hold". I did just that and 15 minutes later still was on hold. No "sorry, we need you to wait a little longer" or anything. When I hung up and called back, they told me that the vet I needed to speak to had literally stepped out 5 minutes ago - when I was waiting on hold!

I finally got an appointment set for Saturday morning. We arrived about five minutes before our appointment time. We had emphasized to the vet that our girls were terrified of dogs. She understood and said that they would try to make it as convenient for us as possible.

When we arrived, there were seven dogs inside the waiting room. It was to be expected, as it *is* a vet on a Saturday. Fortunately, we had an appointment, so we figured it would be no more than 15 minutes before they had a patient room available for us. The lady at the front desk practically snubbed us when we walked up, acting as though we didn't have an appointment. I had not only confirmed the appointment over the phone, but had received an email confirmation as well...

We took a seat two two terrified kitties and waited. In the time it took to get in, a woman with 3 dogs walked in stating to the front desk that she had no appointment. "Oh, well, since they're just here for shots, we'll get you in." - they were in a patient room while we still were waiting for our scheduled appointment.

Another lady walked in with a teenie mewing kitten. They were turned away for some reason.

We waited for a full hour. We watched dog owners come and go, but still remained sitting waiting for any word that our appointment would be honored. Finally, after it hit the 1 hour mark, my husband insisted that we leave. I couldn't exactly blame him.

We called later to explain why we walked out on our appointment. The lady on the phone was extremely rude and told us that "emergency appointments happen on Saturday!" . I'm sure that they do, but it is considered to be considerate to let the people who had the scheduled appointments know that it will be a little longer and at least apologize! On top of that, three dogs getting their shots is NOT what should be considered an 'emergency'.

I'm not sure if the lady at the front desk just hates cats or what, but I'm certainly never going back there. I can't believe that Dr. Carlin recommended them to us. Maybe the vet is wonderful. Sadly, we'll never know because the lady who represents them at the front desk is extremely rude and inconsiderate.…

Tell You One Thing and Charge You Another. My dad died December 7 and then my 12 year cocker spaniel got out of the fence and to the road where she was killed on December 31 so I have been less than observant these past three months. I had all my dogs' (three) teeth cleaned in Jan. and yearly for two spending close to $1000.00. At that time I was told no one needed extractions. I was surprised since one of my dogs had an area that looked bad, but I didn't question it because of all that I was dealing with. Then the first of March I noticed that this dog whimpered when I touched her mouth. I found one loose tooth and called into the clinic and scheduled an appointment. I expressed my frustration because this was the same area that I had concerns about before and I felt that they missed it on the original cleaning. However, I was at fault too. I should have caught it sooner. Dr. Hartman agreed to discount the procedure for removing the tooth. He told me he would only charge me $18.00 for a re-check visit and then $50.00 and that is all I would have to pay. He said he would note it in the chart. I took her in and she had two teeth removed. After I picked her up I was told I owed $58.00. I questioned the amount and was informed that $50.00 was for the procedure and $8.00 for the medicine. I didn't want to make a big scene so I just paid it

I am fostering a dog for C.A.R.E. (Central Arkansas Rescue Effort) Rather than drive to Little Rock to their regular vets; I thought it would be much easier to coordinate her care locally. However C.A.R.E has an ongoing relationship with vets that give discounts. So I asked Hartman’s if they ever gave discounts to rescue groups. The individual wasn’t sure so she agreed to check and call me back. After checking with Dr. Hartman's wife and office manager (Amy Hartman) she informs me that Amy agreed to give C.A.R.E a discount of 20% but only on this dog. I let C.A.R.E. know and they gave me permission to use my vet. Today I took her in for shots (I mentioned the promised discount when I called to schedule the appointment). After seeing Dr. Hartman and getting the shots I am told at checkout that I don’t qualify for a discount. I explain the situation, and the individual goes back and asks Dr. Hartman about it. Supposedly he calls his wife and she denies ever promising me a discount. Since I receive a 7% discount already they tell me they can give me give me 3% more but that is all.

One time I took a Discover zip card that they weren't able to swipe. I told them I would call them as soon as I got home but I needed to make a couple of stops while I was out. Within an hour and a half I was getting a call from them asking for payment.

I do like Dr. Hartman. I feel that he genuinely likes animals. While I always feel like he has every moment booked, he does take the time to answer questions. I can't fault him for that at all.

Except for the staff that I know from another clinic, I don't get a sense of caring. Personally I think that they look at me disdainfully because I do question charges. It is frustrating to me to be told one amount and then billed another. More and more I feel like I am out of my demographic group, since this is located in the more exclusive part of Conway. With four dogs and one income I don't have as much disposable income as some of his richer clients.

Eight dollars isn't going to break me. And I will make up the difference so C.A.R.E. is not penalized because I wanted to take the dog to my local vet. Still being treated like I am trying to cheat them out of money has affected my opinion of the practice.



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LOVE DR. HARTMAN & STAFF. I was referred to Dr. Hartman 2 1/2 years ago when I got my puppy, Blake. It was the best referral I have ever gotten! The staff is so warm and caring and seem to love Blake as much as I do! Anytime I have a question, I can call and am always treated with concern and my questions answered promptly! Dr. Hartman is always so reassuring and caring when addressing a concern!

One day Blake was sick and I had made him an appointment for the afternoon. About lunch time, I got very worried about him and decided to rush him to the office. Even though Dr. Hartman was in his car already leaving for lunch, he stopped and came to care for Blake. I kept apologized for inconveniencing him but he was only positive and assuring. He did not rush his examination or treatment of Blake. After some IV's and antibiotics, Blake is as good as ever.

I can't rave about this office enough. The staff is great from groomers, to front desk, to ms. susan, and of course Dr. Hartman.…

When shots were scary.... We LOVE Dr. Hartman and Dr. Bilby. We've been going there ever since we got our shih tzu, Gibson, about two years ago. Today we took Gibson to get his yearly check-up and shots, and he's never had a problem until this time. By the time we got home, his face and eyes were so swollen he couldn't see, and his little lips were swollen shut. I immediately called the office, and they had me bring him right back in. Although there were other people in line, someone was waiting at the door for me and took Gibson back immediately. Dr. Hartman had given Gibson his shots, but he was with another patient. Dr. Bilby dropped what she was doing to treat Gibson. She gave him a benadryl shot, steroid shot, and then watched him for a few minutes to make sure he was okay. She then brought him back to us, explained everything that had happened, and gave us some medicine to take home (an oral steroid, and some nausea medicine, just in case). She reassured us that everything would be okay. While we were waiting, the staff was just as reassuring, as if they love Gibson as much as we do! It was so nice at a time when I was so scared. When they were all done, we went to check out, and they didn't charge us a dime for treating his allergic reaction. They even flagged his chart for next time, so they can prevent it from happening again. I was so pleased!

We love everything about this clinic. It's almost like taking your dog to see members of your extended family. Gibson loves to go see the staff, because he knows they'll pay him lots of attention!…