Phillip G.
Yelp
It pains me to write a less than stellar review for Modern Animal. In theory, I like what they are trying to do and they do have some strong points, but some of the negative issues I experienced leaves me feeling the need to provide feedback for anyone who is considering which vet to choose for their beloved pet. Here are the issues I found in the one year I spent with Modern Animal:
- App communication: When I first signed up in January 2022, I found their responsiveness to be quite strong. As the year progressed, I found most of the messages I sent on the app taking longer to be responded to or on one or two occasions, not even responded to without further prompting. They don't encourage phone calls and want you to communicate entirely over the app, so that makes it hard when responses are delayed or requiring further efforts.
- Supposedly you can request telehealth on their app. You can ask to speak to a vet nurse or maybe even run something by a vet over the app. However when my dog had a couple sudden episodes of diarrhea in summer 2022, they were incredibly unhelpful. I kept asking if there was something beyond the one supplement they provided that could decrease his symptoms and suffering and they refused to make any other suggestions. I asked to speak with a vet nurse and vet, and they kept saying I would have to book another appointment. I had to bring him in several times to deal with this issue whereas some of these issues could have been more simply resolved by me simply being allowed to message with or email with or speak with someone. they pushed back hard against that. It was very frustrating.
- In January 2022, I found it rather easy to get a quick vet appt at one of their locations. By summer 2022, that had changed. It became harder and harder to find a not so far out appointment. You could always get an appointment, but sometimes you had to wait as long as two weeks. When your dog is having an urgent issue, that is not amazing to deal with.
- If you had a concern or complaint, there is a condescending attitude at Modern Animal and maybe even of push back. If you try to say that you're not comfortable or satisfied, there seems to be a subtle gas lighting by their app staff repeating scripts: "we're sorry to hear that you feel that way. our policy is XYZ and we are unable to provide any other guidance." Stuff in that kind of a tone. That human, flexible, two way communication always felt non-existent on the app to me.
- I had two experiences in which Modern Animal failed to remind me when my dog's vaccines were due. On both occasions I discovered that they were overdue and nobody from Modern Animal had given me any heads up. Recently, after having messaged them that they'd failed to remind me about his rabies vax which was due, and wondering why that was, they never even responded.
- I expressed to them in January 2023 that I was having second thoughts about renewing my annual membership and the person on the app I conveyed that to seemed to not care in the least or ask me any questions about what was wrong or how they could improve. That was all the information I needed. I decided to leave and find a more caring, supportive and communicative vet which I have since done.
- Also, one last details: they've been advertising a new location in DTLA for months. At first it was supposed to open in late 2022. Then it became early 2023. We're getting towards the end of early 2023 and they are still not open with no information about when. They don't send updates to those of us who have expressed interest, no explanations (I live in DLTA so this would have been awesome for me), and if you ask, they give you a canned answer about "no further information available."
I get the sense that Modern Animal may be having some scaling, growth issues, or some kind of management / leadership issues that is trickling down to the customer experience. I don't know that for a fact - it's just a hunch.
It's too bad because they have several strong points, including:
- All the vets I have worked with have been great. They all seem quite competent and friendly and warm. They seem to care about the pets they work with and have offered me sound medical advice and treatment for my dog.
- When you actually go in, their facilities are always clean, well decorated, and their staff is always friendly and welcoming. They are so sweet with my dog.
- The cost of treatments seems reasonable. It can sometimes add up and feel a little pricey but then again, I think it's that way with all vets. It's just costly sometimes and that's the way it is. I never got the impression that Modern Animal didn't price fairly. No complaints there.
So it's really a mixed bag in my opinion. There are strong points for sure but also some pretty not strong points. I hope they improve their app and communication over the app. And if they are having growth issues, I hope they work through them.