What happened to Aloha Vet?

[macuu222]

Too late for us. We moved all our animals to Pahoa Vet after being with Aloha for 20 years. Pahoa Vet's customer service is second to none. They have 3 excellent doctors. And when you have an emergency they will find a way to get you in ASAP ( when your an established client). And their pet food for purchase is 30% cheaper than Aloha Vet.

[terracore]

Pahoa Vet is also really good on helping us save money on meds. One time our dog needed short-term medication and they gave us enough "free samples" for the treatment. Another time we needed a longer-term and the manufacturer sells all the pills at the same price per pill, regardless of dosage, so they sold us the 2x dosage cut in half to save 50% on the medicine cost. At other vets we had to ASK for something like that and they acted like we asked them to take a bullet for us. Pahoa Vet did it without asking.

Pro Tip: If your animal medicine is also a human medicine, we've been able to use GoodRx (free) to get it filled at local pharmacies at huge discounts. One time the pharmacy person asked me for the patient's DOB. I didn't know because it was a shelter adoption. I said, "I don't know, it's an old shelter dog."

We still got the 80% discount.

[taropatch]

Aloha Vet's temporary demise made us try Hilo Vet which is a block away.  This small operation appears to be OK which is not a resounding vote of confidence.  They charge extra fees just to use your credit card.  They won't issue prescriptions on scripts if you ask for them.  They don't seem overwhelmed with patients like Aloha so I was wondering if people are avoiding them.

How are the services at Kilauea Vet in Keaau?

[kalakoa]

They charge extra fees just to use your credit card.

I believe this violates their merchant agreement.

[kalianna]

Kilauea Vet is great for excellent animal care at low cost, however they are closed on Sundays and don't take emergencies. They are also sometimes difficult to reach during regular hours because they are so overwhelmed. Also, Dr. goes on vacation for a month every year. Right now we have a very ill cat and I need to wait two days before getting him in to Pahoa Animal Hospital, even though we've taken our cat there before.

[terracore]

They charge extra fees just to use your credit card.

I believe this violates their merchant agreement.

A court ruled those types of merchant agreements weren't legal about 10 years ago.

[Ccat]

They're back up and running.  Two doctors.

Glad to hear it, finally!

Thanks,

Ccat

[AaronM]

HOORAY!

[Carey]

Hopefully, Act 071 will now offer some relief to our Veterinarians & allow for out-of-state and international professionals to work here...
Still would be really great if our University system actually offered a degree in Vet. Medicine, as that is so needed here..
Act 071 is just a step in the right direction...
https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=SB&billnumber=2798&year=2022

[kalianna]

Wow, that's great! I hadn't heard about this. Thanks for posting some good news.