Policies

At The Animal Hospital we strive to provide our clients and the local community the best medical care possible. We are a small, high-quality private practice which maximizes our individual customer service. In order to minimize wait times to the best of our ability, we ask that you please call to make an appointment.

Appointment Policy

We see appointments 7 Days a week!! We have regular appointment times scheduled on Weekends, but will close on some Holidays. Please see our Calendar for the holidays we are closed. To allow ample time for all patients and scheduled surgical procedures, we operate primarily by appointment. Emergency cases will always receive top priority, which is why occasional appointment delay is inevitable. Please realize that we make a sincere attempt to see each client on time.

For your convenience “drop-off” appointments are available. A “drop off” means you can bring your pet at a time that works best for you and leave them for evaluation and treatment as required. Usually we ask you drop off sometime in the morning so the veterinarians can examine the patient during the time reserved for admitted patients. For the safety of all animals in our care, we require all vaccinations and flea prevention is up to date. Once the exam is complete, we will call to go over the diagnosis and discharge instructions either via phone call or when you pick up your pet.

Appointments times are in the morning 9-12 and afternoon 3-6. Surgery, procedures, drop offs, phone calls, staff meetings, etc occur between 12-3 pm. Some exceptions are inevitable.

Patient Arrival Policy

Even though we make every effort to make our patients feel comfortable during visits, they may be stressed by new people, new surroundings and other pets. This is one of the reasons we insist you restrain your pet, usually a leash for dogs or pet carriers for cats and exotics, before entering the hospital. For your protection, and that of others, all dogs must be on a leash and properly controlled while in the waiting area and exam rooms.

We do offer separate entrances for our older or disabled clients and patients. We also offer separate entrances for animals that may be aggressive or overly stressed by other animals. Dogs that are potentially suffering from kennel cough or Parvo virus will also come directly through the separate entrance to minimize contamination of the waiting room with diseases that spread easily to other patients. If any of these is the case, please contact us to make special arrangements or simply come in alone first to talk to our receptionist.

Payment Policy

We require full payment at the time that services are rendered. For your convenience, we accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover, Debit Cards, cash, and Care Credit. We regret that we cannot accept personal checks.

If you would like further information on Care Credit – a flexible payment option offered only for medical care of your pets and your family – please contact Care Credit at 800-365-8295 or visit www.carecredit.com.

Obtaining Records from Other Clinics

The Animal Hospital often sees pets coming from other clinics for “second opinions”, emergencies, and people visiting or new to the area. If you bring records from your previous providers we will be happy to accept all valid vaccinations and health care reminders in accordance with the laws of South Carolina. You may also have your records faxed to us at 843-552-8588 or e-mail at theahnc@gmail.com. We will also be happy to contact your previous clinic for you to have the appropriate records transferred if they are able to accommodate such requests.

Online Pharmacies

At The Animal Hospital we understand the importance of providing quality medicine at an affordable price. We strive to provide for all your pets health care needs and maintain a well-stocked in-house pharmacy. We work only with reputable suppliers, compounding laboratories, and local pharmacies and have direct relationships with the drug manufacturers we use. If we don’t have it in stock, in almost all cases we can get it in a day or less.

Because there are so many fraudulent pharmacies online and so many counterfeit products being sold to un-suspecting consumers, we do not normally fax prescriptions. We will however strive to match published prices for medications on sites we deem legitimate, and indeed in some cases we beat them with our normal every-day MSRPs. Since we work directly with the drug companies, we can assure you our products are genuine, FDA approved, and come with all manufacturer guarantees. Alternatively, we will be more than happy to refer you to one of the many excellent local, legitimate pharmacies and can provide written prescriptions for you to fill at the business of your choice.

Privacy Policy

At The Animal Hospital we recognize the importance of identity protection of clients, patients and those individuals who simply visit our practice or this site. This is a private web site run by a private, family-owned practice. We do not collect or give out any information to any third party vendors or internet businesses other than those we use directly for patient care or notification. No information will ever be disclosed to any outside parties from us or our web site hosting company.

It's that simple! And we strictly adhere to this policy.

Your privacy is protected in our hospital at all times. At no time will any medical information be given out about a client or pet without the consent of the individual owner, or if you have an appointment elsewhere. We adhere to a strict Doctor-Patient-Client relationship and feel trust and open discussions about your pet’s health demand the strictest confidentiality.

Boarding

Because The Animal Hospital is a small facility, we do not offer Boarding at this time. We can however make exceptions for our clients with small pets that need boarding/nursing care.