Finding an incredible vet is like striking gold

Having moved from London to Kent, we have known many different vet practices along the way, and I must admit we have experienced our fair share of mediocre care so I truly understand the value of a great vet practice, and when I stumbled across Heronden I knew we would never take our dogs anywhere else ever again.

We discovered Heronden by chance way back in December 2020. My senior dog Pops was experiencing leg tremors and was generally not herself and after a few visits and feeling very unsupported and unheard by our regular vet, I was recommended Heronden by our postman.

We lived 40 minutes away, but something in me knew I needed a second opinion for Pops, and I made the call to Heronden. The receptionist was warm and kind and arranged a same day appointment for Pops to be seen. I was with Pops for the entire consult and the whole experience made me feel at ease, in a beautiful, homely practice, with knowledgeable, caring staff who genuinely wanted the best for my darling pooch, Pops. The vet asked lots of questions and after a thorough examination, she recommended an urgent referral to see a specialist neurologist that evening.

On our way to the referral vets, pops lost all sensation in her back legs and an MRI confirmed she had grade 5 IVDD. Pops underwent emergency spinal surgery and was home with us in a few days.

If we hadn’t have gone to Heronden that day, I dread to think of how different things would have been for Pops, and our Neurologist explained that quick action from our vet, meant that Pops spinal cord was not compressed for too long which made her recovery and prognosis much more promising.

We swiftly moved all our pets over to become Heronden patients, and I was pleasantly surprised to get a phone call from Vicky, the owner and head vet once Pops was discharged, to check in and I’ve never felt so supported by a vet, especially one who id only seen once before!

Even in an emergency, Heronden did not put a foot wrong. They remained calm, professional and helpful even though I was frantic and hysterical and this service and care has remained solidly consistent ever since.

We have 5 dogs now, two pugs, two dachshunds and our rescue Pomeranian and each have had their fair share of health issues, which can be unbearably stressful, but I can guarantee that my vets will always do what’s best for me and my dogs and they are all treated like family.

We have a paralysed Pug, called Puggy who suffers with Myelopathy. He is not in any pain, but we experienced lots of issues with his bladder and kidneys as he slowly lost bladder control with his condition. Heronden were always available for advice and support and even taught us how to express Puggy’s bladder so it could be fully emptied to avoid infections. Of course, we follow up with regular ultrasounds to check he’s doing well, but I’m so happy to report that Puggy fighting fit, zooming around in his wheels, living his best life without any long-term medications. Just a simple urinary supplement we purchase directly from Heronden’s reception desk.

When a lump crept up quickly on Puggy’s tummy, Heronden saw him within the hour and offered a HT Vista scan, this clever cancer detecting device is pain free and gives results in minutes, giving us the insight to understand he has a mast cell tumour and discuss all options for successful treatment. A year on, I’m so proud to say that big brave puggy is cancer free and thriving, all because of fast, accurate detection and a faultless vet team.

Our gorgeous Pomeranian rescue, Miss Pomegranate is an anxious girl, yet she’s happy and content whenever we need to visit Heronden. Whether it’s a simple vaccination and nail trim, or investigating something more serious, I know she’s in safe hands and their gentle, professional approach won’t cause precious Pommie any additional anxiety. My heart dropped last year when Pommie was poorly, but luckily Heronden have in house blood testing technology, so the results came in within an hour and Heronden were able to treat my girl as an inpatient for pancreatitis for a few days until she made a full recovery.

If I were to blog about every time Heronden have gone above and beyond for my dogs, this blog would be 20 pages long. Heronden have supported and cared for our pets though cancer scares, dental procedures, bouts of pancreatitis, seizures, neutering and removal of a hernia and there Is honestly nowhere else I will bring my pooches for top of the line care and successful, accurate diagnosis and treatment.

My pets are all thriving and I wholeheartedly believe finding a great vet has contributed to this, so thank you Heronden for saving my dogs lives on multiple occasions and for being a shoulder to cry on when this neurotic dog mum is in a blind panic.

As an experienced dog owner and passionate animal welfare advocate, my number one piece of advice for people with pets is to find a vet who put their patients before profit, who invest in their practice and technology and who love your animals like their own.

For anyone remotely close to Tenterden in Kent, Heronden is worth travelling to. In fact, when we purchased our home back in 2022, one of our non-negotiables was that we couldn’t move too far from the vets, and now we are very content living less than 10 minutes away!

Thanks for everything to the wonderful team at Heronden, for the kind-hearted approach with a solid team who have made us feel so welcome, seen and cared for the past 5 years!

To find out more visit their website here: www.herondenvets.co.uk