White's Pet Hospital - Santa Barbara, California

Sandy L

This is not a poor review, this is criminal. Dr. Kathleen McFarlin has been my family vet for over two decades. White’s Pet Hospital office manager, Maryann, and Dr. Andrea Reid severed that relationship.
My 1st and only meeting with Dr. Reid was yesterday, September 12, 2024, when I brought my 9 ½ year old Goldendoodle, Leroy, in with an inflamed paw and swollen lymph gland behind his knee. I called White’s on Wednesday, September 11 to schedule an appointment with Dr. McFarlin, but she wasn’t in until Friday and was booked. They recommended Leroy see Dr. Reid.
Dr. Reid was aggressive in her examination of my dog’s very “raw” paw. I was extremely uncomfortable around her. I asked Dr. Reid if she had to be that aggressive. Her disdain was apparent. She kept prodding at his raw paw, making both me and Leroy severely uncomfortable. I told her Leroy’s history of oral melanoma and allergies. I said I used Douxo to bathe him. She asked me how often. I said I wasn’t sure. She was antagonistic. She aggressively rebutted, “You don’t know how often you wash your dog?!” I wanted to leave. Dr. Reid then said she wanted to shave Leroy’s paw. I did not want to proceed with Dr. Reid. I told her that I wanted Dr. McFarlin to do it when she returns the following day. I knew Dr. McFarlin would get me in because Leroy’s paw was getting worse.
This is where it turned into a power-play for Dr. Reid. She started delivering her credentials, accolades, saying I did not trust her (several times), etc. She was aggressive and rude. She treated my dog roughly and took offense to me wanting to see Dr. McFarlin. I did not raise my voice. I was not belligerent. I simply said I have been coming to White’s for 23 years. I prefer Leroy to see Dr. McFarlin. Dr. Reid stormed out.
I went to pay my bill, and was told to wait that the manager was going to get involved. Dr. Reid complained to the manager. Maryann, the very incompetent office manager, (no last name provided) has been with White’s only 2 years says their website. Maryann said she was severing my relationship with White’s and that no one was going to treat her employees rudely. I said, “I’ve been coming here for 23 years. All I want to do is meet with Dr. McFarlin. Can you please have her call me?” Maryann said, “No. Dr. McFarlin has no say in this.” Then she asked me to step outside. She was beyond rude. I told her that she was not in the room with Dr. Reid. Maryann said she believes Dr. Reid “implicitly” and I was no longer a client of White’s. I got 2 medications handed to me for Leroy with no explanation of what they were or what I was supposed to do with them. I had to call White’s to ask them if I needed to dilute the solution because it said 2-3 times daily, but it was a small bottle. The girl on the phone said, just read it, no you don’t dilute it. I took Leroy to San Roque Pet Hospital later that day. The vet there told me I was supposed to dilute the solution from White’s with water and Epson salt and that the prescription pills from White’s were not needed.
Dr. McFarlin’s accolades: She found and correctly diagnosed Leroy’ s oral melanoma during a routine check-up. On her 1st examination of my partner’s 10-year-old Terrier-mix, Sasha, Dr. McFarlin found and correctly diagnosed a tumor in Sasha’s anal gland.
Sasha was scheduled to have surgery this month with Dr. McFarlin to remove cracked teeth that are causing her pain and affecting her health. Maryann canceled the surgery, also canceled Leroy’s scheduled wellness panel and x-rays required for him to get his Oncept shot for his cancer. Sasha is owned by my partner, not me. My partner wanted to proceed with Sasha’s surgery. Maryann said, no.
Because of Dr. Reid’s oversized ego and misplaced arrogance, our dogs are suffering and have been put in harm’s way. White’s Pet Hospital office politics allows self-serving, self-centered Dr. Reid to supersede the solemn veterinary oath to the protection of animal health and relief of animal suffering.

Maya Schoop-Rutten

We have been going to White Pet Hospital for many years.
Generations of dogs and cats have had the privilege of being cared by White's. It is always with great confidence that we bring our loved animals to be helped with big or small problems. We highly recommend the fantastic team at White Pet Hospital, and most of all, we thank them from the bottom of our hearts.

Taylor Tinley

Whites Pets is so good to our Pup. Every experience our dog has with them is pleasant, easy, and beyond our expectations. Dr Reid genuinely cares, even calling to check in on our doggy after we had to take her to another emergency vet in the middle of the night. That's more than my human doctor would do and I was so pleasantly surprised to hear from her! So grateful for them, they are the best !

Emma Wu

We have been taking our toy poodle to White's for years and are very grateful for their care. Each visit reinforces our trust in them. Dr. McFarlin is exceptional! She is professional, competent, and deeply cares for our little boy. She thoroughly explains each treatment step so we understand everything. We are so thankful for her dedicated care.

The staff at White's also deserves praise for their kindness, reliability, and positive atmosphere. We always feel reassured leaving our little boy in their hands.

If you need a vet clinic that combines expertise with compassion, I highly recommend White's. We are lucky to have Dr. McFarlin and her great team taking care of our pet.

Shannon Gaston

I have been going to Whites Vets for over 20 years so it really saddens me to write this review. But I feel it is important because I do not want what happened to me to happen to anyone else and their pets. I brought in my 4 year old dog because he had not been eating and was very lethargic. The doctor did an x-ray and said he had eaten a ball and it was stuck in his stomach or intestines. I am not sure why but she sent me to VCA Care to have it scoped rather then remove it herself. $3200 later, the VCA doctor told me there was no ball in his stomach, only bile and sent me home with probiotics (BTW - I am not happy with VCA Care either). They recommended I speak with the doctor at Whites to inquire as to why she sent me there, which I did the next morning. Meanwhile my dog was still very sick and not eating. When I relayed the info to the manager at Whites about what I was told at VCA, not only did she accuse me of making up "outrageous accusations", she fired me as a client and then hung up on me. I was shocked. Nothing like this has ever happened to me before. All I wanted was to understand what was happening to my dog, sort through the different information that was given to me and get him desperately needed care. The employee at Whites was so rude, would not have any kind of discussion with me about what happened and hung up on me. The whole thing felt like I was being let go to protect themselves and their error. As a small business owner, I could never imagine doing what this person did to me and to my dog. We were discarded without care, which is literally their entire business. Thank goodness for Adobe Vets. A friend of mine referred me to Adobe, after telling me she was not at all surprised to hear about what happened at Whites. The vets at Adobe examined my dog, did x-rays and saw the ball stuck right where his stomach and intestines meet. Dr Siegal immediately performed the operation to remove the ball and saved my dogs life. If it were not for the team at Adobe, and because of Whites negligence and lack of care, my dog could have died. There are so many great Vets here in Santa Barbara, if you care about your pets health, I absolutely do not recommend Whites.

*A response back to Whites. If you accuse your clients of not being honest about their pets needs, what is happening to them, what was relayed to you by other medical providers, well then you have failed your clients and our pets. And what would I possibly have to gain by not telling the truth while looking for medical care for my dying pet? All I wanted was your help and you turned me away at the most dire time. In this case, your actions neglected the proper care of my dog and he could have died because you did not believe me and did not want to talk to me about what occurred. And you have now accused me of not being respectful enough to remain your client while this was happening and while I was watching my dog become sicker and sicker. This coming from medical providers that I have trusted with my pets with for years. So so incredibly disappointing. I promise you I will tell every person I know about what happened at Whites and to everyone who will listen. Take care.

Gretchen Lauppe Jones

We took our 2 dogs in to establish with a new Vet hospital. We were able to get appts within the next week. All of the care was efficient, professional and caring, from the front desk to the techs to the MD, Dr Reid. Couldn't have had a better experience at White's!

Lore Dobler

As always excellent care from ?‍⚕️ McFarland, evens call on her day off to check all is well.

I wouldn’t take my critters any place other than White’s. I’ve been doing so for 50 years.

Julie Gold

My cats, past and present, have been coming to White's since the early 90’s, and unless it’s an emergency, I wouldn’t go anywhere else. Always a great experience for the human! My cat is never happy with the car ride over because he hates the car and he knows where we are headed. Having said that, my cat is comfortable with Dr. McFarlin and she is the best! Quick mention, the office staff has always been great!