Cat Clinic of Central Illinois

Dr.Carlson is the best vet in town. I have known her since 2012 and trust her 100%

I love Dr. Carlson and Cat Clinic of Central Illinois! I have been taking my two cats to her for about 5 years. Dr. Carlson is the most honest vet guaranteed!! She is very professional and knowledgable!! Unlike many others I have encountered as a lifelong cat lover, Dr. Carlson would never suggest a treatment just because of the profit. She always has the animal's well-being as a priority, which is felt in everything she does or says. So, for instance, when 2 other vets in the area wanted to put my senior cat to sleep in order to clean his teeth for $450, Dr. Carlson did not want to put an elderly cat to sleep as she thought it would be too risky because of his heart, so she prescribed some oral medication that worked great! She also always quotes the price before doing anything, so there are never any surprises. Her prices are very reasonable. Her office has the latest technology and equipment. Most of all, when you beloved animal is sick, she/he is in good hand with Dr. Carlson! I highly recommend Dr. Carlson.

We were fortunate to find this wonderful cats-only facility three and a half years ago when Suzy, our senior shelter adoptee, turned out to be very distressed near barking dogs. Suzy was severely stressed after losing her long-time home and spending several months at the shelter near dogs. She also had severe allergies that could not be treated with pills at home because she fears restraint. Dr. Carlson prescribed topical treatments for Suzy so we do not have to try to pill her. We take her in for regular check-ups and dental care as well as her chronic pancreatitis and a mass in her abdomen. We would never have expected a 16-year-old cat with so many ailments who can't take oral medications at home to remain so viable and happy, but Suzy is thriving. When we adopted Suzy we also adopted 10-year-old Sophie, her long-time feline companion. Sophie had severe orthopedic problems with limited mobility and significant pain. Dr. Carlson ran tests, found her otherwise viable, and recommended medication, rest and monitoring. Several weeks later, when Sophie's condition was clearly worsening, Dr. Carlson recommended and performed compassionate euthanasia. She did everything reasonably possible to save our Sophie. We find Dr. Carlson to be knowledgeable, skilled, communicative and compassionate. Her charges are reasonable and clearly explained in advance. We recommend her facility most highly.

Don't come here if you want to be treated with respect and understanding. I don't like leaving bad reviews but I would hate for anyone else to feel the way I did today. Our cat had to have most of his teeth removed and we were told by Dr. Carlson that she wouldn't do the surgery and told us to go all the way to Decatur for his surgery. (Which would have been multiple 45 min. Trips) when she found out we had taken him somewhere else in town to get the surgery done she got angry and basically talked down to me and acted like I was letting just anyone operate on my cat even though I had several conversations with the dentist on staff about their equipment and the process for surgery and aftercare. I was made to feel bad for trying to get a second opinion and going to another vet for a very expensive dental surgery that Dr. Carlson refused to do. I'm sorry but last I checked getting a 2nd opinion and using all the resources available to us to make the best choice for my cat and our family was the responsible thing to do. My husband and I are young newlyweds and are tight on money so driving to Decatur multiple times seemed like a hard thing to do for 2 people who work full-time and have other pets who also have needs. We genuinely enjoyed our visits up to this point and think if Dr Carlson showed a little more empathy and understanding toward the owners/parents we wouldn't be changing vets.

I do not usually review anything but I wanted to say that Dr. Carlson and her staff have been fantastic. I went to three different places a few years ago when my 9 year old cat started losing weight and declining in health. None of the bloodwork showed anything abnormal and the best guess was some sort of IBD and another vet started her on steroids. No improvement for months and by the time I brought her to the clinic, she looked so sick and sad that I was terrified I was going to have to let her go. Dr. Carlson treated her exceptionally well and preformed a relatively new blood test that seemed to point to early-stage intestinal cancer. Not one of the other vets I saw preformed or even knew about this test and it saved my cats life. Dr. Carlson started her on chemo and years later, my 13 year old cat is cancer-free and looking forward to her healthy golden years. It should be noted that I have had disagreements with vets in the past and Dr. Carlson is no exception. However, being a vet is a hard and thankless job. Vets do not made piles of money, have their own bills and loans to pay, and frequently see horrible, heartbreaking situations on a daily basis. I can forgive a vet for being a bit terse and less than exuberantly friendly. I do not choose a vet by how friendly they are towards me- I choose them by how well they treat my pets and how good they are at their job. And Dr. Carlson is the *best* cat specialist I have found in the tri-state area and, though I have moved back to Chicago, I continue to make the drive every 6 months to have my cat seen by her.