Emergency veterinarian service · San Francisco, CA
Pet Emergency & Specialty Center of Marin at a glance
Google reviewers rate Pet Emergency & Specialty Center of Marin 4.6 out of 5 based on 814 reviews. Positive feedback highlights compassionate staff, thorough communication, on-site diagnostic capabilities, and efficient emergency triage for pets. Recurring criticisms in low-star reviews focus on high costs, perceived rudeness from reception personnel, and a lack of urgent attention during initial intake.
Google rating: 4.6 out of 5 from 814 reviews (85% five-star).
Reviews on this page: 813 Google reviews (686 with written comments, 74 with photos).
Owner responses: the business replied to 64% of reviews.
Most recent review: October 26, 2026.
Service: Veterinary Emergency Service serving San Francisco, California.
Data from Google, last updated October 27, 2026.
Photos
Customer reviews
4.6
★★★★★
814 reviews on Google
5★687
4★42
3★15
2★5
1★64
Reviews from Google, shown as published (original wording, unedited).
What customers talk about
We read 686 written reviews and marked every phrase about these topics. The same colors are highlighted in the reviews.
“Everybody I encountered was helpful, professional, and compassionate.”
“Also, the tech who brought my dog back to me was rude because I dared to ask clarification questions about conflicting instructions regarding my pup's…”
“We didn't have to wait like we would at other ERs or urgent cares, and the whole team triaged around us to make sure he was seen as quickly as possible.”
“…us asap about needing the $2000 + to start treating his fever, they waited hours until they contacted us which meant my cat was miserable for hours.…”
“She took the time to review Atlas’s records, communicate with our primary veterinarian, explain everything clearly, and answer all my questions, even…”
“Both of my emails were ignored until it became way too late to schedule anything.”
“She was incredibly kind, compassionate, thorough, and patient.”
“Your guys customer service is terrible to say the least.”
“From receptionist to vet tech to nurse to doctor to fair pricing for emergency services, I couldn’t recommend this place more highly if I tried.”
“THE PLACE STAFFES VETS N LAB PERSONNEL 24-7 SO IT CAN BE VERY EXPENSIVE.”
“trusting that this was a very well extensive veterinary service I just felt very trustworthy based on their website and reviews”
“A total scam owned by a private equity firm.”
“PES came highly recommended from my Dog Trainer who brings her own dogs there when needed Because they have a complete suite of on-site diagnostic services.”
“If you care about your furry child and prefer to be treated with basic dignity, stay away from this place.”
People customers mention
Tun23 reviews
Zimmerman19 reviews
Kaae14 reviews
Vet11 reviews
Harb11 reviews
Waterman10 reviews
praise complaint · found by our text analysis, Google review wording unchanged.
Jobs customers hired them for— from Google's service tags and the review text
Team members customers mention
Filter by topic— each topic is highlighted in the reviews in the same color
shelley Zoe4 reviewsiTotal number of Google reviews shelley has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
as soon as I arrived, people were there to help me get my dog inside because she couldn't walk although she did walk on three legs. Everybody I encountered was helpful, professional, and compassionate.. I don't know her name, but the Vet tech that helped us come in and went over medications when we left. She was great. trusting that this was a very well extensive veterinary service I just felt very trustworthy based on their website and reviews
Ana Morley8 reviewsiTotal number of Google reviews Ana has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
Dr. Zimmerman is the best vet I've ever seen! When my 12 y/o standard poodle qualified for the melanoma vaccine after being diagnosed with toe cancer, I was dismayed by the nationwide back order of the medicine. I even contacted the manufacturer and was told I would have to wait months.
Dr. Zimmerman called other veterinary practices HERSELF until she located the vaccine doses necessary to give my dog a fighting chance against his cancer.
She goes the extra 10 miles for her furry patients.
I feel so lucky to have found Dr. Zimmerman!
I am so grateful!
Joan Bennett1 reviewiTotal number of Google reviews Joan has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
I can’t say enough wonderful things about Pet Emergency & Specialty Center of Marin, especially their oncology department! After some difficult experiences with emergency veterinary care and previous oncology visits, I was understandably nervous about bringing my dog Atlas in.
Our oncologist was absolutely amazing! She was incredibly kind, compassionate, thorough, and patient. She took the time to review Atlas’s records, communicate with our primary veterinarian, explain everything clearly, and answer all my questions, even those about cancer in dogs more generally. I never once felt rushed.
The entire team was wonderful to work with and made an emotional, stressful experience so much easier. I’m incredibly grateful for the care and compassion they’ve shown Atlas and our family. I truly can’t recommend them enough! ❤️🐾
Mack1 reviewiTotal number of Google reviews Mack has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
Very helpful and kind from start to finish! The tech and doctor were compassionate, knowledgeable, and thorough. We left feeling reassured and well taken care of. I'm sorry I don't remember his name, but the tech that assisted us was excellent. He was very sweet with my dog, answered all my questions, and made me confident my dog was receiving the best care. I also really appreciated how efficient Dr. Rothschild was, I immediately felt like I could trust him to care for my dog.
Angie Haskins2 reviewsiTotal number of Google reviews Angie has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
I was sick, so My husband took our adorable Iggy to the emergency at Thorndale Drive in Terra Linda and he was pleased with the experience, but he would have preferred if he had been allowed to go in with our boy so he could see how they were treating him for his weird, first time ever for us, condition. Since it was my husband first time with this emergency doctor, he doesn't remember his name, but my husband liked him and told me he was pleased with the way he treated him and our boy, when he got home. Thank you all for taking care of our boy. You were able to fix our boy quickly with no need for anesthesia since he is a small good boy and never needs anesthesia for minor issues.
Hector Illescas3 reviewsiTotal number of Google reviews Hector has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
Every body was very professional and kind. They explained us very nice and gave us an estimate to choose the better option. The best was our doggy got better few hours later. We appreciate it.
Bees Feed Us4 reviewsiTotal number of Google reviews Bees has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
Everything is amazing; service, generosity, commitment to clients, clarity, compassion, listening, communication, attention, safety, cleanliness, professionalism, timeliness, response time, genuinely caring, down to earth, pleasant workers and environment, no pressure, didn't feel rushed, all my concerns treated professionally. All the things clients expect from a business; excellent job!!! Everyone I interacted with was genuine, sincere, professional, down to earth, empathetic, nice, easy to communicate with, just simply delightful.
Eva P.Local Guide · 73 reviewsiTotal number of Google reviews Eva has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
If you care about your furry child and prefer to be treated with basic dignity, stay away from this place. This facility treats their customers with blatant disregard and expects you to pay thousands of dollars without providing even the bare minimum of coherent communication.
We waited for two months for a consult with a specialist here, Dr Harb-Hauser. When we finally got in, I was told that my dog needed extensive imaging and an airways exam under general anesthesia, the cost of which would range between 5-10k. I was told the team would be in touch about next steps over the next few days. Two weeks later - crickets. It took several follow-ups from my end to finally hear back.
We then were advised to first do an abdomen ultrasound instead, for which my dog had to stay at the hospital all day. After that visit, my dog was returned to me with an eye infection which the team brushed off by stating I should go to an ER or wait for a specialist consult for a week or so. Also, the tech who brought my dog back to me was rude because I dared to ask clarification questions about conflicting instructions regarding my pup's medication.
I later received an email stating that on the date that my dog was scheduled for the airways exam, the anesthesiologist was not available, despite me clearly requesting one during our initial consult. I was offered an alternative date for one week earlier. I was also told that if the exam didn't happen that week, our next chance to do it would be over a month later. Which meant my pup had to continue to suffer from his symptoms for yet another month without any clear diagnosis.
I replied asking about how we could proceed with this procedure under general anesthesia on a pup that may still have an active infection. I also provided feedback about my pup not tolerating the prescribed medicine very well. I also requested to schedule around the tech who was rude to me to avoid interacting with her in the future. Both of my emails were ignored until it became way too late to schedule anything. I've wasted three months of my time on this place, still have no answers, and now have to start from scratch all over again.
If this place struggles so much with responding to basic emails about scheduling, medication reactions, or complications after an exam, how can one possibly entrust them with more invasive or complicated procedures that require general anesthesia?
Tiffany SongLocal Guide · 13 reviewsiTotal number of Google reviews Tiffany has written across all businesses on Google Maps, not just this one.
We recently had a large mass removed from our senior dog's liver and she is recovering extremely well! She is 14.5 yrs old and we had a lot of concerns as to whether we should put her through the procedure given her age. She is healthy otherwise and we were encouraged by the care and attention of the staff and Dr. that we decided to proceed with having it surgically removed. She came home 2 days later and is now 2 weeks post-op and has been doing so well with her recovery.
We are so grateful and indebted to the staff! Dr. Rajeev was our surgeon and she has been consistently communicative, extremely knowledgeable and thoughtful throughout. The overnight care staff in the ICU that watched over our dog so closely during recovery have also been outstanding.
THANK YOU to the PESCM team - from the front desk intake team to the Dr's and vet tech staff - we are so relieved and appreciative!
A picture of our girl just 6 days post-op last week! :)
