Welcome to Garden Oaks Veterinary Center in Houston, TX!

Here you will find all the information you need for your first visit. If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

What To Expect At Your First Visit

First visits to a new doctor are stressful—whether you’re a human or an animal! For this reason, we strive to keep our patients AND their owners comfortable and stress-free at all times.

Established in May 2015, our mission at Garden Oaks Veterinary Center is to provide relationship-centered, compassionate care to our clients and high-quality medicine and diagnostics for all patients. Through open communication and education, we hope to partner with you for your pet’s health and redefine the experience of “going to the vet.”

From the moment you walk in our hospital, we want you and your pet to feel at ease, which is why we have designed our facility to be as serene and calming as possible. We take great pride in ensuring that our hospital never smells “like a vet’s office,” and we operate on an appointment basis in order to minimize any wait time.

During your visit, you will be escorted to a private room by our medical team who will meet with you and listen to your pet’s history and symptoms before the doctor comes in. Should we need to collect any samples for your pet’s visit, we might take them to our treatment area briefly. But since providing transparency is one of our greatest priorities, we have designed windows on every door so you may watch if needed.

When it’s time for your pet’s exam, the doctor will greet you both and take a moment to get to know your pet. The doctor will then perform a complete nose-to-tail physical examination. Even if your pet is here for a routine wellness visit, our doctors still provide the same thorough exam, which includes listening to the heart and lungs, palpating the abdomen, checking joint mobility, and everything in between. Since pets can’t tell us what’s wrong, performing a high-quality physical is often times the only way to detect abnormalities early before they advance.

Should your pet need any diagnostics or treatment, we are able to provide a wide range of in-house services to help get your pet feeling better as soon as possible–including blood work, urinalysis, cytologies, digital radiographs, ultrasounds and more. Our veterinarians bring over 20 years of collective experience to our team, and they work collaboratively to develop successful treatment plans that ensure your pet will receive the same medical care regardless of which doctor you are scheduled to see.

We also encourage our clients to use the time during your visit to ask the veterinarian any questions or discuss any concerns that are troubling you. Our goal is that you leave your visit feeling informed, at-ease, and confident in your pet’s care with us. Once a doctor-patient relationship has been established, we are always a short phone call or email away if you have additional questions after your visit, and our team will be sure to respond promptly.

An important part of our distinction here at GOVC is that we are accredited with the American Animal Hospital Association. This prestigious recognition signifies that we have been evaluated on approximately 900 rigorous veterinary standards outlined by the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) to ensure that we provide the highest quality of patient care and client service. This status is only earned by 12% of veterinary hospitals across the United States and Canada, and it gives you the reassurance that we mean what we say.

You are always welcome to speak with our team to learn more about us or stop by for a brief tour of our hospital. We look forward to building a relationship with you and your pet, and we hope to see you soon!

Please note: Our goal is to see all our clients and patients on time, and although we have contingencies for emergencies, there will be times where the unexpected will create delays. We will ensure these are minimized as much as possible.

What Should I Bring To My Pet's First Visit?

With Covid, many of our procedures have necessarily changed so we can see the most patients and provide them the time they need for examination and treatment.

Your Pet’s Previous Medical History: In order to best treat and care for your pet, we ask for permission to receive your pet’s previous medical records so that we can prepare for your appointment. If you don’t have copies of these, don’t worry! Our client service team is more than happy to call any previous veterinary center to request the records be sent directly to us so you don’t have to deal with the hassle. PLEASE make sure we get your pet’s records no later than the day before your visit; this way we are prepared when you arrive. If we are requesting them from your previous vet, please give us the information 2 days prior to your visit. Our medical staff team will ask you more specific questions about your pet’s history, routine, and/or symptoms once you are in the exam room.

Your New Client Registration Forms: If you would like to expedite your check-in process, feel free to fill out our new client forms from the link below and either upload them once completed (in the space below the new client form) or email them to us at info@gardenoaksvet.com. Otherwise, you are welcome to bring them with you – please be sure they are completed. We do ask for your driver’s license at check-in for security purposes.

Your Pet! We can’t wait to meet you and your dog or cat! Please remember to bring them on a leash or in a carrier (for small dogs and cats). Since we are currently under Covid 19 restrictions we are doing curbside visits and drop-offs. We can also allow one Client in with the pet(s) so long as everyone wears a mask and maintains social distancing.

When you arrive call the center and someone will come out to meet you and either bring you and your pet(s) into the center or take your pet from you and return them to your vehicle when any exam and treatments are completed.

There is no waiting allowed in the waiting area due to Covid restrictions.

Since we are a medical office and see many different animals, we ask that you hold your pet off the ground if they are less than 16 weeks old and/or unvaccinated to keep them protected against communicable diseases.