Sixth Avenue Animal Clinic - Robert Allen DVM

I used to take my cat to Fifth Ave Cat clinic but not anymore. One day she had an emergency situation and they could not squeeze me in even though I was a loyal customer of three years. That really ticked me off, so I called the Sixth Ave Animal Clinic. They were very considerate and allowed me to bring my cat in within a few hours. Dr Alan and his team were fantastic. He communicated everything that was going on with my cat and what needed to be done to clear up the problem. She was in perfect health when I went to pick her up the next day. This place really cares about the animals and are very considerate of the owner's time and money. They are fantastic.

Pros: Expert care and communication.

Cons: antiquated reservation and records system.

Posted 12/08/08

I took my sick parakeet to Dr Allen and he and the assistants were great. He listened to all my complaints and answered all my questions. He spent a lot of time with us. He's obviously very caring and compassionate. The price was right as well - compared to twice as much just to walk in the door at an aviary vet. And when I needed a follow up visit and there wasn't a time slot available, they worked me in.

Pros: Dr Allen, Price

Posted 10/21/08

Despite the enormous convenience of proximity to my home I will NOT return to the 6th Avenue Animal Clinic. I think their doctors are well trained and care for the animals BUT I was charged for procedures I was not aware I was initiating. Having a pet is expensive and anything we do for them costs money, it is the responsibility of owners to always inquire what procedures and what costs we will be incurring but that can only happen with the help of vets office to be honest and clear. I asked for a health certificate which I thought would not cost anything and I walked out with an $85 bill. NOT cool.

Posted 09/21/08

If you are looking for a compassionate and knowledgable Veterinarian, then Dr. Allen is your Doctor. A friend of a friend recommended him to me because I had a horrible experience with another clinic and couldn't bear risking taking my best friend, my english bulldog George, to another bad Vet. Dr. Allen took his time and explained to me the causes of my dog's skin condition; I had a ton of questions and he was so patient and understanding and made sure all my questions were answered. Because he spent so much time with me, I felt a little bit guilty when I saw all the other clients waiting in the waiting room just for him. He sure seems to have a following. George is now in perfect condition and I have no one to thank but Dr. Allen. I've been to many Vets in my lifetime and have to say, he is definitely, by far, the best.

Pros: Dr. Allen

Cons: Waiting time and the fact that Dr. Allen is not there everyday

Posted 09/20/08

You have to be kidding me that this place is rated over four stars, me and my girlfriend brought our dog in who has a post-surgical infection on her foot and needs a regular bandage changing. We were staying at her parents in Brooklyn and this place happens to be around the corner so we decided to take her here instead of going all the way into Manhattan for such a little procedure. BIG MISTAKE. Our appointment was for 1:30 and the doctor didn't see us until 4. We were even early, what a joke! Once we were finally taken in we had to wait almost half an hour for a simple bandage change from a particularly rude and unfriendly staff. On top of all this the backroom was filthy and reeked of Chinese food, we both cringed at the fact that our baby had to go back there for the changing. While we were there a man who brought his cat in for a 2 PM appointment and was still in waiting to see the doctor when we left, complained and rather than getting any sort of sympathy was scolded by the receptionist for complaining! What a joke, take your dog ANYWHERE else. We would have saved an hour going to Manhattan! By the way the bandaging for some reason cost $70...right...

Pros: Honestly? None

Cons: Overpriced, Rude, Unprofessional, Unsanitary

Posted 09/13/08

Shortly after we moved here, my 16 year-old cat started losing weight and throwing up. I called the 6th Avenue Animal Clinic, which was just a few blocks from our apartment, and the receptionist was able to schedule an appointment only 3 hours later. We come in every other day to get fluids for her kidney disease, and the tech, Sherly, is wonderful with her. In fact, we're hiring her to care for our pets while we're out of town. Dr. Allen always stops in to say hello and answer any questions. He is very kind to my cat and always takes the time to answer all of my questions. The receptionist, Camille, is very friendly. I've had a great experience with Dr. Allen and the staff and would highly recommend him.

Pros: friendly vet and staff, nice waiting area, convenient location

Cons: prices of meds, as they can be found online for much less

Posted 07/16/08

I recently had to put down my 10 year old retriever, and I'm so glad I took him to The Sixth Avenue Animal Clinic. I hadn't been there before, but they acted like we had been patients for years, and their handling of the situation was so kind. They were patient and loving and did everything they could to make my beloved dog's passing as peaceful as it could be. I plan to get a rescue lab and now I don't have to search for a vet. Dr. Dendtler's calm and obvious expertise inspires confidence.

Pros: compassionate, professional

Posted 05/23/08

I recently moved to Brooklyn from Colorado and both my cocker spaniels picked up a serious infection shortly after the move. Dr. Dendtler correctly identified it right away and was able to prescribe the right antibiotics?which was important in a situation that was rapidly becoming urgent. I'm grateful to her for getting me in right away and getting to the bottom of problem quickly. I thank her, and so do Tyra and Petey. Now that they're recovered and going everyday to Prospect Park, they think Park Slope is awesome.

Pros: diagnostic skill, caring attention

Posted 05/23/08

The negative reviews here are shocking to me?surely these people haven't been going to the vet I've been seeing for so many years. Dr. Dentler is highly skilled and thorough, always gentle, and, most important, gets it right about 99% of the time. Her diagnoses have always been accurate and her treatments have always worked. My cats are unusually old, and whereas they might have good genes, I largely attribute their good health to Dr. Dentler.

Perhaps most surprising in some of the reviews posted is impressions of the support staff. They are great. First of all, Dr. Dentler is well-staffed?there are enough good technicians, which isn't always true at veterinarian practices. There seems to be low turnover among her staff, which always says something. One of her techs, Sherly, gives my cat meds when I'm away and she's terrific. They are ALWAYS friendly and professional. I just don't get it.

I've also seen Dr. Green twice and liked her a lot.

It's true there is sometimes a wait, but it's a busy practice and Dr. Dentler takes time with animals, so it's worth the wait. I've had worse waits among people doctors.

I couldn't recommend this practice more highly. Please don't be dissuaded by some isolated poor experiences.

Pros: top-notch care, attentiveness

Posted 05/23/08

The Sixth Avenue Animal Clinic took care of my cat Sadie for 16 years, from her kittenhood on. Dr. Dendtler nipped any serious problem in the bud, always kept Sadie in excellent shape. I also found her to be helpful with behavior problems (like Sadie's scratching anywhere but her scratching post). Very sadly, Sadie got incurable liver cancer. Dr. Dendtler did everything she could to make her comfortable and did not recommend any intrusive or unnecessary measures (as I've heard vets sometimes do at the end). It has been clear throughout the years that Dr. Dendtler always had Sadie's best interests in mind?and at heart. I have had a couple of long waits, but not on a regular basis. It's the downside of her popularity?but the popularity itself is clearly justified.

Pros: great care, sweet staff

Cons: occasional long wait

Posted 05/23/08

Last year I adopted a stray with a lot of health problems, especially skin problems. I took her to the Sixth Avenue Animal Clinic and saw, on different occasions, both Dr. Dendtler and Dr. Green. They worked together to get my dog into terrific shape?I didn't think she'd ever be this healthy. I was particularly impressed with the many notes they took, and how each reviewed each other,s so as to stay on top of my dog's latest care. The shelter I got her from was pretty bad, and if Dendtler et al can take a sick dog and make her this healthy and happy, you can't ask for more.

Pros: real pros, lots of care

Cons: none

Posted 05/23/08

I've been taking Lila, my border collie mix, to Dr. Dendtler for about seven years, and have always been happy with Sixth Ave. Clinic. She is a wonderful combination of serious and warm, and she's gotten Lila through a couple of serious illnesses with flying colors. One things I've always been particularly impressed with is her responsiveness to calls. Even if she's just giving me results of routine tests, she'll call back on the same day?often at night before she leaves. Practice is great.

Pros: top-notch care, great location

Posted 05/23/08

My eighteen-year experience with Dr. Dendtler and the staff at the Sixth Avenue Animal Clinic has been absolutely wonderful. When I got two kittens eighteen years ago, I took then to Dr. Dendtler on the recommendation of a friend. Dr. Dendtler has provided superb and sensitive care to them over all of these years. She is thorough, caring, more knowledgeable than other veterinarians I had used with previous pets before going to her, and always takes her time to answer my questions and concerns. If I call for any reason, she returns the call the same day. Both of my cats survived, with excellent quality of life, for so many years due to her care, professionalism, and diligence. Sadly, one of them had to be put to sleep a few weeks ago. At my request, Dr. Dendtler personally came to the apartment in order to do this. At such a sad time for me, she was the most caring, concerned, comforting, and gentle veterinarian I can ever imagine having. Her staff has been nothing but kind, efficient, and attentive. When I go on vacation, I have one of her veterinary technicians come in to take care of my surviving cat. I trust Dr. Dendtler and her staff, including her associate, Dr. Green, and would not take my pets to any other clinic.

Pros: Professional, knowledgeable, caring, great staff

Cons: None

Posted 05/23/08

I am completely mystified & shocked at the bad reviews given to the Sixth Avenue Animal Clinic (SAAC). That has not been my experience with Dr. Dendtler (Dr. D.) & her staff . I have been a client for over 20 years & during this time, I have mothered 11 cats & one dog. Dr. D. has seen me through the various illnesses & deaths of 8. On my first visit, Dr. D. created a feeling of total faith & trust through her caring and compassionate manner. She Boo Boo was my first cat as an adult & had been raised with my two sons as if she, too, were my child. She was more than precious to me ? when she became ill, I transformed my bedroom into a hospice & carried her around on a white satin pillow to conserve her strength. I would never have entrusted her health & well-being to just anyone. When my dog, Sport, passed away, Dr. D. got me through one of the worst days of my life. She listened as I expressed my anger, consoled me as I cried & patiently let me recount the many happy years we had had together. Since their deaths, I have lost 6 more babies. After calling my sons, Dr. D. & her staff are my next call because I know they care. I can count the minutes until Dr. D. calls to express her condolences. Within days, a personalized, handwritten sympathy card will arrive in the mail which will bring tears to my eyes with the compassion it shows. I still carry the last card I received in my handbag & read it sometimes because it expresses so closely how I felt about my baby, Bear. The words tell me that Dr. D. & her staff loved and cared for him almost as much as I did. The years at SAAC have been wonderful. Dr. D. & her staff have mastered the art of being both totally professional & caring & compassionate at the same time. Although they have been disrespected at various times, I have never seen or heard them respond in kind. They greet their patients with smiles & kind, soothing words. I look forward to many more years with Dr. D. & the SAAC.

Pros: Extremely knowledgeable vet, highly efficient staff, modern offices

Cons: None

Posted 05/22/08

Terrible -- the worst vet vet you could ever have the misfurtune of choosing. Instead of patronizing 6th Ave Animal Clinic (which is just a few blocks from my apartment) I take my cat to see Dr. Diaz at WILLIAMSBURG ANIMAL CLINIC - he is fablulous and better with animals.

I brought my cat to 6th Ave Animal Clinic to treat a urinary tract ailment, and while we were waiting to see the vet he lost control of his bladder while still inside his carrier. The staff told me they would take him where he would be more comfortable while we waited to see the vet -- but in reality they shoved his carrier into a dark corner in a storage room, where he was left to sit for over an hour in his own urine while I waited unaware in the lobby. When the vet did finally see us, she made it very clear that she was busy and that she disliked my cat. She also used an alarmist approach to scare me into buying every expensive treatment under the sun before she finally dismissed us with a prescription for a generic antibiotic -- only after I finally told her what my budget would allow.

Don't bring your baby here under any circumastances.

Pros: Clean Lobby

Cons: Mean Vet, Rude Staff, Overly Expensive

Posted 04/27/08

I've given this place one chance to look at my cat, and they failed to have decent bedside manner, so I took her health elsewhere. After buying cat food from them twice (only because they were conveniently close to me), this incredibly rude staff has forced me to be more interested in walking five miles in the rain rather than to seeing them again. The woman at the front claimed that I have to provide a prescription to buy her food (which I understand if it was necessary) and a long winded speech that I should have know that (which was condescending and rude, in her tone). After I explained that her fellow staff members have sold it to me twice she explained that it's their policy and she is now enforcing it. I don't really care, I can buy the food elsewhere, but if my animal was a patient there, I would certainly be concerned with their consistency on how they "enforce" things. By the way, their bedside manner is as crappy as their costumer service. I did call to share my aggrevation with the woman at the counter and how my pet was a former patient, and the last thing she said to me was "I have to let you go and help some customers that matter." I guess they were paying customers. May I refer Park Slope Veterinary Care at 413 Fifth Avenue Brooklyn. Great place!

Pros: location

Cons: Unwarm Vet, extraordinarily rude staff, way overpriced, hours of operation

Posted 04/14/08

I took a cat that i had rescued to 6th avenue completely as a walk in...literally walked in right off the subway and was seen very very soon after i walked in the door. my cat, monday, was seen by dr green, who was incredibly friendly and answered all of my questions. true, they are a little bit on the expensive side...and while i dont know much about dr dentler other than the negative reviews i have seen here, i wouldnt consider taking my cat to anyone but dr green at the 6th avenue animal clinic.

Pros: dr green

Cons: a little on the expensive side.

Posted 04/12/08

I took my poodle to Dr. Dendtler many years ago. She recommended a great deal of cyst biopsies on my dog and charged me over a thousand dollars to do them. The surgeon who actually performed the procedure seemed totally clueless (I can't believe I allowed the procedure to go forward). In the end, my dog died (she had to be put down at another vet). In the meanwhile, I found Dr. Dendtler to be consdescending and anything but friendly. I believe I was ripped off. Stay away from this rip-off!

Posted 01/25/08

When my dog at the age of 12 started drinking massive amounts of water one day I knew something was wrong. We had just moved to the neighborhood and The Sixth Ave Clinic was 3 blocks away. I called the clinic and got her in right away to see Dr. Dentler. When I returned later that day to pick her up Dr. Dentler informed me that her test results indicated that she had several types of cancer, her liver, spleen and kidneys were swollen and that she was going to die. I needed to bring her back the following day for a sonogram. After the sonogram, the exam only detected a problem with one of her kidneys and I was handed a thousand dollar bill. I hired a car service and took my dog into the City to visit Dr. Ted Weiner at Gotham Animal Clinic, her vet of 10 years. We had all the paperwork from Sixth Ave. Clinic faxed over so he could review it. He then conducted testing of his own and apparently a miracle happened. Her results were completely normal and she did not have cancer. I switched her food over to Science Hill K/D low protein formula and my baby girl lived to 14 and a 1/2. I can't begin to tell you the panic and pain I suffered from the false information Dentler threw at me with no sensitivity or compassion what soever. I think she is one of the worst vets in the City and I would not believe a word she says!

Pros: It's fairly clean

Cons: misdiagnosis, very expensive, uncompassionate vet

Posted 11/27/07

We will never trust our dog with 6th ave. clinic again. While trying to get some simple paperwork for our dog I encountered an extremely rude receptionist who raised her voice and was patronizing. We never had a problem with Dr. Dentler at our previous 2 checkups other than her cold attitude but her staff is an extention of herself and they are absolutely terrible. The woman I was forced to speak with over and over was totally unaware of my dog's case yet spoke to me like I was an idiot. She had absolutely no manners and made this already difficult time worse. I can't even imagine what the conditions are like for animals that have to spend time in this clinic wiothout their owners. I would never refer anyone to this office. Overpriced. Hateful staff. We can do much better for our pets.

Pros: location

Cons: rude staff, snobby vet, overpriced

Posted 09/26/07

I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Dendtler as she was answering questions at a street fair many years ago. In our brief conversation as a new pet owner, I knew that I had struck gold with her. I have been coming to the 6th Ave. Animal Clinic ever since and have gotten nothing but the best care for my growing family of animals (2 dogs a rabbit and a bird). Her staff is very caring and Dr. Dendtler truly treats my pets as if they are her own. One Thursday evening when she was not on duty I was forced to take my dog to another local office where I received inferior care for my little one and was glad to being him to Dr. D. the next day. At that visit I noticed that the prices are comparable to those of the 6th Ave Animal clinic yet they force you to have extra tests taken that seem unnecessary driving the bill up and diagnosing nothing. I would NEVER dream of going anywhere else!

Pros: Everything is a delight! It is worth the wait

Cons: The wait can be a little long

Posted 07/01/07

It seems to me that the reviewer who had such a bad experience with this office must have caught the staff on a bad day. I've been taking my cat there for a while now, and I've never had any complaints except for price. Their rates really are pretty high, but I suppose good care is worth it. Their receptionists are always very polite, and the veterinarian is friendly and seems to know what she's doing. This is definitely not a bad place at all.

Pros: conveniently located (at least for myself)

Cons: Expensive

Posted 05/13/07

My husband and i just moved to Brooklyn and the previous couple whose apartment we moved into used the 6th Avenue Clinic for their cats. We thought we'd do the same and take our cat there. HUGE MISTAKE. Our appointment was at 12:45pm (we were on time) and we didnt get called in until 2PM. We were taken to our examination room and had to wait yet another 1/2 hour for the doctor to actually get to us. My cat who is extremely lovable and docile when he goes to the vet was treated harshly and out of the blue exploded into a blind fighting rage. The staff scared him so much and after making the poor animal wait that long to be seen by the doctor, we were slapped with a $130 bill. This was just a simple check up by the way. We finally left the clinic at 3:15 PM . Waste of my whole day. Too much stress and anxiety for what was to be a simple yearly exam. NEVER AGAIN.

Pros: location for us

Cons: Staff, too long to wait to be seen, too expensive

Posted 01/14/07

I was worried when I read some of the negative reviews here, but 6th Avenue Animal Clinic was able to make a last-minute appointment for my sick kitten. They treated him gently, gave me good information about how to take care of him, and examined him to answer my tangential questions about whether his weight and ears seemed okay. The vet, whose name I unfortunately do not remember (not Dr. Dendtler), was very sweet and patient- I was the bundle of nerves you might expect of a brand-new cat owner facing the first kitty sickness.

Pros: The vet was lovely, the wait wasn't long at all, and the examination room was clean and private

Cons: One nurse was a little less gentle, but still thorough and informative

Posted 09/11/06

My cat gets spooked at the vets and must be handled with great care. a previous vet at 6th Ave., Dr. Lowenstein was able to do so. However, he is now gone. Dr. Dentler, the primary vet there, made her personal distaste for my cat clear enough that I decided to find another practice. I'm glad that I did becasue I found Hope Veterinary, on Atlantic Ave. The staff at Hope has been incredibly patient, diligent, and compassionate in my cat's care. I would urge any pet owner to avoid 6th Ave. I recommend Hope, however, without reservations.

Posted 09/08/06

My sisters dog got cut by posh pets and we had to take her to the vet. These guys were awsome. Thanks to the staff and doc dentler. You are caring people

Posted 08/08/06

Being that this was my first pet and first vet appointment I didnt know the things to look out for and she completely took advantage. I asked how much the appointment should run me and was told about $150. I walked out with a $400 bill because she handed me tons of products which I thought she wasnt charging me for (including nail clipping which I told her I had an appointment for later that day). The final straw was when I looked up the products and found them online for over half the price. There are also two locations which have no communication with each other which makes getting copies of records a pain.

Cons: Expensive, Not Friendly

Posted 02/09/06

After waiting for 1 and half hours to see the vet, she barely spoke to me even though this was the first visit.

She seemed afraid of my dog, who is large but was being very docile.

And then she charged me an outrageous sum. I was very disappointed.

Posted 05/16/05