veterinary receptionist

veterinary technician

kennel assistant

veterinary assistant

veterinarian

Edmonton West Animal Hospital

The bosses are the rudest and most condescending people I have ever met in my entire life. They don’t value you and make you feel small. They don’t treat you like you can make a difference, they are true examples of what leaders aren’t, they are people who step on others to get further in life. Their management skills are tyrannical and minimal training is provided, support to succeed is not there. Their method is to cycle through people and if you don’t like the mistreatment or minimum wage pay for the skills and tasks you have to do that is beyond what you’re qualified for, then “you can go and find elsewhere to work.” They never do staff meetings to discuss major issues and with such a large capacity clinic, meetings should be a must so that everyone is on the same page. The one meeting that was held (that didn’t have the whole team on board) could have been mistaken for being inspirational but instead I found it manipulating. “You won’t get paid much or treated fairly, but work harder anyway.”

I would avoid working for these people at all costs to save your mental health unless you absolutely just cannot find anywhere else to work. I watch how drained many of my coworkers are and they still push you to do more.  I would have to reverse bad habits and dig out compassion to make it somewhere else. As their lack of true compassionate care for the animals by way of doing things does not exist. They don’t set boundaries for themselves or their employees to save their happiness and well-being. This is awful for people who already work in the Vet field as there already is high rate in suicides and severe mental health deterioration from the emotionally demanding field alone, there is no place for bosses who only worsen your mental health in the vet field. 

If you’re looking into pursuing any field in vet med i would encourage you to not walk but run away from this company. The doctors are nice, but beware the two owners, whispers about one of them always screaming at employees travel around the clinic fast. The clinic manager is aloof and half the time too overworked and overwhelmed to even notice the chaotic, cliquey, non welcoming (borderline hostile) environment. And the so called “department heads” are incompetent and lack the leadership skills needed to manage the people under them. Training is lacklustre at best, when asking specific questions those questions are ignored, continually gaslit when asking for assistance and proper training. They will fail to provide you with necessary information needed to learn/succeed in your role, constantly told you will learn things over time but they also simultaneously expect you to know how to do all aspects of your job. Different departments of the clinic who need to work together have such poor communication it affects certain departments from being able to properly do their job. The clinic is home to about 70 employees but their breakroom is so small only one person can sit down in there and everyone else is expected to find a place to eat either next to the desks of management members working or in their cars or in hallways amongst working staff members and animals. Not to mention the pay is minuscule and not worth the stress, given the level of duties this job requires people should be paid at the very least a liveable wage, lots of full-time employees have second jobs because they’re making just above minimum wage and can’t afford the cost of living while the owners take multiple vacations and drive luxury cars.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Predictable, stable work, especially once you get to about a month on the job. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Inevitably, this is a job where animals are sick, in pain, dying, or already dead. Not for the faint of heart. The staff can be kind of desensitized to this sort of thing so if you have never been in this environment them cracking jokes during treatments and euthanasia will be extremely jarring and upsetting.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It can be very cliquey at times. It is hard to make friends there as a newcomer as most people have been working there together for a long time. Managers are typically understanding, particularly when you're going through your first couple of tough cases. Overall every day can be a bit of a mixed bag, especially with how cutthroat it can feel when you're the newbie.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
While I was there I did a lot of answering the phone and emails. Once you have a basic script for the most common reasons for calling, this is a breeze. Beyond that, there will inevitably be at least one cranky customer per day, especially with the cost of veterinary medicine these days. Coworkers can get kind of impatient with you while you're learning how to check in and update doctors about their appointments.

I’m not someone who usually writes reviews online, but after seeing some negative ones, I felt it was important to share my experience. Often, the people who leave within a few months are the ones who write those reviews—but I’ve been with Edmonton West Animal Hospital for over four years, and my experience has been completely different.

I started here as an assistant, with the dream of becoming a Registered Veterinary Technologist (RVT). Thanks to the incredible support from the clinic, that dream is now within reach—I'm currently in my final year of RVT online schooling. The management has been incredibly flexible with my schedule, especially during exam times. They've always made sure I had the time I needed to focus on my studies, which made a huge difference in managing both work and school.

Having worked at other clinics before, I can honestly say this place stands out. The team here genuinely cares about your growth and success. They've supported not just me, but many other students in reaching their career goals.

I truly can’t thank the management and staff enough for their ongoing support, encouragement, and belief in me. If you're looking for a place that invests in your future, Edmonton West Animal Hospital is it.

This is truly the  best vet clinic that I  have ever worked.  I have learned so much while working here about animal care, client service and work ethics.  The care the pets receive is incredible. I really appreciate the management hiring differently abled individuals and giving them fair chance to succeed in vet field. They hire a lot of new immigrants to help them to settle in Canada and adapt to the Canadian veterinarian standards, something other places do not help them as much. It is no wonder that they recently received  Alberta Mentor Practice of the year award. This is one of many award this practice has received which makes me feel proud to part of such a great team. They have very flexible work schedule and good pay scale as well. Most people who work here have very positive attitude and the clinic really welcome people with neurodiversity as well. This is really a "no barrier" workplace where the staff feels safe and welcome. 

Coming from an employee for about a year, they sell you on a place that does not exist the owners are rude and down down to their staff. Will through their staff under the bus if it came down to it. Management has 0 to no experience with running a clinic this size. Majority of the staff are really nice and are your allies while working here. But there is a lot of behind the back talking, so have a tough skin and stick up for urself. 

I learned a lot but no one want to address how poorly the staff are treated. We are given almost no resources to get our jobs done because the owners are more concerned with money in their pockets and buying a second luxury car then giving staff the wages they deserve. Recently they raised their cost because the cost of labour cost a lot, but did the staff see a penny? No! 

They make promises on their wages during interview but don’t follow through.

I can go on forever, but my main advice is 

DO NOT WORK HERE!

I worked there for just over two months before I decided it was in my better interests to resign. Extremely cliquey, and if you didn’t fit into one, good luck getting along with anyone. The employees that have been there longer start out okay but then within the first week became either rude, started hating you, or just flat out ignored you. A lot of the techs have a matter-of-fact attitude and are quite rude when being asked a question they deem as “common sense”, when most times it is not. Any complaints brought up to management are met with a cookie cutter “that’s not acceptable let me talk to them” but nothing is ever done to resolve complaints or issues. They were silently firing people from reception as well as other employees that did nothing wrong. They also do not report incidents to WCB and will treat someone terribly if they do

I have had the privilege of working for EWAH for 2 years, and I can confidently say it has been an incredible experience. From day one, I've been impressed by the clinic's dedication to fostering a culture of collaboration and personal growth.The clinic's dedication to animals sets a gold standard in the industry and serves as a guiding principle in all our endeavours.
Moreover, EWAH truly values its employees, recognizing their unique talents and providing ample opportunities for professional development and growth. The clinic empowers its team members to thrive and excel in their respective roles.


When I first started I wondered why the turn over rate was so high, and I’m talking multiple employees coming and going a month. The main reason, people quitting… this place expects A LOT of you and you receive nothing in return. Have to monitor every paycheque to ensure you are being paid fairly. Work your butt off just for the owners and senior staff to deliberately belittle you. You will likely never see a raise, and if you do it will be max 50 cents and that’s the last one you’ll see. The job itself and majority of employees are good, but the way this place is ran is horrendous. So glad I left this place when I did. 

Working at Edmonton west animal hospital, they begin by helping out and being very nice towards the new hires but once they’re comfortable, they start picking on you whether it’s the techs in the back or the owner himself. It is a very high turn over for reception because of how poorly they’re treated and the fact that the manager does not help out either. You can give your availability but they will not stick to it or work with you to accommodate days needed coverage. They’re very if it benefits them they don’t care if it doesn’t work with your schedule. 

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Veterinary receptionist 9 salaries reported	$17.03 per hour
Veterinary technician 4 salaries reported	$24.90 per hour
Kennel assistant 2 salaries reported	$16.31 per hour
Veterinary assistant 4 salaries reported	$17.00 per hour
Veterinarian 3 salaries reported	$137,741 per year

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