Chevy Chase Veterinary Clinic

For the past eight years, we have entrusted the care of our five rescue cats and one dog to Dr. Ira Silver, Amy Silver, and their great team at The Chevy Chase Veterinary Clinic. Words cannot fully express our gratitude for the unparalleled compassion, dedication, and professionalism they have consistently shown to our furry family. Dr. Silver is an outstanding veterinarian whose wealth of experience and transparent approach inspire complete trust. Amy, the office manager and truly the heart of the clinic, has been an absolute lifeline in times of crisis. Time and again, she has gone above and beyond—providing compationate support, arranging crucial referrals, and even following up to check on our pets’ recovery and feeling. Her combination of professionalism, empathy, and organizational expertise ensures that urgent appointments are accommodated with care and efficiency. The entire clinic operates as a family, creating a warm and welcoming environment where pets and their humans feel genuinely valued. Over the years, we have witnessed their extraordinary efforts to save our critically ill pets, always delivering top-tier medical care paired with heartfelt reassurance during even the most challenging moments. For anyone seeking a veterinary practice where unparalleled professionalism meets genuine compassion, this is the place.

**This review has been updated and split into two different parts to reflect my overall experience with these folks over the course of two days.** Due to my regular veterinarian not having any available appointments, I was having a really rough morning last Friday in trying to get an alternative vet to see my cat, Slam, who had been sick with diarrhea for four days. While he wasn't sick enough to necessitate taking him into an emergency vet, we still wanted to take him not feeling well seriously since he wasn't being his normal cheerful self. Not only did the office get back to me promptly, they were extremely courteous and said they could see him the same day. However, my regular vet got back in touch with my daughter and was able to give Slam a prescription for probiotics. According to my daughter, because he was deteriorating, we were grateful and relieved to hear that the clinic had Saturday availability and that Slam could be seen sooner than not. They get an A+ here and they originally got a five-star review from me. I also factor in the quick blood results from our Saturday appointment here, as well as the bill being very reasonable. On to part two. They were a bit frosty when my daughter and I brought Slam in the following day. I think they're better with dog owners and have dogs. Clients with dogs were happily and readily seen and thus, came and went quickly, cheerfully, and painlessly. My daughter and I felt like ugly stepchildren being told to wait in the corner with our problematic, inferior pet. Dr. Silver continued and solidified this vibe with us. He was rude, interruptive, dismissive, and arrogant. He's the type of person who shouldn't be dealing with people, especially those who disagree with him, and treated us like we were lucky to breathe the same air as him and be graced with his presence. He is also the kind of person who feels like no other opinion is worthy of consideration nor is it more important than his. My cat caught on to his behavior and lashed out at him when he tried to take his blood. This is rare for my cat—like every seven or eight years kind of rare. You have to be really bad for Slam to do this. While I wanted to tell him this, I ended up swallowing hard and apologizing profusely, explaining that Slam must be feeling really badly to be acting like this and that it's very out of character for him. We were at an impasse on how to proceed. So we got my husband on the phone. He also said he was condescending and I believe him. I was right there. My daughter was crying over the noises Slam was making while they were drawing his blood and I consoled her by rubbing her ankle throughout the process. They're supposed to take the pet into a separate room when they do this. There was no need to put us through this. Our regular vet always takes our cats into another room when they draw their blood and they always rave about what a pleasure it is to deal with Slam and Allie. Afterward, Dr. Silver told us quite a few times to go out into the waiting room to wait for the results since it was getting crowded in there. Yeah, okay. Again, not necessary to be so unpleasant. His wife thanked us a second time for leaving a great review and while I don't like to go out of my way to leave negative reviews, nor do I like to change reviews that are initially positive, I felt that I had to do so in light of what transpired throughout the whole ordeal.

(Edited to respond) I left in tears because the vet said “cancer”. There was NO mention of IVDD until I went to another vet. I stopped responding to the text and did not come back because y'all treated me terribly and found my new vet the next week because I for sure was not coming back to y'all. I got up and left the room crying. There is plenty of proof about how unhappy I was. The lady up front had to convince me to come back in and that was after her telling me I’d still have to pay the $85 even though nothing was talked about. I stayed because that’s a lot of my earned money. I have text proving how awfully you talked to me to SEVERAL different people. He had no fever when we got home, 30 minutes later. I’m aware of what antibiotics do, what else would they do besides help with the fever? I’m also well aware of how I lost him and the fact that he did not “die from” IVDD. I hope that response alone lets people know how terrible y'all are and that you have no empathy or social skills. Fortunately/unfortunately my vet helped with the idea that it could be IVDD, but by the time we got an appt. for new clients, his symptoms stopped. I wish I went to my home vet sooner because he might have still had the symptoms. I just wish I knew. It has been well over 2 years since I visited this vets office but I still remember how they treated me and what happened afterwards. You may be thinking, “Wow. Why is she writing a review two years later? That’s weird.” Well, it is, but I’m out walking my puppy dachshund and Googling, “How can I help prevent IVDD in dachshunds?” and this jogged my memory. I went here with my first dachshund. He was showing early signs of IVDD and I naively did not know. I went here in panic since I had just moved to the Bethesda area. I was greeted lovely by the receptionist but the vet treated me like I didn’t know my dog at all. He was rude, wouldn’t listen to me, and talked to me like I was extraordinarily stupid. I couldn’t even get a word in about what was happening. He took Perry’s temperature and it was high, but he was stressed. He put him on antibiotics and as soon as we got home he never spiked another temp (yes, I was rectally checking with a thermometer they gave me). He didn’t look as his back, check his paws for reflexes, or check for pain, nothing. He immediately told me that Perry had cancer without running ANY tests. I left in tears. Fast forward 5 months, I lost Perry due to IVDD. He would 100% still be here had I not gone to this vet first and trusted them with my baby. I still hold so much resentment for this vet and maybe this will help me let go of that. I was too scared to walk out, even after how he treated me and how he talked to me, but I hope this gives someone the confidence to leave and to trust their gut. I would 0 out of 10 recommend this place.

I am thankful to have found Dr. Silver and the Chevy Chase Vet Clinic. Dr. Silver and his team have provided excellent care for my toy poodle from the start. The team is capable, answers all of my questions, offers sound advice and keeps abreast of the latest research in animal care. Importantly, the clinic has been responsive when urgent care is needed, fitting my dog into a busy schedule. Personalized care is rare these days—and you’ll find it at Chevy Chase Vet Clinic. 5 stars!

Dr. Silver is a true expert. We have our dog for 7 years now and he gets bad seasonal allergies and other complications that come with it. Since we moved to MD/ DC area and discovered Dr. Silver 2,5 years ago and followed his recommendations our dog is doing much butter. We also had a little surgery done on his year and everything went great. We love this office and the whole team is nice professional and caring.