“In the past 2 years Pets with Disabilities has brought over 20 dogs to Mid-Atlantic Animal Specialty Hospital for a variety of veterinarian services. Besides regular vet care, our rescue dogs will often need the help of specialists from, neurology, orthopedic, internal medicine and emergency services. The surgeons and support staff have given our rescue dogs the BEST of care. We are pleased and very satisfied to say MASH has become an integral part of our rescue team.” – Joyce Darrell, President/Founder, Pets with Disabilities”

“Three TPLO surgeries between two dogs?! That’s a lot to handle mentally, physically and in our pocket book. Our family was fortunate to find the Mid-Atlantic Animal Specialty Hospital. The surgeons and staff at MASH were able to take away our fears, answer all of our questions and provide support day or night through all three of our dogs surgeries. Even the price of our surgeries were comparable, even lower, than any other surgical hospital in our area. We have large bully breed dogs. Our 115lb American Bulldog had a TPLO surgery on each knee. Our 80lb. Olde English Bulldogge had one knee done. Once healed our boys were as strong as ever and able to run like the wind. Our only choice for surgery then and now is MASH!” – Terry and Billy Walker

“My German Shepherd, Max was 7 years old in March 2013 when he was diagnosed with the terminal disease, Degenerative Myelopathy (DM). DM is incurable and as it progresses, the pet becomes paralyzed in the hind legs and it progresses forward to the point it affects the lungs. Max’s neurologist in Bowie, MD provided a copy of a veterinarian publication to me which clearly illustrated that laser treatments and underwater treadmill exercise would drastically improve Max’s quality of life as well as prolong his life. Without any therapy, the mean survival time of a pet with DM is a mere 66 days.

Since reading this article, Max and I have been coming to MASH since the first week in April, 2013 for therapy twice a week. The physical therapists at MASH…Drew Fisher and Jen Hill, truly care about your pet and the quality of therapy they provide. They fully understand the importance of and the impact of the quality of their work on both the pet and their owner. I was also provided exercises that I could do with Max at home. Max loves all of the staff at MASH and especially looks forward to Drew’s special massages! In one week, it will make 300 days since Max began therapy at MASH and he’s still coming twice a week for therapy. AND he’s still ambulatory which has far surpassed my expectations of holding his disease at bay.

I can’t thank MASH enough for their help, their knowledge, and their care with helping my best friend! I know in my heart that I would have already lost him to the disease had it not been for Drew, Jen, and MASH. I will always be grateful!”

“We have been clients of MASH since 2009. They have taken care of our personal animals as well as dogs we have fostered. They have always treated each dog as their own. Always putting our dogs well-being and health as their number one priority. I can’t speak highly enough about the doctors and staff at MASH. They have always gone above and beyond for us as clients. It’s never easy leaving a member of our “fur” family for treatment overnight. But we have never had any reservations about leaving our dogs in the care of MASH. We have referred many of our friends, family and neighbors to MASH. We are so lucky to have such a caring and compassionate hospital with state of the art technology and facility as MASH in our community.”

“My Belgian Malinois “Cookie” will be turning eleven years old this year. She has had a good healthy and active life. We have enjoyed playing, training, and competing in various dog sports over the years. She has earned titles in Shutzhund, AKC and UKC obedience. The last few years we scaled down to medium activities such as tracking and nose work. However aging can bring on some physical discomfort. My regular veterinarian recommended to consult Dr. Oakley at MASH. After evaluating her, he decided the best course to take would be to do a program that consists of laser therapeutic exercise and resistance pool hydrotherapy with a home exercise program. Within a few months of Rehab Cookie has greatly improved and shows that she feels more like her old self again. We couldn’t be happier with the results that Cookie is having from the rehab. Thanks to Dr. Sue of Watkins Park Veterinary Hospital for her recommendation. Thanks to Dr. Oakley and also to his physical therapist Jennifer Hill and assistant Drew Fisher for their dedication and guidance. Cookie and I feel we are in good hands with people who care, we always look forward to our visits at MASH to visit Jennifer and Drew.”

Good morning. I am just sending this note as a letter of appreciation for taking care of our dog Colby on Friday night. Colby loves trying to play with all animals and he found out the hard way that copperheads do NOT make good playmates. We took our dog to our regular vet in St. Marys county and they immediately referred us to your facility. By the time I got to your office I was obviously nervous and worried about my dog. My vet had called your facility and they were ready and waiting for him as I walked in the door. Colby was taken directly into the back and your doctors and techs began working their magic. I sat then I stood up, then I paced nervously. The front desk employee was very kind. She could tell I was nervous and upset and made small talk and even made me laugh at one point which really helped ease my tension. Dr. Huwe kept me very informed throughout the ordeal and she made sure she explained exactly what her prognosis was, along with the treatments they had planned, and the results of my pup’s bloodwork. Knowing what was going on made a traumatic evening for me and my family not quite so bad. I left Colby there overnight as Dr. Huwe recommended. The next morning I received a call from the doctor precisely when she said she would call and I was informed that my dog had done quite well overnight and I could go pick him up and take him home. The discharging vet tech thoroughly explained my dog’s situation and home care to me, ensuring I had no questions. Colby is home and comfy now and doing quite well considering his face was bitten by a copperhead only 3 days ago. Your facility is a great place and although I really never want to have to see an emergency veterinarian again, it is a comfort knowing that your place is there if we need it. I was there from about 7-8 pm on Friday, August 1st, and again on Saturday morning around 8 am on August 2nd. Please, if you would, ensure that Dr. Huwe and any other doctors and technicians who were working to help my dog see this letter or at least hear about it. My family and I are grateful and supremely appreciative for your services. Thank you!

The experience we have had with MASH/APVES has been phenomenal. We live in a very rural area, Calvert County, and to have such expert services for our pets is incredible. Our American Cocker Spaniel was diagnosed with kidney disease, and in the stages of renal failure, at the young age of 7 by our veterinarian. They referred me to Dr. Bechtold of APVES as she has extensive experience managing kidney disease in small animals. This diagnosis happened the day we were leaving for our 10 day trip to Europe. We were not ready to put Tinkerbell down. APVES and Dr. Bechtold, in particular, knew exactly how to treat Tinkerbell and communicated with us via phone call and email of her progress while we were away. Since this diagnosis and treatment Tinkerbell is doing well and visits on occasion with Dr. Bechtold. Her renal values are stabilized and enjoying a quality of life. Thank You!!

This place is beyond exceptional. Where to begin? Dr. Oakley and the entire staff have been VERY, VERY dedicated to the repair and recovery of our Weimaraner/Great Dane mix, Joey’s, ACLs. Joey has been a difficult patient during recovery, but the staff has continued to hang in there with us and get Joey on the road to his normal self. Hours have been extremely flexible for Joey’s surgeries, drop-off, pick-up, rechecks, rehab, etc. They have gone above and beyond what I expected for animal care. Also, their price for double ACL repair on a very large dog is amazing compared to other animal surgery hospitals in the area. I cannot say enough good things about this facility…RECOMMEND, RECOMMEND, RECOMMEND.

Last night we lost our biggest boy and our hearts are broken. We want to thank you for all that you did for Max and us! We felt confident that he was the best of hands and would get the best possible care and attention. The communication with the Drs was excellent. We knew exactly what was going on, how he was reacting and the updates were superb! We didn’t hesitate to call and check on Max because the staff made you feel very comfortable and were very compassionate and thoughtful! Thank you for all that you did for Max and us!!

ON Saturday April 18th I had to bring my Poodle Simon to you for and emergency. This little dog is my life. I can not thank your complete staff enough, from start to finish you could not have treated me or Simon any better. He was taken care of by everyone on your staff. I run my own Business and I know you always hear when you do wrong but not so much when you do good. I don’t want to be that person. He is not still completely well but seems to be getting better. I had to travel one hour to get to you but will do it again if needed. ( hopefully not ) I took him back to his regular vet Dr. Brown and he told me he was happy with the care he was given. Thank you all. I have all ready recommended to everyone I told about Simon’s illness.

Steve Clontz

We had two dogs needing hip and joint surgery. I had spent some time trying to see what to expect for this type of surgery. Dr. Nwadike set me straight. He spent a lot of time assuring us that our much loved dogs would have a good chance of a quality recovery. He laid the recovery on us and how we restricted the dogs movements and performed the exercise regime laid out by his staff. We tried to follow the program to the letter. I should also praise the emergency people that are available 24 hours a day (APVES). I had numerous questions and worries about our dogs recovery. They took all the time needed to still my concerns.

Our dogs are doing better than we ever dreamed.. I can’t thank Dr. Nwadike and all the staff at MASH and APVES enough. Our family is well again only now we know what restrictions to put on our dogs to keep them healthy.

Jeff Miller, Virginia, Fleck and Sammy.

I want to thank Dr Nwadike for all his help with Georgi. Your staff was so kind and informative with every call I made to check on my pup throughout the weekend. Georgi is healing up and I’m sure we will be out training her soon in the field.

Jerri

Yesterday we lost part of our family, our 14 year old Jack Russell Terrier, Bandit. Our family is so sad and heart broken. I wanted to thank the staff of MASH for treating our Bandit with such love and respect even though they were so busy on a Sunday afternoon. He was having numerous seizures which started that morning and we arrived without notice as we did not have time to call. We never have had to put down a pet and they walked us through it all. They even went over and beyond by giving us a clay impression of Bandits paw as a memento along with a printed poem. Thank you all for your attention and compassion. We will never forget that. The Stone Family

We brought in our 6 year old boxer with a Mast Cell tumor on his front paw. Dr. Nwadike took the time to explain all of our choices. When we decided to go with tumor removal, Dr. Nwadike suggested we see an Oncologist, because the tumor removal on his paw may not get all of the clearances needed to be a full removal. We met with the oncologist, who gave us several suggestions – the main one was to let Dr. Nwadike remove the tumor as he’s a renowned expert in removal of tumors.

Long story made short: The tumor was removed and the biopsy came back that it was a full removal and no further steps were needed for his cancer. GONE!!

Dr. Nwadike and Dr. Oakley, my family thanks you every day we get to hug our Hank. You guys are fabulous! Your staff was always upbeat and personable. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

The Fleegle’s

This is a review of two affiliated businesses, Mid-Atlantic Animal Specialty Hospital (MASH), and Allied Veterinary Ultrasound (AVU).

In 2015, we took two of our cats to MASH for non-routine illnesses. MASH provides specialized services far above what a general veterinarian can offer. The veterinarians at MASH take the time to listen to you carefully and examine your pet thoroughly. Unlike some of the other specialty animal clinics we’ve been to, MASH does not perform unnecessary tests. They are mindful of the costs to treat a sick animal.

Our first cat, Lenny, had cancer of the foot. We had taken him to several highly rated local veterinarians who couldn’t properly diagnose his condition. It wasn’t until we met Dr. Bruce Nwadike at MASH that we were able to get him properly diagnosed and treated thereby saving his life.

With the second cat, Paige, we saw Dr. Molly Bechtold at Allied Veterinary Ultrasound (AVU). Paige has multiple health issues. Some of Paige’s issues were beyond the scope of Dr. Bechtold who went above and beyond in coordinating visits with other specialists she knew who could help us. Dr. Bechtold always treated Paige with the greatest care and compassion. We’ve never met a veterinarian like Dr. Bechtold in our 20-year involvement with animal rescue. She surpassed our expectations in what we look for in a good veterinarian. Her bedside manner and her areas of expertise are very impressive. With each appointment, Dr. Bechtold informed us honestly of Paige’s prognosis. She stayed on top of everything and she was able to stabilize Paige’s hypertension very quickly. She treated Paige as if she were her own cat. By treating her hypertension quickly, she was able to extend Paige’s life. Dr. Bechtold always kept us up to date by phone on Paige’s condition. She continued to stay in touch with us even when we took Paige to another referred clinic.

Our experiences with Dr. Bruce Nwadike at MASH and with Dr. Bechtold at AVU have been good ones. They gave both of our cats great care, and we know they have extended their lives as much as possible. These veterinarians connect with both the pets and their owners.

We highly recommend the services of MASH and AVU, and we want you to know your pets’ lives are in great hands under the care of either of these two veterinarians.

A couple of weeks ago we brought our 13 1/2 year old lab, Jack, to M*A*S*H in Dunkirk, Md. We walked down the dock ( its a long dock) to our boat. It was probably around 85 degrees. He was panting uncontrollably, stopped 2-3 times on the way to lie down. We got on the boat, it is air conditioned, but after several more minutes of panting, he keeled over and passed out.
We rushed him down to M*A*S*H. Employees rushed out with a gurney, but one intern just picked him up and ran inside where he was treated immediately. Dr. Kelly Stockton came out , sat down and explained what was happening. Our dog suffered heat stroke. They cooled him down, gave him intravenous fluids. Dr. Stockton was very caring and gentle in her explanation. She also described the anti anxiety medication our dog was given and prescribed, and when and how to use it.
Jack stayed the night there and was monitored all night long. We called early the next morning and were given a full report on his condition. When we picked him up we were advised not to be alarmed, that he may still be groggy. 2 weeks later Jack is back to normal.

I can’t say enough about the staff at M*A*S*H* Dunkirk. They were compassionate, very capable and communicated every detail. I highly recommend M*A*S*H. in Dunkirk.

We brought in our 13 year beagle with shallow breathing, a high fever and other issues. Dr. Powers ran some tests that night and found out that our boy had a very enlarged heart, a heart murmur and his lab work was very abnormal. They thought is was in his best interest to stay the night and run some more tests in the morning. The day doctor called me and throughout the day to keep me updated on how our dog was doing. We ended up having to have our dog stay more night so he could be monitored post op from anesthesia. We were able to go up and visit with him and also talk face to face with the doctor to learn more about what was going on with our baby. The following day we were able to go pick him and the discharge process surpassed our expectations. I was very impressed with the staff and the entire visit. I want to thank MASH and everyone there for helping take great care and nursing our baby back to health.

The attention and care our cat Skittles received after we brought him to MASH late this past Tuesday evening (prompted by an injury likely resulting from an instance of our territorial cat occasionally getting into trouble!) is similar to the experiences others have had there. Everyone we spoke with from our initial phone call through our visit was supportive and reassuring. Because of the current virus issues, we were unable to converse in person with staff beyond a brief conversation when we brought Skittles to the door for admission and when we picked him up after treatment, but smartphone technology allowed us to register and then talk with the staff by phone as they examined and treated him. Skits quickly got back to normal and is doing fine. I’m glad we have access to quality emergency care when our regular local veterinary clinic, Park Veterinary, is closed. Thank you!!

I would like to Thank everyone, from the bottom of my heart, that had a part in taking care of Sherman. I can’t thank Dr.’s Nwadike and Rivas enough for taking on Sherman’s case from the beginning. Sherman ate something he should not have and got an obstruction , which turn into having surgery. The whole MASH crew were more than nice and accommodating, they answered every question I had and I had a lot of questions. They were patient with Sherman, who can big a very big handful, and patient with me! Everything turned out Great and Sherman is well on his way to recovery. THANKS AGAIN TO ALL OF YOU!!!! Thanks Dr. Nwadike for recommending what chew toy to get Sherman. He now has 3 of them and they are the only toy he gets.

My nine year old Golden Retriever has been a patient at MASH rehabilitation since he was 6 months old and needed rehab after surgery from OCD in his shoulder. We then returned for rehab at two years old from an iliopsoas strain. Again he had bilateral elbow surgery at 3 1/2 years old…..guess who did the rehab 🙂 We love Chris and she keeps my boy feeling frisky!! We visit once a month for “maintenance” and the wonderful cookies and kisses!!!
Thanks for all you do…..Pam and Gibbs

Over the past 10 years, I have brought four dogs to M.A.S.H. for rehab and medical visits. Each animal was treated with expert care and the doctors and staff have always been very professional and kind. My dogs have been rehab patients for months at a time and it has made dramatic improvements in their lives. The rehab staff is always available by email to answer any questions that I have between sessions and they take the time to train you on the exercises so that you can perform them at home. As a working professional, I also greatly appreciate the flexibility in scheduling rehab appointments. You simply cannot find a better place to take your animals for rehab.

I just lost my pitbull/boxer to spleen and stomach cancer. He was 13 years old. I can home from the store Tuesday night and he was fine, then all of a sudden he just collapsed. I called M.A.S.H and spoke with the receptionist, and explained his situation. When we got to the hospital he was back to normal as if nothing was wrong. We took him inside for the doctor to examine. She called me on the phone and explained that he had internal bleeding from a tumor on his spleen and in his stomach. The doctor who’s name I cant remember was the most compassionate person I had ever meet. She suggested I could have surgery to remove them, but because he was so old he may not survive.Even with surgery and chemo he would only survive for a very short time. I asked her without the surgery how long would he survive and would he suffer. He had a matter of days. In his best interest, we decided it would be best to put him down. .The entire staff showed so much support, and I was by his side until he closed he eyes. I want to thank them for the love they should my beloved Kujo in this horrific time. He was a wonderful companion and will be truly missed. My family is heartbroken. It is never easy to go through an experience like this, and letting go is never easy. R.I.P my sweet boy.

Thank you to Dr. Huwe and Raymond for taking care of our cat, Danny. He is feeling so much better!

Thank you to everyone on the MASH team for taking such great care of Hazel ❤️. The whole team was so kind and supportive throughout the whole process and gave great updates when I needed them most. Truly couldn’t thank them enough for taking such good care of our baby girl.

We would like to thank Dr. Beth Huwe and all the staff of MASH for saving the life of our labradoodle Bear. During our July 4th party Bear suddenly became very distressed and uncomfortable. His abdomen was distended and he kept trying to throw up. He was panting and pacing the floor. Thank goodness MASH was open! We drove 40 minutes (through Solomons fireworks crowds) and were met at the door by staff and he went straight to xray. Dr. Huwe called us with the bad news- GDV- Gastric Dilatation and Volvulus- his stomach had twisted on itself- 100% fatal unless surgery. She explained everything, answered all our questions and gave us an estimate on cost. She rushed him to surgery and called us at 11PM with the good news- we had gotten him there in time and she was able to flip the stomach back- she felt the stomach and spleen looked good considering. She then ..called us twice daily with updates.
Today is Wednesday and we just picked him up and he is so glad to be home! Many many thanks to eveyone who helped take care of our big brown boy. Oh- and guess what?? His final bill was less then the estimate- that doesn’t happen very often! Without the expertise of the staff at MASH Bear would not be home with us now. THANK YOU!!
Carl and Kathy Franzen

We cannot thank you enough for all that you’ve done to help our babies. Our two dogs have had four knee surgeries and to put it simply, you are the absolute best. From the surgeons, to the nurses, to the front desk staff, everyone is knowledgeable, professional, compassionate, friendly, and much more. I always hear back from someone and all of my questions are answered. I highly recommend MASH!

My fur baby has had to have not one but 2 ACL surgeries. He just had the second one done recently and I just cannot thank MASH enough for the amazing service they provide. From the receptionists to the nurses and the doctors they are all so amazing and so sweet and compassionate. They have always made sure our dog was in good care and looked after along with providing information on aftercare and giving us updates on his progress along with giving assurance we can check in at any time and to always call with questions and concerns. They are all hard working and very kind human beings so thank you all so so much for what you do for not only our Spartacus but for other animals as well. Much love and support.

-Melissa H