The Old Golfhouse Veterinary Group - Thetford | Vets in Thetford, Norfolk

The Old Golfhouse Veterinary Group – Thetford is a small-animal practice offering routine care through to surgery, with on-site diagnostics (lab, X‑ray and ultrasound) and equipment for orthopaedic and soft-tissue procedures. Emergency support is provided during normal opening hours, with out-of-hours emergencies referred to Swayne & Partners Veterinary Surgeons. It is also listed as a veterinary nurse training facility.

Recent reviews are split: several describe compassionate, unhurried appointments (including end-of-life care for rabbits/guinea pigs) and proactive follow-up after surgery, while others report difficulty getting appointments, last‑minute cancellations, long waiting-room delays, and poor continuity between vets.

Concrete examples mentioned include

•Being “fitted in fairly last minute” for a guinea pig and not being rushed during euthanasia discussions.
•A rabbit being registered and offered an appointment within the hour, with a call-back within 5 minutes.
•A dog’s lump being spotted during a medication check, followed by surgery within about a month and post-op check-ins.
•Multiple reports of appointments being cancelled shortly before the visit, and one report of a follow-up booked with a different vet who “had absolutely no idea” of previous visits.

Services

From the clinic’s website summary

•Consultations (including six-month health checks)
•Vaccinations
•Parasite control
•Microchipping
•Neutering
•Dentistry
•Surgery (including orthopaedic surgery and soft tissue surgery)
•Diagnostic tests & imaging: on-site lab, X-ray, ultrasound
•Nurse clinics
•Blood pressure checks
•Grooming & nail clipping
•Anal sac expression
•Home visits

Species listed: dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, backyard poultry.

Emergency arrangements (as stated): emergency support during normal opening hours; out-of-hours emergencies are referred to Swayne & Partners Veterinary Surgeons.

Examples from reviews

•Euthanasia/end-of-life care for guinea pigs and rabbits, with detailed explanations reported by some owners.
•Cancer work-up and surgery pathway described by one owner after a lump was noticed at a medicine check.

People

•Dr Michaela (role not explicitly stated, but referred to as “Dr”): mentioned for a guinea pig euthanasia appointment; the owner highlighted thorough explanations, compassion, and not being rushed despite being fitted in at short notice.
•Jake (referred to as “the vet”): mentioned for rabbit end-of-life care; the owner described him as calm and professional, and appreciated how he handled a difficult conversation. The same review noted a rapid call-back and same-hour appointment after registering.

Reviews

4.4 stars from 185 reviews. - Compassionate end-of-life care (in some accounts): owners describe clear explanations and being given time during euthanasia decisions for guinea pigs/rabbits.

•Access and scheduling problems (repeated): difficulty getting appointments, last-minute cancellations, and waiting an hour past the appointment time are specifically described; one reviewer links worsening access to the practice reducing from “4 practices to 2.”
•Continuity issues: one owner reports a follow-up booked with a different vet who was not familiar with prior visits, resulting in a “waste of time and money.”
•Post-surgery communication (positive example): one owner reports staff kept them informed, completed surgery after a cancer finding, and checked in during recovery.
•Service experience conflict: while several reviews describe kindness and sensitivity, another reports insensitive behaviour at reception during a euthanasia visit; an older-experience account also alleges overcharging and poor handling during an emergency.

Reviews for The Old Golfhouse Veterinary Group - Thetford

Note: Showing the 5 most recent Google reviews out of 185 we track in total. Recent reviews may not be representative of overall sentiment.

Eley Britton

a month ago

2012 to 2014 this was the most terrible vetnarian place to go to. I had a cat that they thought was fancy so they decided to over charge for simple procedures. Also, I had to use them for an emergency and they decided to charge me a ridiculous fee and could not handle the cat in a proper manner and injured themselves. Other vetnarian places never had problems with the cat so be very careful using this terrible place and pay attention to the signs of abuse.

Briony Johnstone

4 months ago

Saw Dr Michaela with our guinea pig today, who sadly had to be put down. She was thorough in her explanations and compassionate when we had to make the decision. We had also been fitted in fairly last minute, but we weren’t rushed at all.

2 months ago

Jess Burdett

Since they went from 4 practices to 2 it is almost impossible to get an appointment when you want one. They were also incredibly insensitive on the day I took my cat in to be put to sleep - laughing and joking behind reception while my son and I were sat there in tears. Have my other pets registered at a different vets and will be moving the other one there soon due to the poor service and lack of appointments.

5 months ago

Theresa Maloney

6 months ago

They say in a world where you can be anything be kind . This practise restored my faith in humanity and vets by doing just that . We sadly lost our pet Rabbit Thumper earlier this month, and the way the vet Jake dealt with her and ourselves was so caring as well as being calm and collective but professional at all times . Like myself, his love for animals was apparent, and he made a very sad time very gracious Not registered Called them first thing Monday morning Registered, was explained how the system works and was called back within 5 minutes with an appointment within that hour . The staff were welcoming and polite and expressed their sympathy upon our loss . I think good practise needs to be recognised and reported, and I hand on heart ❤️ cannot thank you all enough.

Chris j Macro

7 months ago

Kirsten Swan

They are generally good if you can actually see them. Every one of my appointments recently has been cancelled at the last minute, and on the occasions I have managed to see them I have been sat in the waiting room for an hour after my appointment time. I had two appointments booked together today for my two animals that I booked almost 4 weeks ago, and still I get a call an hour before I'm due there to cancel them both. Also had issues last time I had an appointment where they booked in my 4th follow up appointment with a different vet than the first 3 and that vet had absolutely no idea of the situation, the previous appointments or anything useful whatsoever. It was a huge waste of time and money for me. Considering changing to a vet that actually has time for it's patient's appointments, especially when I pay their monthly subscription for all of my animals. so I'd suggest looking around before signing up here.

Jacob Jenkins

My older dog went in for a medicine checkup and the vets noticed a lump on her back which sadly ended up being cancer however the staff and vets were very reassuring and within a month or so she had an operation and her recovery has been imaculate. They have checked in on her and kept us very well informed. Thankyou so much to the whole team, cant think of a single fault.

The Old Golfhouse Veterinary Group - Thetford