Many veterinary hospitals are suspending 24-hour emergency service

Yes, similar situation in Fayetteville, NC. However, so far, we do have a 24 hour emergency vet hospital in Fayetteville. Don’t know what would happen if it closed. I imagine we would have to go to Raleigh which is at least 1-1 1/2 hours from my house.

I am so grateful my local emergency hospital has operated throughout the pandemic. Very hard to drop off pets and wait in the car BUT so reassuring to have them there.

We live in Ojai, CA. There is no 24 hour vet in this small town. There are, however, emergency 24/7 clinics available in Ventura. They have remained open, however, due to staffing issues, they are unable to accept all who arrive with an animal in need of urgent care. Multiple posts have noted filled emergency clinics in both Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. There was a Facebook post of a local family seeking emergency care for their dog, cradling him as he died in the car as they drove around the area seeking care. We were very lucky that our boy developed an odd cough in the middle of the day a few months ago. We decided this needed to be seen since the vet’s offices were filled up for weeks in advance. We spent nearly five hours out in the car, due mostly to the situation that they were calling a home number to tell us that the dog could come in and be seen (we had provided the cell. number of course). They had assumed that we had left the parking lot with our sick dog after a few hours patiently waiting. But, as I said, we were lucky. He had developed pneumonia and was prescribed antibiotics to be picked up the next day.

We have the same problem in Louisville, KY! Blue Pearl and Metropolitan no longer have emergency services after hours. Luckily, we have 1 emergency hospital left, Jefferson Animal, otherwise we have to drive to Lexington, KY where there are 2 (MedVet and Bluegrass)! It is sad. Of course, none of these facilities will even treat an animal unless you pay up front.

We have been through several emergencies of late, so after reading your article, I contacted VCA PetCare East in Santa Rosa, CA. They too are having staffing shortages. They are not yet instituting a policy about closures but suggested we call first before coming because on some occasions, they have needed to refuse all but the most distressed animals overnight. They did provide two other local referrals within a thirty minute drive.

I’m blessed to live less than 10 miles from a university veterinary medical center; I don’t expect their ER to shut down. However, earlier this week I called my vet’s office to make an appointment for a suspected ear infection. The earliest option the receptionist offered was a drop-off appointment in 7 days! I explained that my dog couldn’t wait a week to receive treatment for an infection. She was sorry, but they were booked solid. Fortunately, I found another vet that could squeeze him in and I was able to start treatment that evening. But I was truly surprised that the practice I’d gone to for 20 years (a really BIG practice!) couldn’t fit a longtime patient in for an illness. They had always found a way to take care of unexpected needs before. Perhaps veterinary care is going the way of the human doctor’s office, available for maintenance visits, but not for the unexpected and sudden illness.

So far, so good in my region: both Loomis Basin Vet Clinic (in Loomis, CA) and Marqueen Pet Emergency (in Rocklin, CA) are still open 24/7. For me, it’s a 45-50 mile trip…but at least it’s still available.

It’s everywhere across the country. I would also ask if people are seeing price gouging because of the increase in pets during this pandemic. It’s not something that shelters council/stress about as they do adoptions.

I’ve experience the same issue in Ann Arbor, MI. Blue Pearl was closed for 24 hour emergency care as was another emergency hospital.

What a mess! Our emergency vet hospital is always busy even on a slow day. All of the local vets send their patients there after hours. However, it’s hard to come out without a horrendous bill. What cost $250 at the hospital was $50 at the local vet clinic. They didn’t share X-rays with the home vet and would threaten that the dog would die without over $2K worth of testing. One of my friends went to euthanize their dog with cancer and got a $10K bill.
I hope other emergency clinics don’t take advantage of the locals like this one does. Catch-22

Yes! We received an email from our vet here in Sebastopol, CA (neighbors to another commenter in Santa Rosa, CA) that services would be closing or shortening at several of our 24 hour emergency hospitals.

Here in Rhode Island we have very limited 24 hour care to begin with, with just a couple of clinics. But our major ER where most pets go established a Covid protocol after having a 30% increase in emergency care. Due to staffing shortages at regular clinics, many people were having to resort to ERs, which made everything worse. The major ER stayed open 24 hours, but a phone call triage was required, as well as curbside evaluations. Many local pets were referred to the major hospitals in Boston – Tufts and Angel Memorial, but they, too, were overwhelmed. Our local clinics are back to in office care now, but appointments are so far out that clients are not happy. Hopefully things will improve more shortly. Also, the two ER clinics in nearby MA towns had shortened hours, and one required a referral from the pet’s regular vet.

Our local VCA hospital (Versailles KY) is blaming the end of their 24-hour emergency care on the governor’s COVID restrictions, which actually ended over a month ago (see below). I called about re-opening the service and was told that they are looking into putting together an overnight staff. Both the Lexington and Blue Pearl facilities are over 50 miles away from us.

“Emergency Care –
Due to social distancing mandates by the governor of Kentucky relating to the coronavirus, we are unable to provide emergency care after hours. If you have an emergency DO NOT CALL OUR HOSPITAL. We are referring all emergencies to Bluegrass Veterinary Emergency Clinic. They are located at 1591 Winchester Road in Lexington and the number is 859-268-7604. If you live in Frankfort, Metropolitan Veterinary in Louisville may be a quicker option. Their number is 502-266-7007. “

Blue Pearl Hope in Malvern, Pa limited hours. No Saturday hrs.
Blue Pearl in Shillington, Pa still 24/7
VRC in Malvern, Pa 24/7
I have used all three in the past, closest is 15 minutes farthest is 1 hr+. This was according to their Websites.

Yes. All of the vets here in Grand Forks, ND are sending people to the emergency clinic 80 miles away. I’ve heard of pets passing because they don’t have that kind of time. Also, I find it strange that all of our vets are still curbside. I can guess that the staff are going out to eat and out in the evening and not wearing a mask or anything, yet they are still curbside. A vet tech friend of mine stated that they’re hoping it stays this way forever because they love not dealing with people. 🤬

The closest emergency veterinary hospital anytime for us is 50 miles away. I recently called at 2:30 am to find that unless they deemed my dog’s condition to be life threatening, I wouldn’t be able to see a vet until maybe 8 am due to short staffing and an overload of patients.
I understand that they’ve recently had to hire security guards due to upset clients…

There hasn’t been an emergency vet here in Lake County since I moved here in 2012. There is a phone number that can connect us to a vet at night who may or may not be able to meet us at an office about 40 mins away but this is not reliable. It’s one of the few things that keeps me uneasy about having pets where I live. I have been trying to educate myself on animal medicine but I know how risky that can be too.

We said goodbye to a beloved kitty this past 4th of July weekend at our local emergency clinic in Bellingham, Washington, a 10-min drive from where we live. My friend, who is a veterinarian there, explained that this clinic is the only one left open in Western WA. I was shocked. We, too, have been to the emergency clinic after-hours for every dog we’ve had, more than once. I can’t imagine what we would do without the comfort of knowing the Animal Emergency Clinic is a few minutes away. Scary! And I feel so fortunate to live in Bellingham!

We took our dog to SAGE emergency center at Campbell during the last weekend, at night. She had bloody diarrhea and kept vomiting. We waited in the parking lot for three hours before being checked. The lack of the staffing is obvious.

That’s happened here too in the SF bag area. I started googling and checking all over a couple weeks ago and was shocked to find so many emergency rooms closed. I’ve also noticed lots of turnover at my own vet in the last year.

Here in central Texas where it’s at least an hour to any ER clinic, several have closed. Of those staying open they are not accepting clients due to overwhelming demand for services. This is very upsetting as it is snake season and it seems to be a very active one at that. There are few options for emergency animal care of any kind at this point. I feel for the staff but I certainly hope a solution presents itself soon.

Yes! My collie/shepherd needed constant surveillance. I wound up driving her 40 miles to the night emergency vet, but then had to pick her up by 7 am and take her back to our regular vet. Did this twice, since our vet closed at 5 pm. Very sadly, got a call that 3rd night that she was gone. If she hadn’t been shuffled back and forth….?

Between the daunting cost of veterinary care and now this additional stress of not even being able to find good care if an emergency strikes, sadly I find it even harder to adopt my next dog, much as I miss that dear companionship, Between the heartbreak of losing beloved dogs and the budgetary restrictions of retirement, I find the risk is too high.
P.S. Having two goats is interesting….they are loving, adore going on walks, have quirky and cute personalities and go to vets whose prices are amazingly affordable!!!!! Which makes me wonder what has happened to our small animal veterinary practices…..I know they need to earn a living, but something is very wrong.

We haven’t had emergency services in our area, Truckee/Tahoe City for a number of years now. It’s at least a one hour drive to Reno for emergency services, and I know of a few people who have lost their pets because of the long drive….
The lack of emergency services happened here many years before the pandemic, and I don’t understand how as a vet you don’t feel a certain obligation to provide care to the animals.

It’s also happening here in Ontario, Canada. My own vet suspended emergency services about 5 years ago. Many other vets are also suspending emergency after hours services. The vets that still do offer after hours service offer it to their own clients only. My closest emergency hospital is a two hour drive away. It’s not just the emergency after hours service, though. My vet started her maternity leave in April and had great difficulty in finding anyone to even cover off her day-only shifts. No one seems to want to work and no one seems to have animal welfare in mind.

I have always had to drive 50 mi to the Emergency Hospital for my dogs. They have always encouraged clients to call ahead to let them know we’re coming and, so far have always had someone waiting at the door to receive my dog. So I guess I’m one of the lucky ones.

I have the answer why. I am a CVT with many years experience. The ‘short-staffed’ is due to pay for veterinary technicians. VCA and Blue Pearl are famous among vet techs for not valuing (paying) the techs enough.
Veterinary technicians are the backbone of the veterinary world. The doctors diagnose, prescribe and do surgery. Everything else is done by veterinary technicians. Some who have degrees from AVMA accredited schools. Some have specialty accreditation in emergency, surgery, behavior, etc.
No one is going to take a job at $14/hr with a promise of a raise. Veterinary corporations should be ashamed.

We still have one clinic here in a smaller-town area of Wisconsin that offers emergency care all night. However, one of my dogs needed this care about a month ago, and it turned out that the vet on call took an hour to get to the clinic because of the distance at which she lives, and then they charged an emergency after hours fee of $275 as well as an urgent care fee of $77. That was a total of $352 just to go in the door. I could have driven my dog to the emergency hospital in Madison in an equal amount of time and been seen for just under $100, plus gotten my dog care by board certified emergency vets. My impression was that this local clinic is trying to discourage clients from using their emergency service while at the same time touting that they offer such service. They’ve also recently gotten on the bandwagon of charging urgent fees for anything not booked a couple months in advance. This makes me very angry. If a pet gets sick or hurt, you cannot plan that a couple months ahead of time and book them in, and it’s ridiculous to think that pets in that situation can wait weeks to be seen. Just strikes me as a money-making ripoff. Very disappointed in the turns my long-term clinic has taken lately and am changing vets.

I feel very lucky — I just learned of a brand new emergency-only practice that opened up in San Ramon, CA, called Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG). They’re open 24/7 and advertise that you can stay with your pet during all phases of treatment — hooray! My regular vet, who told me about them, said he’s received nothing but positive feedback from clients who have gone there, and he hasn’t seen any issues with their treatment (on the other hand, he said that one of the more established emergency hospitals in the area is relying on new graduates with little supervision, and he is seeing problems because of that). Note VEG has more than 20 emergency clinics across the country:
https://veterinaryemergencygroup.com/

One more point in their favor — VEG has agreed to take on certain wildlife patients when Lindsay Wildlife Hospital is closed, at no cost! Lindsay will be training them on what they need to know; it should be a great benefit to wildlife and those who want to help them.

I live in Indiana and we still have some emergency vets. That being said, I had to to take a foster dog , a 3# Chihuahua to ER due to her not eating or drinking, vomiting and bloody diarrhea. I had been trying everything I knew to address the issues, but after day 4 , I knew she needed medical help. So off I went, I had to wait in the car for 9hours!!! In the end I was very disappointed with the care or lack thereof that she received. They did blood work, said it was all normal, gave her sub cu fluids and a dose of Metronidazole and told me to keep doing what I had been. Charge for this???? $1050!!!
2 days later, still no better, finally found a regular vet to see her, diagnosis, hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, lung infection and luxating patellas. The latter had nothing to do with her issues, but that was what they found upon full exam. Sent her home with some kind of paste(can’t remember the name) gave her a shot of antibiotics and more sub cu fluids. Cost….$130!! She is now fine eating and pooping normally!!

Thankfully, Cornell’s Animal Hospital (the only 24 hour emergency service in my area) is still open! Hopefully, I won’t need to use them, but it is reassuring to know they are open.
Thank you for posting this article to make people aware of this scary situation! It just may save lives!

The VCA emergency hospital in Springfield, MA merged with one further away in Palmer, MA. This busy location is now considered a “desert” if you need immediate assistance. There are 2 other respected ER’s (non-VCA owned) which are about 25 minutes North or South on Route 91. Luckily we haven’t had to use them. We also found a visiting vet who formerly worked at a VCA clinic. (FYI, VCA was acquired by the Mars Company in 2017 and there have been many noticeable changes in their veterinary care – in my case suggesting unnecessary, expensive tests when a simple antibiotic did the job.)

Northridge, California. A couple of weeks ago, I suspected my Gordon Setter was bloating. I called the animal specialty hospital in my area, which advertises “24×7 Advanced Critical Care, Emergency and Specialty Services,” and explained that I thought my dog was bloating. They calmly told me they were full up, couldn’t see him and recommended a couple of places at least an hour away. I said he would die before I could get there. In the same dispassionate tone, she said, “Sorry, we can’t help you.” I called another place with emergency hours. I had been there once before and they said they NEVER turn anyone away. This time the office was closed I was told they weren’t doing ER services anymore. My regular vet has emergency hours till midnight, but I can’t even get an appointment there for less than two or three weeks in advance, so they were my last choice. By now, with time passing, I was desperate, so I called and literally begged them to see him. I was put on hold for a few minutes, then they said to bring him in. By the time I raced to their office, it had been going on 45 minutes since my first call. Thankfully, my dog hadn’t bloated, but if he had, he would probably have been dead by then.

As far as I know, the overnight vets still are available overnight In the Washington DC area. But one is planning to suspend allowing humans in indefinitely – even after things “open up” again. This is awful. You’re then their hostage. I was at it last week, it was 1.5 hours after the vet had seen the dog and called me to report on it. I’d had all the conversations about after care. But they couldn’t get it together to do the billing for another hour and a half! it was excruciating!! 4 hours sitting in the car (ok, maybe doing a few sun salutations in the garage) waiting waiting waiting.
I just called another – they are still taking emergencies but they are “at capacity” right now!
Yikes! Thanks for the article! Now I know to keep abreast in case of emergencies with the boarding dogs – and my own, too.

We have 1 clinic in Lake County CA that will take emergency after hours cases. They charge $500 up front. Can’t complain too loudly about the cost if my vet is willing to get out of bed at 0300. They’re good; I’m grateful they’re here. VCA Hospital is 90 minutes over the hill. I love where I live – it’s rural, housing is affordable, the air is pristine. Costs are going up, real wages aren’t (so not too many pursuing a vet tech degree). We have the ability to provide a great home for dogs and cats but, sadly, have to limit our count to 1 dog, 2 cats (used to be 3 dogs, 3 cats) due to rising costs.

North Central Florida: The vets in our area did this many years ago leaving us with only one emergency vet in a town of 100,000-150,000 people. At this time I believe there are 2 emergency vet clinics in this town which has grown in population quite a bit in the last 10 years. Both clinics are on the heavily populated and more affluent side of town.

Here in rural coastal Maine the closest emergency vet is an hour and a half away. The one time I needed them when my mini Aussie had chased a porcupine and ended with a snout full of quills they were closed due to a Covid exposure. Next closest emergency vet was 3 hours away. We waited till morning when I called my regular vet. He was full and couldn’t see her. I had to call 3 other vets and beg until one agreed to see her to remove the 25 plus quills. There is a shortage of vets in the area but as far as I know the 24 hour emergency vets here are still open.

Like many other businesses, veterinary practices also rely on low-paid non-clinical staff. A few weeks ago, we had friends in town and wanted to go out to dinner. We were given wait times of 2 – 3 hours. Now here in Daytona Beach, we have frequent events such as Race Week, Bike Week, etc., but there was nothing special going on. I asked the person at the restaurant about the long wait, and he said they are unable to find workers. With all the government money being handed out, they can make as much or more by staying home.

This has happened in South Bend, IN. We’ve had an emergency clinic for years. Then all of a sudden news came out that they can’t get enough vets to staff the clinic on weekends and nights. Then at the same clinic someone opened one that is only open til 10 p.m 2-3 nights a week. Closest 24 hour clinics are at Purdue (2 + hours away), Westville (45 + min.), Ft. Wayne (2 hours) and Kalamazoo, MI (2 hours). Finally we just got one opened by Purdue which as a clinic in Westville but right now only open from thur. eve til Mon. a.m. They say they plan to be open 24/7/365 soon. I certainly hope so. I’ve read on local Facebook that there have been so pets pass away before they could be gotten to the far away 24 hour clinics. So sad……….

I live in the Virginia suburbs of Washington DC and know of at least 3 24 hour vets within a 30 min drive and that time is because of traffic. It would be less in the middle of the night. Several regular vets have Saturday and Sunday hours and most do not have emergency fees for those not regular patients.

Costs are high but I don’t feel there is price gouging going on. I generally get my pets’ regular prescription’s from mail order pharmacies to save money.

i feel like this is an emergency, i could not find a vet to see my dog on an emergency basis and the few that were taking animals there was a 4-6 hour wait, with no guarentee your pet would be see. I had to take my dog home after going to three emergency hospitals and hope he got better. I did make an app. with his vet, even in an emergency, it was a three week wait.

Same here in Dixon, IL . It doesn’t matter if you have been a faithful client for 30+ years. You will need to drive from 1-2 hours from your home. And then wait at least 1-2 hours after being evaluated depending on how “critical” your pet is. To an owner, that’s upsetting!

My dog injured his paw (possibly broken) recently and the first appointment I could get with my vet was 2 weeks out. They did manage to see him 2 days after the initial call as they had a cancellation. I checked emergency clinics/hospitals in the area after the fact. One had shortened hours so no middle of the night (closed at 10pm). One indicated they were extremely busy as another hospital in the area had closed (north Seattle?). The third indicated they were 24 hr emergency. However, on NextDoor, someone was looking for an emergency vet and had been turned away from that hospital. These are the 3 located closest to me in Snohomish County (north of Seattle/King County). I feel my vet hospital is for wellness only as there are no same day appointments available, but in the past it was usually 1 week out, definitely not for emergencies.

After spending 7 hours in our local emergency clinic in Lancaster PA on July 4th I learned from someone in the car next to me that other nearby clinics weren’t accepting patients due to the overflow. I also learned that in Philadelphia the wait at the 24/7 clinic that I have used for specialists had an 8 hour wait and they are experiencing the same thing all over Philadelphia, even at the Veterinary schools. No one has just one answer, but it appears that we are short on veterinarians and other staff at these clinics. And the protocols are getting more difficult to enforce and the staff are very stressed.

It has happened also in rural northern Il. My vet stopped providing after hour care for small animals, but will still do after hours equine care. Closest E.R. is 50 min away with subpar care at a great expense. If I have another emergency I will make an hour and a half drive to a small er vet that provides great care and has reasonable prices. I think it’s a shame that we cannot rely on local business to take care of us, esp when we’ve been clients for 30 years +, but to be fair, my vet has had problems getting another vet on staff

Yes. Happening here on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. It’s an hour drive and a trip over a toll bridge now.

Yes, this is happening in the Upper Valley and Lake Sunapee regions of NH.
And the local actual ER clinic was even turning away patients recently due to lack of staffing. Scary times

Emergency services “centralized” on Vancouver Island some years ago. There is an Emergency Clinic in Nanaimo that services the entire mid island region. For it is a drive of about 1 hour, depending on traffic, over a mountain pass which can have snow and ice in the winter. I’ve recently heard that in the last few days, they are understaffed and trialing cases.

One local vet clinic had two vets, both have retired, sold the practice to a vet who is on her own. Big shortage of Veterinarians and Vet Techs all over Canada.

Our 24-hr. emergency hospital in Rochester, NY will still be seeing critically sick or injured animals 24 hrs. The rest will be triaged. They said they will be doing video calls also. We have an urgent care available on Sat. and Suns. The waits are usually hours. Very tough to get in appropriately at my regular vet. I thought the situation was horrible until I read some of these others. I’m not sure why this is happening? I had no idea there was a shortage until recently. Now it seems out of control. Very worrisome. And costs are horrendous. Thankfully I have pet insurance now. Best thing I ever did.

There are two 24-hour emergency hospitals in my area and one top-rated veterinary hospital an hour away without traffic that was treating my dog for bladder cancer for 2.5 years. One Friday night recently, my little girl developed edema in her back legs and the lymph nodes in her groin were swollen. My husband and I were in a panic and called the one hospital closest to us – they said there was a 4-hour wait and directed us to the other hospital that is 25 minutes away – so I called them, they told me they were not accepting any patients, then referred me BACK to the hospital I just called. We decided to speed down to the main hospital that was treating my girl. So I call them ahead of time to tell them we’re coming…I’m placed on hold for 10 minutes when I called the Emergency line…someone tells me, “There’s no way we can see your dog, we’re really busy”. We get to the hospital and I run into the emergency area…and there was NO ONE waiting at all…NOT ONE PERSON, NOT ONE ANIMAL. They ended up treating my girl and we took her home, but I called her oncologist and told her what happened…what if other people were calling and being told the same thing? She was upset as well and promised to get to the bottom of the matter. Very upsetting.

Thank you for alerting me to the closure of many 24-hour emergency hospitals. I just checked my local Veterinary Emergency Hospital in Meredith, NH. Thankfully they are still open M-F from 5 P.M. through 8:00 A.M. and 24 hours a day on Saturday and Sunday. I have used their services several times over the years.

The AVMA and state VVMAs have either not seen the problem developing (too few doctors has been a problem for a few years) or they haven’t been proactive about lobbying for increasing student capacity (or are having faculty staffing problems themselves). The veterinary colleges are not keeping pace with demand, which needs to be met by our state governments who may or may not be aware of the problem. Too many new practices being open, many by non-veterinarians and corporate groups, who see this as a good financial investment, and are diluting the available pool of available doctors. Maybe some because doctors wanting to work normal or shorter hours for quality of life?
We went from a busy 2 & 1/2 doctor practice to a 1 & 1/4 doctor practice and will soon be a one doctor practice. We are open 50+ hours a week with no time for even a short vacation for the doctor to refresh without hiring costly relief docs. We had to close Saturdays knowing the EC was open, but now there is not always a doctor available. It is hard to get schedule every patient and there are multiple daily “drop off” patients to fill the gap. We would be so happy to hire 2 more doctors here. It is very hard to fit every patient in and we don’t have the luxury of sending critical patients to 24 hour facilities on a regular basis. It’s very frustrating. We are all working very hard to keep up. This is a nationwide problem and it has been ongoing for a few years, reaching a more critical level now. Many regular veterinary practices are having great difficulty finding doctors, as are the emergency practices. Please be pro-active and contact your state and federal representatives to lobby for additional spaces in veterinary colleges. An article said that they are turning away 19% of qualified candidates. Support your local private practices. Be kind, know that many are overworked and doing the best they can. We need your help. Letters, phone calls, emails, prayers, etc. Thank you.

We are fortunate here to have a VCA clinic that has been open for emergencies 24/7 since the “pandemic”. My long time vet (Nancy Isbel, the best I ever knew) retired in May, just when my girl got bad. None of the other doctors at that practice met my criteria or had a clue. They looked (and acted) like high school kids. ” YAY! no owners to deal with”. It was a painful process. $$$$$$$ of diagnostics, specialists, no diagnosis. She faded.
so I looked elsewhere. VCA clinic in Silverdale, WA, was responsive and compassionate and despite the Covid restrictions on Nov. 10 we were able to help Morgan cross the rainbow bridge with a caring doctor, my husband and myself helping to ease the transition. She was very weak so they gently carried her, wrapped her in a blanket, In a private room, very calm. We were with her.
An aside:
Do not normally use corporate anything, but this VCA hospital seems OK.
I have health insurance for my remaining rescue dog, but none for me or my husband (priorities, and screw the ACA which is anything BUT for those of us who pay the bills).
Seems vets and staff are underrated and under appreciated. You make all the difference.
Anita, you are special to not cave in to the man and corporate, Bless you. You, and all who care for our beloved pets
are magnificent.

Even my regular vet practice wouldn’t see her for 2 weeks for a UTI.
Expensive, a long wait, but caring staff. Had to have my girl treated there on several occasions. Ended up taking her over the rainbow bridge with the help of a very compassionate doctor

Yes, this scenario is the same in the areas in and around Los Angeles – I read in a prominent dog journal that Americans have added dogs to their families at an alarming rate in the recent year and this is the reason for vet doctor shortages – vet friends of mine have reiterated to me their non-stop schedules since COVID – and those who own hospitals can find no new/added staff – the existing vet offices and hospitals are just over whelmed not counting the added hours needed for cleanliness protocols – added efforts of car service still in place here in LA – and staff calling out sick or just moving due to COVID related concerns/ financial issues, etc. Current events are regretfully and horribly effecting our furry loved ones…

In Anchorage, AK we have 2 24/7 ER, but the wait time at both is at least 5 hours. Signs at both indicating poor behavior towards staff will result in being banned from hospital. I used to have one of the ER as my regular vet as well – only 2 miles away – was perfect. About a month ago took kitty with UTI & was told to go to other clinic, they were still trying to clean up from the morning. I realized that this is what many people were going through early in the pandemic trying to get help for their loved ones, being turned away at hospital. I had never wanted to use VCA, but only place I could find acupuncture after previous vet retired, so have now moved my entire ‘family’ over there. I will count my blessings as well after reading many of these stories!

This happened in Walla Walla, Washington. We can barely get in at any of our local vets during Banker’s hours and most of our emergencies are outside of those times. We have to drive one hour to the nearest 24 hour vet. Once we get to that vet the wait time is long because they are so busy from people being sent to them. I know three people who have lost their pets due to the drive to try and save them.

A lot of our vet clinics used to offer 24 hour care — if you had an after hours emergency you phoned in, an answering service took the call and contacted the vet, who then called you back and, if necessary, met you at the clinic. That no longer is the case. We have 3 emergency clinics (Ottawa, Ontario) which serve a very large area and are not well staffed. In June I took my dog in on a Saturday afternoon (she had ripped her leg on something in the woods and needed stitches) and no one even looked at her for 17 hours!! (I was sitting in the parking lot because the covid restrictions prevent owners from entering the hospital.)

In MD and same problem. We have 2 dedicated emergency hospitals still open 24/7 but most other vet clinics are operating on reduced hours and some aren’t accepting walk in emergencies even during their open hours anymore. Result at the emergency clinics is you drop your dog off and they’re triaged then put in a cage and (allegedly/hopefully) monitored until they can be seen by a vet in order of issue severity. Which could be a 6+ hour wait. You cannot wait with them, so they are hurt/sick/suffering and alone, absolutely heartbreaking.

I live on the Olympic Peninsula in WA and all the vet clinics here have stopped emergent and after hours services. We will have to travel about 1.5 hours in an emergency but they, too, have suspended at times, if staffing is short. I would pay monthly to have a concierge service just to have access when needed! It’s very concerning for all of us who love and care for our animals.

I am tired of vet and vet personnel defending these “pauses” in care What you are doing is refusing care and that is immoral and wrong.
I worked on hospice for 10 years. All my patients died and I worked under stress all the time. So no excuses

Yes it is happening here and has been for nearly 2 years near Portland, Oregon. My dog has has two unusual emergencies in the past 12 months and both times all 3 ER Veternarian Hospitals were over full at night and weekends. I’m not sure about weekdays because I would use her regular Vet. They also did not even have a waiting list, including Tualatin ER Vet, Cascade Referral Service and Tannasbourne. The last one had a 10 – 12 hour waiting time in the parking lot but I might as well wait for her vet to call them 8 am tomorrow morning. This is heartbreaking when your pet is ill or injured. I just don’t understand why this has been this way for so very long.

Same scenerio here in Vermont. I live in a rural area and the nearest 24 hr clinics are a 2 hour drive on roads I’m unfamiliar with and don’t feel equal to navigating in my old age, especially at night. My 3 dogs are no spring chickens and I greatly fear what will happen if one is taken by serious illness outside of business hours. It seems I would have the choice between watching a pet die in agony versus a 38 hollowpoint to the head and being traumatized for what remains of my own life. This is a new very scary world, where as the song goes, I don’t belong anymore.