Back in July, I wrote a piece for this space about the increasing frequency of reports I was seeing about emergency veterinary clinics suspending 24-hour service. I asked readers if they were experiencing this in their parts of the country – and people from everywhere in the U.S. responded that, YES, wait times have increased exponentially at veterinary ER clinics and it’s getting harder to find one that still offers overnight care.
Well, I finally came up against the phenomenon myself. My friend Leonora has a tiny little dog, Samson (my dog Woody’s best friend from puppyhood). Samson’s usual weight is 4 pounds, 8 ounces – his long legs are like pencils and he is slender. But a little over a week ago, he vomited up a little puddle of bile on a Friday morning and refused to eat anything for the rest of the day. Leonora reported that he was still relatively cheerful, though a little quieter than usual – and he refused any food or treat offered to him.
When, on Sunday morning, the tiny guy was still refusing food, Leonora and I agreed he should be seen by a veterinarian. She called our closest 7-day veterinary clinic. They said they could absolutely NOT fit him in that day, nor for more than a week for a regular appointment, but if Leonora wanted to drop him off on Monday and have him spend the day with them, they could try to look at him between appointments. Leonora was grateful for the offer, but no. Samson is so small, he has nearly nothing in terms of bodily reserves, so we both felt it was important to try to have him seen sooner.
Then she called our closest veterinary emergency practice (about 30 minutes away). They said that the current wait time was at least 4-5 hours, and that all cases would be triaged, so if worse cases came in and Samson was stable, his appearance in front of a veterinarian would be pushed back. Fair enough on a Sunday, but yikes!
She called another emergency practice, a bit farther away, and they said their wait time was about 2 hours, with the same triage/worse cases rule in place. I told her I would go with her and hang out with her for the wait. We arrived at about 11 am – and left that evening at about 7 pm with some concerning blood test results, an anti-nausea medication, and some subcutaneous fluids onboard for Samson, and a recommendation to head to another clinic the next day if the morning saw him no better and still not eating.
Monday morning, still no appetite. Leonora and Samson spent 8 hours the next day at our closest emergency clinic, and left that evening with yet more medications (more of the anti-nausea drug, an appetite stimulant, an antibiotic, and a probiotic) and more sub-q fluids on board, more inconclusive blood test results, and an appointment for more tests the next day.
On Tuesday, he had more tests, more meds – and by that night, his appetite began returning. The further tests had ruled out multiple conditions that could have caused his lack of appetite and abnormal blood test results, though we still don’t know what caused his initial nausea and lack of appetite. He has an appointment for another blood draw at the end of this week and one with a veterinary gastroenterologist in a month.
As scary as it was for those of us who care about Samson, his story is undramatic; while Leonora’s wait times were lengthy, Samson did receive care and attention on each day – something that we have gotten accustomed to taking for granted but are extra grateful for today. We’re glad that it wasn’t something worse but can’t help but worry; it might still develop that his condition is chronic and serious.
And of course, I worry about my most fragile dog, soon-to-be 14-year-old Otto. As Samson has grown steadily better this past week, Otto skipped three consecutive meals himself! Why?! A year ago or more, he had gone through a period where he didn’t want to eat much, and was prescribed some medications to soothe his digestive tract and fight any nausea he might be experiencing. After his second skipped meal this week, I jumped to ask his vets for prescriptions of those medications again –and tried not to panic when I learned that both of the vets he’s seen most commonly – at two different clinics! – were out of town for a few days. Fortunately, another vet at one of those practices was able to look at his records and sign off on dispensing those meds. Of course, after his third skipped meal but before I had given him a single medication, Otto asked for dinner and has dug into every food dish with relish since then. Oy!
But I’m glad to have the meds on hand, just in case. And I will be making an appointment for him to be seen; if it takes a month to get an appointment, I need to start now!
If, in the back of your mind, you know your dog needs a veterinary appointment soon, get on the phone and make that call today! You may not be able to book a routine appointment for months! And be extra careful with your own dog, so accidental poisoning or injuries (as much as that may be possible) can be prevented.
I’m in Canada as well….and we’re having the same problem here. One ER clinic tells you to go to a website..( all this as your driving ..trying to get help..) , pay $85. with a card and that virtual vet will see if this is really an emergency. (What about the people who cannot afford this payment..?) If so…he would call the clinic and say…yes..this pet needs to be seen ! This clinic is presently considering closing even on the weekends and nights…so we would have to drive 1-2 hours to another clinic which in fact might not even be able to see any more emergencies !!! I would assume that the College of Veterinarians and Surgeons should be doing something about this asap !!! Very scary for our precious pets..
My Jeddie was feeling fine, in the yard…she came in and Her gums were blue! I called my vet of 30 years and theu couildnt see her. I called the only emergency vet and rushed her ther….they took her in along with cc and driver’s license. It was a 90+ degree day. Periodically they came out to tell me…I asked the vet via phone if they would let me in if she was critical and yes,they assured me. I am 80 years old. I didnt have enuf gas to keep the ac on so I sat under a tree. Not even a cup of water…
After 10 hours they said go home we will call. Had to get license back,,,got home.,…I knew. They called at 2am saying she died. “Do you want tosee the body?” I just wanted toi tell her what a good girl nshe was. That was all. II won’t get over it.
SO sorry for your loss! What a terrible story! And so sorry that no one realized that you could have used some extra consideration!
you’re right. a death that could have been prevented is a haunting fear.
Here in San Francisco we have a serious vet shortage. I’m not sure why. I stopped using my previous vet two years ago, after they “lost” a fecal sample, then misdiagnosed my dog and I had to take her to a vet ER for treatment. Now, that same ER only takes patients with “life threatening emergencies.” My 12 year old Irish setter’s 5 lb.-weight loss, diarrhea/ food refusal cycles didn’t qualify. The vet we were seeing at the SPCA for the past 2 years has left the practice, which now gets horrible patient reviews. I tried waiting at the ER for 3 or 4 hours for an opening, but finally had to give up and go home. Before I left, I was handed a list of ER’s outside San Francisco to try—in the East Bay, Marin and down the peninsula. Unfortunately, I have a neurological condition that makes it impossible for me to drive that far and my spouse, who’s blind in one eye, doesn’t drive at all.
Both of my dogs are young right now. Freyja is not quite a year and a half and Diana will be three at the end of the month. But when Ramses got elderly and more picky about his food, his vet said I could give him omeprezole, the same med and dosage I was taking for my acid reflux. Apparently older dogs can get it just like us seniors. There are some people meds dogs can take but always check with your vet first to make sure, plus dosages can be different since dog metabolism and people metabolism are different. Likewise, I was told to give Benadryl to Caesar when he got itchy. Same as I took for seasonal allergies.
Every dog I’ve had has skipped at least a meal or two perodically throughout their lives but I agree that no eating for days is a problem. Caesar didn’t eat for three days once but I also noticed that he was having problems at the other end. He was willing but the bowel was not. Eventually he did unblock the one end and more than made up for it intaking at the other.
But Samson could have been in serious trouble if he had a blockage or some other more serious physical problem. He could have died because of the delay in seeing a vet and that is what is worrying. It is every owners fear that they lose their beloved companion not for something beyond treatment but for something that could have been easily been addressed had it been done in time. So often it is a matter of time, how quickly we take action. And that is the real danger of this shortage. That we lose our pet because they cannot see a vet in time.
We had one of our dogs at an emergency vet clinic San Antonio Texas for a couple days due to issues with vomiting etc. When I went to pick her up they had a notice that they were not taking in any more animals. The receptionist told us that This is very common and that a lot of times nothing is open for emergencies. She also explained that there is an absolute shortage of vets. We talked more and her opinion was that maybe perhaps people need to start doing Apprenticeships in veterinary care as a lot of people don’t have the money or don’t want a heavy debt that a school often burdens them with.
Same here in Australia. Took the time (4 days notice) to advise my listed after hours vet of my due litter only to be told I would be lucky to get help after 10pm. What a joke.
Lucky for us she whelped safely in the afternoon.
Glad to hear bitch and puppies are healthy.
The shortage of veterinary professionals– doctors, techs, everyone — is a crisis in New York City for community cats, and all rescuers of companion animals. The community cat population is exploding because the TNR rescuers can’t get spay/neuter appointments. I’ve been doing TNR since 2017. This is a new high in the number of kittens rescued from the streets having congenital deformities and thus special needs. The private vet practice I use for my dog Sophie lost 4/5 of DVMs. The founding veterinarian had to put aside the work she was doing for urban wildlife and other rescues. Somehow, she hired four new doctors. I haven’t met any of them yet.
The same situation is happening in Canada. I live near Ottawa, the Nation’s capital, and keep hearing stories from members of the dog community here about being unable to get into an emergency clinic, much less a regular veterinary practice. Even in cases of a dog developing sudden paralysis, urinating blood and in distress, or hit by a car, they are being turned away from all 4 emergency clinics due to lack of staffing. Owners are having to drive hours out of town to other cities to have their pets seen. As the owner of two senior dogs I find the current situation truly terrifying.
I’m near Ottawa as well. Last June I sat in the parking lot of the emergency vet hospital for 17 hours before my dog was seen (she had a wound on her leg which needed stitches). She was in the hospital — unseen by a vet — but because of Covid rules I could not go in with her. So I waited outside. I kept being told that she was 3rd in line, then she’d fall to 5th in line, then … it just kept going like that. She wasn’t as critical as incoming patients — although it bothered me greatly that no one had taken off the bandage I’d put on her leg to actually see how bad the wound was! — so she kept falling down the wait list.
We’re in the mountains of western NC. That’s happening here too. The vet hospital close by that is open 24 hours for emergencies can’t schedule regular appointments until December. If you go in as an emergency they can’t begin to predict how long you’ll wait. At least they’re still open.
The other vet I use (doesn’t do any after-hours work- refers you to the 24 hour emergency clinic ) is having a staffing problem and wait times for regular appointments are at least 1 to 2 weeks longer than normal.