Understanding the difference between emergency and urgent care can significantly impact your pet’s health and well-being. Emergency and urgent care clinics have different operating hours, equipment, staffing, and services to accommodate different pet health needs. The nature of your pet’s problem, the timing, and your location influence where you should seek care. The Advanced Veterinary Medical Center team answers common questions to help pet owners distinguish between emergency and urgent care situations.
Question: What is emergency veterinary care?
Answer: Your pet requires emergency veterinary care for immediate life-threatening conditions, such as difficulty breathing, collapse, or toxin ingestion. In an emergency, time is of the essence, and treatment delays could lead to serious complications or death.
Q: How are emergency facilities different from primary veterinary care hospitals?
A: Emergency veterinary hospitals are typically open 24 hours a day, including weekends and holidays, to immediately address severe pet health conditions. Some emergency clinics are standalone facilities where pets can be stabilized and monitored overnight, while others are only one department in an extensive referral and specialty hospital.
Q: What is urgent veterinary care?
A: Urgent veterinary care is necessary for non-life-threatening conditions that require prompt attention so they will not worsen, such as a urinary tract infection or minor wound. These situations may not be not immediately life-threatening but can progress quickly or cause serious discomfort and need prompt attention to avoid complications.
Q: How are urgent care facilities different from primary veterinary care hospitals?
A: Dedicated urgent care hospitals are similar to primary care veterinary hospitals, and much of their care overlaps. Primary and urgent-care veterinary hospitals can stabilize pets, treat wounds, and perform procedures or surgeries. Urgent care hospitals usually don’t stay open 24/7, offer overnight or intensive care, or keep specialists on staff. Our hospital offers extended hours, including weekends, to accommodate pets with urgent care needs.
Q: What are the signs that my pet needs emergency care?
A: Common pet emergencies include:
- Difficulty breathing
- Bleeding or bruising
- Trauma, such as being hit by a car or an animal bite
- New onset seizures or more than one seizure in 24 hours
- Collapse or unconsciousness
- Weakness or paralysis
- Toxin ingestion
- Inability to urinate
- Eye injuries
- Severe or bloody vomiting or diarrhea
- Severe pain
- Anaphylaxis
Q: What are the signs that my pet needs urgent care?
A: Urgent pet health issues should be addressed 24 to 48 hours after symptom onset. Possible urgent problems include:
- Persistent mild to moderate vomiting or diarrhea
- Minor wounds, cuts, scrapes, or torn nails
- Limping
- Mild allergic reactions
- Behavior changes
- Mild to moderate pain
- Suspected ear, eye, or urinary tract infections
- Appetite loss
- Lethargy
Q: How can I decide between emergency and urgent care for my pet?
A: The difference between an urgent and emergent situation is sometimes unclear,
so understanding what’s normal or abnormal for your pet is important. Keep a list of nearby emergency clinics and poison control hotlines you can contact for advice if you’re unsure about your pet’s condition, or contact our clinic during our extended hours. You can also call a third-party veterinary health line, or speak with a pet health professional and get real-time advice through an app. If you are concerned about your pet and our clinic is closed, seeking emergency care is never wrong.
Q: What happens if I choose urgent care and my pet’s condition is worse than I thought?
A: Our hospital and most urgent care clinics can assess and stabilize your pet on arrival. If the condition requires advanced surgery, overnight hospitalization, specialty care, or intensive care, we can transfer your pet to a nearby 24-hour care facility. If you seek emergency care for a non-life-threatening condition, you may wait a long time, because other pets will be seen first.
Advanced Veterinary Medical Center is open seven days per week for pet owner convenience to address urgent and emergency pet health needs during regular business hours. After hours, we partner with local emergency facilities to ensure pets get necessary care. Contact us to schedule a routine visit or to arrange same-day or immediate care for an urgent or emergent health need.
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