When a pet is suffering from a medical emergency, immediate veterinary care is critical. Complete with rapid, accurate diagnostics, our full-service veterinary hospital achieves quick results for effective treatment. Reducing painful symptoms can help pets recover faster from injury or illness.
Same Day Sick Visits
If your pet is sick or injured during our regular business hours, we will make adjustments to our schedule as needed. Physical examination of an ill or injured pet is crucial, and may lead to various diagnostic testing, such as:
- X-ray
- Ultrasound
- In-house laboratory testing, including blood, urine, and fecal tests
How to Know You Have a Sick Pet
While some symptoms are obvious, it's not always clear that a pet is suffering from an illness or injury. However, even subtle shifts to their behavior could indicate that they need help. Take a close look at eating/drinking habits, sleep patterns, activity levels, and socialization. Remember, pets hide symptoms so it's up to owners to observe and take action when warranted.
Any episodes of vomiting, diarrhea, trouble breathing, personality changes, skin issues, lethargy, and mobility challenges are deserving of quick intervention. Obvious physical trauma stemming from a fall, animal fight, or vehicle accident (including bleeding, broken bones, disorientation, and pain) must be treated without delay.
What is considered an urgent care situation for my pet?
Our main goal in offering urgent care is to take care of those situations where you come home from work and realize your dog has had diarrhea, vomited, or eaten something they weren't supposed to. It's not necessarily something that's life-threatening or requires overnight care, but it may be something that shouldn't wait until the next day. Addressing the problem early can also give you some peace of mind.
Can I bring my pet in for urgent care without an appointment?
We recommend calling Towne Park Animal Care Center before coming in so we can assess what's happening and help determine whether urgent care is the right place for your pet. If we're especially busy, we can also let you know the best time to come in and help minimize your wait as much as possible.
Should I take my pet to urgent care or the emergency vet?
It depends on your pet's condition and how busy we are that evening. Give us a call and let us know what's going on. We can help determine whether your pet can be seen through our urgent care service or whether an emergency veterinary hospital would be more appropriate. We can also give you an idea of the current wait time.
What should I bring to my pet's urgent care visit?
If your pet may have gotten into something they shouldn't have, such as candy, a household cleaner, or another potentially toxic substance, bring the packaging with you if possible. You can also take a picture of the product and its ingredients. If you're unsure about medications your pet may have ingested or is currently taking, you're welcome to bring those as well. However, don't delay getting your pet the care they need just to gather these items.
What if my pet's condition worsens on the way to urgent care?
If your pet's condition begins to deteriorate while you're on your way to Towne Park Animal Care Center, call us and let us know what you're seeing. If the situation has become potentially life-threatening or it appears your pet may need overnight care, we can direct you to the nearest emergency veterinary hospital. If your pet's condition is still something we can appropriately treat through urgent care, we'll let you know to continue coming our way.
Can my pet be seen during regular business hours?
Absolutely. Although our urgent care service begins after 5:00 p.m., we can still see pets during our regular daytime hours. We would simply schedule your pet for a regular appointment during the day.
Are follow-up appointments necessary after urgent care?
It depends on why your pet was seen and the type of care they received. Some conditions may require follow-up care. Generally, we'll recommend following up with your primary veterinarian. If you don't have a primary veterinarian or Towne Park Animal Care Center is your primary veterinary practice, we can schedule that follow-up care with you.
Can you send my pet's records to their primary veterinarian?
Absolutely. If you have a primary veterinarian and would like us to send your pet's records to them, we can send those records directly to their office. This helps ensure your regular veterinary team knows what happened during the urgent care visit and can provide any necessary follow-up care.
What types of cases do you see in veterinary urgent care?
One of our very first urgent care visits involved two Dachshunds whose owner realized some cherries were missing and was concerned that one of the dogs had eaten the cherry pits. We didn't know which dog had gotten into them, so the owner brought both dogs in. Interestingly, the Dachshund they originally suspected wasn't the one that had eaten them.
We induced vomiting in both dogs and found the cherry pits, but we also discovered an earbud and several pieces of plastic. It was a great example of why bringing a pet in promptly when you know or suspect they've eaten something they shouldn't have can be so important.
Why does Towne Park Animal Care Center offer veterinary urgent care?
We're really excited to offer veterinary urgent care to our community. We feel like we're filling an important gap by providing care for pets that need to be seen promptly but may not require emergency or overnight care. We also hope this helps reserve emergency hospitals for pets experiencing more critical conditions while making wait times easier for everyone.
Pet Urgent Care at Towne Park Animal Care Center
We move quickly to ascertain what's going on with a pet that presents worrisome and sudden symptoms. Whether it's a sudden illness or undiagnosed chronic condition, our team is here to provide fast care with compassion.
It can be incredibly distressing to both pets and their owners, but facing a pet emergency involves seeking quick care. If you have questions about your pet's symptoms and behavior, please call us at (256) 513-9942.
We are always here for your pet at Towne Park Animal Care Center.