A pet owner’s worst nightmare is experiencing an emergency in the middle of the night when the local clinics are closed. In emergency cases, you absolutely need to take them to a 24-hour veterinary clinic in your area. Online veterinary services are great for many health concerns and for receiving general pet advice, but in an emergency, your pet needs to be evaluated in person. Ideally, have someone call the clinic to let them know that you are on your way with your pet and what the situation is.
However, there are some situations when online options can be helpful. Read on to learn more about online veterinary services and other ways to talk to a vet at night.
What to Do for an Urgent (Not Emergency) Situation
Call Your Usual Vet
If your veterinary clinic is open 24 hours a day, you can give them a call to see if a doctor is available to chat. If they’re not too busy, your vet may be able to field some questions over the phone without having to make an appointment. They can offer guidance on if your pet should be seen overnight or can wait until the morning. If your clinic is not open 24 hours, they will have an arrangement with an out-of-hours clinic to see emergencies for them.
Go to Your Local Veterinary Hospital
If you need to speak with a vet and believe your pet will need to be seen sooner rather than later, you might consider just biting the bullet and taking it to your local out-of-hours veterinary hospital. These types of clinics are often open 24 hours a day. It would be best to call ahead and check that they can see you and are accepting new patients.
Please note, however, that 24-hour clinics are often typically reserved for emergencies. If your pet’s situation isn’t considered dire, you may be waiting at the hospital for some time before you’re seen.
Twenty-four-hour clinics may charge more than double what your typical veterinary office charges for an exam fee.
The 4 Options for Speaking to a Vet in the Middle of the Night
1. Pango Vet
PangoVet is a brand new veterinary teletriage and teleadvice service that can offer pet owners advice regarding health concerns and preventative care. The company’s services are provided entirely virtually, so you don’t need to worry about leaving your house or packing up your pet for a stressful visit to the vet.
PangoVet can offer advice on the following health concerns, amongst others:
- Ear and skin problems
- Eye issues
- Gastrointestinal concerns (e.g., vomiting and diarrhea)
- Urinary problems
- Mobility issues
- Flea and tick control
- Behavior and training
- Toxin ingestion
- Preventative wellness
- Triage
If, after consulting with the veterinary team, they determine you need to see a veterinarian in person, they’ll use the address you provided when scheduling your appointment to direct you to an office in your area that’s currently open or accepting patients.
Each PangoVet visit is booked for 20 minutes, so you’ll have plenty of time to ask the staff all your questions. At the time of writing, the company is offering a 50% launch discount, so your 20-minute video call will be $30.
Note: PangoVet is not currently available to customers in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and British Columbia.
2. Vetster
Vetster is a Canada-based, app-based vet service that allows pet owners to connect with veterinarians through high-quality video calls. It’s currently available in over 50 different countries. Users can choose to subscribe to Vetster Plus or pay per appointment. Vetster Plus is a subscription plan that provides access to unlimited live chat with veterinary professionals and four video appointments annually.
Those paying per appointment should expect to pay around $69. Pet owners opting for the subscription plan are looking at just under $140 per year.
3. Dutch
Dutch is another veterinary telemedicine service that connects licensed vets with pet owners via video calls and live chat.
Dutch does not offer one-off veterinary visits like some of the other online vets mentioned above. Instead, they have annual or monthly subscription plans starting as low as $7 per month.
Note: Dutch is currently available online for pet owners in the United States.
4. Chewy
Chewy is an American online pet food and pet product retailer based in Florida. While it doesn’t operate 24 hours yet, its team is available to field calls from 6 A.M. to midnight Eastern Time.
Each 20-minute call costs just $19.99, but calls can be free if the pet owner has specific CarePlus insurance plans. Those preferring to talk via live chat instead of video calls can do so for free if they’re a Chewy customer. Speaking to your vet over the phone is free, but this isn’t a service you should rely on.
What if I Need Reassurance or Advice in the Middle of the Night?
You may find yourself in a situation where your local clinic is closed, busy, or you just need some reassurance that your pet can wait until the morning to be examined. This is where telehealth services can really come in handy.
These are services that are offered remotely and can be used from the comfort of your home. They are not a replacement for hands-on veterinary care and are not suitable for emergencies. What they can offer is convenience combined with advice from a licensed veterinarian at a time that suits you. Here are some of the telehealth services currently available.
Final Thoughts
There’s nothing quite as stressful as having pressing pet-related issues eating away at you, especially if these issues pop up in the middle of the night when your usual veterinary clinic is closed. As a bit of a worrywart myself, it’s comforting to know that online veterinary services exist so I can have my questions answered without having to wait until morning.
Remember, though, that any potential emergencies must be directed to your local 24-hour veterinary hospital as soon as possible. Online veterinary services cannot provide the level of care required in life-threatening situations.
Featured Image Credit: cunaplus, Shutterstock
