We are living in a time when there is much uncertainty in our lives. This is stressful for everyone and means that we often don’t know what to expect in our day-to-day routine. What happens then when the added stress of a pet emergency arises during the current pandemic? The good news is that we are still here to help.
On March 23rd, 2020, Premier Doug Ford included veterinary medicine in the list of Ontario’s essential services, and the College of Veterinarians of Ontario has given a directive that veterinarians can now see patients for emergency or urgent cases. Unfortunately, at this time, veterinarians can no longer see patients for routine procedures such as annual wellness appointments, vaccinations or routine surgeries such as spaying and neutering. Fortunately, any medical concerns that arise for your pet can still be addressed. That means if your dog gets bitten by another dog, if your cat has an ear infection, or your senior dog needs her heart medication refilled, or your puppy is vomiting, we can still help out!
Social Distancing options for Veterinary care
Phone Calls
Just as always, if you have questions or concerns or need food and medication prescriptions filled, our Client Care Representatives and Registered Veterinary Technicians can still be reached by phone. They can take your call, address your concerns, triage your pet’s emergency, and help refill your pets prescriptions. If there is a need to talk to a doctor, they can direct you as to the right course of action. Often a phone call from one of our veterinarians can address ongoing problems without the need for face to face contact.
Telemedicine Consults
For new concerns, it may be helpful to look at a telemedicine consult. This is a video-call with one of our veterinarians that can allow us to look at your pet, and see the concerns that you have. In certain situations, this can give us the essential information that we need to accurately diagnose the problem that your pet is dealing with, as well as offer treatment solutions. For more information on our Telemedicine options please click here.
Minimal Contact Appointments
In other cases, we really need to put our hands on your animal to feel what is going on inside them, or to run diagnostics tests. Taking x-rays, drawing blood or giving injections are examples of diagnostics and treatments that require in-person contact. If that is the case, then we are happy to have you and your pet come to our hospital for a minimal-contact appointment.
What to expect during a Minimal Contact Veterinary Appointment
- When you arrive at Caledon Mountain Veterinary Hospital, we will ask you to park your car and then give us a call to let us know that you have arrived.
- A memeber of our Veterinary team will discuss any concerns that need to be addressed and get a thorough medical history of your pet over the phone.
- After discussing your pets history, one of our team members will come out to your car to pick up your pet wearing personal protective equipment. We will bring your pet into the hospital and perform a physical exam and any testing or treatments that have been discussed.
- Following your pets exam, we will give you a call with any additional information or questions, and make a treatment plan for your pets visit. We will also review information that you need to care for your pet, including instructions for any medications that we are prescribing, and let you know our goals for treatment and followup.
- One of our veterinary team will then bring your pet back to your car.
- Payment can then be arrange over the phone with a credit card or at the road side if you are paying with debit. We would ask you to avoid using cash for payment at this time.
We recognize that there are limitations with all of these options and ask for your patience as the process will take longer than usual. We also know that everyone is understanding of the situation that we find ourselves in right now and that this system gives the best balance between animal care and personal safety for all.
I hope that this summary gives you some insight into what to expect if you need our help during the next few weeks and months. If you have any questions or would like to book a telemedicine consult or a minimal contact appointment, please feel free to contact our client service team and for more information on Caledon Mountain Veterinary Hosptial’s COVID-19 Plan, please visit https://caledonvet.com/cmvhs-covid-19-plan/
Stay safe,
– Dr Rob
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