Local pet owners continue to face long waits for emergency vet care as staffing shortages persist

SEATTLE — If your pet has needed emergency care lately, you might have run into a major problem: low staffing.

KIRO 7′s Ranji Sinha has been looking into the problem and talked to a vet tech about what pet owners can do.

Rae Thomspon started posting emergency care wait times online to help her colleagues, but found that pet owners were relying on her service.

She says staffing at emergency care facilities is not adequate and that has meant some places are closing or cutting their hours.

These staffing issues aren’t going away and were a problem even before COVID-19 hit, according to Thompson.

She shared some tips for pet owners with KIRO 7:

• Preventative care tops the list — animals must be treated like they can and will do things that will hurt them.
• People should be setting money aside for care even when first considering having a pet. Pet insurance is also a good idea.
• Getting your pets spayed and neutered can also help prevent conditions that often require emergency care.

Thompson also says it’s important that owners must know that they may not get into emergency care, even if they feel it’s needed.

“Most places will take you on order of medical stability, not order of arrival, so if you arrive with an ear infection and someone comes with a hit by car obviously that animal is going to be seen first,” said Thompson. “Our clinic often has six- to seven-hour wait times.”

She says pet owners should keep a first aid kit in their home and possibly get trained in pet first aid.

At the first sign of trouble, she says people should head to urgent care with their pet and gauge the extent of their injuries, as emergency providers may not be able to see patients with non-critical injuries.

Earlier this year, KIRO 7 profiled Beth Guerra and Laurie Wieringa — two women pioneering an urgent care model for pets.

Their practice, Arrow Animal Urgent Care, is staffed but they know emergency hospitals are understaffed with a lack of support staff.

“I also think if your dog is limping and you can’t get in for two weeks, go ahead and make that appointment,” said Guerra. “Don’t cancel it and if it gets really critical then you can come see us.”

They insist that people plan ahead — if you plan to get a new pet, even before you bring it home, establish a relationship with a vet because many clinics are not taking new clients.

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