Written by Dr. Katie O'Hanley, Emergency DVM

Medical care for pets has changed drastically over the last 10-15 years. It has largely evolved from a “one stop shop” to a multi-modal model of care more closely resembling its human industry counterpart. Emergency services are now more widely available for urgent and emergent needs when family veterinarians are fully booked or not equipped to provide intensive care. But when is it an emergency and when can you wait for an opening with your veterinarian?

Pets at the ER are always seen on a “triage” based system: the sicker ones are seen first, even if they arrive after a less sick animal that has been waiting longer, just like the human ER.

Below is a helpful chart outlining how the triage system works at MVESC. We aim to have a veterinary technician triage levels 3-5 within 20 minutes of arrival. Sometimes this is all that is needed to determine if your pet can wait to see their family veterinarian or if they should stay to be seen on an urgent care basis. Having a specialty trained emergency veterinary technician evaluate your pet can be worth the peace of mind and well worth the trip in, even if you don’t end up seeing a doctor. Unstable patients (level 1 and sometimes level 2) are brought to the treatment area immediately to be evaluated by a veterinarian.

More examples of level 1-5 medical conditions are listed below but this is by no means an exhaustive list. The best way to know if your pet needs to be seen is to give us a call. Our highly trained veterinary assistants will be able to help you determine what the next best steps are depending on what is going on with your pet. If you do bring your pet into the ER, make sure to bring a book or computer and your phone charger; just like a human ER, there could be a wait of several hours especially if your pet is triaged as a level 4 or 5.

Level 1 Examples:

• Severe dehydration

• Dangerously low blood pressure

• Actively seizing

• Anything immediately life threatening

Level 2 Examples:

• A distended, “bloated” abdomen

• Non-productive retching (attempting to vomit and not producing anything)

• Severe pain

• Severe bleeding

• Dragging hindlimbs

• Toxin ingestion

Level 3 Examples:

• Vomiting and/or diarrhea

• Lethargy

• Not being able to move or walk or dragging of the back legs

• Porcupine quills

• Abnormal vaginal discharge

• Squinting, bulging, discolored or painful eyes

Level 4 Examples:

• Diarrhea on its own without accompanying vomiting, lethargy, and/or lack of appetite; even if there is a little bit of blood in it.

• Vomiting a single time without loss of appetite

• UTI

• Coughing

• Having infrequent or short seizures at home

Level 5 Examples:

• Dental issues

• Weight loss

• Parasites

• Second opinion on a chronic condition

• Change in behavior

• Sneezing