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Peak Veterinary Referral Center

Dog sitting on a table with a staff member holding a stethescope

Urgent Pet Care

Our urgent care service is for pet owners seeking non-critical, urgent medical care.

“Our Urgent Care veterinarians are available 7 days per week, including holidays. If you need urgent pet care and your pet is in stable condition, please call ahead. We also treat minor emergencies and provide care for patients needing medical attention when your family vet is unavailable. If you have a question or a concern, please contact us.

A member of our team will give you an estimated arrival time based on capacity, remaining appointment slots, and your pet’s condition. In some cases, you may be diverted to a local ER.

What to Do When Your Pet Needs Urgent Medical Care

Please call before you come in

SCHEDULING YOUR PET’S APPOINTMENT:

  • For your convenience and to reduce stress for your pet, we encourage you to make an appointment.

  • Click the link for the client portal and schedule your appointment:

    • If you have an account: Log in and select Peak, then book your appointment from the available time slots.

    • If this is your first time at our clinic: Please click the link to register and create your account

      • Select the clinic you plan to visit – In this case, Peak.

      • Fill out your details and your pet’s information under “my details” and “my patients.”

      • Browse and schedule an available appointment.

What to Do if You Suspect Your Pet Has Eaten Something Toxic

Gather any packaging or remains of anything that was eaten or suspected of being eaten! This step will help speed up the diagnosis. Please don’t be shy; if it was marijuana or any other embarrassing (or illicit) product, please be honest with our team; it will speed up diagnosis and treatment.

Services

The service is open to all; we encourage calling ahead as there are limited daily appointment slots. The team in our urgent care department will work with you and your regular vet to provide the comprehensive care your pet needs. If you have recently seen your family vet for the same medical condition, or if your pet has other medical conditions or is on medication, please ask your doctor to forward your pet’s medical record to our team. This step is not required, but it might save time and money, especially if we have to repeat recent diagnostic tests.

Diagnostics

  • Radiography (X-Rays)

  • Point-of-Care Ultrasounds

  • Specialty appointments are required for more advanced diagnostics, including CT, Echocardiography, endoscopy, and ultrasounds.

Urgent Veterinary Care: What We Can See

Urgent care symptoms and clinical signs in a pet include the following:

  • Allergic reactions (hives, swelling) or asthma

  • Bite wounds

  • Blood in urine or stool

  • Coughing (without respiratory distress)

  • Diarrhea and/or vomiting

  • Ear issues (ear infections, abscesses)

  • End-of-life assessment and euthanasia

  • Eye issues (eye infections)

  • Fleas

  • Lameness, limping, or difficulty walking

  • Loss of appetite, dehydration, or lethargy

  • Porcupine quills

  • Skin issues (hot spots, rash)

  • Tick-borne disease

  • Traumatic lacerations or injuries

  • And more!

First Aid Resources

We recommend keeping a pet-specific first aid kit in your car as a best practice, just as you would a human-first aid kit. Click the link for a printable PDF to keep in your kit when you need to restock.

First Aid Kit Checklist

  • Pet Backpack or lunchbox

    • Place all the following items inside and remember to restock

  • Phone Numbers:

    • Your regular veterinarian, the closest emergency room, and Poison Control: (888) 426-4435

  • A spare leash

  • Self-cling bandage

  • Muzzle

  • Gauze pads

  • Gauze

  • Bandage tape

  • Ice pack

  • Cotton balls

  • Scissors

  • Saline solution

  • Tweezers

  • Rectal thermometer

  • Disposable gloves

  • Blanket

  • Diphenhydramine (Benadryl), only if approved by a veterinarian

  • Styptic powder (Kwik Stop)

  • Nail clippers

  • Flashlight

  • Rubbing alcohol (to clean the thermometer. Do not apply to wounds)

  • Your pet's paperwork

    • Rabies certificate, Important Medical Records

Understanding the Difference Between Emergency/Critical Care and Urgent Care for Pets

We launched this urgent care service to provide pet owners with more options for their pet’s urgent care needs in Williston, VT, the greater Burlington area, and surrounding towns within a driving range in New York and New Hampshire. By offering pet urgent care after your regular veterinary clinic has closed, our hope is to provide you and your non-critical pet with an alternative to critical care emergency hospitals and a shorter wait time since your pet will be triaged with other stable patients. Our medical team of experienced veterinarians and technicians have extensive training in emergency and urgent vet care.

Patient Severity Index

Veterinary emergency rooms work just like their human counterparts. Patients of all levels of illness and injury require care, and our teams must help them in order of need. The Patient Severity Index (PSI) shows how we make those decisions.

Urgent Care Resources

  • What is Triage

  • Different Types of Emergencies and Whether You Can Wait

  • Pet Urgent Care or Critical Care? Signs & Symptoms

  • Common Puppy Emergencies

  • Pet Insurance - Research Tools

  • Understanding Symptoms of Common Emergencies

National Poison Helplines

Meet Our Team