Hospital Policy:

Appointments:

We do not make appointments, however, we do ask that you call us before bringing in your pet. The information that you provide before you arrive will allow us to prepare for your arrival. In critical cases, we can help increase the chance of your pet’s survival by talking you through basic first aid and support until you reach our clinic.

Our caseload may become very heavy, especially on weekends and holidays. Every effort is made to make your wait as short as possible. We generally see patients in order of arrival. However at APEC we practice triage which means that THE MOST CRITICAL AND LIFE THREATENING CASES ARE TREATED AND STABILIZED FIRST. While this may increase your wait, we hope that you will understand and keep in mind that had your pet been the critical one, it would have received the same attention.

Hospitalization:

If your pet needs to be hospitalized, it will be monitored the entire time it is here. Our staff is well-trained, dedicated, attentive and caring.

Unless immediate life saving efforts are necessary, the doctor will explain treatment options and will provide you with an estimate of the cost. Your approval will be needed before any treatments, or other immediate life saving measures, are performed. This is only an estimate. We will make every effort to stay within that range, however we will not compromise the care of your pet to meet an estimate. We will attempt to contact you before exceeding the estimate by a large amount.

Our office will fax complete copies of your pet’s record, including lab work, to your regular veterinarian if their fax number is available. You will also be provided with a CD if your pet had radiographs taken, this will need to be given to your regular vet for your pet’s permanent record.

o We close at 8 am

o We stop seeing pets at 7:30 am

o Pet’s that are hospitalized need to be picked up between 7:00 -7:30 am.

Payment:

We accept cash, approved checks, Master Card, Visa, Discover, and Care Credit. If your pet is hospitalized a deposit will be required. All fees are due and payable at the time of service. WE DO NOT BILL.

In many emergency situations, the first hour may be the most intensive and therefore the most costly. Many of the patients you present to us often are more critical than those you routinely take to your regular veterinarian. Unlike some human emergency rooms, APEC receives no governmental subsidies. We depend entirely on the income we generate. Therefore our fees are set carefully by our directors so that we will be able to provide the same quality service for this community in the future.