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Animal ER Opens In Pasco

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By JO-ANN JOHNSTON, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 23, 2007

DADE CITY Sudden illness and injuries always seem more frightening when they appear overnight or on days when most doctors' offices are closed.

The same is true with pets.

To relieve some of the stress, veterinarian JeniferChatfield opened Pasco Animal ER in Dade City, specifically to handle nighttime, weekend and holiday emergencies for small-pet owners in east and central Pasco County.

In the six weeks the clinic has been open, Chatfield estimates she has seen 100 or more pets. Before her clinic opened, pet owners with after-hours emergencies had to drive their animals to north Tampa.

"It's been a need for quite awhile," said Melanie McGavern, who operates a traditional daytime practice, Zephyrhills Veterinary Clinic.

Many of McGavern's clients used to have to drive to an emergency clinic on Bearss Avenue for veterinary crises - 24 miles from her Gall Boulevard clinic, she said.

The drive can be a hardship for elderly pet owners suffering poor night vision. Moreover, the time needed to drive that far can be critical, especially in common emergencies, such as a dog getting hit by a car, McGavern said.

Pasco Animal ER operates as a "clinic within a clinic," out of Dade City Animal Clinic's new small-animal hospital at 13117 U.S. 301.

Chatfield's clinic operates from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m. on weekdays and offers 24-hour coverage on weekends and holidays.

The nature of emergency work suits Chatfield, a 2001 graduate of Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine.

"I like not knowing what's coming in," said Chatfield, who ran an emergency clinic in Texas before moving to Dade City about a year ago. "There's the challenge of diagnosing cases swiftly and accurately, and there's satisfaction in providing visible, fast relief to an injured creature. I can make that pet more comfortable."

Given the nature of emergency work, part of her job is to calm pet owners, who may well come in hysterical.

"You've done everything you can because you have brought your animal here," she often tells clients.

In addition to car accidents, the clinic staff, which includes twin brother Jason, a fellow veterinarian, typically treats animals needing care for sudden illnesses, animal bites or births requiring cesarean sections. The clinic is equipped for surgeries, blood transfusions and emergency testing.

It also offers overnight nursing care and monitoring of animals that have been getting extended daytime hospital care, such as IV treatments, at their home clinics. If the animals can be moved comfortably, keeping them at Chatfield's clinic gives owners the comfort of knowing someone is there and keeping watch, she said.

"If something changes with an unstable pet, the owner will get a call," Chatfield said.

She does not spay or neuter pets. That is not considered emergency care.

The emergency clinic charges more than traditional veterinary offices, partly because Chatfield needs to pay technicians more to work nights, weekends and holidays.

The exam fee at the emergency clinic is $69, compared to the $35 to $40 most traditional daytime practices charge.

In both settings, costs for drugs, stitches, X-rays or surgeries are added to exam fees, and costs vary by the practice. Those items don't necessarily cost more at the emergency clinic, Chatfield said, but some may.

For information, call (352) 567-3382.

Reporter Jo-Ann Johnston can be reached at (352) 521-3062 or jfjohnston@tampatrib.com.

Preventing Pet Illnesses During the Holidays

Bag and store leftovers quickly.

Store chocolate out of the dog's reach.

Ask overnight visitors to store medications in a cabinet or out of animals' reach.

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