24 hours in a busy veterinary hospital

7am – 9am

The new day begins at 7am when the night nurse who has cared for the pets staying at the hospital overnight starts their morning rounds - cleaning kennels, providing medications, feeding and carrying out essential checks.

The on-call vet checks and assesses all the patients with the nurse and new treatment plans are decided on and owners are telephoned with updates on their pets progress.

Between 8am and 9am the patients booked in for surgery that day start to arrive and are admitted and assessed. Each patient has an individual appointment with a nurse for a pre-operative check and to discuss any concerns the owner may have. Any necessary blood samples are taken and analysed in our laboratory before the patient is sedated.

9am – 4pm

Operating starts with routine sterile operations first (neutering) and is followed by longer more complex procedures.

Non-sterile surgery, dentistry and x-ray investigations start a little later in the day. When the patient is in recovery the owners are telephoned with a progress report and a discharge appointment arranged with a vet or veterinary nurse.

Consultations continue throughout the day from 8am until 8pm and the laboratory is busy all day running samples collected throughout the day (and night!). When not attending patients the vets are busy with phone calls and paperwork. The unexpected arrival of a road traffic accident or a collapsed animal is dealt with immediately by the staff.

Hopefully we all manage to get lunch!

4pm - 8pm

Day surgery patients are discharged by either a vet or a nurse and their on-going care is discussed. The patients staying with us overnight are examined by the on-call night team and treatment plans decided on after discussion with the day-care team to provide continuous care. The vets consult into the evening until 8pm.

8pm - 7am

The day draws to a close and the on-call team check and assess the needs of all the patients staying with us in the hospital and their often anxious owners are updated with their progress. The on-call nurse stays on the premises all night to care for the patients. Cleaning, washing and restocking medical supplies are all carried out.

The on-call vet mans the emergency phone and attends the hospital for any emergency appointments or surgical procedures throughout the night. This means we are available 24 hours a day 365 days a year if your pet has an emergency.