Is it an emergency? That’s the question every pet owner faces the moment something looks wrong. In a study published in PLOS ONE in January 2026, researchers at the Royal Veterinary College found that dog owners judged a pet’s condition as less urgent than veterinary surgeons did in 28.4% of vignette responses, across 1,772 owners and 5,316 total responses (PLOS ONE, 2026). That gap is understandable. When your pet is hurting, it’s hard to think clearly, and guessing wrong in either direction has a real cost: an unnecessary trip to the ER, or a dangerous delay.
This guide sorts symptoms into three categories: go now, call us first, or safe to monitor. Keep it bookmarked. You may need it faster than you think.
Is It an Emergency? Start Here
Scan the symptom categories below. If your pet is having breathing trouble, is unconscious, has uncontrolled bleeding, is showing signs of heatstroke or an active seizure, you suspect poisoning, or your pet is straining to urinate and passing little or no urine, leave for the nearest 24/7 emergency hospital right away:
- BEVS (Burlington Emergency & Veterinary Specialists), Williston, VT: (802) 863-2387. Open 24/7.
- VEG (Veterinary Emergency Group), 225 Dorset St, Suite A, South Burlington, VT: (802) 255-4032. Open 24/7, walk-ins welcome.
If you can safely call one of them on your way, do. Don’t delay leaving to wait on hold.
PEAK Veterinary Referral Center, 158 Hurricane Ln, Williston, VT: (802) 878-2022, offers seven-day urgent care but is not an overnight emergency hospital. For overnight emergencies, use BEVS or VEG.
For everything that doesn’t rise to a “go now” emergency, call Richmond Animal Hospital at (802) 434-4935. We’ll help you figure out what happens next.
Quick Reference: What to Do, By Symptom
Use this table as a fast scan. If your pet’s symptom doesn’t appear here, or you’re still unsure after reading it, call us. We would rather field an unnecessary call than have you sit on something real.
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Breathing trouble, blue/gray gums, collapse, unconsciousness | Go now — leave for BEVS or VEG |
| Uncontrolled bleeding, active seizure, heatstroke, suspected poisoning | Go now — leave for BEVS or VEG |
| Straining to urinate, little or no urine coming out (especially male cats) | Go now — leave for BEVS or VEG |
| Sudden swollen belly with restlessness or retching (possible bloat/GDV) | Go now — leave for BEVS or VEG |
| Sudden inability to bear weight on a leg, eye injury, painful urination with urine still passing | Call first — (802) 434-4935 for same-day direction |
| More than 2 episodes of vomiting or diarrhea in 24 hours, or one episode plus other illness signs | Call first — (802) 434-4935 for same-day direction |
| Mild limp after activity, still bearing weight on all four legs | Call first — same-day appointment, not an ER trip |
| Single vomiting episode, pet otherwise acting normal | Monitor at home — watch for repeat or worsening |
| Single sneeze, mild scratching, one soft stool, pet active and eating normally | Monitor at home — call if it repeats or worsens |
The AVMA’s 13 Warning Signs: Always Call, Not Always the ER
The AVMA lists 13 animal emergencies that always require immediate veterinary consultation or care:
- Severe bleeding, or bleeding that doesn’t stop within five minutes
- Choking, difficulty breathing, or nonstop coughing and gagging
- Bleeding from the nose, mouth, or rectum, coughing up blood, or blood in the urine
- Inability to urinate or pass stool, or obvious pain while trying
- Eye injuries
- Known or suspected poisoning
- Seizures or staggering
- Fractured bones, severe lameness, or inability to move a leg
- Obvious signs of pain or extreme anxiety
- Heat stress or heatstroke
- Severe vomiting or diarrhea, meaning more than two episodes in 24 hours, or either one combined with other signs of illness
- Refusal to drink for 24 hours or more
- Unconsciousness
Not every item on this list calls for the same next step. Breathing trouble, unconsciousness, uncontrolled bleeding, heatstroke, an active seizure, suspected poisoning, and a pet straining to urinate but passing little or no urine (a red flag for urethral obstruction, which can turn fatal within one to two days and carries extra risk for male cats) mean leave for an emergency hospital now. Painful or frequent urination, as long as your pet is still passing urine, along with the rest of these signs, calls for an immediate call to a veterinarian for direction, unless your pet appears severely ill, in which case go straight in. Either way, don’t wait it out.
This list is not exhaustive. If something feels seriously wrong and doesn’t fit neatly into any of these 13, call us or head to an ER anyway. Trust your judgment over any checklist.
One item worth a closer look: a sudden, tight, distended belly, especially paired with restlessness, drooling, or unproductive retching, can be a sign of gastric dilatation and volvulus (GDV), also known as bloat. It’s most common in large, deep-chested dogs and can turn fatal within hours if untreated (ACVS). It’s not named separately on the AVMA’s list, but it fits squarely under “obvious signs of pain” and “obvious signs of extreme anxiety,” and it’s serious enough to call out on its own. If your dog’s stomach looks suddenly swollen and they’re acting distressed, don’t wait to see if it passes.
Not every emergency looks dramatic. A dog that has quietly collapsed or become unresponsive needs the same urgency as one that’s visibly bleeding. Trust the symptom list over how calm the room feels.
Suspected Poisoning: What to Do in the First Five Minutes
If you suspect your pet has eaten something toxic, call ASPCA Animal Poison Control immediately at (888) 426-4435. The ASPCA reports handling more than 400,000 calls annually, staffed by 63 veterinarians, 25 of them board-certified in toxicology (ASPCA). This isn’t a rare situation. It’s common enough to need a dedicated 24/7 national hotline. Note that a consultation fee may apply; ask about cost when you call if that’s a concern in the moment.
Common household toxins include chocolate, xylitol (found in sugar-free gum and some peanut butters), antifreeze, grapes and raisins, and rodent poison. If you call Poison Control or us, have the following ready: what your pet ate, roughly how much, how long ago, and your pet’s weight.
In 2025, ASPCA Poison Control announced it had assisted its five-millionth animal poisoning case since the hotline’s founding in 1978 (ASPCA, 2025). Nearly five decades of data means the guidance you get on that call is built on real precedent, not guesswork.
A quick habit worth building: keep the Poison Control number saved in your phone right now, before you need it.
Breathing Trouble
Difficulty breathing is one of the AVMA’s 13 emergency signs, and it can be subtle until it’s severe. Open-mouth breathing in a cat, especially at rest or with visible effort, is one of the signs vets watch for as a marker of respiratory distress (Cornell Feline Health Center). The same goes for blue or gray gums, rapid or labored breathing, and honking, wheezing, or choking sounds.
Respiratory symptoms escalate fast. A dog or cat working hard to breathe is burning through reserves it doesn’t have to spare, so “wait and see” is especially risky here.
If you notice any of these signs, don’t try to calm your pet down at home first. Leave for BEVS or VEG right away.
Straining to Urinate: A Silent Emergency, Especially in Male Cats
A cat making repeated trips to the litter box, straining, and producing little or nothing at all isn’t something to watch overnight. It’s a red flag for urethral obstruction, a blockage that keeps urine from leaving the body. Male cats are at higher risk because of their narrower urethra, but any cat, and any dog, can be affected.
Left untreated, a full blockage can turn fatal within one to two days as toxins build up in the bloodstream (Cornell Feline Health Center; ACVS). If your pet is straining and nothing, or almost nothing, is coming out, that’s a leave-now emergency, not a call-first situation.
Painful or frequent urination is different from obstruction as long as your pet is still passing normal amounts of urine. That still deserves a same-day call to us, just not necessarily an ER trip on its own.
Call Us First: Symptoms That Usually Aren’t an Emergency, but Need a Same-Day Look
Is my dog’s limping an emergency?
Not always. This is one of the more common calls we get. A dog that suddenly can’t bear weight on a leg at all, especially after a fall, a collision, or a yelp of pain, matches the AVMA’s “severe lameness” criteria and needs to be seen right away. A dog that’s mildly favoring a paw after a long walk, still putting weight on all four legs, with no visible swelling, usually just needs a same-day appointment instead.
When in doubt, call. We’d rather talk you through it on the phone than have you guess wrong in either direction.
What about a single vomiting episode?
One episode of vomiting, with your pet otherwise acting normal, usually isn’t an emergency. But per the AVMA’s guidance, more than two vomiting or diarrhea episodes within 24 hours, or vomiting combined with other signs of illness (lethargy, pain, blood, refusing water), does call for a same-day visit or an ER trip. Call us and we’ll help you decide which.
Safe to Monitor at Home
Some things genuinely don’t need an urgent call. A single sneeze, mild occasional scratching, a small superficial scrape that’s already stopped bleeding, or one instance of a slightly soft stool in an otherwise normal, active, eating, and drinking pet can usually be watched for a day. If it repeats, worsens, or your pet stops acting like themselves, that moves it into “call us first,” so keep an eye on it rather than assuming it’s resolved.
When genuinely unsure whether something belongs here or in the category above, the safer move is always to call. We’d rather field an unnecessary call than have you sit on something real.
What Richmond Animal Hospital’s After-Hours Line Actually Covers
Here’s something we want to be direct about, because we know it’s caused confusion: our after-hours line reaches a phone triage service, not an in-person visit. Richmond Animal Hospital’s clinic building is closed evenings and weekends. Our full hours are always listed on our Contact page. When you call after hours, you’re speaking with a trained triage team who can help you decide what to do next, not a vet standing in our exam room.
That distinction matters. Triage can walk you through symptoms, help you decide whether something can wait until morning, and tell you clearly when it’s time to go to BEVS or VEG instead. What triage can’t do is examine, treat, or admit your pet. For that, you need an in-person visit, either at our clinic during business hours or at one of the true 24/7 emergency hospitals.
Calling first, even outside business hours, still helps. It means you’re not making a scary decision alone, and whoever sees your pet next has more context going in.
Why we’re spelling this out: if you’ve ever wondered whether “after-hours support” meant someone could actually see your pet at 9pm on a Saturday, the honest answer is no. We’d rather you know that now than find out mid-crisis.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I call before coming in, or just show up?
Call first for anything that isn’t a “go now” emergency. For true emergencies, leave for BEVS or VEG right away rather than coming to our clinic, since Richmond Animal Hospital isn’t a 24/7 facility. If someone else can safely call ahead while you’re on the way, that helps, but don’t delay leaving to make the call yourself.
Is vomiting always an emergency?
No. A single episode, with your pet otherwise acting normal, usually isn’t. The AVMA’s guidance is that more than two vomiting or diarrhea episodes in 24 hours, or either one combined with other signs of illness, does warrant immediate attention (AVMA, 2026). If you’re past that point, call us or head to an ER.
What if I’m not sure and it’s the middle of the night?
Call our after-hours line. You’ll reach a phone triage service that can walk through your pet’s symptoms with you and tell you clearly whether it’s safe to wait until morning or time to head to BEVS or VEG.
Do you treat true emergencies at Richmond Animal Hospital?
We provide same-day urgent care during business hours, but we’re not a 24/7 emergency facility. For true after-hours emergencies, go directly to BEVS (Williston) or VEG (South Burlington), both open 24/7. PEAK Veterinary Referral Center (Williston) offers seven-day urgent care but is not an overnight emergency hospital. For overnight emergencies, go to BEVS or VEG.
What’s the ASPCA Poison Control number?
(888) 426-4435, available 24/7. Save it in your phone now. ASPCA Poison Control reports fielding over 400,000 calls a year (ASPCA, Poison Control), so if you’re calling, you’re far from the first. A consultation fee may apply.
The Bottom Line
The AVMA’s 13 warning signs all call for immediate veterinary consultation or care. Severe bleeding, breathing trouble, an active seizure, heatstroke, suspected poisoning, unconsciousness, and straining to urinate with little or no output mean go straight to the ER. For the rest of the list, and for anything else that feels seriously wrong, call us at (802) 434-4935 and we’ll help you figure out the next step. During business hours, we’ll get you in same-day. After hours, our triage line will walk you through it.
Save the ASPCA Poison Control number, (888) 426-4435, and the numbers for BEVS, (802) 863-2387, and VEG, (802) 255-4032, in your phone today. If your pet is showing any “go now” sign right now, stop reading and go. You already know what to do.
Want more on the difference between urgent and emergency care? Read our companion posts, Pet Urgent Care vs. Emergency Vet: Which Is Better for Your Pet Right Now and When Does My Pet Need Urgent Care? For same-day symptoms that don’t rise to a true emergency, our Urgent Care services are here for you.
About the author: Dr. Nicholas Sherman is a DVM (Cornell University, 2014) and a licensed veterinarian in Vermont.
Sources
- American Veterinary Medical Association, “13 Animal emergencies that require immediate veterinary consultation and/or care,” retrieved 2026-07-16, avma.org
- American College of Veterinary Surgeons, “Gastric Dilatation-Volvulus,” retrieved 2026-07-16, acvs.org
- American College of Veterinary Surgeons, “Urinary Obstruction in Male Cats,” retrieved 2026-07-16, acvs.org
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell Feline Health Center, “Dyspnea (Difficulty Breathing),” retrieved 2026-07-16, vet.cornell.edu
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell Feline Health Center, “Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease,” retrieved 2026-07-16, vet.cornell.edu
- ASPCA, “ASPCA Poison Control,” retrieved 2026-07-16, aspca.org
- ASPCA, “ASPCA Poison Control Reaches 5 Million Cases of Animal Exposures Since Hotline Inception Nearly 50 Years Ago,” retrieved 2026-07-16, aspca.org
- “To see or not to see the vet: A vignette-based study of decision-making by UK dog owners regarding seeking veterinary care for commonly presenting conditions,” PLOS ONE, retrieved 2026-07-16, plos.org
- BEVS (Burlington Emergency & Veterinary Specialists), “What To Expect During An Emergency,” retrieved 2026-07-16, bevsvt.com
- VEG (Veterinary Emergency Group) South Burlington contact and hours, retrieved 2026-07-16, veg.com
- PEAK Veterinary Referral Center, “At A Glance” (hours of operation), retrieved 2026-07-16, peakveterinary.com
