Your dog woke up limping, or your cat has thrown up twice and won’t touch breakfast. It doesn’t feel like a middle-of-the-night emergency, but it’s not something you want to sit on either. That’s exactly what same-day urgent care is for. This guide walks through what actually happens when you bring a sick or injured pet to Richmond Animal Hospital during business hours, from the first phone call to walking back out the door, so none of it catches you off guard. Think of it as general guidance rather than a diagnosis for your specific pet. If your pet ever seems unstable, treat it as an emergency and get help right away.
What counts as a same-day urgent care visit?
Urgent care is for a pet that’s sick or injured but stable, and needs to be seen today rather than next week or in the middle of the night. Think vomiting, diarrhea, a new limp, an ear infection, a small wound, itchy skin, or a suspected urinary problem in a pet that’s otherwise bright and alert.
What it isn’t is a true emergency. Trouble breathing, uncontrolled bleeding, an inability to urinate, and unconsciousness are among the signs the AVMA flags for immediate care, and they mean a leave-now trip to a 24/7 emergency hospital, not a call to us. We’d put a sudden collapse in that same leave-now category. Seizures belong there too. The AVMA lists seizures generally, and at Richmond Animal Hospital we treat a seizure that lasts more than 2-3 minutes, comes in clusters, or doesn’t resolve normally as an emergency. Even a brief first-time seizure that stops on its own is worth a prompt call to us once your pet has recovered.
Not sure which bucket you’re in? Our companion guide sorts it out, including how to handle a seizure step by step: Is It an Emergency? A Vermont Pet Owner’s Decision Guide. For the difference between urgent care and the ER specifically, see Pet Urgent Care vs. Emergency Vet.
Should you call first, or just walk in?
Call first. Richmond Animal Hospital handles urgent cases by same-day appointment, not as an open walk-in clinic. The practice’s own urgent care guidance is direct about it: walk-ins may face very long wait times or be turned away, so a quick call to (802) 434-4935 is the smartest first move.
Calling ahead does three things at once. It lets us hear the symptoms and tell you whether this is something we can handle today or an ER situation. It lets us pull your pet’s file and get ready. And it helps us plan for you and figure out the safest next step, instead of you arriving to a schedule that’s already full.
When you call, we’ll ask a few quick questions: what’s going on, how long it’s been happening, whether your pet is still eating and drinking, and whether anything changed suddenly. Your answers help us judge how urgent this is and tell you what to do next, even if that turns out to be “head straight to the ER.”
What happens when you arrive?
You’ll check in, give a short history, and your pet gets a quick assessment so the team knows how urgent the case is. Richmond Animal Hospital prioritizes patients by medical urgency, which means the sickest pets are seen first and your wait can move depending on what else comes through the door.
Because of that, a same-day visit isn’t always first-come, first-served. On a busy day you may be asked to wait in your car until an exam room opens up. It isn’t a delay for its own sake. It’s how a small team makes sure a pet in real trouble doesn’t sit in the lobby behind less urgent cases. Bring a little patience on a full afternoon, and if your pet’s condition changes while you wait, tell a staff member right away.
What does the vet check, and what tests might we run?
The visit centers on a focused physical exam of the problem you came in for, followed by any targeted tests we need to pin down the cause. We’ll start with the basics, like weight, temperature, and heart and breathing rates, then examine the system involved, whether that’s a sore leg, an upset stomach, an itchy ear, or a painful belly.
From there, we may recommend diagnostics: bloodwork, a urine test, or X-rays, depending on what we find. We won’t run tests just to run them. We’ll explain what each one is likely to tell us, and what it costs, before we do it, so you can make the call with the full picture in front of you. The goal of a same-day visit is a clear answer or a solid working plan, not an open-ended workup.
What happens after the exam?
You leave with a diagnosis or a working plan, any treatment we started or are sending home, and clear instructions on what to watch for. That might mean a course of medication, a bandage, fluids, pain relief, or a plan to follow up if things don’t improve on their own.
Before you go, we’ll go over the home-care instructions, what “getting better” should look like and the timeline to expect for your pet’s specific problem, and the signs that mean you should call us back or head to an emergency hospital. If your pet needs something we can’t provide the same day, like overnight monitoring or a specialist procedure, we’ll say so plainly and help you get to the right place.
How to prepare, and what to bring
A little prep makes the visit faster and the diagnosis sharper. Bring these:
- A clear timeline: when the symptoms started, how often they’re happening, and whether they’re getting worse.
- Your pet’s current medications and supplements, with doses.
- Any recent records or history, especially if your pet is new to us or also sees another vet.
- A secure carrier for cats, and a sturdy leash for dogs.
- A payment method, and don’t hesitate to ask for a cost estimate up front.
If the problem involves diarrhea or a possible urinary issue and you can collect a fresh sample without stressing your pet, it may be helpful, as long as it’s usable. Don’t hold up the visit over it, though.
What if it’s after hours or a true emergency?
Richmond Animal Hospital is open Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm, and closed on weekends and holidays. Same-day urgent care is a business-hours service. Outside those hours, our phone line reaches GuardianVets, a phone triage service staffed by credentialed veterinary technicians who can help you decide what to do next but can’t examine or treat your pet in person. We explain exactly how that line works in Richmond Animal Hospital After-Hours Line: What to Expect.
For a true emergency at any hour, go straight to a 24/7 hospital: BEVS in Williston, (802) 863-2387, or VEG in South Burlington, (802) 255-4032. PEAK in Williston offers seven-day urgent care but is not an overnight emergency hospital, so for overnight emergencies use BEVS or VEG.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need an appointment for urgent care, or can I just walk in?
Call us first at (802) 434-4935. Richmond Animal Hospital runs urgent care by same-day appointment rather than open walk-in, and walk-ins may face long waits or be turned away. Calling also lets us triage over the phone and tell you if your pet actually needs an emergency hospital instead of us.
What’s the difference between urgent care and an emergency?
Urgent care is for a sick or injured pet that’s stable but needs to be seen today. An emergency is life-threatening and can’t wait: trouble breathing, collapse, uncontrolled bleeding, a prolonged or repeated seizure, or straining to urinate with nothing coming out. Emergencies go to a 24/7 hospital, not to us.
How long will I wait to be seen?
It depends on how busy the day is and how urgent the other patients are. We see the most serious cases first, so wait times shift, and you may be asked to wait in your car on a full day. If your pet gets worse while you’re waiting, tell a team member immediately.
How much will a same-day visit cost?
It depends on what your pet needs, since an exam on its own costs less than a visit that adds X-rays or bloodwork. We’ll walk you through the likely diagnostics and their cost before we run anything, so you can review and approve the estimate before we proceed. Ask for an estimate at check-in if that helps you plan.
The Bottom Line
A same-day urgent care visit exists for exactly the situation you’re probably in right now: a pet that’s clearly not right, but not in a life-threatening crisis. Call Richmond Animal Hospital at (802) 434-4935, tell us what’s going on, and we’ll either get you in today or point you to the right place. Bring your pet’s history, a little patience on a busy afternoon, and the symptoms written down.
If you’re still not sure whether today’s problem is urgent or a true emergency, start with our decision guide, Is It an Emergency? A Vermont Pet Owner’s Decision Guide, or learn more about our Urgent Care services.
Sources
- Richmond Animal Hospital, Urgent Care, retrieved 2026-08-04
- Richmond Animal Hospital, Contact, retrieved 2026-08-04
- American Veterinary Medical Association, “13 Animal emergencies that require immediate veterinary consultation and/or care”, retrieved 2026-08-04
- GuardianVets, retrieved 2026-08-04
- BEVS (Burlington Emergency & Veterinary Specialists), retrieved 2026-08-04
- VEG (Veterinary Emergency Group), South Burlington, retrieved 2026-08-04
- PEAK Veterinary Referral Center, “About Us”, retrieved 2026-08-04
