By Joanne Rodgers, Bruce Peninsula Press
Urgent and emergency pet care is available for cats and dogs on weekends and statutory holidays at the Bluewater Veterinary Emergency Clinic (BVEC) in Owen Sound. The clinic operates from Friday 6 p.m. to Monday 6 a.m. and offers 24-hour care on statutory holidays. BVEC is closed on weekdays.
The clinic operates similar to an emergency room (ER) in a hospital for humans. Pets are seen in the order of their medical emergency. The service is for urgent emergency care and not for routine medical procedures such as vaccinations. The clinic offers the full service of emergency care: in-hospital care, IV fluid therapy, surgery and outpatient medical treatment. You can contact the clinic directly. Alternatively, you can be directed to the emergency care clinic by your regular vet clinic or through the telehealth service Smart Vet.
The clinic has a “locked-door” policy, so you will have to call the clinic for entry to the facility on the weekends.
On arrival, the receptionist will take your pet’s details and assess your pet’s health issue. Wait times for medical attention may vary depending on the emergency needs of the patients.
A proposed treatment plan will be discussed and if you accept the treatment plan, you will be expected to pay a deposit before any treatment is given.
It is recommended to bring information on your pet’s medical history, list of medications, etc. If you have a veterinarian, please provide their contact information so your pet’s treatment records can be sent to your regular clinic for follow-up.
If your regular veterinarian has decided that your pet requires supervised hospital care over the weekend and/or on a statutory holiday, they now have the option to send your pet to BVEC for care.
Veterinary co-operative meets need for after hours emergency care
BVEC has been in operation for about six-months and operates out of the North Heritage Animal Hospital facility in Owen Sound. Last year, Grey Bruce vet clinics stopped offering on-call and after hours care and directed their after hours emergencies to the Barrie area. This prompted 20 local/regional veterinary professionals to step up to fill the void. Forming a cooperative whereby they are all shareholders, each of them work approximately one shift per month at the clinic. Leasing an existing facility allowed the clinic to “hit the ground running” and avoided the years-long delay involved in building a hospital from the ground up.
Dr. Robyn Budgeon, President of BVEC’s board of directors says it has been a very successful venture, offering emergency pet care on weekends/statutory holidays for approximately 130 patients each month. The board expects this number to swell during the summer months to greater than 200 per month. There is the capacity to care for many more patients and they plan to staff accordingly to meet increased demand, especially during the summer months.
Currently, there are no plans to extend their hours of operation, but BVEC will use the summer as a testing ground for the possibility of offering after hours weekday care in 2026.
Bluewater Veterinary Emergency Clinic (BVEC) is located at 285 10th Street West, Owen Sound, ON. Tel: 519 964 0949. Website https://bluewatervec.ca/ or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564872905300
Hours of operation are Friday 6 p.m. to Monday 6 a.m. 24 hours throughout weekends and statutory holidays.
