Colorado State launches urgent care service

Fort Collins, Colo.

-- The Veterinary Teaching Hospital at Colorado State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine launched an urgent care service.

The service began on Feb. 1, and is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Prior to the urgent care service, the hospital offered general and specialty practices by appointment, emergency services after hours and on weekends, and a triage service to direct clients who had concerns about their pets’ health, says Hospital Administrator Gail Gumminger.

"What we were finding was that, more and more, clients wanted to have their animals seen on the same day, but on a non-emergency basis and we just weren’t equipped to handle that," she says.

The service will offer three levels of care. In level one, the animal is assessed, stabilized, treated and sent home, sometimes with an informal consultation with a specialist. Level two adds a formal consultation. For the third level, patients may be admitted to the hospital on an inpatient basis.