Frequently Asked Questions
Client Status & Appointments
UVPP provides advanced diagnostic work-up such as lab work and imaging to help determine the cause of your pet's illness and develop the most effective treatment plan tailored to their needs.
We accept referral as well as visits without a referral. If your pet has already seen your primary care veterinarian or another specialty hospital for the concern, then it is helpful to share the past records with us to avoid repeating diagnostics unnecessarily.
Please share with us where your pet has been seen previously and we are happy to reach out to the other hospitals to request past medical records.
Our specialists have more availability in the early hours of the day, while our urgent care is open into the evening. If you want to ensure that you see a specialist the same day that you bring your pet in, then scheduling an appointment is recommended.
Please reach out to us by phone or text (610) 983-8381, or email info@uvpp.vet as soon as you are aware of the need to cancel or reschedule a visit.
Advanced Services and Diagnostics
The list of soft tissue surgeries that we routinely perform is lengthy but includes gastropexy, gastrotomy, enterotomy, intestinal resection and anastomosis, cystotomy, mass removal, biopsy, total ear canal ablation and bulla osteotomy, pinnectomy, c-section, pyometra, GDV, splenectomy, liver biopsy, and more.
Yes, we offer radiographs, abdominal, thoracic, and musculoskeletal ultrasound, CT, echocardiogram, rhinoscopy, and arthroscopy on site.
Our board certified surgeon has advanced training in cranial cruciate ligament injury, complex fractures, patellar instability, hip dysplasia, bone cancer, and angular limb deformity.
Most diagnostic results are available immediately due to our on-site board certified radiologist. When she is not in the building, results are available within 24 hours.
We do not have an Internal Medicine Specialist at this time but routinely diagnose endocrine disorders such as diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, Addison's disease, tick-borne illness, and more. Ongoing follow-up care can often be performed by your primary care veterinarian or we can offer a referral to a board certified internist.
We can offer palliative care options such as pain management and anti-inflammatories. More comprehensive cancer therapy options such as chemotherapy or radiation can be done via referral to a board certified oncologist.
We offer in house blood work, ear cytology, and skin cytology. For more complicated and complex concerns, we send samples out to specialized laboratories for evaluation with a board certified pathologist. Examples include specialized blood tests, urine tests, cytology, histopathology to evaluate biopsy specimens, cultures, and stone analysis.
Our specialists are board-certified, meaning they completed undergraduate school, veterinary school, internships, and residency training. Our specialists then passed board examinations and continue to stay up to date with ongoing continuing education in their fields. Our current specialists include a board certified radiologist and board certified surgeon.
All of our diagnostics and medical records are emailed directly to your furbaby's general practitioner. We will also call your primary care veterinarian when a finding or recommendation is complex or unexpected.
Symptoms and Urgent Care Protocol
For breathing concerns, we recommend bringing your pet in immediately. We have face masks, oxygen cages, and can intubate or place an emergency temporary breathing tube in patients that are unable to breathe. We will assess them immediately and can intervene with medications and stabilization support.
Cats and dogs can become dehydrated rapidly from vomiting and diarrhea. When vomiting or diarrhea occurs more than just once or if blood is noted, then we strongly recommend bringing your pet to UVPP right away. We will assess if they are stable, and can offer work-up and treatment plans to help them feel better faster.
When your pet eats a foreign object or something toxic, we can sometimes give medications to help them vomit the item up. Other times we may recommend activated charcoal to help bind a toxin that is already in their intestines and prevent or lessen toxicity. We can perform diagnostics including blood work and imaging, and treatments including fluid therapy and surgery, if indicated.
Our urgent care and outpatient emergency service is very comfortable and familiar with providing orthopedic assessments and pain management. We can assess, stabilize, and recommend the best treatment plan.
If your pet collapses or experiences repeated seizures or a prolonged seizure, then we recommend bringing them in for assessment as soon as possible. We will want to assess the underlying cause and can give medications and stabilizing treatments to help them recover.
A cat should not go longer than 24 hours without eating before being seen by a veterinarian. A dog may be able to go a couple of days without eating; however, we advise having both cats and dogs assessed promptly to prevent worsening of the underlying issue and secondary problems such as metabolic shifts in their body. A visit before they are critically sick can be less expensive as well as carry a better prognosis for your pet.
Rapid swelling should be addressed by a veterinarian quickly, especially if it involves the face or neck. Monitor your pet for difficulty breathing or pain and bring them in as soon as possible so we can evaluate the cause and prevent worsening such as blood pressure issues.
Cats and dogs often hide pain and remain stoic until they are very sick. Signs of pain may include subtle changes in behavior such as lethargy, hiding, moving away in response to touch, whining/whimpering/crying, putting less pressure on a limb, hunched body posture, sitting or laying in an abnormal position, reduced appetite, and being unusually quiet.