Millions of Americans adopted pets during the pandemic, and that surge is impacting veterinarians across the country and in the Susquehanna Valley. Many vets are simply overwhelmed.Dr. Jeffrey Steed has been a veterinarian for more than 20 years."It's a great profession. You basically get to help people through their pets," he said.But he has never experienced a time like this. "It has been non-stop crazy," he said.Since the start of the pandemic, pet ownership has skyrocketed."Twenty-three million new pet owners, not just another pet in a household, but 23 million new people that had never had a pet before," he said.Steed's appointment calendar at the Manheim Pike Veterinary Hospital in Lancaster County is booked solid and has been for months."There was a long stretch of time that most veterinarians weren't even taking new clients because we couldn't keep up with what we had and it was unfair to kind of add new clients to the mix," he said.Steed added that there's also a shortage of veterinarians and certified vet techs."Veterinarians always had a compassion fatigue. That's something that you're always feeling guilty that we're not helping the pets enough. That does wear veterinarians down," he said.Steed had some advice for anyone trying to make an appointment."I think all veterinarians are in this to help people and help pets. So, just to be patient with us all. We're trying our best to get things done," he said.Steed and his team are accepting new patients, but he said you may have to wait up to two weeks for an appointment.