PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Twenty-four-hour emergency veterinary care is back on Portland’s westside after DoveLewis Veterinary Emergency and Specialty Hospital announced Monday it will restore its round-the-clock schedule.
The pet hospital is now open overnight for emergency walk-ins. It had previously operated on a 24/7 schedule, but in October, the hospital adjusted its ER hours in response to a national shortage of veterinarians and technicians.
Emergency walk-ins were only allowed from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. each day. In January, the hours were extended to 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day. Now, the 24/7 schedule is fully restored.
“We’re built to be open 24/7, so being closed for ER receiving even just a few hours overnight was difficult. It feels great to get back to our core community services,” said Ron Morgan, DoveLewis president and CEO.
While DoveLewis was operating on limited emergency room hours, BluePearl Pet Hospital in Northeast Portland was the only 24-hour emergency vet open in the city.
Hiring has still been challenging at veterinary clinics across the country, DoveLewis said, but it has built up its staff to be able to offer the round-the-clock service to the Portland area once again.
Morgan said the team has also refined several of its services. It reconfigured the DoveLewis Urgent Care into a “minute clinic” model with appointments available as soon as 30 minutes from booking.
“We’re nimbler than we were before, but we’re still treating patients with the level of care that the community expects of us,” Morgan said.
DoveLewis is a local nonprofit that has served the Portland area for 50 years. It is the only Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society Level 1 facility in Oregon.
In 2024, DoveLewis expects to treat 26,000 animals.