GP veterinary staff are often remarkably competent across a range of medical disciplines (routine health care, radiology, surgery, dentistry and laboratory test analysis – just to name a few!), and many go above and beyond to help the pets in their care.

However, there are situations where unwell or injured pets may be recommended for transfer to a specialist or emergency after-hours facility. This may be the case if a pet:

• Is severely unwell, and requires “round-the-clock” or intensive medical care
• Has a complex condition (or combination of conditions) that requires expert medical assessment or management
• Requires advanced imaging (such as specialist ultrasound, or a CT or MRI scan) to fully assess their condition
• Requires surgery necessitating expert surgical skill and/or equipment

Many owners view their beloved pet as part of the family and want them to receive a similar level of medical care to what they would receive themselves.

Fortunately, the existence of afterhours and specialist veterinary hospitals means that the pets in those regions have the option of receiving “gold standard” care from highly trained or specialist staff who have a larger range of high-spec equipment and diagnostic tools and are available 24/7.

Unfortunately, however, “human-grade” veterinary care lacks one major thing: Medicare to subsidise or cover the associated costs! This means that unless the pet is covered with an appropriate pet insurance policy, the owner will have to bear the brunt of these costs themselves.

We want every pet to experience their best possible quality of life, so we recommend:

• Ideally, covering your pet with a suitable pet insurance policy as early as possible (before they develop pre-existing conditions)
• When it comes to care for your pet, there are usually several potential treatment/management options, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. Please don’t hesitate to let us know what is realistically possible for you (financially, timewise and emotionally) and what you feel your pet can cope with. There is no one solution that suits every family.