Having a pet admitted to the hospital and away from home may leave you feeling uncomfortable. To help ease any feelings of concern that you may have, we would like to assure you that your pet is under the care of our highly qualified team of doctors and technicians 24 hours a day. Your pet’s condition will be monitored regularly through vital signs, food and fluid intake, and changes in medical status.

Thank you for your trust. We appreciate the opportunity to care for your pet.

Patient Updates & Comfort Checks

Your pet’s veterinarian will contact you at least once a day with a medical report. The update will generally occur between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. after the doctors conduct medical rounds – a time when they review each patient’s progress.

If a significant change occurs in your pet’s condition, you will be contacted by a doctor, regardless of the time, unless you indicate otherwise.

Our doctors and technicians care for patients with a variety of medical conditions and are assigned to critical care, isolation, intermediate care, and general medical wards. While all medical updates are given by your pet’s veterinarian, if you wish to receive a Comfort Check (status update) from one of our technicians, you are welcome to call the hospital between 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.

Visiting Hours

Visiting hours are primarily for owners wishing to visit pets who are hospitalized in our Critical Care Unit. All visits must be approved and arranged by your pet’s veterinarian in advance.

Visiting a pet on the day of an anesthetic procedure is usually not recommended. This is to allow your pet to remain calm and start the healing process. Generally, the effects of anesthesia and pain management medication can make your pet groggy for 1-2 days after a procedure. Depending on your pet’s status, your veterinarian may ask that you wait until your pet is fully alert and able to give you a reassuring tail wag or peaceful purr as a sign that he or she is ready for a visit.

General visiting outside of CCU is typically not recommended unless otherwise requested by the doctor for the patient’s benefit. Seeing a family member may cause the pet to become unsettled and nervous even after they have become successfully acclimated to the hospital setting.

Scheduled visiting hours are as follows:

Monday – Friday:

12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, Sunday, Holidays

12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

When arriving for visiting hours, please be sure to alert the front desk. A doctor or veterinary technician will then escort you through the hospital.

Visiting hours are limited to 20 minutes, and we ask that only two visitors see your pet at one time unless your doctor approves otherwise.

Personal Pet Items

While your pet is hospitalized, we ask that you take home your pet’s collar, leash, toys and blankets. We know these things are precious to you and we don’t want to risk misplacing them while caring for your pet or another patient. Exceptions are made for pets in critical care who might benefit from a special blanket or toy from home. Be assured that we have plenty of clean, comfortable blankets, towels and cushions for your pet to rest and snuggle on.

Meals

Encouraging a patient to eat is very important following a medical procedure or while recovering from an illness. Pets, like people, enjoy comfort food. For this reason, we welcome food brought from home. Please discuss with your veterinarian whether your pet’s medical condition allows for him or her to maintain a regular diet. If so, and it is a food that we do not stock in our hospital, you are welcome to bring it from home and we will prepare it for your pet at feeding time.

If your pet requires a special diet to aid in his or her recuperation, we carry a variety of prescription and therapeutic diets. Your veterinarian may work with our on-staff clinical nutritionist to determine the best options for your pet.

Life Support Options

The staff at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital understands that there may be a time when you, as a pet owner, are faced with the painful decision of choosing the amount of life-saving measures to offer your beloved pet.  Unexpected trauma and serious illness make these decisions all the more difficult.

As in human medicine, there are various levels of resuscitation efforts. These efforts can be minimal or extensive and will depend on your pet’s medical condition and quality of life, your personal wishes, and what is financially possible in your particular situation.

We would like you to be aware of these resuscitation options so you can continue to make decisions that are in the best interest of your pet.  Below is a description of each level and an approximate cost to cover the necessary procedures and medications that may be required to carry out that level of care. Depending upon your pet’s condition upon admission, you may be asked to select a life support option for hospital staff to abide by.

Code Levels:

RED: Indicates that no CPR efforts are requested. A pet will be allowed to pass away with no intervention.

Since there are no extra measures taken, there are no additional costs.

YELLOW: Indicates that all external life saving measures are to be taken. This includes CPR, appropriate medications, and defibrillation. CPR can typically last from 10-30 minutes.

Required treatments and medications may average $700 – $1,000.

GREEN: Indicates advanced resuscitation. This includes all external life support measures listed above in addition to internal life saving measures such as direct heart compression. At this level of care, the patient requires vigilant monitoring and the technical expertise of dedicated critical care personnel. A combination of external and internal support can typically last for up to one hour and the outcome, is unfortunately, uncertain.

Required treatments and medications may average $1,000-$1,500 or higher.

Your pet’s veterinarian is available should you have any questions about these choices.

Health Care Plans & Estimates

Any time that your veterinarian recommends hospitalization for your pet, Red Bank Veterinary Hospital will present you with a health care plan. This will include an approximate range of charges that may be incurred for services and procedures. If your bill should increase to exceed the highest end of the plan, you will be notified by a staff member. Changes in your pet’s medical condition may be one reason for additional fees.

Payment and payment options will be discussed with you by your veterinarian and a member of our client services staff at the time your pet is presented for hospitalization.

Payment Options

The doctors and staff members of Red Bank Veterinary Hospital understand that you want to do what is in the best interest of your pet. Sometimes the costs associated with these decisions can be difficult to understand. That is why we work to provide you with several options that will benefit your pet, allow for optimum quality of life, and enable you to feel comfortable with your choice.

To give you a better sense of the costs involved in treating your pet's medical condition, your pet's doctor will develop a healthcare plan that includes an approximate range of charges that may be incurred for services and procedures while your pet is hospitalized.

While our hospital does not accept payment plans, we do accept the following forms of payment:

• Cash
• Personal Checks
• Travelers Checks
• Debit Cards
• Money Orders
• All Major Credit Cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover)
• Care Credit (A convenient financing plan that allows qualified applicants to divide payments over several months.)
• Pet Insurance - While this still requires that you pay your medical bill directly to Red Bank Veterinary Hospital, we are happy to help you with any of the necessary paperwork that will streamline the reimbursement process from your insurance provider.

Pet Loss Support Group

Depending upon the reason for your pet’s hospitalization, you may feel the need to speak with others who are going through a similar experience. Our pet loss support group is a resource available to you at no charge. In addition to offering pet loss support, the group provides assistance to pet owners experiencing anticipatory grief. This is a feeling of grief that occurs prior to the actual death of a pet. It may be experienced by those caring for a senior pet or, a chronically ill or terminally ill pet. Learning how to cope with an expected loss may occasionally require emotional assistance and support. Feel free to contact us for more information.

Area Attractions/Hotels/etc.

Should your pet’s treatment at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital require that you stay close-by, we have put together a listing of places that might help make your time in the area more comfortable. If you have a request not located in this guide, please ask a member of the Red Bank Veterinary Hospital staff. We are more than happy to assist you.