Welcome To Heart River Animal Hospital

With COVID 19 in the news and uncertainty in the air, we would like to update you on some facts, policy changes and service options as it relates to you pets and our hospital.

As of now, we are open for our patients during our regularly scheduled hours of operation. Nothing in the care or our patents has changed. By understanding the current situation, and making a few modifications for safety reasons, we hope to be able to continue providing excellent care to the community.

First according to the CDC and WHO, pets do not get this virus. Because the virus can live on wet surfaces, it is advised to minimize face licking and to wash your hands after playing with or petting your pets (this should be done for good hygiene even without the fear of Coronavirus). For more detailed information about Coronavirus and pets please go to The American Veterinary Medical Association website: avma.org, then follow the Coronavirus prompts, this site has a lot of good easy to understand and relevant information.

At Heart River Animal Hospital, we take the health and safety of you and your pets very seriously and have always disinfected exam room tables between every appointment and rooms and floors throughout the day. Our cleaning supplies are hospital grade and have been shown to kill bacteria and viruses including corona. We have added additional cleaning steps to include high touch areas being cleaned more frequently including chairs, counters, and doorknobs.

The staff has been instructed to monitor their personal health and are not permitted to come to work if they have a fever or feel ill.

We ask the same of our clients. If you have a fever or respiratory illness, or have been advised to self- quarantine, please do not come in to the office, but find someone to bring your pet in for you. We will be happy to discuss our findings with you over the phone. We also ask that whenever possible, only one family member accompanies your pet in for care.

In the case where there are no other options, please stay in the car and call us to check in from the parking lot, one of our staff members will take your pet from you and we will call you to discuss our findings.

For staff safety, if you are ill, or have been advised to self-quarantine and we need to handle your pet- weather you come to the clinic with your pet or send your pet in with someone else, please advise us about your circumstance so that we can be sure our staff is alerted to take extra special precautions when handling your pet.

For healthy clients, if you would like to, you can call us when you arrive at the office to check in via phone if the waiting room looks crowded. We will call you back when your exam room is ready. If the waiting area is crowded, we will check you out in the exam room and may have you leave through a different exit to allow the best possible “social distancing” we can.

If you are coming to the clinic to pick up medications, pet food, etc, please call us within 2 hours of expected arrival and we can take payment over the phone. We will then have you come to the side door at the front of the clinic (west of the main entrance) and knock on the door to pick up your items.

By following these guidelines, we hope you, your pets and our staff healthy so that we continue to be of service to our patients and the community.

Thank you for your understanding,

Dr Del Rae Martin DVM, Dr Barb Espe DVM and the Heart River Animal Hospital staff.