Working update – What we are doing now

Thank you so much for your patience during this difficult time.

Firstly, we acknowledge and apologise that our customer service hasn’t quite been at the level we would normally expect. As many of you will know, there has been a significant backlog of work to deal with due to the pandemic backlog of neutering and vaccines. There has also been the surge in pandemic puppies and pet ownership.

We have also had quite a number of staff going back home to see relatives abroad who they couldn’t visit since before the pandemic so there has been a shortage of staff and we have relied more on locum staff than we normally do.

We are really making all our best efforts to be here for you and your pets throughout the pandemic but there has been some delays to emails, calls and longer waits than normal to see your vets. We are really working hard to improve this – we’ve brought in extra admin staff and call handlers for this reason and hopefully we will be resolving this soon.

So we are gradually returning to our normal ways of working but we are limiting numbers within the surgeries to ensure some degree of social distancing and to keep you and our staff safe.

How we are currently working

1 – First of all, all our staff are wearing masks into the clinical areas the entire time at the moment plus the vast majority of approximately 95 to 99% of staff are double vaccinated.

2 – We are limiting the number of people in the waiting rooms from between 1-3 people in the waiting room and we also ask that ideally you wear masks in the waiting areas.

3 – We ask that only one person comes into the consultation room, also wearing a mask.

4 – If you feel uncomfortable entering the surgery or consolation room for whatever reason please let us know also and we can take the necessary steps.

Please note that it is very difficult to ensure social distancing when you’re around pets and holding animals so this is important to keep everyone safe. It is also not easy to ensure excellent ventilation in a veterinary consultation room despite extractor fans as you cannot open windows for obvious reasons of pets escaping. Please also note that some of our veterinary staff are still not comfortable seeing clients in consultation rooms.

So in summary, it’s still very much “not yet now back to normal” in vet surgeries. However we have an excellent team of dedicated vets, nurses and receptionists that have been here throughout the pandemic and with your support and patience we endeavor to be here the entire time providing care for your pets.

Please be patient, we are here for your pets. Just expect a slightly longer wait on the phone and at appointments. We are gradually dealing with the backlog. Our team has been working throughout the pandemic available seven days a week so please be nice to them. We look forward to getting back to normal. In the meantime, as it gets chillier, some surgeries are bringing back the popular hot chocolate and mulled wine to keep warm before your appointment.