Sarnia woman launches petition for after hours vet care after dog dies

A Sarnia, Ont. woman whose dog died in her arms is calling on local veterinarians to establish after hours vet care.

Marg Allen has launched a petition, hoping vets will get on board.

It follows an experience she had last month when it was time to say goodbye to her beloved Shih Tzu Bernie, who was 15-years-old.

It was after 5 p.m. on a weekday and her own vet clinic was closed. She found out the closest vet care was in Mississauga, nearly three hours away.

She decided she would try to make it through the night with Bernie, but it didn’t work out.

“About eight o’clock, just everything, started stroking, and seizures, it was horrendous until about three in the morning” she explained. “So I held him through that time and his heart just finally gave out.”

She has reached out to more than two dozen vets in the area and circulated her petition to local pet services.

Gabby Robbins, the owner of Clean Cut K9 Dog and Cat Grooming said she supports the effort.

“So what are we going to do next with our pets here in Sarnia?” she asked. “I just went through it a couple weeks ago with my cat. Unfortunately I couldn’t get it in in time and she passed away at my house too, with no after hours or anything like that. I called everybody, and everybody said no.”

One veterinarian in the area who does provide after hours care told CTV News London he’s been overwhelmed with pet owners looking for help.

Dr. Vason Barot of Discovery Animal Hospital in Petrolia, Ont. said he finds himself administering pet care outside of his regular clinic hours just about every day.

“All day, including weekends,” he said.

Barot said he’d like it if other vets took on some of the burden, but he understands why it’s difficult for some.

“Working from morning to evening. After work it’s sometimes hard because they have their own personal lives too,” he said. “If we can make a group, and turn by turn and everybody try to provide help to the community.”

In the meantime, Allen said she’s hoping local vets step up, so others don’t have to experience the same pain that she went through with Bernie.

“And come up with a local model that works for our community, a community-based model so we’re not off to these other locations,” she said.