‘I Felt Locked Out’: Pet Owners Denied Entry Into Veterinarian Clinics During Pandemic

Jessica Delange had to find a different vet for her service dog ,Toby, who is trained to stay with his owner, after her regular vet refused to let her be with him during a consultation. Jessica Delage

COVID-19 forced many businesses to go online or to limit themselves to curbside service, while others had to shut down permanently. Veterinary medicine was one line of work where the approach taken due to safety restrictions unfortunately caused distress for many of its unique clientele.

During the lockdowns, many veterinary offices across the country closed their doors to pet owners and allowed only patient access. This created much difficulty for “pet parents” with reactive or scared animals. Some were forced to stay outside or two metres away from their beloved pet as it was euthanized. The effects were traumatizing, for patient and parent alike.

“I ended up having to call around for a vet that would take her right away and let me come in with her,” said Ottawa resident Jessica Delage, whose regular vet wouldn’t let her come inside with her gravely ill cat during the most recent lockdown.

“She ended up having to be put to sleep. I would have really preferred not to have her last moments be in a new environment with people she had never met before.”

Delage said she also experienced difficulty trying to get her service dog, Toby, in to see his regular vet, as Toby is trained to stay with her.

“I asked about coming in with him, wearing a mask, or having the appointments done outside, also wearing masks, and they refused,” she said. “I finally had to find another vet, who at first did the appointments outside, then started letting me come inside when it got colder.”

Cleaning Protocols

Veterinary staff are trained on how to control communicable diseases. Yet, even as clinics were keeping pet owners at a distance, pandemic restrictions still allowed the general public to engage in activities such as running errands in public places and going to the grocery store.

Public environments, such as supermarkets, are much harder to control and keep sanitized than a medical clinic. Proximity between customer and cashier is the same, if not closer, than that between vet and client. The myriad surfaces and products touched by countless patrons, along with payment card readers, are just two examples of variables beyond reasonable control.

According to an article by veterinarian Kristen Washington on vetster.com , one of the challenges facing vets is the new cleaning protocols, which explains why many clinics are not allowing owners into the building.

“The cleaning that needs to take place between clients takes time and pulls staff away from helping the veterinarian with your pet, which extends wait times and the number of pets the veterinarian can see within a day,” Washington wrote.

Another potential problem, Washington said, is the impact on the clinic if staff were to contract COVID, which would leave the clinic short-staffed.

“If the staff at a clinic becomes infected with COVID, the clinic needs to close for cleaning,” Washington said. “A closed clinic means rescheduled appointments, which adds to an already overbooked schedule.”

COVID Safety Protocols Not Enough

Jordan Greening, another Ottawa resident, said she struggled to find emergency care for her older rescue dog, who doesn’t like strangers or other dogs.

“I have felt locked out,” she said. “I couldn’t be there to help keep him calm, and I had to stay calm because I didn’t want them to not admit him because I was irritated.”

Greening said she didn’t understand why COVID-19 safety protocols weren’t enough to get her inside the clinic.

“I find it weird you can’t show a vaccine passport and stay masked to go in with your pet, especially when they’re reactive and get terrified at the office,” she said.

Delage had the same view, expressing her confusion over not being allowed in even when wearing a mask.

“My regular clinic is also pretty large, and I think they could have easily and safely had people wait outside until their turn,” she said. “Then, [they could] come in one person at a time, and even stay in the large waiting area if the rooms are too small.”