Critical Veterinary Care
Our Long Island specialists provide critical veterinary care to pets experiencing serious illness or injury. We monitor your pet 24/7 and are always ready to respond if their condition changes.
Critical Care for Pets
When your pet becomes seriously ill or injured, they need immediate veterinary care and lifesaving treatment.
Veterinary critical care involves continuous treatment for animals with serious, unstable conditions that may need immediate medical attention.
Our veterinarians provide immediate emergency services to pets, monitor their condition and support their recovery through our critical care services, including:
- 24/7 monitoring for pets in critical condition
- Electronic patient monitoring equipment to track your companion's vitals
- Comfortable and sterile ICU where your pet can rest
The Animal Critical Care Unit at Atlantic Coast New York Veterinary Specialists
The veterinarians at our Long Island specialty and emergency hospital maintain a critical care unit (ICU) for pets that require intensive treatments, therapies and monitoring until their condition stabilizes.
We are committed to providing the best possible care to our patients. Therefore, we ensure that they have a safe, sterile, and carefully monitored environment to rest in while they are struggling with serious illnesses. We ensure that patients in our critical care unit have clean, comfortable kennels, as much privacy as possible, and all the medical and friendly attention they need and deserve.
Critical Care Cases in Long Island
An animal needs veterinary critical care services when it faces a health problem that requires continuous monitoring, treatment, and therapies over a prolonged period - whether hours, days, or weeks.
Any health condition that requires extended, complex treatments, drug therapies, or 24/7 monitoring will likely fall under the purview of critical care. The following are some examples of health issues that may require care in our ICU:
- Respiratory failure
- Sepsis (extreme immune response to infection)
- Multi-trauma patients (severe physical injuries)
- Recovery from a major veterinary surgery
- Venomous snakebite
- Congestive heart disease
Veterinary Critical Care FAQs
Here are some of the most frequently asked questions our Long Island veterinary team receives regarding the critical care services at our hospital.
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What is the difference between emergency and critical care?
While veterinary critical care and emergency services overlap, both address seriously ill or injured animals. There are some important differences between these two services.
Veterinary emergency services treat pets suffering from serious, acute illness or injury that requires intensive, immediate care.
In comparison, veterinary critical care services also address serious illness and injury, but only when animals require 24/7 monitoring, complex treatments, and crate rest in a medical environment to help them recover.
While veterinary emergency services at our clinic may transfer patients to critical care after initial triage and treatment, not all emergencies require critical care.
Likewise, in situations where a pet has undergone major planned surgery, they will require critical care to remain stable and begin their recovery, even if they were not a veterinary emergency case.
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Can I call the hospital to check up on my pet in critical care?
Yes, you absolutely can get in touch with us to check in on your pet's health and status while they are in critical care at our facility.
Rest assured that if there is any problem or change in your pet's condition, we will contact you promptly for information or updates on your companion's health.
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When do your critical care services operate?
The critical care services at operate with on-site veterinary staff 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to provide treatment and attentive monitoring of your companion's health.
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How long will my pet have to remain in critical care?
A critical care unit at a veterinary hospital works somewhat similarly to a human hospital. While we may be able to provide an estimate of your pet's length of stay with us, factors may affect that timeline.
We aren't able to predict whether or when your pet's condition will change or a complication will occur, but rest assured, we will communicate with you as much as possible about any changes in your companion's condition while in our care and what that means for the duration of their stay.
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Will you keep in touch with our primary care veterinarian?
Yes, we will keep your primary care veterinarian updated on your pet's conditions while they are undergoing critical care.
We will provide your primary care vet with your pet's medical history and records to ensure your pet receives seamless, integrated care when they return home and are seen by your vet for routine checkups.
Apply for Financing
With CareCredit and Scratchpay Financing, you can get your pet the veterinary care they need at Atlantic Coast New York Veterinary Specialists.