Emergency & Urgent Vet Care Newcastle
Call first, then come in.
- A quick call prepares our team
- Speeds up care for true emergencies
- Guides you to the right facility
(02) 4954 7055
26C Harrison St, Cardiff
Hours:
Mon-Tue 8am-6pm
Wed-Fri 8am-8pm
Sat-Sun 8am-4pm
(02) 4958 6635
2A Garth St, Edgeworth
Hours:
Mon-Fri 8am – 6pm
Outside our opening hours? See what to do when we’re closed.
If in doubt, call. That’s exactly what we’re here for.
Pets can’t tell you when something’s wrong, and it isn’t always obvious whether you’re looking at a wait-and-see or a get-seen-now. You don’t have to make that call alone. Phone us and a nurse will talk it through with you, then tell you honestly whether to bring your pet straight in or keep an eye on things at home.
Because Cardiff is open seven days, with urgent care until 8 pm Wednesday to Friday, there’s a familiar team to call when most clinics have already shut for the day.
Most emergencies, we treat right here.
More than most people expect, handled in-house
The clinics are equipped for emergencies, and we manage most of them ourselves, including the serious, time-critical ones. You’re cared for by a team that already knows your pet, at standard consultation rates rather than emergency-centre prices. For most presentations, this is the calmest and most affordable place to be seen.
Home the same day, or transferred for overnight care
Once we’ve done the immediate emergency treatment, what happens next depends on your pet. Some only need that treatment and are well enough to go home the same day. Others need monitoring or care through the night. We don’t have staff on-site overnight, so when a pet needs that ongoing care, we stabilise them and transfer them to an emergency centre to be watched until morning. A smaller number of cases need a specialist procedure or advanced imaging we don’t have here, like CT, MRI or spinal surgery, and we’ll refer those on too.
Some signs mean don’t wait and see.
If you spot any of these, phone us first rather than watching at home. With most of them, getting your pet seen quickly makes a real difference.
Trouble breathing
Laboured, noisy or very fast breathing, gums that look blue or grey, or a pet stretching its neck to get air. Breathing problems need to be seen urgently.
A bloated, restless dog
A swollen belly, pacing, drooling and trying to vomit without bringing anything up can mean bloat (GDV). This is a true emergency. Call now.
Suspected poisoning or snake bite
Eaten something toxic, like rat bait, chocolate or a human medication, or sudden weakness and collapse that could be a snake bite. Don’t wait for symptoms to build.
A serious injury or bleeding
Hit by a car, a fall, a fight, or a wound that won’t stop bleeding. Even a pet that seems alright after an accident should be checked for hidden injury.
Seizures or sudden collapse
A fit, a faint, sudden weakness in the back legs, or a pet that goes flat and won’t get up. A first seizure, or one that doesn’t stop, needs to be seen.
Straining to toilet
Repeated straining to pass urine, especially a male cat, can be a blockage that turns dangerous within hours. Trouble passing anything is worth a call.
Calm, quick decisions, made in your pet’s best interest.
It starts the moment you call. A nurse gauges how serious things are, and most of the time we’ll have you come straight to us. Once you’re here, there’s a clear order to what happens: get your pet stable, work out what’s going on, and decide what’s genuinely best for them. Occasionally, for a time-critical case, the fastest and safest thing is to go straight to an emergency centre, and we’ll tell you that on the phone.
Initial triage
One of our nurses triages you quickly at reception to gauge how serious things are. A true emergency comes straight through to the treatment room rather than waiting for an appointment slot.
We stabilise first
The first job is always the fundamentals: is your pet breathing, is the heart beating, what are the oxygen levels. We stabilise the patient before anything else, then set about finding the underlying cause.
Treat here, then home or transfer
We give the immediate treatment here, then make an honest call on what your pet needs next. Many go home the same day. Those that need overnight monitoring, or a specialist, we stabilise and recommend transfer, and we’ll explain exactly why.
Always the best interest decision
If round-the-clock monitoring is what your pet needs, we arrange the right centre, stabilise for transport and phone ahead so they’re ready. The reasoning behind every decision is what’s best for the patient.
Worried about whether to come in at all? You won’t be made to feel silly for asking. We would always rather take a quick call and put your mind at ease than have you wait and hope.
An emergency at 2 am? Here’s what to do.
Cardiff has long days and is open seven days, but we’re not a 24-hour hospital. If your pet is in trouble while we’re closed, here’s exactly what to do.
Contact a 24/7 Emergency Centre below
Phone the emergency centre before you set off. They’ll know you’re coming, can prepare for your pet, and can talk you through anything you need to do on the way.
Animal Referral & Emergency Centre (AREC), Broadmeadow
A 24-hour emergency centre at Broadmeadow, the closer option for the northern suburbs
Small Animal Specialist Hospital (SASH), Tuggerah
A 24-hour hospital at Tuggerah with specialist surgeons and advanced imaging such as CT and MRI. Often the right choice for spinal, neurological or complex surgical cases, or for clients at the southern end of Lake Macquarie.
We reopen in the morning
Once your pet has been seen overnight and if stable for transfer, call us first, then bring them in to us in the morning, with any notes from the emergency centre, and we’ll pick up their care from there.
Frequently asked questions
Questions about emergency & urgent vet care.
Phone us first. A nurse will hear what’s happening and tell you whether to bring your pet straight in, or, occasionally, to go straight to an emergency centre, and the team can be ready before you arrive. If it’s a true emergency, your pet comes straight through to the treatment room, where we check breathing, heartbeat and oxygen levels, get them stable and work out the cause.
If you call our number when we’re closed, the recorded message directs you to an after-hours emergency centre: the Animal Referral and Emergency Centre at Broadmeadow, or the Small Animal Specialist Hospital (SASH) at Tuggerah. Which one suits depends on your pet’s problem and where you are. Both are open 24 hours. Once your pet has been seen overnight, bring them and any notes from the centre to us in the morning and we’ll continue their care.
We manage most urgent and emergency cases in-house. That includes bloat (gastric dilatation volvulus, or GDV), emergency caesareans, blood transfusions, wounds and lacerations, suspected poisoning and toxin ingestion, and snake bite. We have on-site pathology, digital radiography and ultrasound to find the cause quickly. Where a case needs round-the-clock care or advanced imaging we don’t have on-site, we work hand in hand with the referral centres to get your pet the next level of care.
No, we’re not a 24-hour hospital and we don’t have staff on-site through the night. That doesn’t mean we can’t treat your pet’s emergency. We give the immediate treatment here, including surgery where it’s needed. What happens next depends on the case. Some pets only need that treatment and go home the same day. If your pet needs monitoring or care through the night, we stabilise them and recommend you transfer them to an emergency centre to be watched until morning, then pick their care back up when we reopen.
We treat the emergency here first, then decide what your pet needs next. Some patients are managed start to finish at our clinics, including serious cases, and go home once they’re stable. We transfer a pet on for two reasons: it needs monitoring or care through the night, which we can’t provide on-site, or it needs a specialist procedure or advanced imaging we don’t have here, like CT, MRI or spinal surgery. The decision comes down to your pet’s condition, how serious the case is, and where you are. Whatever we decide, the driver is always what’s in your pet’s best interest, and we contact the receiving centre to confirm they’re ready before you set off.
For many urgent problems, we’re the calmer and more affordable place to be seen. You’re with a team that knows your pet and has their full history on file, and urgent care is charged at our standard consultation rates rather than emergency-centre prices. Cardiff is open seven days with urgent care until 8 pm Wednesday to Friday, so there’s a familiar clinic to call when most others have closed. If your pet genuinely needs a 24-hour centre, we’ll tell you, and we’ll help you get there.
For something urgent, don’t wait for the next free appointment. Phone the clinic so we know you’re coming and can be ready, then come in. A true emergency is brought straight through to the treatment room ahead of routine appointments. Calling first just means the team can prepare and, if your pet would be better off at a 24-hour centre, we can point you there without losing time.
Most urgent care is charged at our standard consultation rates, not the higher prices a dedicated emergency centre charges. A higher rate applies for evening appointments, Saturday afternoons and Sundays. The total depends on what your pet needs, and where a case calls for significant treatment we give you a written estimate before going ahead. We offer GapOnly for insured pets, plus Afterpay and VetPay, so a larger bill can be spread out rather than getting in the way of care.
If something’s wrong, don’t sit on it. Call us.
A quick phone call is the fastest way to know what to do. Cardiff is open seven days, with urgent care until 8 pm Wednesday to Friday.
Family owned since 1968 · Independent · GapOnly, Afterpay & VetPay available