Spring is now here, so we wanted to give our clients an update on our COVID protocols.   As we see many parts of the country relaxing restrictions, we are getting more questions about our policies.  At this time we are still doing 100% curbside service, that is clients are not allowed in our building with their pets for appointments.   The reasons that we continue to be curbside is that: 1st) COVID rates still remain around 5% in our county and with relaxed restrictions there are concerns that another spike could occur; 2nd) when we reduced our curbside protocol last Fall, we had a couple of “near misses”, that is clients that were in our office that later became positive; and 3rd) and most importantly, our staff has had a great deal of difficulty obtaining vaccination appointments even though we have qualified for some time.   The good news is that most of our staff is starting their vaccination series by the end of March, and should be fully vaccinated by the end of April.   That means that starting in May 2021, we will again be offering our clients the option of accompanying their pets into appointments.    We look forward to seeing you in person again as it is a much more enjoyable and efficient way to do business.   Still expect us to require clients to wear a proper mask and social distance while in the office, and we will continue curbside service for medication and pet food pickup.

We will be closed today, Thursday, Feb 18th due to the winter storm.   There are several inches of snow already on the ground and the forecast is predicting sleet and freezing rain all day.   Even the main roads including Rt 40 are not clear, so it is not safe for our staff or clients to travel.   We are working to reschedule appointments and we should be open tomorrow (assuming the weather forecast is correct).   If you are unable to reach us today (as we will have limited staff and very short hours), please either leave a message on our phone system or send us an email at info@palmeranimalhospital.net.

Stay safe!

This winter just seems to keep going on and on.   We are again expecting winter weather with significant snowfall beginning tonight, Feb 17th, and lasting potentially through Friday, Feb 19th.   If there is significant accumulation, the ability of our staff to travel into work will be limited, so our services may be limited.   If your pet has an appointment tomorrow, Thursday, Feb 18th, you need to call our office before coming here to be sure that  1) we are here, 2) we are open, and 3) that we are able to see your pet.   We try our best to offer the services our patients need, but the safety of our staff (and clients) is always our first concern.

Stay safe, and remember to call before coming in.

301-371-3333

 

Hopefully everyone is staying safe during this current winter storm.   We are currently open today, Monday, Feb 1st, but due to more expected snowfall and freezing conditions, we will be closing early at 5PM today.  We expect to be open for business tomorrow, Tuesday, Feb 2nd depending on the weather and road conditions.    There may be a reduced schedule if our doctors and staff have difficulty traveling.   Before you come to our office for an appointment or to pickup medications, please call first to be sure we are open and able to provide service.

Philip Palmer, DVM

We hope everyone is safe at home enjoying this white winter weather.    The snow is supposed to continue throughout the day tomorrow, Monday, Feb 1st.     We are unsure as to how much of our staff is going to be able to safely arrive at our office for work.   So please, be sure to call the office and talk to a LIVE staff member before coming for your appointment.   Hopefully, we will be there and be able to take care of your pets needs.   If we are not able to have staff arrive, then we will reschedule our appointments as quickly as possible.   So enjoy the snow, and stay safe!

 

With COVID protocols in effect, we know that most of our clients have not physically been our office lately, and therefore do not know that we lost Oscar on Dec 11, 2020. He was our resident hospital cat for 14 years and dearly loved by the staff and clients alike. Most days you could find him sacked out on the front desk waiting for one of our staff to save him from “starvation” by giving him treats. Oscar had been having some health issues for a while and we are happy that we were able to keep him happy and going for as long as we did. There was not a dry eye in the office the day we had to let him go and he will be dearly missed.

Do not worry—Oscar will not be forgotten!!! We have made a special urn to remember him by and it will be at the front desk for some time.   When you are finally able to come into our office personally, please feel free to pay Oscar a little visit.   There will also be an LED memorial to him and Buttons (Oscar’s previous “boss” who left us in 2005).

As the snow falls heavily today, we will be closing our office early so that our staff can get home safely.
The office will officially close at 1:00PM and all afternoon appointments are cancelled. We are planning on being open for business on Thursday, Dec 17th, but if you have an appointment, please call the office first to be sure we are open and able to see your pet. Stay safe and enjoy the snow day!

With the greatly increased numbers and rates of COVID in our area, Palmer Animal Hospital has again instituted 100% CURBSIDE SERVICE. This means that only staff and patients are allowed in the building—clients must remain in their vehicles in the parking lot.

When clients arrive at the office, they need to call into the front desk as we have been doing for the entire COVID crisis. Staff members will come to you to bring your pet in for it’s appointment. It is very important that our clients fill out the appropriate ONLINE FORM for their visit so we can more efficiently serve you. This change in service will take more time and effort for us to see appointments, but it is what we need to do to keep our staff safe, and to remain open to serve your pets.

If you need to pickup medications or supplies, please be sure to call ahead so we can have the products ready when you arrive. We ask that you give us 24 hour notice to fill these requests. Please note that at this time we are booking ahead approximately 2 weeks for routine appointments and surgeries. We are doing our best to fit in all of the pets we can that need care, but we are limited in the number of cases we can see in a day due to all of the COVID protocols. Our phone lines will also be extra busy with the CURBSIDE service, so please be patient and we will do our best to service your pet’s needs as soon as possible.

Also note, that Christmas is fast approaching and we will have these holiday hours:

—CHRISTMAS EVE 8AM-12N
—CHRISTMAS DAY CLOSED
—Dec 26th (SAT) 8AM-12N
—NEW YEARS EVE 8AM-5PM
—NEW YEARS DAY CLOSED
—Jan 2nd (SAT) 8AM-12N

We hope everyone has a safe and Merry Christmas holiday season.

We hope all of our clients and our four-legged friends are doing well during this difficult time.

As our country is slowly starting to re-open, we at Palmer Animal Hospital are also trying to do all that we can to serve our clients while still keeping everyone as safe and healthy as possible. Since the outbreak began, we have had a “Staff Only” policy in our office and have been doing curbside service for all visits and transactions. Beginning on Monday, June 22nd, we will be taking our first baby-step back towards the pre-COVID days. Beginning on that day, clients that are arriving at our office for an appointment with their pet will have the option of accompanying their pet into the exam room. This way clients will be able to directly communicate with the doctor and will not have to stay in their vehicle (which we worry about as summer approaches). Clients will be escorted into the exam room by a technician. Once the doctor discusses the reason for the visit with the client, they may be asked to wait in the waiting room while their pet is examined. Invoicing for appointments will be done at designated spots at our front desk. Everyone entering the building will be required to wear a face mask. We still ask that clients complete the online forms for their pet’s visit so we can better serve you. All other transactions such as medication and food pick-up will continue to be done entirely curbside. We hope that these changes will achieve multiple goals—getting us back to personable service, increasing our efficiency during the COVID protocols, and continuing to keep everyone safe and healthy.

As we stated in our last update, we are currently booking about 2 weeks in advance for appointments such as well pet care, vaccinations and routine visits. We do reserve several same day appointments for sick patients, but there are days when we have no openings to be able to see any more patients. This means that there are days when we will not be able to see your pet. It doesn’t mean we don’t want to, but it is physically impossible for us to do so and implement the COVID procedures we are required to follow. We are doing our best to care for as many patients as possible through telephone consults and refilling/updating treatments as needed for each case, but there are only so many patients we can get in and out of our office each day while obeying the required COVID protocols. We hope all of our clients appreciate that these are definitely trying times and they will be with us for quite a while. Palmer Animal Hospital will continue to work to provide excellent care for our patients, and hope our clients will be patient with us.

So, if your pet needs to come in, call us. If they are sick, the earlier in the day you call, the more likely we will have openings. We will do all we can to care for your pet. For routine care, expect at least a week’s notice for an appointment.

When you come to the office, understand that we are working as hard as we can to service our clients and patients in a timely matter, but following the COVID protocols takes more time. If we are unable to see your pet, we will refer you to one of the local emergency hospitals–not because we want to, but because we cannot physically see the number of patients we have seen in the past. Hopefully, all of us, humans and pets, will get through these times healthy and well.

We look forward to when all of this will be behind us, but at this time it is impossible to see when that will be.

We hope all of our clients and our four-legged friends are doing well during this difficult time.
We wanted to give everyone an update on our situation. Palmer Animal Hospital has remained open during the entire COVID situation, and last month we announced that the State Board had relaxed restrictions on what we could and could not do for our patients. We are still restricted on the number on patients we are able to see daily due to the COVID safety restrictions we are required to follow, so we can only get so many patients in and out of our office each day. What does this mean for our clients?

Currently we are booking out over a week in advance for appointments such as well pet care, vaccinations and routine visits. We do reserve several same day appointments for sick patients, there are days when we have no openings to be able to see any more patients. This means that there are days when we will not be able to see your pet. It doesn’t mean we don’t want to, but it is physically impossible for us to do so and implement the COVID procedures we are required to follow. We are doing our best to care for as many patients as possible through telephone consults and refilling/updating treatments as needed for each case. We hope all of our clients appreciate that these are definitely trying times and they will be with us for quite a while. Palmer Animal Hospital will continue to work to provide excellent care for our patients, and hope our clients will be patient with us.

So, if you pet needs to come in, call us. If they are sick, the earlier in the day you call, the more likely we will have openings. We will do all we can to care for your pet. For routine care, expect at least a week’s notice for an appointment.
When you come to the office, understand that we are still offering curbside service, that is “staff and pets only” in the building. If we cannot help your pet, we will refer you to one of the local emergency hospitals–not because we want to, but because we cannot physically see the number of patients we have seen in the past. Hopefully, all of us, humans and pets, will get through these times healthy and well.

We look forward to when all of this will be behind us, but at this time it is impossible to see when that will be.