FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SMALL ANIMAL HOSPITAL

It is unfortunately not possible to obtain any advice by phone or email if your animal is not actually a patient at the CHUV. We suggest that you either contact your regular veterinarian or call to make an appointment for a consultation.

You must first be referred by your regular veterinarian before making an appointment with our specialists. Once your veterinarian has agreed to refer your animal, you may call to make an appointment. Our team will then be happy to give you all the necessary information for your appointment.

However, it is possible to make an appointment with our general practice service without being referred buy a veterinarian.

In the case of an emergency, you can come in with your animal without an appointment through the emergency service.

Please contact the reception desk of the CHUV as soon as possible at 450-778-8111

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Cancellation of your appointment: please do so as soon as possible, up to 72 hours in advance.

There is a $40.00 appointment cancellation fee:

• If you fail to show up for your appointment without notifying the admissions staff;
• If you cancel an appointment for a 3rd time.

Please note if you make an appointment for three animals or more, we will require a deposit of $ 100.

In case of cancellation, the deposit will be refunded to the client only if it is made more than 48 hours in advance (working days).

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Closure of the night Emergency Service at the CHUV Small Animal Hospital

We wish to inform you that due to a significant lack of professional and technical resources, the Emergency Service of the Small Animal Hospital as well as the Exotic Animal Clinic will be closed from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. from Monday to Sunday starting this Wednesday, May 3 2023. This includes all specialty shifts during this period. The situation will be reassessed in early October 2023. As a result, any case requiring an emergency consultation will have to be seen in another center offering 24-hour emergency services.

This decision will allow us to prioritize our resources towards our mission of teaching the next generation of undergraduate and graduate veterinarians.

Please know that we are continuing our efforts to offer services to the community so that our emergency services remain open at all times for large animals and 7 days a week from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm for companion animals.

Thank you for your understanding,

The management of the CHUV

Referral centers open 24 hours:

Centre Vétérinaire DMVET (Lachine)                                              Centre Vétérinaire DMVET (St-Hubert)

514-633-8888 / Sans frais 1-800-463-8555                                    514-633-8888 / Sans frais 1-800-463-8555

 

Centre Vétérinaire DMVET (Blainville)                                           Centre Vétérinaire DMVET (Ottawa)

514-633-8888 / Sans frais 1-800-463-8555                                      613-745-0123

 

Centre vétérinaire Rive-Sud (Brossard)

450-656-3660 / Sans Frais 1-866-524-4877

 

Centre vétérinaire Laval (Laval)

450-781-1200 / Sans Frais 1-877-651-2152

 

Centre vétérinaire Montréal (Montréal)

438-387-2746

 

Centre vétérinaire Daubigny (Québec)

418-872-5355

 

 

See our online map

The CHUV has a parking lot destined to its clients. Adjacent to the CHUV’s main entrance at 1525, des Vétérinaires Avenue, it also has 2 reserved spots for the handicapped. You may also park your car anywhere along Des Vétérinaire Avenue.

Other parking lots in the area require a permit from the University of Montreal without which a parking ticket will be issued.

A restaurant (Presse Café) is located a few steps away from the CHUV, at 1500 des Vétérinaires Avenue. Opening hours are from 7 am to 4 pm Monday to Friday.

For more information concerning dining and accommodations, we recommend that you visit the Tourism Saint-Hyacinthe website.

When admitted through the emergency service, your animal will first be seen by a veterinary medicine student or a technician for triage.

If your animal is not stable, it will rapidly be transported to the intensive care unit where it will then be evaluated by a veterinarian. While your animal is being stabilised, a student will question you concerning your animal’s medical history and reason of presentation.

If your animal is stable, you may accompany the student to an examination room where a full medical exam will be performed and your animal’s medical history will be taken.

From there, your pet will be taken to see the consulting service where our teaching staff will take into account its file as well as its physical condition. Please take note that owner access is limited to the examination rooms. Therefore, you will be asked to return to the waiting room while your animal is accompanied to the consulting service.

Finally, a veterinarian will meet with you and discuss possible diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.

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You must make an appointment to be able to meet with a generalist or a specialist. In the case of an emergency, it is impossible for us to foresee the waiting time, which may vary from a few minutes to a few hours, since priority is given to the more unstable animals.

Depending on the circumstances, information will be given to you either by a student or a veterinarian. Students are always supervised by a qualified veterinarian.

Since we are part of a teaching establishment, students will be implicated in the examination and treatment of your animal. At all times, students are supervised by a qualified veterinarian.

Updates on your animal’s condition will be transmitted to you by either a student, an intern, a resident, a clinician or a specialist, generally at mid-day. At that time, you may also ask to be updated on costs related to your pet’s hospitalisation.

Please note that during visits, it is strictly forbidden to wander in any hallways or rooms other than those necessary to get you to where your pet is hospitalized.

Visiting hours for animals hospitalized in continuing care and ICU are subject to the approval of the attending veterinarian (variable hours to be determined).

All visits must be preapproved by your animal’s veterinarian. Two visitors are allowed at a time but the legal owner must be present. Visits are for a maximum of 30 minutes. If your animal is not stable, it is possible that the attending veterinarian shorten the allowed visiting time to enable proper care. Any person under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

Animals in isolation are not allowed visitors for biosecurity reasons and in respect to rules established by the CHUV.

For confidentiality and biosecurity reasons, owners are asked to restrict their visit to their animal only.

A degree in veterinary medicine demands 5 full time years of studies. The title of doctor does not convey the right to practice veterinary medicine. To be able to practice in Quebec, the veterinarian must pass the exams required by the College of Veterinarians of Quebec.

Internship

An intern is a qualified veterinarian who is completing a 53 week full time advanced training course, in applied veterinary sciences, in a selected field of interest (small animal, bovine, equine and zoological) under the supervision of specialists.

Residency

The ultimate step for the veterinarian wishing to become a specialist is the residency program, a three year full time graduate training program, leading to a diploma of specialised studies in veterinary medicine. There are many residency programs recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Association such as anesthesiology, cardiology, dentistry, dermatology, internal medicine, neurology, oncology and ophthalmology. The resident must finally complete a series of exams with one of the recognized American or European associations to earn the status of Diplomat.

For more information regarding training in veterinary medicine, please refer to the University of Montreal’s admissions website.

The animal health technician ensures technical support to the patients at the CHUV. The technician will prepare the animals for and assist the veterinarian during medical and surgical procedures. The technician also provides care to the animals as prescribed by the veterinarian. The technician may meet with an owner to collect pertinent information regarding their animal and convey it to the professional.

The animal attendant transports, prepares and distributes food to the animals as well as handles, restrains and displaces them. The attendant finally, cleans and disinfects cages, washes food and water bowls and any other accessory.

Since the CHUV’s professionals only perform euthanasia for medical reasons, a physical exam is mandatory prior to a request for euthanasia by an owner. Therefore, if your animal is in good health and does not have any major behavioral problems, the CHUV will not perform euthanasia. Our team will, when possible offer other alternatives such as adoption.

First, we will grant you all the necessary time to be with your pet in an intimate setting. Then, you may or may not choose to accompany your pet during the euthanasia, which consists of administering a sedative by intravenous injection followed by a lethal injection of barbiturates. The whole process is fast, without pain and takes place in a very calm environment. Finally, you may spend a final moment with your pet’s remains if desired.

Many choices are offered to you:

If you wish, you may take your animal’s remains home with you. However, we recommend that you contact your municipality beforehand as certain regulations may apply to the disposal.

Individual cremation is offered through private companies with extra cost.

For animals weighing less than 30 kg, it is possible during the regular school year, to donate their remains to the University of Montreal’s Student Comity for Animal Welfare.

You may also wish to have your animal’s remains submitted for a post-mortem examination with extra cost.

And finally, your animal’s remains can be cremated with a group of animals at no extra cost.

Following your animal’s initial assessment, a detailed estimate of costs for procedures and treatment will be presented to you. This estimate does not, however, include costs for medication.

Since this is only an estimate, the amount can vary with any change in your animal’s status during hospitalisation since other procedures may be necessary therefore adding additional costs. It is therefore possible that the final bill be different from the initial statement. However, daily contact with your animal’s veterinarian will allow you to keep up to date with any change in your animal’s condition as well as associated costs.

Please take note that no estimate will be given by phone without first completing a physical exam.

If your animal leaves our establishment on the same day, you must pay the total bill before your departure.

If your animal is to be hospitalized, you must pay 50% of the initial estimate upon admission. If complications arise during your pet’s hospitalisation and an increase in cost of more than 10% of the initial estimate is necessary, you will be rapidly informed. Following any change in the estimate, an additional deposit will be required.

The balance of your bill must be paid in full at the moment your animal is discharged from the hospital. The CHUV accepts credit cards, debit cards or cash however, personal cheques are not accepted. Financing through Desjardins AccordD is available.

If you present with your animal out of hours when the admissions desk is closed, the person in charge of cash collection, will contact you the next day to obtain an adequate deposit by credit card or to collect the full sum of your bill if your animal was not hospitalised.

Although the CHUV is part of a university teaching institution that has the mission of training future veterinarians, your animal will be treated by experienced generalists and renowned specialists. For these reasons, our prices are sensibly the same as in other specialized establishments to the exception of our professional fees that are not taxable.

Please note that as of June 8, 2020, infection prevention and control fees of 11.50 $ will be automatically billed for all types of appointments (excluding purchases at the Veterinary Boutique and at the CHUV pharmacy).

These amounts will be dedicated to activities related to infection prevention and control.

What is biosecurity?

Biosecurity refers to the combination of measures aimed at reducing the risks associated with the introduction or transmission of infectious agents between animals and people (zoonotic diseases *). In a veterinary hospital, it is an essential element in providing excellent veterinary care and ensuring the protection of human health and the environment.

A major study carried out in the United States in human health establishments (Study on the Efficacy of Nosocomial Infection Control or SENIC, 1970-1976) on the effects of the implementation of infection control programs reports a reduction of 32 % of the rate of nosocomial infections ** during this period.

* Zoonotic disease: any infectious disease transmissible between animals and humans and vice versa.

** Nosocomial infection: any infection acquired during hospitalization in a health care center (human or veterinary), which was not present or during incubation at the patient’s admission.

Initiatives to be undertaken through the Infection Prevention and Control Fund

• Improvement of infrastructure
• Development of training and communication material
• Purchasing of new equipment and products (detergents, disinfectants) related to infection control
• Development of monitoring tools
• Emergency response fund

The CHUV has its own pharmacy. Therefore you may leave the CHUV with your animal’s medication on hand.

You can renew a prescription online, by phone at 450-773-8521 ext. 8322 or in person directly at the CHUV’s pharmacy.

Please note that any shipment of medication by Purolator requires a signature from the person receiving the package.

Many insurance companies offer coverage for pets. We recommend you do your own research with these insurance suppliers.

If you have found a lost domestic animal, you may contact the SPCA in your area.

If you find an injured animal that does not belong to you, you may bring it to the CHUV where it will be stabilised while waiting to find its owner.

If you find an injured bird of prey, please contact the bird of prey Clinic.

To obtain a copy of your animal’s record, you must contact our archives at 450-773-8521 ext. 8334. The CHUV disposes of a maximum of 20 days following the deposition of your demand to provide you with your copy. Associated costs will be given at the time of your request.

Medical file copy request

Certain groups of students of college or university levels with joint interests may visit the CHUV. For more information please contact us at communication@medvet.umontreal.ca.

The CHUV being a hospital and a teaching institution as well as a work place, we cannot honor demands from the public.