Patient Care Questions

Yes we do!

There is ample free parking at our emergency pet hospitals in Chicago, Grayslake, and Orland Park.

We have a free parking lot in Chicago immediately in front of our building, accessible from Belmont Avenue. We also have free rooftop parking accessible from N. Harding Avenue, off Belmont Avenue.

Calling in advance can help our team be prepared for your arrival.

If you believe your pet is in critical condition and needs immediate care, please call, and come to the hospital right away.

Phone: 773-516-5800

Critical Conditions

Below is a list of conditions that may require immediate care. If your pet is experiencing any of these symptoms, please call us at 773-516-5800 or come in right away.

If you aren’t sure, or think your pet may be in critical condition, please call us or come in immediately.  If you arrive and your pet is assessed to be in stable condition, you will be added to our triage line and have the option of returning home until your pet can be seen.

• Severe bleeding or bleeding that doesn’t stop within five minutes.
• Choking, difficulty breathing or nonstop coughing and gagging.
• Bleeding from nose, mouth, rectum, coughing up blood, or blood in urine.
• Inability to urinate or pass feces (stool), or obvious pain associated with urinating or passing stool.
• Injuries to your pet’s eye(s).
• You suspect or know your pet has eaten something poisonous (such as antifreeze, xylitol, chocolate, rodent poison, etc.).
• Seizures and/or staggering.
• Fractured bones, severe lameness, or inability to move leg(s).
• Obvious signs of pain or extreme anxiety.
• Heat stress or heatstroke.
• Severe vomiting or diarrhea – more than two episodes in a 24-hour period, or either of these combined with obvious illness or any of the other problems listed here.
• Refusal to drink for 24 hours or more.
• Unconsciousness.
  

Specialty consultations are available by appointment, but your pet can be seen at any time if you have an emergency.  If your pet is already hospitalized and needs a specialist consultation, we will arrange the consult internally.

You can visit any of our three animal emergency and specialty hospitals in Illinois, or, if Wisconsin makes sense, we have three hospitals in the Ethos network you may choose, based on your convenience and the services offered. A complete list of hospitals is available on the ethosvet.com website.

Your pet’s information can be accessed from any location. This is a huge benefit as the transfer of information is immediate and eliminates the need to repeat diagnostics. You can also ask your family veterinarian to transfer your records to our team if you were recently seen at your GP for the same condition. Ask your doctor to submit a referral.

We are open 24 hours a day, every day. You can call at any time day or night to speak directly with a member of the medical team taking care of your pet. Please let our client care representative know who you are and your pet’s name so he/she can connect you with the team caring for your pet.

Some exceptions:  Our doctors are in rounds from 8 am to 10 am daily to ensure that the entire hospital is aware of your pet’s needs and plan. Doctors will not be available to take phone calls during this time.

Please designate ONE family member to be the point person who will receive updates on your pet. This allows our staff to spend more time caring for your pet. Your calls may be answered by a member of our support staff. This is done in order to offer you an answer to your question as quickly as possible.

Our doctors will call you with an update on your hospitalized pet at least once daily. Other phone calls for updates will be directed to your pet’s assigned nurse. You will be called by your pet’s doctor if there is any change in their status or plan.  In addition, we will provide a daily update to your referring veterinarian, so they continue to be an integral part of your pet’s care.

Sutures/staples are usually removed 10-14 days following the surgical procedure.

Calling 311 or Animal Care & Control is usually the best option. Willowbrook Wildlife Center in Glen Ellyn also has great information about wild animals on their website.

Contact information for these organizations is available on our contact us page.

At many specialty and emergency hospitals, each service is a separate business or department. At Premier we believe that each patient should benefit from the collective knowledge and expertise of our entire team of specialists and emergency doctors every case, every day.

No, we do not board pets, but we can recommend places that do.

Payment is required at the time of service. We also offer Wells Fargo Health Advantage and accept Care Credit to allow for extended payments. More information on their programs is available here.  These plans are health-specific credit cards and all decisions for amounts of credit and eligibility are outside of our control.

Ethos Veterinary Health is a network of specialty and emergency hospitals with individual sister hospitals throughout the US. Ethos aims to deliver an innovative approach to veterinary medicine and through our non-profit, Ethos Discovery and its clinical trials, provide positive outcomes for pets and their human companions. Learn more here. Premier Veterinary Group was one of the four founding veterinary hospital groups who joined forces to create Ethos Veterinary Health in December 2015.

Like other veterinary specialty and emergency centers, we have the advanced tools and diagnostics (MRI, CT, Ultrasound, etc.) and training (board-certified specialists, dedicated emergency doctors, etc.) as well as unparalleled passion to provide optimal care for your pet. What differentiates us from the others is our intense focus on providing great customer service. Our goal is to make sure that every pet, every family, and every one of our referring veterinarians have a Premier experience, each and every time!