Peaceful rally to support protection of our animal family members.
About this event
Hello everyone and welcome! First and foremost, this group is for animal lovers of all kinds. We will share important messages and experiences with our communities in a peaceful and productive manner.
Secondly- veterinarians, vet techs, and other vet staff are in severe demand. This is a widespread massive and known issue. This group is in no way meant to demean the work done by these employees, owners, and human beings. This group is a cry for help- if any veterinary medical facility is labeled as an emergency hospital/center/office but does not have a vet onsite during open hours it creates a danger to us, our families, our animals, and our community. Unfortunately the vet staff shortage is so bad that establishments, that may have been able to operate with adequate staff previously, are now operating with bare bones staff in most cases.
If you Google emergency vet near you, I encourage you to take a moment to call them. Ask how they are, ask if you can do anything, and ask if they have a vet on site during open business hours. As a pet owner, it is important to know where to go when you have an emergency. Unexpected things can happen at any time, and learning the hard way where the emergency services are is an unpleasant experience. Also, one quick plug here- animal insurance is important! If the day comes that you need it, you will be happy you have it.
Onto our story- we learned the hard way. Our dog had a serious and traumatic injury at 4:30 pm on a Friday afternoon. My husband scooped the dog up (I was just leaving work), and took him to the closest emergency vet. He walked in with our baby in dire need of help, and was told there was no veterinarian on site, or even close- the vet was on "vacation" according to the front desk staff. My husband asked for a piece of gauze, or a box to secure the dog in, and he was told no. They wouldn't even give him a paper towel out of the restroom. He drove 15 miles away, with our dog in his arms, and THANK GOD made it to The Oaks in Agoura Hills. They were able to take him in immediately.
Fast forward, our dog Oliver (Ollie) spent hours in surgery, however they were not able to save his eye. In an instance that your animal needs immediate care, a reasonable expectation would be that an "emergency" labeled vet facility during open hours would have a vet on staff/site/local area. Not the case at this facility. Now, what they do very well (as reported by a few people I have spoken to) is cancer treatment and end of life care. Why not be labeled as such, and have open hours that can accommodate what the staff can actually service? I have a few answers to that, if you actually want to know.
Personally, my heart has bee shattered on repeat. From our families experience, Ollie's experience, the messages of people that have has the same or worse experience, the people that have joined us so far that lost their animal here, and to every person in the vet industry that is forced to stand up for their peers even if it means these animals suffer. I hear you. I feel you. I know, and I cannot imagine. What I can do is spread the message in every venue I can. And I mean every. I will do everything I possibly can to save a life and save a heartbreak in my community. This is done by raising awareness. But, I am only one person and I cannot carry this burden alone.
To carry the weight as far as I need to go, I will need help. Help means whatever you can/will/are able to do to support our cause. Do you have one hour to hold a sign? Do you have time to organize a rally? Do you have bandwidth and experience to help with everything else that must be done? Please reach out if you would like to help in any way. This may be a long road, and we are focused on doing all the right steps to get there. If you need help with a similar situation, contact joeyslegacy.org. The owner Scott is a wonderful human being! Thank you for all the love, support, and kind words. Let's do this!