PET TIPS
After hours vet centres may admit several cases simultaneously. As such, our treatment room is open plan, allowing us to observe multiple patients as a time. The treatment room is equipped with modern, comprehensive facilities to stabilise, treat, manage and monitor your pet.
AAE opened in 2005 as a vet clinic Melbourne pet owners of all descriptions can visit when emergency vet services are needed. The clinic is serviced around the clock by eight vets, many of whom have completed post graduate training in critical and emergency vet care.
AAE is a Melbourne animal hospital and after hours vet located at Essendon Airport, located just off the Tullamarine Freeway. As a Melbourne veterinary emergency centre, our centre is permanently staffed with highly-trained emergency vets.
Emergency and Critical Care Unit
AAE is a specialised Melbourne veterinary centre that is fully-equipped to treat everything from simple problems through to major vet emergency situations like trauma and cardiac resuscitation.
Our Emergency Vet Department includes:
- Surgical Suite: We are equipped for all types of emergency vet surgery, as befits a Melbourne veterinary specialist centre. Specialised monitoring equipment provides constant monitoring of patients’ vital statistics, while warming blankets and heating pads keep animals warm during emergency vet surgery.
- Radiology: AAE’s radiology equipment allows us to take radiographs and process the films on site – an important capability for a 24 hour vet in Melbourne. We are always updating our equipment to enhance our ability to respond to any vet emergency.
- Ultrasound: A key aid in the case of animal emergency, Melbourne’s AAE has an in-house ultrasound machine that is used specifically in cases of trauma, critical illness and pregnancy. The ultrasound can be used to detect common issues in vet emergency situations including foetal heart beats and abnormal fluid in the chest or abdomen.
- Laboratory: AAE is supported by external laboratories which can usually return results within 6 hours on weekdays. However, in the case of an animal emergency, Melbourne pets don’t always have long to wait. Our extensive range of equipment allows us to perform a multitude of blood tests in house. It is rare that a 24 hour vet in Melbourne or even Australia-wide can compare their pathology service to ours. Within five minutes of blood collection we can have results that help us accurately treat life-threatening vet emergency situations.
- Pharmacy:In emergency vet situations, we come across a variety of unusual diseases. We have a wide range of medications, including antivenom for snake bites and paralysis tick antiserum.
- Resuscitation room: This room contains special equipment including pressure infusers for intravenous fluids; oxygen; heart and blood pressure monitoring; suction and a heart defibrillator.
- Blood bank: We stock large amounts of blood products and are able to blood type both dogs and cats onsite. Cat blood is especially precious. To help with an animal emergency, Melbourne cat owners are encouraged to bring in their cats to donate blood.
Intensive care from a 24 hour vet in Melbourne
Along with being able to deal with any animal emergency, Melbourne’s AAE also houses a critical care unit. This is complementary to our 24 hour vet – Melbourne pets requiring intensive care have access to experienced care around the clock.
Critically ill patients have access to central venous pressure monitoring, positive pressure ventilation or respirators, enteral feeding and parenteral feeding catheters and more.
Critically ill animals will likely need the assistance of a team of doctors. The Melbourne Veterinary Specialist Centre runs a day hospital from our premises, which means their specialists can support us as needed.