Chess Veterinary Clinic 24 Hour
Emergency Service

Our 24 hour emergency service is provided by our own veterinary surgeons and nurses. Outside of normal office hours the contact number can be obtained by telephoning 01923 773444 and listening to the answer machine. Even during normal working hours it is best to contact the surgery first so that we are prepared to deal with your pet promptly. If you need to use our out of hours service, please bear the following points in mind:

• If your pet should need emergency treatment we would normally meet you at the Rickmansworth surgery.
• There is an emergency surgery on Sunday mornings at 11am at the Rickmansworth surgery. There is a surcharge for such a consultation but it is less than having a call-out.
• The veterinary surgeons that take the calls do so in adition to their normal working hours, and so please take this into consideration and restrict your calls to problems which you think are genuine emergencies.
• There is a surcharge for this service over and above the normal fees, which is payable at the time of treatment. If you have any queries with regard to costs, please ask at the time of your call.
• We do not routinely do house visits our of normal hours as the veterinary surgeon on call needs to be available for other emergencies that may occur. Serious problems are always best dealt with at the surgery where all of our equipment and medicines are available.
• It is sometimes necessary to hospitalise patients overnight. There is a veterinary surgeon and veterinary nurse on duty each night, but they will not necessarily be staying on site overnight. Check ups on patients will be made according to the needs of a particular case, and this usually includes a late night ward round. Please feel free to discuss the individual requirements should your pet need to be hospitalised.