Emergency Veterinarian With Overnight Hours Opens in Hoboken

HOBOKEN, NJ — Pet owners aren't always sure where they can bring their dogs, cats, and birds if they have an emergency in the middle of the night or on the weekend. But the newest location of Veterinary Emergency Group held its grand opening in Hoboken last month, giving North Jersey animal lovers a new choice.

The location, near the city's northern border with Weehawken and less than a mile from the Lincoln Tunnel entrance, is open on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 6 p.m. through 8 a.m., and 24 hours starting every Friday at 6 p.m. through Monday at 8 a.m. to accommodate weekend emergencies.

The practice held its soft opening on Nov. 20, 2019 and a grand opening on Dec. 3.

A spokeswoman said that in their first six weeks of being open, they've seen pets from Jersey City, Fort Lee, Edgewater, North Bergen, Bayonne, Ridgewood, Secaucus, and neighboring Weehawken. But someone actually brought a pet from Alabama (they were visiting family in Jersey City).

What kinds of emergencies require a visit?

"As with most ER hospitals, we see all sorts of more common emergencies," she said, "such as allergic reactions, ear infections, vomiting and diarrhea, all the way to more serious but less common emergencies such as internal hemorrhage, animals hit by cars, seizuring animals, animals with urinary obstructions, difficulty breathing, toxin ingestion, and many more."

The two worst cases so far: A dog who was bitten by another, causing punctured intestines and a hernia. "She is recovering and feeling much better," said the spokeswoman. "[We] also had a chihuahua with traumatic brain injury and actually punctured through an opening in the skull that chihuahua's have called an open fontanelle. He had a seizure on presentation, but emergency treatment was instituted. He did very well overnight before being transferred to a referral center in the morning."

VEG already has locations in Clifton and Union, and in New York state. They say they are planning new locations in 2020 in Chelsea, NY; in Aventura and South Tampa, FL; and in Fort Worth, Denver, Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco. Their locations, hours, and contact information are listed here.

The Hoboken location, at 1327 Willow Ave., can be reached at (201) 630-0636.

While there aren't many overnight veterinary offices in North Jersey, there are a few others. Here is a partial list, and there's 24-hour animal hospital in Paramus, Oradell Animal Hospital. It's best to keep a list of the emergency numbers and addresses on hand, and double check before going.