Surgical & Specialty Services
State-of-the-art diagnostics, procedures, and care.Essex Middle River Veterinary Center is a full-service animal hospital. We perform surgery five days a week, employ state-of-the art technologies for same-day diagnostics, and are proficient in therapies that treat the whole animal.
Our team of five veterinarians hold weekly meetings to keep up on the latest clinical standards. We strive to provide the highest quality of care to your pet through all stages of life.
Spays, Neuters, and other Soft Tissue Surgeries
We routinely perform spay and neuter procedures on cats and dogs, and our modern surgical suite is available to meet almost any other surgical need. </POur staff of compassionate, caring professionals will monitor your pet before, during, and after surgery and will take exceptional care to ensure a safe and complete recovery for your pet. We will also address any questions or concerns you may have about surgery, including concerns about anesthesia, pain management, or postoperative care.
We provide the following procedures:
- Spays and Neuters
Soft Tissue
- Soft Palate Surgery
- Ear polyp removal
- Splenectomy
- Gastropexy- Preventative and Corrective
- Urinary Bladder Stone Removal
- Intestinal Foreign Body Retrieval
- Bowel Resection
- Perianal Hernia Repair
- Anal Gland Removal
Pet Dentistry
We are so passionate about dental care that we offer a 10% discount on all dental procedures scheduled within one(1) month of our doctors’ recommendations. Call us to learn more!.
Behavioral Medicine
Our veterinarians can help you manage a wide variety of behavioral issues, from simple house training problems to severe anxiety and aggression issues. Although behavior problems can result from emotional trauma or physical mistreatment, in many cases the problem can arise from simple misunderstandings or learned associations that were inadvertently established during training. In addition, several medical conditions can manifest in ways that mimic behavior problems. Scheduling an evaluation with a professional skilled in diagnosing and managing behavioral issues in pets is the first step on the road to resolving the problem.
Additionally, we partner with Alma’s Balanced Canines and Mid-Atlantic Dog Training, who specialize in dog training tailored specifically to your pet’s needs.
Orthopedic Surgery and Prosthetics
EMRVC offers the following orthopedic surgeries:
- Amputation
- Bone Fracture repair
- ACL/Cruciate Surgery: Tibial Tuberosity Advancement (TTA); Extracapsular Repair
- Patellar Surgery
- Femoral Head Osteotomy (FHO)
Whether from severe trauma or cancer, sometimes it is necessary to amputate a pet’s limb. We offer custom made prosthetics from OrthoPets to maintain your pet’s quality of life. We also offer harnesses for dogs with hip problems. We will fit your pet to their required device, and facilitate the process of helping your furry family member get back on his feet.
Blood Transfusions
We are pleased to offer blood transfusion services supervised by our expert health care team.
Blood transfusion (including transfusion of blood products, like plasma) is a critically important service that can mean the difference between life and death for veterinary patients. This allows us to save the lives of animals suffering from sudden trauma—such as being hit by a car. Transfusions are also important for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, surgical patients, pets with advanced kidney or liver disease, cats with feline leukemia, and pets with hemolytic anemia or clotting disorders.
Blood loss that occurs suddenly due to trauma may require an emergency transfusion to save the pet’s life. However, not all blood transfusion situations are related to injury. Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, surgical patients, pets with advanced kidney or liver disease, cats with feline leukemia, and pets with hemolytic anemia or clotting disorders are some examples of patients that may require transfusions.
Administering a transfusion safely requires a highly skilled and experienced staff. Fortunately, our health care team is experienced in all aspects of transfusion medicine, including safe harvesting of blood from donor animals, cross matching blood types, selecting the appropriate blood product for a patient, monitoring for complications such as transfusion reactions, and continuing to provide expert critical care to patients during and after transfusion.
Microchipping
Even pets with collars can become lost. We are pleased to offer micro-chipping services through Save This Life. A microchip is a safe, simple form of identification that can significantly increase the chance that your pet will return safely.
Even if your pet wears a collar and identification tag, collars can break and tags can become damaged and unreadable. Each microchip is about the size and shape of a grain of rice and is placed underneath your pet’s skin between the shoulder blades. Implantation takes a few minutes and is very safe. Once your pet is registered, your contact information is available to any veterinarian, shelter, or rescue that scans for a microchip, allowing for swift reunion with your lost pet!
Pain Management
Experiencing pain can affect the body’s physical functioning and can have a detrimental effect on a patients well-being and state of mind. This is why pain management is among our primary considerations when we are treating any medical condition. The practice of high-quality veterinary medicine focuses on the entire patient.
- We provide safe and effective pain relief for:
- Routine procedures, such as a spays or dental cleanings
- Advanced medical treatments, such as bone surgeries or cancer treatments
Recognizing and alleviating pain in our patients is at the very heart of quality, compassionate patient care. We don’t take pain management for granted and will employ all our skills to help ensure your pet’s comfort, well-being, and full recovery.
Digital Radiology (X-Ray)
A radiograph (sometimes called an x-ray) is a type of photograph that can look inside the body and reveal information that may not be discernible from the outside. Radiography can be used to evaluate almost any organ in the body, including the heart, lungs, and abdominal organs, as well as the bones.
Our radiology suite is equipped with a direct digital radiology system. This state-of-the-art technology allows for a less stressful experience for your pet, and a quicker, more accurate analysis of your pet’s x-rays.
Radiography is a valuable diagnostic tool in veterinary medicine. As we continually strive to offer the highest quality medicine and diagnostic testing, we are pleased to offer radiology services as a means of providing excellent care to our patients.
Ultrasound Imaging
Ultrasonography is a sensitive diagnostic tool that allows us to identify both significant and subtle abnormalities in the abdominal and thoracic cavities of your pet. It is also instrumental in assessing fetal health and detecting pregnancy. Completely non-invasive and painless, we are proud to provide this as a key diagnostic service.
Endoscopy
Endoscopes are long, narrow robotic tubes outfitted with a tiny camera that allow our veterinarians to see a magnified, full-color image of your pet’s insides. An endoscope can be rigid, for examination of the urinary bladder, nose, ear or abdomen, or very flexible, for examination of the upper gastrointestinal tract or trachea and bronchial tree. We can even use an endoscope to remove small objects that dogs and cats sometimes swallow or to perform biopsies of internal organs.
Warm Laser Therapy
Warm Laser Therapy is a method of efficient healing, increased circulation, decreased swelling, and pain control that utilizes specific wavelengths of light to energize cell function. These soothing treatments take only minutes, and provide lasting pain relief for weeks. Specifically, we are able to treat soft tissue injuries, neurogenic (nervous tissue) pain, and degenerative conditions such as arthritis.
These soothing treatments take only minutes, and provide lasting pain relief for weeks. Please contact our office for more information, and to determine whether warm laser therapy could be a valuable addition to your pet’s health regimen.
Hospice and Euthanasia Services
Saying goodbye to a beloved pet is one of the most difficult situations a pet owner will ever encounter, but trying to decide when it is time to say goodbye can be even more difficult. What’s more, the decision regarding when to euthanize is fraught with medical, financial, ethical, religious, moral, and sometimes legal considerations.
Euthanasia is therefore a medical procedure that needs to be discussed (however sad that discussion may be) and considered thoroughly before a final decision is made. Our staff of compassionate, caring professionals can help you through this sorrowful experience. We offer hospice services and will work with you to ensure your pet’s comfort and dignity during his or her last days and final moments. Let us help you through this difficult time.
We can address any concerns that you may have, and will make every effort to accommodate your wishes at this very difficult time.
On-site, Fully-Stocked Pet Pharmacy
The FDA warns against buying pet medicine online—there are many “rogue websites” selling products that might hurt your pet.
As an alternative, we offer a pharmacy fully-stocked with medications obtained from safe, reliable sources and stored under optimal conditions. Additionally, we are always happy to provide accurate information about your pet’s medications, including proper dosing information, and to alert you to any potential drug side effects or interactions.
See our Special Offers for available discounts.
Frequently Asked Questions
We've answered some of the more common questions we receive about our veterinary practice below. Feel free to contact us if you would like more information or did not see your question answered here.
Q: Which types of pets do you see?
A: We specialize in care for cats and dogs.
For more information on the pets we care for, see our services.
Q: Which types of pets do you NOT see?
We would love to help every creature in need, but have opted to refer all exotic animals to Chadwell Animal Hospital in nearby Abingdon so we can better serve our cat and dog clientele.
For more information about the pets we care for, see our services.
Q: Do you offer any discounts?
A: We do! The following groups are eligible for a 10% discount:
- Seniors
- Active Duty military
- Veterans
- Police
- Firefighters
We also offer a 10% discount on dental care to anyone who schedules a dental visit for their pet within 30 days of our veterinarian’s recommendation.
Q: Which payment options are available to customers?
A: For your convenience, we accept Cash, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and CareCredit. We do not accept checks.
Payment is due at the time services are rendered. In order to schedule and hold all surgeries, a $150.00 deposit is required.
Read our full Appointment Policy here.
A Payment Plan may be established with CareCredit to allow you to create the easiest payment option for your budget. CareCredit has an automatic 6-month NO INTEREST Plan available, as well as other plans. CareCredit can also be used with many (human) medical service providers. For financing approval, visit the CareCredit website.
If you have pet insurance, EMRVC will provide clients with all the information they need in order to submit claims for reimbursement. Pet owners are required to pay for the services rendered at the time of service and seek reimbursement from their insurance provider.
For more information, contact us.
Q: Does my pet need an appointment?
A: We strive to be available to see patients when they need us and understand that sickness and emergencies happen. We prefer our clients schedule appointments, but in the event your pet has an immediate medical concern, please call us so that we can accommodate you and your pet.
Please inform us at least 24 hours in advance of any missed appointments. Our appointment policy is posted here.
Q: What should I bring to my first appointment?
Please visit out forms page and download the New Client questionnaire. Otherwise, all we'll need is a copy of your driver’s license or other ID.
