Emergency Services for Large Animals

After-Hours Emergency Care for Large Animals

Maury County Veterinary Hospital offers after-hour care for large and small animals from 5:00pm - 9:00pm on weekdays. If we are unable to tend to your animal's emergency, contact one of the veterinary hospital below.

Steps To Take in a Large Animal Emergency

If your large animal is experiencing a veterinary emergency, try to follow the steps:

• Stay Safe - Keep yourself safe at all times. You will not be able to help your animal if you become injured.
• Try to Keep Your Animal Calm - For your animal to feel calm and reassured it is essential for the people around your horse to also remain calm.
• Move Your Animal to a Safe Area - Move your farm animal or horse to an area where they are unlikely to cause further harm to themselves.
• Get Help from Others at Your Barn - Delegate responsibilities such as calling the vet, holding the animal, and bringing the first-aid kit.
• Call Your Veterinarian as Soon as Possible - Provide detailed information about your animal's condition, including vital signs. Your vet will decide how to proceed based on the information you provide.
• Do Not Administer Drugs - Do not administer any drugs, including tranquilizers or sedatives, without explicit instructions from your vet.

Emergency FAQs

Even if you've been our client for years, if this is the first time you have contacted us for an emergency for your large animal, you are bound to have questions.

Read through our most frequently asked questions below to learn more about emergency appointments with our Maury County Veterinary Hospital vets. 

• How do I book an emergency appointment?

  Maury County Veterinary Hospital provides on-call 24/7 mobile emergency care for large animals in Columbia, communities across Maury County and beyond. We also handle large animal emergencies at our veterinary hospital in Columbia during our regular business hours.

  Please Note: Our mobile emergency service and after-hours veterinary care service is only available for existing clients of Maury County Veterinary Hospital.  

  If your animal is experiencing a health emergency, call us immediately. A member of our veterinary staff will take your call during our regular business hours and arrange for one of our emergency vets to see your animal either at our state-of-the-art facility or at your location.

  For after-hours, holiday and weekend emergency equine care, call our Columbia veterinary hospital immediately. Your call will be answered by an after-hours service and you will be transferred to our on-call veterinarian. 

• I am not an existing client. Where can I find large animal emergency services?

  For equine emergencies, please contact: 

  Tennessee Equine Hospital Main

  Call: (615) 591-1232
  Address: 1508 Thompson's Station Road West, Thompson's Station, TN 37179
  Hours: Available 24/7 for Emergency Cases

  For large animal emergencies, please contact: 

  TennSouth Veterinary Services

  Call: (931) 359-7393
  Address: 2043 TN-64, Lewisburg, TN 37091
  Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:00am – 5:00pm, Saturday: 8:00am – 12:00pm

• When is your veterinary clinic open?

  Large animal emergency services are also available at our hospital during our regular business hours:

  • Monday:07:30 am - 05:00 pm
  • Tuesday:07:30 am - 06:00 pm
  • Wednesday:07:30 am - 05:00 pm
  • Thursday:07:30 am - 05:00 pm
  • Friday:07:30 am - 05:00 pm
  • Saturday:07:30 am - 12:00 pm
  • Sunday:Closed

   After-hours emergency care is available for large and small animals from 5:00pm - 9:00pm on weekdays. Our after-hours veterinary services are only available to current clients.

• What situations require emergency veterinary care?

  Physical injuries are relatively common in horses, including sports injuries and overall mishaps around the barn. Other farm animals, likewise, may get themselves into trouble and sustain serious injuries. Physical injuries should always be treated by one of our veterinarians to help prevent injuries from growing more severe or becoming infected. 

  Signs of gastrointestinal pain (often referred to as colic) can be an indication of anything from constipation to extremely serious intestinal twists or displacements. If one of your large animals is showing any of the following symptoms call us right away for emergency care:

  • Pawing at the ground
  • Looking at their flank
  • Kicking at their side
  • Raising of the upper lip
  • Lying down, rolling
  • Sweating

  Other emergencies include:

  • Severe bleeding or bleeding that doesn't stop
  • Obvious signs of pain or extreme anxiety
  • Eye injuries
  • Heatstroke
  • Fever
  • Choking, difficulty breathing or continuous coughing/gagging
  • Fractured bones or severe lameness
  • Seizures
  • Pregnancy problems
  • Foaling difficulties
  • Refusal to eat or drink
  • Overall dullness
  • Diarrhea
  • Sports injuries (joint/tendon injury)
  • Stiff movement or refusal to move
  • Pale gums
• How long will we have to wait to see the vet?

  Our Columbia animal hospital is just like a human doctor's office — our caseload is always unpredictable. Call us as soon as possible if your animal is experiencing a medical emergency and we will do everything we can to have one of our skilled veterinarians see your horse. 

• What happens if my horse needs to stay in the hospital?

  Certain veterinary emergencies require intensive overnight care. If your large animal needs to be hospitalized, our vets will determine the best option for overnight care. In some cases, your horse may be referred to a different location.

• What other animals can you provide emergency care for?

  At Maury County Veterinary Hospital, we do not provide mobile emergency services for companions other than large animals. However, we can take care of the emergency needs of cats and dogs in our clinic during our regular clinic hours and between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays.   Emergency Care for Cats & Dogs

  Under extreme circumstances, we will help other farm animals who are experiencing signs or symptoms of an emergency.   Contact Us