I guess we're pretty lucky here in Tallahassee, FL. I've never had a problem seeing a vet in an emergency or semi-emergency. The one time I truly had a ferret emergency, I called while driving there, went in the back door, and they had an empty room waiting for me with a vet right there. Unfortunately, it was too late. This was Lucy who died from lympho nearly 4 years ago. I never have a problem with vets fitting in my wildlife babies in emergencies and they don't even charge a fee to see them! If it's not an emergency, but they need medical care, they have always fit me in that very same day. How's that for good, caring vets. When Lily had a hematoma on her ear, I had no clue what it was. All I knew was that she had this huge, ugly growth that hadn't been there earlier. Called the emergency vet, who happens to be a great ferret vet. His office said to come on in. Before I even left the house, the doctor called me and we talked. He knew it was a hematoma from my description and told me to save the after-hours fees and just take her to her vet in the a.m. What a great guy! I've called the emergency vets when I've had dire, life-threatening emergencies with wildlife babies and they have talked me through it over the phone. It hasn't always ended successfully but they were there to help me. You can get good service if you act politely and they know you're not prone to overreacting. Of course, I think I have single-handedly paid for my ferret vets' new addition to their building <g>. Katharine [Posted in FML issue 2830]