132 employees to be affected by closure of emergency veterinary practice in Brighton
Update, Aug. 28, 2023: Thrive Pet Healthcare has filed a WARN notice (or Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) with New York state that Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Services, 825 White Spruce Blvd., Brighton, will close Nov. 27, 2023. The notice says 132 employees will lose their jobs on that date or the 14-day period starting on that date. The reason for the closing is listed as "economic."
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Original story, Aug. 25, 2023: Three weeks ago, Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Services in Brighton, previously the greater Rochester region’s only 24/7 animal hospital, cut its hours for the second time in less than two years.
Its parent company, Texas-based Thrive Pet Healthcare, cited staff shortages but vowed to fill open positions.
However, late Thursday night, Thrive announced the practice is closing for good.
In a statement, Thrive wrote: “Due to a lack of ER doctors, we made a very difficult decision to close Veterinary Specialists and Emergency Services (VSES) hospital in Rochester. The last day of operation will be no later than November 27th."
On its website, Thrive lists 21 VSES veterinarians, including 11 emergency vets, but the statement paints a dire picture: “We explored multiple options to remain in service, including recruitment and staffing with a rotation of doctors from other clinics in the area. The pool of full-time or relief candidates with emergency and surgical care experience is very limited. This is a nationwide challenge that our team is experiencing acutely in the Rochester region.
“We recognize that the closure of this hospital is a huge loss to the community and our team members, and the decision to close was one of the most difficult ones we’ve made as a company.”
A group of approximately 130 VSES workers who formed a union in January 2022, sharply disputes those assertions, alleging in a statement of its own posted publicly to Facebook that the company is “flat-out lying” about having “explored multiple options” and that the closure is the result of “corporate greed.”
In May 2021, VSES was sold to Thrive, which has more than 400 veterinary clinics nationwide (including 18 in the Rochester area) and a private equity firm as a major stakeholder.
In moving to unionize, the VSES workers, including veterinary technicians and assistants and front desk staff, expressed frustration with working conditions after Thrive took over.
Thrive said it will continue to operate VSES “as long as we can ensure a reliable schedule of care for our patients.”
As of Aug. 25, hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.
“We recommend that pet owners contact the VSES team first to ensure they have capacity before bringing a pet to the hospital. The team will do everything they can to help,” Thrive wrote.
Pet owners who want to retrieve copies of their pets’ medical records, should email vses.petrecords@thrivepet.com.
VSES traces its roots back to 1988, and its 24/7 service began in 2000. Hours were first curtailed in January 2022.
There are 24/7 veterinary hospitals elsewhere in central and western New York.
Syracuse, which is smaller than Rochester, has one: Veterinary Medical Center of Central New York at 5841 Bridge St., East Syracuse. Its phone number is (315) 446-7933, and its website is vmccny.com.
And despite being only slightly larger than Rochester, the Buffalo area has several, including Orchard Park Veterinary Medical Center, 3930 N. Buffalo St., Orchard Park. Its phone number is (716) 662-6660, and its website is opvmc.com. Green Acres Veterinary Center is at 2060 Niagara Falls Blvd., Tonawanda. Its phone number is (716) 213-0283, and its website greenacresveterinarycenter.com.
"If Buffalo can figure it out, Rochester should be able to, too," said Tami Becker, a volunteer and spokesperson for nonprofit animal rescue group GRASP, Greece Residents Assisting Stray Pets.
"For a city our size, this is a quality of life issue," she said. "I’m not sure how the community is going to deal with it, but I hope there is a path forward because there is a need in the community. My own cat is 17½, and I wonder if there will be resources available at the time she needs it."
Becker also worries about the strain that VSES' closure will place on other veterinary practices.
“It’s like a snowball rolling downhill," she said. "This is going to be taxing on every other practice.”
She pointed out that even if some of those practices were willing to expand their hours, it wouldn't necessarily solve the problem because emergency veterinary medicine is a specialty.
"But hopefully, this is a figure out-able situation."
Reporter Marcia Greenwood covers general assignments. Send story tips to mgreenwo@rocheste.gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @MarciaGreenwood.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Services in Brighton NY closing
