County Has No Emergency Service for Pets

To The Editor:
I’ve always planned to retire in Cape May. For the past 25 years, my late mother and I have met hundreds of friendly residents, many of whom are pet owners, during our semi-annual spring and fall vacations. Over the last six months, I’ve been actively looking for a home for me and my canine family of three, and as I begin to research the process of veterinary selection, I was stunned to discover that the county has no emergency service for pets. None.
The closest, I learned, is in Linwood, which is fine if one lives in Mamora, but lethal for those who live in Lower Township. How can this be?
A quality pet owner is always careful…but accidents do happen. So if one of my dogs goes into stomach bloat or torsion (as happened once in 22 years), and it is “after hours” at the vets office, he’s a gonner because it’s simply not possible to cover 40 miles of Parkway in 15-20 minutes.
I can’t help but wonder how many residents or summer people lost their beloved pets because of lack of care during closing time.
So again I ask: How can this be? Is there no interest among the residents (I doubt it)? Do the many vets and vet techs in the county refuse to volunteer their time once or twice a year in a central location (I doubt that, too)? Is it too much for someone to coordinate? And does anyone out there share this concern with me? I welcome any comments.
SANDRA BENNETT
Wallingford, Pa.