VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center

Our Story

At VCA Southpaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center, we've helped pets live long, healthy and happy lives since 1995. We work hard to deliver the best medical care for your pets, as well as the best experience for you, the pet owner.

Our veterinarians, technicians and other pet-friendly support staff are trained to the highest standards. Their thorough knowledge of the latest procedures and medicines ensures that all our patients get the best in prevention and healing care.

Hometown Care at VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center

For over 20 years, VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & 24-hour Emergency Center has been serving the metropolitan DC community 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Our board-certified veterinarians provide the best specialty and emergency care for pets and their owners throughout Northern Virginia (including Falls Church, Vienna, Annandale, Burke, and McLean), Washington DC, and Montgomery County, MD.

Founded in 1995 by three left-handed doctors, SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists and Emergency Center is uniquely qualified to address major, life-threatening, challenging or difficult health problems in pets. Our specialists have undergone two to four years of advanced training following completion of their veterinary doctoral degree. They then complete rigorous qualification procedures and examinations in order to be called “specialists.” SouthPaws’ specialists provide care in our Surgery, Oncology, Internal Medicine, Radiology, Neurology, Ophthalmology, and CritiCare departments. Our Pet Rehabilitation service is run by a real physical therapist, not someone who took a quick seminar. Our CritiCare department offers twenty-four hour admissions for urgent, critical or emergency patients, and provides continuous care including weekends and holidays. Our hospital's compassionate and expert medical team has years of experience in companion animal medicine, and they are dedicated to one thing—helping your pets get well.

In addition to our exceptional staff, SouthPaws is equipped with the most advanced, state-of-the art technology available, allowing our doctors to arrive at quicker and more accurate diagnoses and treatment protocols. Our hospital offers ultrasonagraphic examinations, neuroelectrodiagnostics, complete endoscopy services, laparoscopy, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), digital radiography and fluoroscopy, hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), Varian Halcyon for radiation therapy, 3D Spiral CT scanner, respiratory ventilators, and five enclosed surgical suites with complex anesthetic monitoring equipment—ready to be used to provide the best care possible for your pet.

Whether it is endoscopy to evaluate a gastric ulcer; ultrasonography to look for liver shunts; total hip replacement surgery for dysplasia; combination chemotherapy for lymphoma; radiation therapy for soft tissue sarcomas; blood transfusions for anemia; delicate brain surgery to remove a tumor or repair a skull fracture; corneal grafting for a lacerated eye; thoracoscopic surgery to remove a diseased pericardium; 24 hour oxygen, fluid and intravenous antibiotic therapy for pneumonia; partial mandibulectomy to remove oral cancer; or a discussion of medical, nutritional, and pain management for chronic illnesses, you are certain to find what your pet needs at VCA SouthPaws.

Thank you for visiting our site to learn more about VCA SouthPaws Veterinary Specialists & Emergency Center. Should your pet ever experience a medical crisis or require the expertise of a veterinary specialist, we are here to help, offering the best medical expertise, advanced technology and a dedicated and compassionate staff.

Accreditations & Affiliations
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VCA Pet Cancer Care Alliance

VCA’s goal is to help treat your pet’s cancer, giving you and your pet more quality time together.

At VCA Pet CancerCare Centers, our oncology teams design individualized treatment plans for each pet patient using the most advanced and effective treatments available—much like those used in human medicine. Today’s cancer treatments have fewer side effects, so most pets remain comfortable and happy throughout treatment.

LEARN ABOUT THE VCA PET CANCERCARE DIFFERENCE AND THE STORIES OF PETS WE’VE HELPED AFTER A CANCER DIAGNOSIS

Helpful Resources

We accept CareCredit, the pet, health and wellness credit card with flexible, budget-friendly financing options that allow you to pay over time for a range of treatments and services—including procedures, medication and more.*

To learn more about CareCredit, or to see if you prequalify, please visit us.

*Subject to credit approval.

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Lionbridge provides over-the-phone and video interpretation services for non-English-speaking and American Sign Language (ASL) clients. In real time, veterinary providers can enlist an expert Lionbridge interpreter to facilitate a clear exchange of information between themselves and clients. Lionbridge’s on-demand, remote interpretation services enable effective and accurate communication with clients. This service empowers clients to be heard and spoken to in their own language, which in turn facilitates a deeper understanding of the care your pet needs.  

Learn more about Lionbridge’s interpretation services: https://www.lionbridge.com/content-transformation-services/interpretation-services/.

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