Maritime Veterinary Emergency and Specialty Centre - MVESC

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Dartmouth, NS
Maritime Veterinary Emergency and Specialty Centre - MVESC

Maritime is Dartmouth's newest, state-of-the-art, 24,000 sq. ft. 24/7 emergency & specialty veterinary hospital.

08/04/2026

Meet Radagon!

Radagon is a Bearded Dragon who recently visited our exotics team. This spunky little dude had his hand bit off by one of his siblings not long after they hatched, leaving him with a ‘nubbin’. Despite this, nothing can slow him down! He is crazy around the house and is known for jumping and climbing all over his owners furniture!

It is unfortunately not uncommon for Bearded Dragons to suffer from physical deformities, typically brought on by mineral or vitamin deficiencies. This is why it is so important to work alongside your pet's medical team and supplement your reptiles' diets to ensure they have the proper nutrition and keep your little friends healthy.

08/02/2026

Yes - We will be open this upcoming Monday August 3rd!

Emergencies can happen anytime, which is why we are happy to be open 365 days a year and 24/7.

If your pet needs urgent care please call us at 902-932-0838 or come directly to 39 MicMac Blvd, Dartmouth

07/31/2026

Meet sweet Mr. Oskar!

Oskar recently paid our emergency department a visit due to his owners noticing him straining in the litterbox. Originally thought to have been from constipation, it was determined on examination that Oskar was experiencing a urinary blockage, or urethral obstruction. This is an unfortunately common thing to see in male cats, and is life threatening if not caught in time. Thankfully we were able to see him before it got to that point, and a urinary catheter was able to be placed to help get things flowing again. There are multiple causes for a urethral obstruction, including crystals or urinary stones, and in Oskars case a mucus plug was determined to have been the cause for his blockage.

Oskar then spent a couple of nights in our cat ICU for continued monitoring and to keep the urinary catheter in place to ensure everything continues to flow as normal. There is an unfortunately high rate of cats experiencing another blockage soon after the first, so continued monitoring is very important after unblocking.

Oskar has continued to do well following his visit, and his owners are very thankful for the kindness and care that was put into their boy during his stay with us.

07/30/2026

Thank you for your kind words for our amazing Emergency Department!

07/28/2026

Meet Hal, a Corgi puppy who recently visited our surgery team.
Hal presented to his regular vet for complaints of limping, however x-rays showed a suspected deformity of his front legs.

A CT scan showed premature closure of his growth plates, which young pets (and people!) have in our long bones when they are young. These growth plates aid in growing and hardening of the bones during development. Due to this premature closure of these plates, Hal's ulna bone did not grow as long as one of the other bones in his legs called the radius causing his joints to not be able to move properly.
One of our surgeons, Dr. Rebecca Beardall, was able to perform a procedure called an ‘ulnar osteotomy’, a procedure that involves using a saw to cut the shortened bone causing a gap that the body will naturally grow more bone to fill. This allows the ulna to grow longer to better match up with the other bones and joints and help Hal be more comfortable running around being a happy little Corgi puppy.
Hal has been happy to be able to be back to his puppy self as crazy as he is!

07/25/2026

Meet Holly Hock!
Holly recently visited her mom's work to give blood to a kitty in need. Although we have blood banks locally for dogs, that is not an option currently for our kitty friends. When blood is needed, a donor cat must be called in.
When TA Emily heard there was a kitty in need, she did not hesitate to bring Holly in to donate. Holly spent the day in clinic, and the kitty who received her donation was able to recover well and be discharged back to his loving family soon after. Holly was a gold star kitty while in clinic, even earning herself a ‘Patient of the day’ ribbon.
Fun fact - Holly is named after the Holly Hock flower, not the holly bush!

07/23/2026

Meet ‘Superdog’ Snuggs!

Snuggs is a long term patient of our fantastic internal medicine department who have been working alongside his owner to manage his diabetes. Recently bloodwork showed signs of concern, and an ultrasound and CT scan showed a mass present on his liver.

Thankfully, he was able to be quickly seen by our lovely surgery team, who were able to get Snuggs in right away for surgical removal of a portion of his liver in a procedure known as a liver lobectomy. Snuggs was kept overnight with our ER team for monitoring and was able to return to his owner the next day. Typically, patients will need to arrive for surgery fasted, with no food given for 12 hours prior to the procedure, however, in a diabetic patient that can be dangerous. His health care team, consisting of our internal medicine, surgery, and overnight ER teams, was able to work together to come up with a pre and post-operative plan for Snuggs to account for his diabetes and ensure the procedure was as safe as possible for such a special patient.

07/16/2026

Thank you for your kind words about our amazing Cardiology team!

07/10/2026

Thor is a 7 year-old bearded dragon that came to us with the owner reporting a small growth on his tongue and an unusual decreased appetite. 🦎

Further examination and tests by Dr Quesnel and her team revealed that Thor was keeping big secret. An ultrasound of Thor's coelomic cavity revealed the presence of several vitellogenic follicles, or mature follicles that remain static on her ovaries without completing the normal egg formation cycle. Thor's owners reported never seeing her lay eggs. This is also how we all learned that Thor was actually female! 🥚

The treatment for pre-ovulatory follicular stasis in captive non-breeding reptiles is an ovariectomy or surgical removal of the ovarian tissue and retained follicles. This condition can often be painful, lead to complications like coelomitis, anorexia and secondary hepatic lipidosis.
The oviducts are usually left in place as a safety net if the ovarian tissue were to regenerate and make more follicles, which can happen commonly in reptiles.
Thor was brought to surgery and did beautifully, and was awake enough to pose with her large follicles.
Thor is doing beautifully at home and has regained appetite for her favorite insects.

Dr Quesnel sees and treats reptiles on an appointment-based schedule, and these species can receive urgent care should they need it through our emergency department. Contact us to know more!

07/08/2026

This is Jax, who recently celebrated his 19th birthday! 🎉 He receives regular acupuncture treatments to help keep him comfortable, active, and feeling his best. In this photo, he's looking especially relaxed after finishing a treatment session. What a good boy, Jax! ❤️

Address

39 MicMac Boulevard
Dartmouth, NS
B3A4Y8

Telephone

+19029320838

Website

http://maritimevet.ca/

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