When a pet needs emergency attention, the key question is whether Lewis Small Animal Hospital is receiving patients at that time. The University of Minnesota Veterinary Medical Center (VMC) publishes overnight schedules on several official pages, but they do not give exactly the same answer for every overnight period. Here is what each page says—and where the schedules diverge—so St. Paul-area owners can make a more informed first call.
Three official pages give different overnight details
The Lewis Small Animal Hospital page lists emergency hours by day: Monday and Tuesday are open 24 hours; Wednesday is open until midnight; Thursday, Friday, and Saturday are open from 8 a.m. to midnight; and Sunday opens at 8 a.m. and remains open 24 hours. Its temporary-hours notice separately says emergency receiving is closed from midnight to 8 a.m. Thursday through Sunday, with normal 24-hour service from Sunday at 8 a.m. through Wednesday at 11:59 p.m. The notice and daily schedule align on Sunday’s 8 a.m. opening, but the wording matters: “24 hours” on Sunday applies after that opening, not to the hours before it.
The Emergency and Critical Care page lists the same daily hours, but its temporary-hours text says receiving is closed from midnight to 8 a.m. Wednesday through Saturday. A later passage on that page instead describes closures from midnight to 8 a.m. Thursday through Saturday and says the hospital is open 24 hours from Sunday through Tuesday. That Sunday wording differs from the daily schedule, which says Sunday service opens at 8 a.m.; the page also begins by describing emergency service as available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, before noting exceptions. Taken together, the page does not provide one consistent account of the overnight receiving windows.
The Emergency and Urgent Care Resources page says receiving is closed from Thursday through Saturday, midnight to 8 a.m., and that normal 24-hour emergency services remain active Sunday through Tuesday. Unlike the Lewis page’s temporary-hours notice, that closure summary does not include Sunday from midnight to 8 a.m.; its Sunday 24-hour wording also differs from the daily schedule’s 8 a.m. Sunday opening. Across the three official pages, descriptions of the Wednesday-to-Thursday overnight period and Sunday before 8 a.m. are not fully consistent. Use the published schedules as guidance, not as a live status confirmation, and call ahead.
Call Lewis before choosing an overnight destination
For current receiving status, call Lewis Small Animal Hospital at 612-626-8387 before leaving. Ask specifically whether it is accepting small-animal emergency patients now and what to do next if it is not. This is more useful than relying on a general “open 24 hours” label: the local listing for Small Animal Hospital shows that label, while the VMC’s official pages describe overnight exceptions. The listing gives the address as 1365 Gortner Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55108.
If Lewis cannot receive the case, the VMC’s emergency and urgent-care resource page lists other regional facilities and advises calling ahead because those locations can also have temporary closures or long waits. Confirm directly with any alternate hospital that it is open and able to receive your pet before driving there. The VMC page includes both emergency and urgent-care contacts; the right destination depends on the situation and current availability.
Urgent care has separate published hours
Lewis lists urgent-care hours as Monday through Friday, 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. These are distinct from the emergency schedule. The VMC defines an emergency as a medical incident or condition that, if not treated immediately, could result in long-lasting morbidity or mortality, and says emergency services are for emergencies. If you are unsure which route fits, describe the problem when you call and ask whether emergency or urgent care is appropriate. Published hours alone cannot determine the care a particular animal needs.
Explain the immediate concern clearly
When speaking with the hospital, briefly describe what is happening, when it began, and how your pet is doing now. Include the animal’s species and a callback number, and mention relevant medications or known medical history if you have that information readily available. Ask whether staff want records or anything else brought along. Do not delay contacting a veterinary professional to assemble paperwork.
The VMC identifies Lewis Small Animal Hospital as providing primary, urgent, specialty, and emergency care for companion animals. Its listed services include emergency and critical care, intensive care, imaging, surgery, and other specialties. That broad scope helps explain why owners may consider Lewis, but it does not mean every department is receiving patients at every hour. The hospital’s main address is in St. Paul, even though the local listing places it under Minneapolis; use the street address for navigation.
Use the schedule as a guide, not a live status update
The local listing shows a 4.6 rating from 195 reviews, but ratings and general hours do not answer the immediate question of overnight emergency receiving. For that decision, use the VMC’s published schedules to understand the stated pattern, then call 612-626-8387 to verify the current status and instructions. If the hospital directs you elsewhere, confirm that alternate location’s receiving status as well. This approach accounts for the documented schedule differences while keeping the decision focused on where your pet can be received now.
