Expanding Emergency and Specialty Pet Services in Wilmington

This article was written before a car crashed into the Eastern Carolina Veterinary Referral building in August, rupturing a gas line and causing two explosions that destroyed the structure just weeks before its planned grand opening. Firefighters were evacuating the building when the second, larger blast occurred, injuring several emergency responders and leaving the site in ruins.

The veterinary hospital staff are hopeful that the building will be rebuilt and reopen at the end of 2026 or in early 2027. We’ll post an update as soon as we know more. 

Eastern North Carolina Veterinary Medical Center doubles in size and services to keep pace with local growth

By Vera Wilson  »  Photos by G. Frank Hart

As Wilmington continues its growth trajectory, so does its pet population. And all these furry family members bring with them the need for veterinary services.

No one knows this better than Gary Walker, Hospital Administrator for the Eastern North Carolina Veterinary Referral, currently housed in an unassuming building behind Wrightsville Beach Brewery that most people identify as the emergency hospital for pets.

“We’re in a Wilmington boom, and about 58% of households own pets. As people move in, they’re bringing their pets with them,” says Walker. “Last year, we performed 26,000 patient visits. This year we’re trending to meet 30,000.”

There are two important things you need to know about the hospital: First, it’s moving to accommodate the region’s growth, and second, it offers much more than just emergency care.

“In September, we’re moving from a 16,000-square-foot facility to one with 32,000 square feet on New Centre Drive, so we’re doubling our size,” says Walker. “This allows us to bring in additional staff and specialties.”

The new facility will also have a new name: Eastern North Carolina Veterinary Medical Center, which better describes all that’s going on behind its doors.

“Half of our business is the emergency room, and the other half is the specialty hospital,” explains Walker.

The specialty hospital offers services that include surgery, internal medicine, sports medicine and rehabilitation, and theriogenology—a branch of veterinary medicine concerned with animal reproduction.

Their surgical team handles emergencies as well as scheduled operations, and thanks to the larger facility, they’ve added a fifth surgeon.

Their internal medicine team includes the doctors your pet might see if your vet refers you to a specialist—just like your primary care physician might refer you to a gastroenterologist. They diagnose and treat issues from head to tail, like infectious diseases, urinary tract infections, seizures, diabetes, pancreatitis, and chronic vomiting. They can perform many tests and procedures on-site, including endoscopies, biopsies, ultrasounds, and CT scans. The new medical center will also house Wilmington’s first MRI machine for animals, saving pet parents a trip to Raleigh. With this new capability, they’re adding a neurologist to the team in October. An oncologist is scheduled to come on board in January, and they are currently recruiting a cardiologist, who will hopefully join next year.

The Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation team offers a wide range of treatment modalities. They look forward to the addition of a second underwater treadmill, often used to speed up recovery after procedures like knee or hip replacements. Other treatments include laser therapy and heated ultrasound to loosen joints and muscles, allowing for greater mobility—and sometimes even preventing the need for surgery.

Social Services for Hard Moments

Unique to the medical center is the presence of a social worker on staff. Since 2022, Charity Moorhouse—a graduate of UNCW’s Social Work program and certified veterinary social worker—has supported clients dealing with difficult, often traumatic situations involving their pets. She counsels clients through the grieving process if a pet has died and provides emotional support to those caring for sick pets. She also leads a monthly pet loss support group.

Moorhouse supports the hospital staff as well.

According to Walker, veterinary medicine workers have disturbingly high rates of suicide. “So the benefit of having Charity is that we don’t shy away from that conversation. We address it head-on.”

“If you’ve had to put down your fifth animal during your shift and it’s just too heavy to carry home, having someone to talk to can help you let that go—so you can come back the next day and do your best work,” he explains.

A Less Stressful Floorplan 

The move will also improve logistics. Cats and dogs will have separate intensive care units. The ER and rehab center will be housed on the first floor, while visits to specialty doctors will take place upstairs.

“You can imagine how stressful it might be for a cat to have dogs barking all around them. This gives animals a better chance to recover,” says Walker.

As for Walker, he’s happy to have landed at the hospital and is clearly proud of what he and his team have accomplished since he was hired three years ago. Although most of his career has been in human medicine, he felt his healthcare operations experience would translate well to veterinary services.

“They were looking for someone to take the business to the next level and handle the transition to the new building, and I was lucky enough to convince them I was that person,” he says with a smile.

And now, with a state-of-the-art facility like the Eastern North Carolina Veterinary Medical Center, Wilmington’s pets are lucky, too.