Front Royal ‘Pub Crawl’ for the animals cancelled on St. Patrick’s Day; Animal Shelter and vet clinics open but new rules apply

Virus? Virus? What’s a virus?

The area’s dogs and cats don’t know, and if they did, they probably wouldn’t care about the Coronavirus pandemic – they are not susceptible to the disease – but they feature prominently among the many events and other cancellations in the Valley.

For example, the Warren County Veterinary Clinics at Rivermont and Cedarville are offering what amounts to curbside service during the COVID-19 crisis, and, similarly, the Julia Wagner Animal Shelter in Front Royal has altered its way of doing business.

On the eve of the events, the Humane Society of Warren County (HSWC) and the SPCA serving Winchester, Frederick and Clarke counties, cancelled their respective St. Patrick’s Day fundraisers scheduled for Tuesday, March 17. A new and novel event, a “pub crawl” among four Town of Front Royal hostelries scheduled for Tuesday evening, was postponed to a better time. The SPCA announced its cancellation of its “St. Catty’s Day” event through the Royal Examiner a few days ago.

Both the clinics and the shelter emphasized that they would be open for business, but using differing schedules.

Wagner Shelter Executive Director Meghan Bowers said the animal shelter is open “by appointment only” so call ahead if you wish to adopt a pet. Bowers said, however, that “if things continue to deteriorate, we will reassess the situation.” It will also continue to take in homeless animals. Hours are still 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., closed Wednesdays.

In a message to clients, the Warren County Veterinary Clinic at the two locations said it was “implementing a few changes to help ensure the safety of both our employees and clients while providing care for pets.”

“With so many news stories, it’s understandable to be concerned about the Coronavirus – the safety of our employees and clients is always our top priority,” the emailed message stated.

Starting Monday, clients were asked, when arriving for an appointment, to call from the parking lot to be checked in, then await a staff member who will admit the client and patient. The same procedure is in place for medication and food pickup, payments being accepted over the telephone and staff bringing the items out to the car. “This will be our version of ‘curbside service’ and will hopefully limit the spread of the virus,” the message said.

Curbside service for pets – we’re in favor of that!

The Blue Ridge Wildlife Center in Boyce announced the center remains open but with some changed admission procedures and possible cancellation of activities later this spring.