Vets in California

Veterinary care across California

We list 3,228 clinics in California, spread across 630 towns and cities. Of those, 99 advertise emergency services and 74 post 24-hour hours , while 9 are flagged as low-cost or nonprofit. The cities above are listed with their clinic counts; those with at least one emergency clinic are marked in red.

Emergency cover is concentrated in 69 towns — principally Los Angeles, Campbell, San Diego, Roseville, Berkeley. That concentration is normal rather than a gap in our data: an emergency hospital needs an overnight ICU, and that only sustains itself where the caseload supports it. The practical consequence for anyone outside those towns is that an after-hours crisis means a drive, and the time to work out where is before you need to.

Before you drive anywhere

Call first. Emergency hospitals divert cases when their ICU is full, overnight staffing changes at short notice, and "24-hour" sometimes means the phone is answered around the clock rather than a vet being in the building. The question that settles it is simply: "Is there a vet there right now, and can you take my case tonight?" For a suspected poisoning, ASPCA Animal Poison Control on (888) 426-4435 (24/7, consultation fee applies) can start giving treatment advice before you arrive.

What it is likely to cost

We don't publish clinic-specific prices — no practice can quote your case without seeing your animal. As a market range across United States, an emergency exam and triage typically runs $100–$250 before any treatment, and an emergency needing an overnight stay commonly lands between $800–$3,000. Metro and coastal hospitals sit at the top of these ranges; rural practices are often well below them. See the full cost breakdown or what to do when you can't pay.

How this list is built

Clinics are ordered by objective facts only — 24-hour status first, then emergency services, then alphabetically. No clinic pays to be listed or to rank higher. Listings are compiled from public sources and our own research, and every clinic page shows when it was last checked. Hours change faster than any directory can track, which is why every page here says call ahead. How we build our listings.