I'd like to post a shoutout of gratitude for the veterinarians that are working through this crisis tending to emergencies while being short staffed and short of PPE because much of their stocks were commandeered for the local hospitals. One of my vets was almost single handedly holding down the fort over Easter weekend when both of my dogs required emergency surgeries for pyometra, and then a week or so later I needed the large animal vet to come for a foot abscess in the horse. Their offices are closed except for emergencies. This is a financial hardship for them too.
The small animal vets here are having people wait in their cars and the vet will come out with one of their leashes and take your dog inside. Do you know how hard it is to maintain a 6 foot spacing and hand off your dog? Or let the vet lift it out of the car without having it escape and go running down the road? If you have to take a dog or cat in for something, plan ahead and restrain as needed to make the handoff easier and safer.
When I took my two in to get their sutures out etc, this morning, some young twit pulled his car right next to mine so I could barely get the door open. Got out, ignoring the sign on the door that said STOP do not enter, call this number to let us know you are here, and entered the foyer dog in hand. No mask either. They sent him back to wait in his car. I moved my truck so I could get the door open to get my dog out, and proceeded to chew him out for no mask. Well, suggested he put one on. Said he had one but it was gone now.
It is a very small clinic, staying 6 feet away. would be nearly impossible. My point is our vets are trying to work under very difficult conditions, and showing them the courtesy of wearing a mask and trying to make their job easier would be a kind thing.
Furthermore there are increasing examples where pets and other mammals can catch Covid 19 from us. (Dog, cats, tigers, mink that I know about.) If everyone is sloppy about all this we increase the likelihood of getting the virus entrenched in populations of wild species as well as pets. Would be a surprise to me at least if transmission can't go both ways.