Pet Owners Shocked By the Sudden Closing of One Illinois Animal Hospital

I'm not going to lie, when I first saw this post show up on my Facebook news feed this morning I panicked a little...

I have two dogs that I adopted from Noah's Ark Animal Sanctuary, and it broke my heart for a second to think that the shelter has closed permanently, but then I read that post again. The shelter is still open and will remain that way, but Noah's Ark Animal Hospital is not.

Why Did Noah's Ark Animal Hospital in Rockford Close?

WIFR reports that employees of Noah's Ark Animal Hospital were sent a text message Tuesday morning (Aug 2)  saying they did not need to report to work because the hospital "has suspended operations as of today".

So, what's the reason behind the sudden closure of the clinic? Lack of veterinarians.

In 2020, Noah's Ark Animal Hospital began renovating a building on N 4th Street in Rockford so they could further expand their services and begin focusing on more low-income spay and neutering services as well as animal rescues, but some employees were not happy about those changes. Two veterinarians at the hospital recently resigned, and that led to more layoffs.

Noah's Ark  Executive Director of Noah's Ark Stephanie Lauer recently told WREX that "the quick shut down was not what the organization planned", but if you have no vets, you can't run a vet clinic.

What's Next for Noah's Ark Animal Hospital and Its Patients?

At this point, the future of Noah's Ark Animal Hospital in Rockford looks grim, but Noah's Ark board members say the hospital's closure won't be permanent. The organization is going to continue renovations at its new location on N 4th Street and use the time while the hospital is closed to deal with staffing and services issues. They hope to have the new, improved clinic opened by the end of the year according to to WIFR.

Noah's Ark board members also say the care of the hospital's patients, and their medical records will be transferred to other vet clinics in the Rockford area for the time being.