After you send your question you land on the Waiting for a Vet screen while a vet picks up your request. Here's what to expect and what you can do in the meantime.
What the app tells you
The waiting screen is headed "Your request is under review!" and shows:
- Estimated wait time: ~10 minutes
- "We'll notify you as soon as \<Dr. Name> is ready. You can leave this screen — we'll still notify you."
Our emails put it a slightly different way: "Most vets respond within an hour."
Please note: these are guides, not guarantees. The wait depends on how busy vets are at the time. [CONFIRM: the hours vets are available for chat — whether cover is 24/7 or limited to certain hours/days]
You don't have to sit and wait
Leave the screen, close the app, do something else. When the vet joins:
- The chat opens automatically if you're on the waiting screen
- You get an email titled "\<Dr. Vet> is ready to chat about \<your pet's name>", with an Open chat link that takes you straight there
[CONFIRM: whether a push notification is also sent at the moment a vet joins, or whether that is email-only]
What's on the waiting screen
| Tab | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Session details | Your pet, the Assigned Vet, the topic you chose, and a Waiting status pill |
| Main concern | The question you wrote (or your AI chat summary, if you handed over from AI Vet) and any photos you attached |
There's also a Cancel Request button at the bottom.
Tip: if your device loses connection you'll see "You are offline. We will keep checking when you reconnect." — nothing is lost, the screen picks up again once you're back online.
Once the vet has joined
From that point you're in a normal back-and-forth conversation, with a typing indicator so you can see when your vet is writing and a read indicator once they've seen your message. The chat then stays open until somebody ends it or 24 hours pass with no messages.
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