If you're going to make it through the current off-season, you're going to have to make like Dr. Jeff himself and have patients. (Get it? You kind of have to say it out loud.)

There's been no word of a sixth season yet, and in fact it is technically overdue, though the show has never stuck to a schedule like most do.

Animal Planet has never let more than eight months elapse between seasons of its popular veterinary reality show, and the gap had been steadily decreasing. Eight months passed between the first and second seasons, but only five months lapsed between the third and fourth seasons, and between the fourth and fifth. By that schedule, a new season should have debuted last month, but as you know, it hasn't.

However, there's a pretty strong case that there will be another season. "Dr. Jeff: Rocky Mountain Vet" has been pulling in more than a million viewers per episode for Animal Planet, which is a pretty good showing for cable overall (the show has been one of the network's top performers), but especially for Saturday nights.

The only thing that might stand in the way of renewal is the network's recent rebrand. It has revamped its logo to one of a jumping elephant, which relates to a general redirection toward a "global brand identity" for "every member of the family."

That, of course, can be interpreted in a number of ways, and there's nothing about "Dr. Jeff" that falls outside that mandate. However, the network has also promised 25 new shows to go with the new identity, and it will have to make room on the schedule somehow.

In the meantime, you'll just have to be patient and hope you get to see more of Dr. Jeff's patients soon.

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