Business North September 2020

104 | Volume 19 | Issue 3 businessnorth VETERINARY SERVICES » Mill Road Vet Clinic Busy practice meets community needs Mill Road Vet Clinic concentrates on small animals and has state of the art radiology and ultrasonography technologies. Sue Russell A love of animals and a deep interest in science led Whangarei-based Didier Poot to pursue a professional career as a vet. Hailing originally from Belgium, Didier undertook his formal training in South Africa, returning after qualifying to work several years in England as a small animal vet. After settling in New Zealand he joined Mill Road Vet Clinic in 1996 and now owns the busy practice. He rates New Zealand’s training as world-class and frequently hosts students training through Mas- sey University. “The vets we employ are trained exceptionally well. They come out very well-rounded with a broad knowledge base from which to progress into specific disciplines and special interests within the veterinarian sciences,” says Didier. Mill Road Vet Clinic concentrates on small animals and has state of the art radiology and ultrasonography technologies to assist in diagnosis and subsequent treatment options. Today, a team of eight qualified vets, eight quali- fied nurses and four front-of-house receptionists combine to provide owners of companion animals with a comprehensive suite of care services. The vets and nurses are encouraged to develop special interests, to ensure pets are provided with the best. This also extends to a puppy kindy designed to give puppies and owners the best possible start. “We all have our own specific special inter- ests. Kevin Turner, for instance, is our exotic pet vet, caring for birds, small mammals and reptiles; Michelle Caris and Claire achieve miracles with complex medical and dental cases, Leanne with the scalpel, Elaine with skin and eyes, and myself with diagnostic imaging. “Kevin joined us in 2014 from Auckland, where he set up Auckland’s Exotic Pet Referral Centre. To- day he has a strong association with the Whangarei Bird Recovery Centre.” The practice’s ultrasound machine, purchased two years ago at a cost of over $80,000 is comple- mented with digitalised X-ray technologies, includ- ing dental, valued at over $100,000. “It means we can capture really intensive de- tailed imagery and I have been fortunate to have the professional support of an expert vet from Auckland who visits for ongoing professional development.” Didier says all the staff are committed to ongoing training as new diagnostic techniques and treat- ments evolve. “Our visiting specialist thoroughly analyses what we do and how we do it. We ‘own’ him for the day he visits and he’ll often look at specific cases as well as spend many hours providing professional development across the whole team.” And there’s an exciting future development about to begin which will eventually provide clients with a larger and fully equipped hospital facility on the site next door to the current practice at 116 Mill Road. “We’re very excited about this new development which will give us much more space. I have a very good friend who’s a wonderful architect, and has designed the new clinic.” It will give the clinic much needed space, and an opportunity to look at more services and technolo- gies to stay at the forefront of veterinary care. Asked what factors contribute to running a successful veterinary practice Didier’s answer is simple. “We have the best, most dedicated caring people in our team. We have a motto that states ‘We treat your pets as if they were our own’, and that is absolutely the case. He hopes in time to have endoscopy and a CT Scanner on site. “It’s a wonderful modality to look at soft tissue issues. It’s a very good diagnostic tool for looking at foreign bodies.” A 24-hour emergency care service is also sup- plied, providing clients with peace of mind, no matter what the time. Mill Road Vet Clinic also gives back to the community in the form of an animal welfare account, set aside to support treatment and homing of stray animals. “We try to fix them up from our own resources and find a happy home for them. “Our nurses are just incredibly good at taking care of these strays. “We’re also involved in giving the bird recovery centre in Whangarei our support and expertise as much as we can.” Along with the practice at Mill Road, another clinic, situated on Maunu Road, Whangarei, is open Monday to Friday, with the main Mill Road clinic also open Saturday. Zoetis proudly supports Mill Road Vets BUILDING A HEALTHIER FUTURE 0800 100 109 www.zoetis.co.nz Level 4, 8 Mahuhu Crescent, Auckland 1010 “Our visiting specialist thoroughly analyses what we do and how we do it. We ‘own’ him for the day he visits and he’ll often look at specific cases as well as spend many hours providing professional development across the whole team.”