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Auburn Vet Medicine

BALDWINSVILLE - Holly R. Reid, D.V.M. is a busy small-animal veterinarian. With her partner Dr. Sandra J. Fitzpatrick, she owns the Beaver Lake Animal Hospital at 1528 West Genesee Road in Baldwinsville. On March 22 of this year, Reid opened a new business the Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Center (VECCC) at 2115 Downer Street, also in Baldwinsville.

VECCC provides emergency and critical care to dogs, cats, birds, reptiles, and "pocket pets," which are hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, and rabbits. Reid has worked as a small-animal veterinarian since she graduated from Cornell University in 1995, with experience in small-animal and exotic medicine, as well as emergency medicine and surgery.

Lest you think this capable veterinarian is also capable of being in two places at once, note that the Beaver Lake Animal Hospital is open during regular, day-time hours, while VECCC has overnight hours (open Monday through Thursday, from 7 p.m. to 8 a.m., and from 7 p.m. Friday through the weekend to 8 a.m. Monday). Reid explains, "I'm an adrenaline junkie. I thrive on emergencies. Recently, a client brought in her dog; the animal's heart and lungs had stopped working. We were able to revive it. That was very satisfying."

In addition to her satisfaction in being able to cope with emergency situations, Reid says she opened the emergency clinic to fill a market void. "The only local emergency clinic [for pets] was on Erie Boulevard in Syracuse." The nearest clinics outside Syracuse were in Rochester and Albany. "Our clinic pulls clients from Auburn, Fair Haven, south of Oswego, and west of Baldwinsville. It's accessible for people from southern Oswego County, western Cayuga County, and northern and western Onondaga County." She notes that it is located near Route 690.

The VECCC facility is 2,500 square feet in size.

"We employ one other full-time veterinarian, Dr. Kristen Grau," Reid says, "but we'll need to add another soon" because of the increasing amount of business. Five or six relief veterinarians help out at night and on the weekends.

There are two full-time veterinary technicians, and three to four technicians work at the clinic part-time on weekends. Three receptionists, four assistants, a practice manager, and an office manager, "who does just a little bit of everything," fill out the roster.

Reid explains that, although the clinic's staff performs surgery, "we don't do orthopedic surgery. That's usually not an emergency. We stabilize the pet and the fracture, then refer the patient back to her primary doctor, who will then refer it to a surgeon." The clinic frequently performs Cesarean sections and surgery on dogs for bloat. That's a potentially life-threatening condition in dogs, Reid notes, when gas forms in the stomach. Since opening in March, Reid estimates that the clinic has had 2,500 to 3,000 clients.

When a client calls with a sick pet, says the busy doctor, "we find out what the problem is, offer advice, and an exam. We tell them up front that the exam is $65. We stabilize the pet, than talk with the owner to find out as much as we can. Then we give the client an estimate for further treatment, so he can make the decision what to do. Many times," Reid points out, "it isn't an emergency."

Most of the animals are treated on an outpatient basis; some stay overnight or, if they come in on a Friday night, stay for the weekend.

"Communication is very important," declares Reid, "both with the client and with his primary veterinarian. We send typed forms to the client's doctor, giving him all information, so that it can be part of the pet's permanent record."

The best part of her job, says Reid, is being able to help an animal, and its owner. "We have a bulletin board where we post thank-you letters and cards from clients, That's what makes the job worthwhile. Even though we sometimes have to euthanize their pets, clients appreciate the time we take with them. I do believe that's very important to the owners. When we do have to euthanize an animal, we give the owner a clay paw-print of his pet." Reid continues, "The hardest part of my job is when an animal dies. You have to be able to understand how people feel about their pets and do what's necessary to help the owners as well as their pets."

Reid shares her home with a number of pets. "I have two dogs, four cats, an African gray parrot - and a husband," she adds, jokingly.

Free time is scarce, but Reid says, "My husband and I went on a cruise in November. I signed up for it a year ago, before I opened the clinic, so we went anyway."

Copyright Central New York Business Journal Dec 17, 2004
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