Nottingham vet practice pays tribute to team as it celebrates major milestone
A Nottingham veterinary practice is celebrating its 20th anniversary alongside dedicated colleagues who have been there from the beginning.
Oak House Veterinary Centre has been caring for pets for two decades since Andrew Draper and his wife Kate Cullen opened the practice in 2004.
They credit the practice’s success to the team including long-serving colleagues, veterinary nurse Marie Harrison and receptionist Julie Wass who are also toasting their 20th anniversaries, and head nurse Liz Hasting who joined shortly after it opened.
Andrew and Kate met at veterinary school in Glasgow and bought the practice in 2004, having worked around Nottingham for ten years. They have overseen major developments including relocating the main site in Woodborough Road to the current state-of-the-art practice in Mapperley.
Earlier this year, Oak House Vets joined VetPartners, a veterinary group made up of some of the UK’s most respected small animal, equine, mixed and farm practices and animal healthcare companies.
Andrew said: “We feel immensely proud to be celebrating the 20th anniversary and to be able to continue to provide a high level of care and expertise for patients. It is a privilege to have worked alongside our wonderful team for so long and to have the loyalty of our lovely clients.
“Our aim was to create a practice where we would want to take our own pets, where clients and their companions receive the best care in a caring environment with a friendly and approachable team. We have fantastic team members who have kept that ethos going.
“The biggest challenge of the past 20 years was Covid, but the team responded heroically to the pandemic and continued to provide a good service to clients who were incredibly patient and respectful during this time of crisis.
“We are pleased to now be part of VetPartners. It has been a really positive experience and will enable us to continue the practice’s growth and development aided with their additional energy and support.”
The Mapperley Plains clinic has full consulting, diagnostic and surgical facilities including a dental suite, isolation and separate cat and dog hospitalisation facilities as well as a wide range of equipment including X-ray, ultrasound and an in-house diagnostics lab meaning clients don’t have to wait long for urgent results.
The practice is a cat-friendly clinic, accredited Silver by the International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM) for its care of feline patients and efforts to make visits as relaxed as possible. Measures include separate cat and dog waiting areas and kennels, a dedicated cat-only consulting room, calming pet remedy sprays are provided and cat carriers can be placed on raised shelves to help reduce feline anxiety.
Oak House Vets has a close-knit team of 24, including six vets, seven registered veterinary nurses, client care colleagues and students.
Head nurse Liz Hasting and her team are also involved in developing the next generation of veterinary nurses as Oak House Vets is a training centre in partnership with Nottingham Trent University and Derbyshire-based Bottle Green Training.