More than 150 people are pre-registered for a new town veterinary practice – with its owner promising to offer more affordable services.
The Independent Animal Clinic opens at the beginning of May and will be based in Unit 9 in Hoddins Way, Long Sutton.
This will be the first practice owned by vet Hetty Hayes and her husband Adrian, who live in Wigtoft, and their aim is to ease the price burden for services - such as dental treatments - in a market that currently can be expensive for animal lovers.
The company’s ethos is to be transparent with clients and provide an estimate of how much services would cost.
Mrs Hayes, 54, who trained as a vet in Utrecht in the Netherlands and moved to the UK in 2003, said: “I plan to be a lot less than other vets in the area as people don’t have the choice not to pay peak prices.
“We don’t have layers of management so we can be cheaper than a corporate practice.
“This is my first practice and it is all very new.”
Mrs Hayes has worked at other practices in the UK and graduated after completing eight years of training in the Netherlands and will have two employees.
She said: “In the Netherlands the course I did means I can practise anywhere in the world.
“In my practice I want to change the way we treat clients and give specialist advice.
“I want to encourage owners on how to look after their pets.”
As a keen animal lover herself – with four sheep, a horse and four dogs no less – Mrs Hayes has started work on the unit, ready for it to be open by May 1.
She said: “I have been busy painting and I got the keys on Friday.
“I have ordered my equipment and it has been very busy.”
The unit is rented from Lincolnshire County Council and she hopes to see all manner of pets for treatment such as guinea pigs, rabbits, dogs, hamsters and mice.
But the experienced vet is ready for all manner of creatures – having handled otters, bats and foxes throughout her career.
There will be a number of discounted services offered when the practice opens for animals with dental problems and she currently has a pre-registration list of 166.
Mrs Hayes said: “I want to give a more caring approach to veterinary services, giving animals good quality healthcare.”
A consultation is currently listed as costing £35.
Visit Independent Animal Clinic on Facebook and contact reception@independent-animal-clinic.com for further details on how to register a pet.
