FARMERS in the South West will be able to benefit from a new veterinary service after the launch of Avon Farm Vets.
The new practice has been formed after the farm teams from two of the area’s best-known practices, Garden Veterinary Group and Hale Veterinary Group, joined forces.
Avon Farm Vets will be based at Wiltshire College and University Centre’s Lackham campus, near Chippenham, with an expanded team of nine dedicated farm vets with a focused approach to herd or flock health and welfare.
The combined forces of the farming departments from Garden Vets and Hale Vets, which are both part of UK veterinary group, VetPartners, will create a much stronger farm team, sharing their expertise and experience.
It will also improve response times and enable farmers to see the vet who knows them best, with the back-up of a bigger team.
The practice will cover North Wiltshire, south Gloucestershire and north east Somerset.
Garden Vets, which has branches in Chippenham and Corsham, has been serving the local farming community for nearly 50 years, while Hale Vets has provided care for the farm animals of Wiltshire since it was established in the late 19th Century.
Stephen Shiles, clinical director at Hale Vets, and Andrew Rose, clinical director at Garden Vets, will both become clinical directors at the new practice, leading the team of nine vets.
Stephen Shiles, left, said: “The combined forces of the farming departments from Garden and Hale will create a strong and passionate farm team at Avon Farm Vets. We are looking forward to learning about each other’s clients – their issues, their concerns and their needs – and will be able to work together to deliver a service to North Wiltshire farms which is second to none.”
Andrew Rose, right, said: “Over the past 50 years Garden Vets have excelled in caring for all types of animals throughout the North Wiltshire area. Now our farm vets are looking forward to dedicating more time to and working more closely with our farmers to maintain and improve their livestock health, welfare and production.”
Clients will be able to continue to collect medicines from any of the original central Chippenham branches and those in Corsham, Calne and Melksham, in addition to the Lackham site.
Avon Farm Vets, which officially opens on October 1st, will become part of the UK’s biggest farm vet group.
More than 130 of the UK’s most respected and trusted small animal, equine, farm and mixed veterinary practices are part of VetPartners. The group’s farm section covers 20% of all UK farm animals, 30% of dairy herds and over 45% of the pig population.
VetPartners’ focus is on providing an excellent service to farmers to help enhance the health, welfare and productivity of UK livestock. Their ethos is centred on being true partners, investing in people and infrastructure, whilst listening to customers and evolving with their needs.
Their existing farm vet network includes LLM Farm Vets, Garth Pig Vets, Clyde Veterinary Group, Westpoint Farm Vets and Parklands Veterinary Group.
In addition, the VetPartners group also contains some of the UK’s leading production animal health businesses, including Biobest Laboratories, Kingshay Independent Dairy Specialists and Poultry Health Services.
For media enquiries, please contact Amanda Little, VetPartners Senior PR and Communications Manager, on 07970 198 492 or email amanda.little@vetpartners.co.uk