Veterinarian Dr. Debbie Daniels has worked diligently for 34 years to build her pet hospital has now doubled the size of her facility in downtown Ripon to 6,000 square feet including two lengthy, covered dog runs.
She expects to see many of her supportive families at the grand re-opening and formal ribbon cutting of the Ripon Veterinarian Hospital on Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m. Food will be provided by Austin Meats.
From a humble beginning in the Ripon downtown, she has forged ahead to double the size of her business taking in the adjacent former office of the Ripon Record creating the new facility equipped with a digital x-ray unit and five doctors with a support staff of 20. The façade and the interior of the building have had a complete makeover.
She remembers having only two exam rooms when she opened in 1984. She now has six with two veterinarians who specialize in exotic animals from turtles to small birds. At the beginning it was just herself and a certified technician Gail Baughman.
“Back in the day we boarded one turtle, keeping it in a dog run,” she quipped.
The doctors on staff include Ann Scearce, Lindsay Croom, Janine Fassler, Stevie Reichmuth and, of course, Dr. Daniels herself.
Daniels noted her hospital offers monthly low-cost vaccine clinics on the third Saturdays of the month. Once a year they offer that service at the city animal shelter in the month of February and also once a month a low-cost surgery day is offered to pets under two years old and less than 40 pounds.
Two of her veterinarians offer acupuncture for pain and Dr. Scearce treats pets with Chinese herbal remedies.
“We also have a new cold laser unit to reduce inflammation as well as for wound healing along with a dental suite with new state of the art x-ray unit as well as a digital x-ray unit,” she said. “And for the birds, we had to buy little tiny scales so we could weigh them.”
She has bandanas for the larger dogs who might be brought in on Saturday by their owners. Daniels also plans a couple of raffles on the hour. Clinic tours will be conducted Saturday.
The pet hospital is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 5:30 and Saturdays from 8:30 in the morning until noon.
To contact Glenn Kahl, email gkahl@mantecabulletin.com.
