Bristol veterinary practice celebrates 25 years of caring for pets
A BRISTOL veterinary practice that came to life in front of a TV audience of millions is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
Viking Vets was set up in 2000 by Norwegian vets Maria Lowe and Trude Mostue after they appeared together in the BBC TV series Vets in Practice, and has been providing the highest levels of care to pets in Henbury ever since.
Also celebrating a 25-year milestone at the practice is Maria’s husband, Andrew, who became Practice Manager when Trude left to pursue a television career, and head nurse Lisa Cartwright who joined Viking Vets a week before it opened.
Maria says she can’t believe how time has flown but remembers the opening day like it was yesterday. The practice opened just one month after finding a suitable building, and three months after Maria had given birth to youngest son Isak.
Maria said: “Our very first patient was a puppy, which I thought was appropriate as it represented new beginnings and our first in-patient was a chicken. We hadn’t been able to set up the kennels in time for our opening because they wouldn’t fit through the doors, so we had to put the chicken in the garden for a few days, but they seemed very happy there!
“Since then, we’ve had so many pets come through our doors and what humbles me every day is the appreciation our clients give us and the trust they put in us to care for their much-loved animals. As a vet there is nothing better than following a kitten or puppy through their life and into their senior years, and it’s also rewarding that we have clients who first came to the practice as children when accompanying their parents.
“It was my goal when opening the practice to give first-class care to pets and an excellent service to clients, and that is no different today. What has changed over the past 25 years is that our team has grown from just four people to a team of 24 vets, nurses and receptionists, and along the way we’ve invested in new facilities and technology so we can continue to provide the best care.
“It has been an absolute pleasure to welcome all our clients to the practice, but our team is also very important to me. I love working with a team of people who go over and above to make sure people and pets are cared for and we are like a family. We get together for a short meeting every day and once a month we have an extended lunch break and I cook for everyone because looking after our people is the best way of delivering the best care to pets.”
The television series Maria appeared in, Vets in Practice, ran from 1996 to 2002 and around 10 million people tuned in to each episode. She said she initially had mixed feelings about being on television, but a conversation with her mum back home in Norway helped her decide.
Maria added: “Vets in Practice was shown all around the world and when I called my mum to say I wasn’t sure what to do, she was very excited. She told me that if I didn’t appear she wouldn’t buy me any more Christmas presents! Being on the programme was an incredible experience and we created so many incredible memories that were captured on camera. It was a quarter of a century ago, but people still ask me about it today.”
Viking Vets’ team members are set to celebrate the practice’s special milestone with a party, and for pets they are marking the year by launching Creaky Canines, a special clinic for older pets to help improve their mobility and keep them happy and healthy for longer.
Since 2021, Viking Vets has been a part of VetPartners, a veterinary group led by vets which owns some of the most respected and trusted veterinary practices and associated veterinary businesses in the UK and Europe.
