Shield Veterinary Centre

A History of the Practice

Shield Veterinary Centre was established in September 1986, as David Frere-Cook fulfilled his long held ambition of setting up and running his own Veterinary Practice.

Still living today in the house in which he was born, David qualified from Bristol University in 1981 and immediately joined the Royal Army Veterinary Corps for a three year Short Service Commission. He then spent two years as an assistant in a small animal practice in North Hampshire before putting up his plate, as the first residential practicing veterinary surgeon, in Bishop's Waltham. Weekly visits by the P.D.S.A. van had been the only veterinary support in the town previously.

Starting with his wife as a receptionist and one qualified veterinary nurse the Practice grew steadily for 18 months when his first assistant joined, relieving the ongoing night and weekend duty cover.

The rest, they say is history........ The Practice has grown steadily over the last twenty years. A major structural expansion and upgrading of facilities in 1997 coincided with the shedding of the equine side of the Practice and it's evolution into an entirely Small Animal Practice.

Having always been a Veterinary Nurse Training Centre it is now a Registered Tier 2 Practice and retains its independence and own 24 hour emergency service.

The Practice aim is to maintain a personal and thoroughly professional service with a caring and competent approach to all our valued clients and their much loved pets. We understand, through caring for own pets, how much a pet becomes a family member and in treating all domestic pets we uphold our motto, "We Attend".

House Visits

House visits are available by arrangement both day and night .In some circumstances a Veterinary Surgeon will advise you to bring your pet directly to the surgery as it is equipped to cover every eventuality and precious time may be wasted by you insisting upon a house visit first.

Fees
To minimise overheads we politely request that all accounts are settled at the time of each consultation or at collection following an operation. Payment by cash, cheque (supported by a Banker's Card), Switch, Delta, Access, Visa or Mastercard is acceptable.

Please call in or telephone 01489 896734 for any further help or information on any of our services or products or to book an appointment.

Victoria Road, Bishop's Waltham, HAMPSHIRE, SO32 1DJ - 01489 896734

Emergencies

In the case of an emergency outside normal surgery hours, telephone the Practice and your call will be put through immediately to our personalised answering system. The on duty Veterinary Surgeon is immediately notified and will return your call within a few minutes. Remember, do not panic, we respond quickly and efficiently. If ever you have not heard from us within fifteen minutes, please telephone the line again and then keep your line clear for the duty Veterinary Surgeon to phone you back.
This Practice is determined to maintain its own comprehensive 24 hour emergency service for all its clients and their pets so that, in most instances, you will be seen by a familiar face. To minimise the frequency of Veterinary Surgeons being "on call" we share the rota with vets working at the Hedge End Veterinary Health Centre.

Standards, Specialisation and Facilities

The surgery is independent and has its own laboratory, operating and radiographic facilities, as well as sophisticated and expensive instruments, including ophthalmologic and orthopaedic equipment, an E.C.G machine and flexible fibre optic endoscopes. The sophisticated computer system, for clinical record and account keeping, ensures accurate information storage.