Celebrating a Decade!

Here's to the next 10...

Happy Lagos Day, reader - for the 27th of this month. It also just happens that this Dia do Lagos is the 10th anniversary of the Lagos Vet Clinic. We had our opening party on the Lagos Day feriado in 2011, before we opened the doors on the 28th. Not shy of hosting pizza puppy parties, we were hoping to have a little bash on the 2021 October feriado, to mark our 10 year day. But alas, E17… sorry, C19 is amongst us. This actually makes E17 the preferred option. Interesting.

So, with COVID lingering around like a bad smell (that can kill you), we figured we´d skip the 10- year heels-up and have a humdinger of a Legs 11 next year, instead - hopefully, without masks, etc. Inshallah.

Ten years ago, we were working in the clinic which I bought and then closed, in order to open LVC. We were running on skeleton furniture in October - especially if you are reading this article on the 20th of the month. By the time we were moving into the new clinic, I had brought over the doors, surgical sinks and table, hospital cages, anaesthetic machines, a massive X-ray unit, an ultrasound, consult table, and by the 20th, the reception balcão was moved over too. Kay was tap dancing in front of a (nicely clad) fold-up garden table, selling Advantix and receiving clients. And to that end, I´d like to thank---my Straka. Yes, I am proud to say that all the doors and sinks and all the heavy veterinary equipment, we managed to move on our own - all in the back of my old Straka! I loved that car.

Cheekiness aside, let me not understate the un-enduring (though sometimes long-enduring) work/help/support/comic relief and sensitivity of the inimitable Kay. Anyone who knows LVC knows of whom I refer. So, thank you again, Kay, for the Lagos Vet Clinic actually opening and, indeed, staying afloat for ten amazing years. Credit where credit is due! It is, of course, also due to the great work of many vets and nurses over the years; you know who you are! This October, we are also losing our nurse, Ana (Jesus). Ana has been with us from the early years of LVC, helping the animals and charming their owners all along the way. We are very sad to see her go, wishing her all the best with her business pursuits, and for life in general!

It is now ten years of excitement and rewards from with working with local animals. Being the trade, there were also many sad times experienced. It is this mix that makes vetting very difficult at times and wonderful at others. Our staff have been amazing on this journey, too. To all our clients: thanks for being loyal, fun, emotional and real. The exciting new team at LVC is here to keep attending to all your animal health needs. Now with four vets and four nurses, two grooming staff and Kay (!), we are here to help, from the banal (or just anal) to cardiology and airway surgery. Commitment to complete animal health is what the LVC team is all about.

We wish you all a happy October. Next month I will try and write something a little less self-absorbed and a bit more animally-sort of thingy.