Pretty cool, especially for seniors. I hope there's more of them out there.
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UNIONVILLE, MI - Veterinarian Stacey Laursen doesn't have an office and doesn't advertise her services.
Increasingly, she doesn't have a minute to spare, either.
Plying the roads of the Thumb in a minivan, the 31-year-old Laursen has filled to the brim her niche as one of a handful of house-call vets in Michigan.
As word of mouth spreads of Laursen's attentive manner and convenient in-home visits, her 9-month-old business is about at capacity.
"I'd say we are shocked at how well it's gone," said Laursen, who lives in Tuscola County near Unionville, and is married to cash-crop farmer Brent Laursen.
"We really didn't expect this idea would be as big as it apparently is, which is a nice problem to have," Stacey Laursen said. "This was supposed to be a part-time endeavor, but it's turning out to be more than that."
Fewer than 1 percent of about 2,500 veterinarians in Michigan work solely as house-call vets, said Gay A. Gira, 57, a Kent County veterinarian who is president of the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association.
Gira, who also is a house-call veterinarian, estimated that only about 20 such vets operate in Michigan.
Since Stacey and Brent Laursen started Laursen Veterinary Service in December 2003, the business has acquired 250 customers. Each of those households has, on average, about three pets that receive treatment or examination.
Stacey Laursen worked for six years at clinics in Pinconning and Caro before deciding to launch her own business.
Aside from listing her business in the "Veterinarians" category in her local phone book, Laursen doesn't advertise.
On a recent Monday, she handled seven appointments, four of which were new clients.
Of the 25 calls that arrive on Laursen's cell phone inside her minivan, three are from new customers wanting to schedule their first appointments.
"Right now I'm dreading the words, 'I'm going to tell my neighbors about you,"' she said. "I'm working more than I planned, but that's a pleasant surprise."
Daniel M. Barrigar, 44, of Tuscola County's Akron Township, said his family members used to drive their cocker spaniel, Sebastian, 30 miles to a veterinary clinic in Huron County. Then they discovered Laursen, who lives about 10 miles from the Barrigar home.
"We heard about her from a friend," Daniel Barrigar said. "This is so much nicer with her coming here."
"I can't think of any vets around here who go to your house," said Linal L. Baur, 34, of Tuscola County's Fairgrove Township. On this day, Baur tells Laursen that two of his black Labrador retrievers have been obsessively scratching their ears.
Laursen finds a yeast infection in the dogs' ears. She also tells Baur that if his rat terrier-dachshund mix, Precious, "doesn't quit sneezing by the next time there's a hard frost, we'll schedule an X-ray."
When necessary, Laursen rents a facility in Bad Axe to do surgeries or X-rays on animals.
Laursen will perform some medical tests at home - checking fecal samples for intestinal parasites, examining dog blood for heartworm disease, or analyzing urine for bacterial infections.
While Laursen sees her share of cute creatures - on this day, her patients include a Pomeranian, a Yorkshire terrier and a Shetland sheepdog - the job has its sobering moments. About three times each week, she'll euthanize a pet at its owner's home by giving the animal a powerful shot of anesthetic.
"People ... would much rather it be done at home," Laursen said. "It's horrible to have to drag an elderly animal into a veterinary clinic, a place the animal is scared of, and then leave."
Almost all of Laursen's 750 critter clients are dogs or cats. Once in a great while, she'll see a rabbit, ferret or guinea pig.
Laursen sees her appointments on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, her "full days," when she can log up to 300 miles in a day on her minivan. As a house-call vet, she also serves as her own secretary.
"That's a lot of work, because after a full day I'll have two hours of paperwork to do at night, after I put our two kids to bed," said Laursen, mother to 3-year-old Jacob and 1-year-old Nathan.
As Laursen talks on the cell phone inside her minivan, she writes information and appointments in her well-used day planner.
If pets feel more relaxed when a vet comes to them, so do their owners, Stacey Laursen said.
"People's animals have a healing effect on them. I'm glad I can help their animals no matter what the person's situation is," she said.
"It's funny, but no matter what's going on in their personal lives, some people are really freaked out about the fact their dog coughed twice last night."
http://www.mlive.com/news/bctimes/in...9789226540.xml