Vet brings practice to his pet patients

La Crosse Tribune, Feb 21, 2000 by Cahalan, Steve

Since it opened last June, Dr. Dennis Knight's veterinary clinic on wheels has hosted pets ranging in size from a 1ounce dwarf hamster to a 170-pound mastiff that goes by the name Hoot.

"His name was Hoot, and what Hoot didn't want to do, he didn't do, Knight joked last week as he showed a reporter his 26-foot-long Coulee Mobile Veterinary Clinic on wheels. The big dog doesn't like going to veterinarians and getting him into an automobile is a tall order.

Some pets, like Hoot, don't like car rides and might fear the veterinarian's office when they get there, said Knight, who lives in Westby, Wis. It's less stressful for them to hop from their owner's driveway into his mobile clinic.

Reducing pet anxiety and convenience to the owner are the two biggest reasons why people call him, Knight said.

"Everybody likes convenience," he said. That includes busy parents who have trouble finding time to take their pet to a clinic, as well as people who are physically unable to bring in their pet.

"My last call was for an older lady who didn't have a driver's license and relied on friends to take her and her pet to a clinic," Knight said. "I'm seeing a lot of older people, working professionals, and parents with kids" call his service.

Knight, who is 37, started his business last June 15 and said he has nearly 300 clients. Most live within 50 miles of Westby. And the largest number live in the La Crosse area.

"Most of the time I'm going right to their house," Knight said. Eventually, he might have stationary points where people can bring their pet to the mobile clinic on certain days.

Knight said companion animals - such as dogs and cats are the primary focus of his business. But he also has treated some large animals, such as horses and cattle. He said he offers a limited amount of large-animal services, as a convenience for pet owners who may keep large animals.

He had been an associate with Veum Veterinarians in Westby for 4 1/2 years, before he decided to buy a mobile clinic and start his own practice. He had seen mobile veterinary clinics on display at veterinarian conventions. "I was intrigued by the idea," he said.

Knight, who bought the clinic on wheels from another veterinarian for about $70,000, said a new one would cost about $100,000. "It had about 13,000 miles on it," said Knight, who knows of no other mobile veterinary clinics in the Coulee Region. The vehicle was built by La Boit Inc., an Ohio company that specializes in building mobile veterinary clinics.

Inside the mobile clinic are lots of cabinets and drawers filled with instruments and medicines; a small refrigerator for keeping vaccines and some antibiotics cool; cold and hot running water; an examination table that converts to a surgery table, with a surgery/examination light overhead and an anesthesia unit nearby; and a darkroom where Knight plans to install X-ray equipment later this year. "I usually use them for post-operative recovery, " he said of four metal cages in the rear of the mobile clinic.

"I keep a mini-pharmacy," Knight said of his vehicle, whose interior is mostly gray. "I'm pretty well stocked with the most commonly used items." He brings additional medicines with him if he knows they might be needed.

Knight uses a laptop computer in the vehicle for keeping track of each animal's medical history and for preparing bills. And he keeps telephone books and plat books in a large drawer near the computer. "They help me from getting too lost," he said, smiling.

His small dog Coco travels with him on about half of his trips. "She's good company," Knight said.

Knight said he has liked animals ever since he was raised on a dairy farm near Strawberry Point, Iowa. After graduating from high school, he farmed with his father and brother for three years, then worked at Goodyear tire stores in Iowa in sales and service positions for three years.

"I was ready to get back to what I had grown up around," Knight said of his decision to go to college and become a veterinarian.

He graduated from the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ames in 1994. Knight's wife, Lisa, is a second-grade teacher at Coon Valley (Wis.) Elementary School.