Passionate veterinary professionals open new practice in Dayboro

Published 12:00pm 25 August 2022

Above: Dr Holly Goldbring and Doctor Ashley Young.

Three veterinary professionals with a combined 76 years’ practice experience have opened a new practice in Dayboro, providing general and advanced medical and surgical care to animals that are sick or injured.

Doctor Holly Goldring and her husband, Doctor Ashley Young, moved from Mackay to Moreton Bay to open Dayboro Village Vets practice with their good friend, Veterinary Nurse and business partner, Rosie Overfield.

The practice is located on Mount Mee Road, adjacent to Dayboro Pet and Rural and Old Mill Equine Service.

Speaking to Moreton Daily, Holly said their vision was to provide pet owners with multiple services and treatments under the one roof.

“We run an advanced GP model where people can get most of what they need done for their pets right here,” Holly said.

“We can do everything from routine physical checkups and vaccinations, through to airway surgery, orthopaedics, cancer diagnosis and treatment including chemotherapy and reconstructive surgery.

“We have a large airy treatment area, and we have an in-house laboratory so we can run all in-house blood and urine testing, and we can get the results back in half an hour.

“So, there is often little need to travel to see a specialist and that can save significant cost and inconvenience for pet owners.

“If people are unsure of what we can do to help, they can come and have a chat to us and we can see what we can offer them.

“We know not all pets are insured, and not everyone can afford to see a specialist, so we like to think of ourselves as the middle ground where you can have almost everything done locally.

“We want to make advanced veterinary care accessible to everyone that wants it and needs it for their pets.”

Ensuring all pet owners have access to great pet care is important to Holly and Ashley, which is why they have gained additional credentials in many different areas.

Holly has worked in the industry for 26 years and loves blending traditional and alternative approaches to achieve the best possible outcomes during her veterinary consultations. She has a special interest in skin and ear disease, mobility, geriatric medicine and supporting pets as they age.

Ashley has worked as a veterinarian for 25 years and has the credentials and experience to manage complex medical patients, as well as orthopedic and soft tissue surgical cases.

“Ash does a large amount of soft tissue and orthopaedic surgery involving reconstructions and fractures, because maintaining mobility and quality of life for pets through trauma as they age is so important,” Holly said.

“To help Ash with preparing and templating for orthopaedic surgeries, we have some very advanced imaging equipment and technology installed.

“He can also do advanced tumor resections – moving the skin around the body and repairing large areas where tumors once were to ensure tumours are removed completely at surgery.”

Inside the clinic there is a small discharge room where owners can pick up their pets following an operation, as well as two consult rooms and a cat ward.

Above: Veterinary Nurse Rosie Overfield.

A big focus on mental health for vets and pet owners

Helping Holly and Ashley with the clinic is Rosie Overfield, a qualified veterinary nurse who has worked in the industry for 25 years.

Rosie is also the Chair of the Australian Veterinary Palliative Care Advisory Council, and as a registered counsellor, she can support clients navigating end of life decisions for their pets.

“We have known Rosie for a very long time, and we are glad to have her here on board with us,” Holly said.

“Rosie has helped us with our other practices, and when we had a Veterinary Hospital in Mackay literally burn to the ground, Rosie was there to help us and our team through that.

“Ultimately, it allowed us to keep the business alive, retain and continue to employ the team, continue to provide care for patients, maintain our relationships with clients and the community, and ultimately rebuild the premises entirely.

“The community support on that journey and through that time was also quite incredible.

“She was our team coach in Mackay and did a lot of mindfulness coaching and resilience practices for our team – she really is the best at what she does.

“Sadly, our industry has one of the highest rates of mental illness and veterinarians themselves have one of the highest rates of suicide of any profession, so Rosie will be collaborating with our team to ensure they love coming to work every day, are happy, well trained and engaged in great care and outcomes for patients.”

Above: Doctor Holly Goldbring.

No strangers to the area

This is not the first time Holly and Ashley have worked in Dayboro.

“Ash and I spent some time here before we set up our hospital in Mackay, which we have since sold,” Holly said.

“We met Slade Walker, from Old Mill Equine Service, in 2008. He owns this whole facility of where we are in Dayboro.

“Prior to us opening this clinic, there was a corporate vet here and due to several reasons, they didn’t renew the lease.

“Slade then put out an SOS saying the community might not have a vet in town much longer, and he reached out to Ash and I to see if we were interested.

“Slade knew what our capabilities were and thought we would be a good fit for Dayboro to get some good, quality services here in town so people could maintain their community network of essential services.

“We personally have loved Dayboro for a long time, so coming to work here was a good fit for us.”

Slade said he was thrilled to have Holly and Ashley on board.

“I am very excited to have Holly and Ashley here in Dayboro because I knew their services were what the community needed and filled a gap of quality companion animal care,” Slade said.

Above: Doctor Ashley Young.

Contact them

If you live in Dayboro or the surrounding region and you need to see a veterinarian, you can contact Dayboro Village Vets on 3171 2227 or email [email protected]