OUR STORY

Humble Beginnings

Village Veterinary Clinic began as a small one-man practice, but with vision and time and significant investment, it has, over many years, grown to what you see today. Conveniently situated just off the M13, Village is in a perfect place to serve the upper highway community. Dr Mostert wanted to create a facility that could provide world-class veterinary services with cutting edge equipment and facilities, in attractive surroundings. The Village Veterinary Hospital you see today is that vision brought to life. It was done in stages and took time. We are so grateful for the many loyal clients who have journeyed alongside us as we transformed into what we are today, a 500sqm state of the art Veterinary Hospital.

A new chapter begins

Dr Craig Mostert has recently sold his practice to Dr Smith, Dr Odendaal and Dr Zugravii in association with the Companion Healthcare Group.  Although still practicing as a vet, he is following his other passion, building veterinary practices up just as he did for Village. His years of experience, passion for practice building and elevating his profession amongst the communities they serve is a commitment he wishes to follow.

A new chapter has begun as the shareholders take on their role as owners of Village Veterinary Clinic.

 

MEET THE TEAM
Dr Werner Odendaal
BVSc Veterinary Surgeon
Dr Odendaal was born and raised in Pretoria. From an early age he always had a passion for creatures and critters, owning almost any animal the pet shop could stock and more. Unfortunately he was unable to attend Veterinary School after matriculating, but life takes you on amazing journeys. He was presented with the opportunity late in life to study veterinary science and graduated in 2007, with the support of his wonderful wife and family. His first son was born in 2005 (his 4th year of study) and his second son in 2008.

After graduating he joined the Bird and Exotic Animal Hospital. A private clinic situated on the Onderstepoort Veterinary Faculty premises and stayed on for 2 years. It was amazing having to deal with many exotic animals including Lions, Tigers, Lemurs, Howler Monkeys and more.

In 2010 the family relocated to Durban and joined the Village Veterinary team. It was a bit of an adjustment in the beginning to deal with cats and dogs but with the wonderful support got over it quickly. Although being a veterinarian is a challenging occupation, he would not change it for the world.

Dr Anuschka Smith
BVSc (Hons) Practice principal and Veterinary Surgeon
Anuschka joined Village Veterinary Clinic in May 2017. She is one of our dedicated, caring vets that form part of our team. She qualified at Onderstepoort 2007 and completed her honours in small animal medicine and clinical pathology in 2013. Anuschka loves being a vet. She knew she wanted to be a vet since she was a little girl. She is kind and compassionate. She values the bond that families have with their fur children.

She has a ‘dog child’ called Spud who is a spirited Parson Jack Russell Terrier. They enjoy walks and playing fetch. Spud also likes hunting lizards. Her other passion is rowing.

Dr Anatoli Zugravii, BvSc
Veterinary Surgeon
Dr Tony Zugravii qualified as a veterinary surgeon in 1996 in Eastern Europe. He spent five years in large animal practice and participated in a number of scientific conferences and training courses in Europe and USA. In 2001 Dr Zugravii joined a small animal emergency clinic and found this type of veterinary medicine much more rewarding. He moved to South Africa in 2003, and after passing the South African Veterinary Council registration examination in 2004 practiced in the Johannesburg area. Dr Zugravii travelled extensively through South Africa and fell in love with the coastal part of KZN, so when the opportunity arose to move to the sea, he and his family moved to Durban in 2016. Dr Zugravii joined the Village veterinary team in January 2018. He is married to Arina, who is also a veterinarian. They have a son, Arseni, 2 dogs and an African Grey parrot. Apart from veterinary medicine. Dr Zugravii enjoys reading, cycling, and spending time with family and friends.
Dr Cailin Cunningham, BVSc
Cailin graduated from Onderstepoort as a Veterinary surgeon in 2021. She has recently completed her community service year working in a small community clinic in Umthwalume on the South Coat. Originally from Johannesburg but after spending just a short year in KZN, she decided she could never go back. Cailin’s passions lie in exotics, and she is so excited to be working in a practice that allows her to learn and explore this passion further. She and her husband do not have any pets but once they are settled, they will be getting a fur baby or two to fill their home. Outside of work Cailin enjoys a good book, playing the piano and exploring the great outdoors, an activity in which she is sure Kloof will not disappoint. She feels very privileged to be able to do something she loves every day and is looking forward to meeting all the clients and their pets.
Sr Paula Webster, DVN
Nurse
Sister Paula Webster qualified as a veterinary nurse in December 1995 at the University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort. Over the past 24 years she has travelled and worked in many different areas and facets of veterinary nursing. She has worked as a veterinary nurse in small animal and equine practices. Paula joined Village in November 2006 and has been very involved in creating a caring and well managed hospital since then. Paula is passionate about veterinary nursing and is often involved with learners that visit Village for work experience promoting this rewarding career. Paula is married to Dr James Webster who is a veterinary surgeon, they have two daughters.
Sr Pat Ferrandi, DVN
Nurse
Pat grew up in Cape Town and moved to Johannesburg when she was 14 years old.Sr Pat studied at Onderstepoort and qualified in 1982. Her time there was amazing and she loved the outdoor, farm-like environment. She has worked at veterinary practices in Empangeni and Johannesburg; and also worked for a general surgeon at Linksfield Clinic. She moved to Kloof in 2014 and is loving the area and is so happy to be close to Marianhill Mission, where she spends much of her free time. She has never regretted choosing a career in veterinary nursing and would not change it for the world.
Sr Cheryl Jacobs, DVN
Nurse
Sister Cheryl is originally from Richards Bay where she grew up with many pets and did horse riding for 10 years. She qualified as a Veterinary Nurse at Onderstepoort in Pretoria in 2014. After graduating she worked at a wildlife rehabilitation centre in Plettenberg Bay for 3 months. From there she worked at practices in Durban that treated only cats and dogs before coming to Village Vet. She enjoys the wide variety of species that come through our doors. One of her passions is rock climbing at Southern Rock Climbing Gym during the week and in the Kloof Gorge on weekends.
Mandy Flowers
Practice Manager
Originally from Rhodesia, Mandy and family moved to South Africa in 1980. She joined Village Veterinary Clinic as a receptionist in 2001 when it was owned by Dr Llewelyn Evans.From being a PA/Secretary for 30 years this was a complete career change for her.Dr Mostert bought the Clinic in 2003 and Mandy stayed on as morning receptionist for two years. She then took over the financial side with the added responsibility of Practice Manager. Being a part of the Clinic’s transformation over the past 16 years has been an amazing experience for her. Mandy has four daughters, two grandsons, a black Belgian Shepherd, Corgi x and a domestic cat. In her spare time she loves gardening and is an avid reader.
Vanessa Green
Credit Controller & Accounts
Jayde Hahn
Buyer / Stock Controller
Monique Deme
Reception
Melissa Smith
Reception
Georgia Gifford
Reception
Chante Mckay
Reception
Thembi Ndlovu
Nurses Assistant
Wiseman Ngubane
(Team Leader) Hospital Assistant
Lindo Ngubane
Reception Support
Njabulo Mkhize
Hospital Assistant
Molemo Tau
Hospital Assistant
Lovington Dladla
Support Staff
Rothan Xaba
Support Staff

MEDICAL INSURANCE

If you had a serious accident, or were seriously ill and needed surgery what would you do? Many would answer, “My medical aid would cover most, if not all of it.” Imagine if your pet became seriously ill, or needed surgery. What would you do? What is your plan?

More and more people are recognising that medical insurance for pets is as necessary as it is for humans. Just like humans there is a sliding scale of costs and benefits. You will be able to find one that suits you. As with human policies, the higher the premium, the more coverage you have.

There are generally three levels of cover you can take out:

  • Accident only
  • Accident and illness cover
  • Accident; illness and routine care cover which contributes towards things like vaccination, deworming, tick and flea control, sterilisation and dental scale and polish.

Questions you may want to ask before taking out cover for your pet:

  • Are genetic conditions covered?
  • What is the waiting period?
  • Does my pet’s age or breed affect the premium?
  • Are routine services covered?

If you choose to risk not having insurance, please consider what your plan would be should your pet have a medical emergency. We treat animals every day that were perfectly healthy before they ate a toy, swallowed a sosatie stick, escaped briefly when garden services arrived and got knocked over, got into a fight, ate pills they shouldn’t have… (you get the picture). What they all have in common are owners who had no way of knowing this was going to happen and find themselves seeking emergency treatment that they have not budgeted for.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, as they say. If you would like some suggestions we suggest the following:

When your pets are sick or hurt, having medical cover for them will give you peace of mind to get them the help they need.

COMMUNITY SERVICE & CHARITY WORK

Village is very much part of the upper highway community. We enjoy being part of the social fabric of the area and having a positive impact on the human and animals lives we come into contact with.

Here are some of our projects:

School visits
Over the years we have hosted dozens of pre-school and foundation phase visits to our practice. We hope that our passion and enthusiasm for our profession sparks something in the young hearts and minds that visit us. We love seeing their eyes light up during their tour of the hospital. Pets have to go to the dentist and doctor too! We get regaled with stories of visits to doctors to show they understand what we do. The colouful and heartfelt thank you notes we receive after a visit are just delightful.

Work Experience
This is on offer for those that are seriously considering a career in Veterinary Science either as a surgeon or a nurse. We have a program that we offer suitable candidates, enabling them to gain valuable insight into Veterinary careers. We also host Onderstepoort Students that spend time here seeing real life practice before they begin their careers in veterinary science.

The Sunflower Fund
We have sponsored the ‘Sunflower Fund Doggy Walk” several times, held at Kloof Country Club. It is always great fun and raises funds towards for the admirable work that the Sunflower Fund does.

Small Animal Rescue Organisations
There are several of these that we support.

Wildlife Rescue
There are several wildlife rescue and rehabilitation organisations that we work with.

Our in House ‘Stray Animal Fund’
This is for all the urban wildlife brought to us, hurt in some way. It is for the Hadedahs, the Barn Owls, the Duikers and other creatures. Our S.A.F receives donations made on behalf of pets when they pass away, school visits and clients. Once the creatures are well they are handed over to suitable organisations to be released or rehabilitated.