Twin Lakes Veterinary Hospital has now opened its doors on Mississaga Street West.
The 4,500-square-foot animal hospital used to be the home of the Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital Adult Diabetes Education Centre. Before that, it was an OPP detachment.
Over the past several months, owner Dr. Peter Fahmy has renovated the building to equip a surgery room, a pharmacy, an X-ray room, multiple exam rooms and separate waiting rooms for cats and dogs and their owners.
Fahmy, who moved to Canada from Egypt in 2015, previously worked in an emergency animal clinic in Barrie as a full-time veterinarian. He also worked part-time in a spay-and-neuter clinic.
“I owned my own clinic in Egypt for six years,” Fahmy explained. “Orillia is a very nice area and I thought this would be a good place for me to continue with my family.”
Fahmy’s passion for working with animals began when he was a child when he lived on a farm that had camels, cows, dogs and cats. He says being a veterinarian in Canada is a rewarding job.
“When I came to Canada, I was truly amazed at how Canadians are really attached to their pets,” he said. “It’s an amazing thing to see.”
Fahmy says he has a great team behind him. He has hired technicians who he worked with at the emergency clinic and the spay-and-neuter clinic.
“Our vision is to be as affordable as much as we can,” he said. “We also want to have longer hours where we can be open later.”
The hospital will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, but that is just for now. Fahmy is hoping to hire more people once the business is established to have the hospital open 24/7 for emergencies.
“We have the equipment, and we are trained to do that,” he said. “During COVID, the amount of dogs has gone up three times, but we have the same number of veterinarians and staff.”
The boom in pet ownership was partly because of pandemic isolation, Fahmy says. There is also a significant increase in dog breeders.
Fahmy is hopeful there will be quality veterinarians and animal hospital staff graduating from their post-secondary programs soon. For now, he is leaving appointment spots open during business hours for emergency services.
Twin Lakes Veterinary Hospital will also provide a high-volume spay-and-neuter clinic.
“There is definitely a big need for these kinds of services in Orillia,” Fahmy said. “Our location (near) the highway makes us easily accessible for cottagers and the people of Orillia.”
