AIKEN - In the heart of Thoroughbred Country, Trey Wofford is making house calls for kitties and pooches instead of barn calls for horses.
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Trey Wofford stands in his 26-foot-long mobile veterinary unit. Dr. Wofford's mobile veterinary service, Palmetto Veterinary Calls, makes house calls for small pets so the animals do not get as stressed out.
Karen Ethridge/The Augusta Chronicle
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Though the sight of a veterinarian visiting the stall of an equine patient is common, Mr. Wofford said he is one of the first vets to offer drive-up service for the owners of small pets in Aiken and Edgefield counties.
After seeing a mobile veterinary unit drive up to campus while he was in school at Tuskegee University in Alabama, he opted to take the new concept on the road with a practice called Palmetto Veterinary Calls.
Last year, Mr. Wofford, 41, had LaBoit Inc., a Columbus, Ohio, company that specializes in customizing rigs for law enforcement and medical outfits, build a special mobile veterinarian unit, similar to the rolling dental and mammography units used by medical centers.
"It's more convenient for people, and the animals don't have to get stressed out," said Mr. Wofford, of Aiken. "As life gets busier and busier, this is one less thing that you have to do."
The inside of the 26-foot-long mobile unit looks like a veterinary examination room, complete with clear jars of cotton swabs and tongue depressors. Mr. Wofford can do vaccines, check ups and flea and tick treatments.
He also can do dental work, blood tests and minor surgeries, take X-rays and do X-ray processing in the vehicle.
"I like it because I'm not in a clinic all day. I can help people with multiple animals and people who simply don't want to wait," Mr. Wofford said.
Mr. Wofford said that although he might not be able to see as many patients in one day as a conventional animal clinic, the convenience costs only about $20 extra.
In his first month in the Aiken area, Mr. Wofford has already made several house calls to the homes of dogs, cats and other small animals.
In addition to relieving stress of animals and their owners, Mr. Wofford said he is also more relaxed, knowing that he doesn't have a waiting room full of patients.
"They're in their own environment, and I get to be a part of people's lives. It goes back to the roots of medicine, working one-on-one with pets and their owners," he said.
Reach Karen Ethridge at (803) 648-1395 or karen.ethridge@augustachronicle.com.
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