Adobe Animal Hospital marks 30 years in Ramona
By Peijean Tsai
For 30 years, pet owners in Ramona have come to rely on Adobe Animal Hospital to take care of their furriest companions.
Whether it’s the hospital’s state-of-the-art facility or use of the latest technologies, Adobe Animal Hospital strives to be open-minded and innovative. That means using the most effective and cutting-edge technologies, medicines, surgical procedures and nutrition. Adobe’s veterinarians also work with board-certified veterinary specialists throughout San Diego County as needed.
“Our goal is to provide the best lifelong care for people’s pets, starting from new kittens and puppies up to their senior years…to give the best quantity and quality of life we can,” said Medical Director Don Wood, DVM, who owns the hospital with his wife, Jenna, the hospital administrator.
All X-rays are digital, and in December Adobe will introduce digital dental X-rays.
The hospital offers standard as well as alternative therapies, including chiropractic and acupuncture treatment for pets. To treat arthritis, Adobe recently started working with Vet-Stem, a Poway-based company that offers adult stem cell treatment for pets, using stem cells extracted from the animals’ fat tissues.
Adobe Animal Hospital treats 20 to 30 pets a day, and is helmed by two doctors of veterinary medicine — Don Wood and Michelle Greer — with plans for a third veterinarian to start in November. Additionally, the hospital is staffed by 11 employees.
The hospital features five exam rooms, each kept brightly lit and sanitized, including a larger room for big families needing extra privacy and space during times of grievance. Additionally, there are distinct rooms specially designed for surgery, computer X-rays, cleaning and special procedures.
The special procedures room is used mostly for ultrasound for diagnosing and treating pregnancies, abdominal masses, tumors and heart disease.
“It just makes it easier to make an accurate diagnosis,” said Wood.
A diagnostics lab room helps the doctors measure internal functions such as liver and kidney condition, electrolyte levels and blood coagulation.
“We can pretty much look for anemia, infection, blood coagulation, kidney and liver diseases and have the results in 20 to 30 minutes,” Wood said.
A backyard-sized outdoor enclosure ensures that pets staying at the hospital have access to fresh air, as staff members bring them out and keep an eye on them.
“Every pet that is here gets outside twice a day to get some fresh air and sunshine. It keeps their spirits up,” said Wood.
The hospital also has plenty of spaces for boarding healthy animals and separate areas for hospitalized and sick pets. Cats and dogs are kept apart in their own distinct areas. To accommodate big dogs — which are common in Ramona — the hospital has larger runs in addition to dog kennels. A hydraulic gurney also is used to transport injured pets (even the large ones) from the car to the hospital to minimize pain as much as possible.
“We’re bucking the national trend,” said Wood, noting that Ramona pet owners tend to have 100- to 200-pound dogs. “It’s a big-dog kind of place.”
In August 1981, veterinarian Paul Riste and his wife, Fran, opened Adobe Animal Hospital in Ramona on D Street. Don and Jenna Wood became the owners in August 1989 upon Riste’s retirement. Four-and-a-half years ago, Adobe Animal Hospital moved to its current location at 218 Etcheverry St. with a new building specially designed by a veterinary architect.
While the hospital does not bill insurance carriers directly, Adobe encourages patients to carry insurance and helps individuals fill out forms so they can submit claims themselves.
Adobe Animal Hospital is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.