It's the Bark of the Town and the Cat's Meow

Construction doesn't keep the dogs away; they don't seem to mind.

It's still day to day operations at Orchard Road Animal Hospital, even though much of the road outside is torn up and tractors are parked out front. It's only a dog's life outside the doors.

Once inside Orchard Road Animal Hospital, dogs can frolic and cats can pounce in a playful environment. Well, it's not quite Never Never Land, but the painted walls, large fish tank and openness come close for an animal hospital.

A love of animals is apparent in the hospital that Dr. Linda Flieg started almost 20 years ago out of a small house facing Orchard Road. In 2000, Flieg, of Yorkville, expanded the hospital by adding a large building behind the home.

Orchard Road Animal Hospital now has six exam rooms, two boarding areas, a laboratory and lots of high tech equipment. 

Office manager Lisa Gruhlke gave me a tour of the impressive hospital dedicated to small animals. Gruhlke has worked there for almost 10 years and knows her way around very well.

I might add that I don't have any pets, so this was all new to me. 

We started the tour at the large and open reception area that faces the front doors. Gruhlke pointed to a black rubber mat on the floor and noted that it is a scale for the animals. Then we peeked into some of the exam rooms.

There's a cat-only room with what looks like a plug-in air freshener that releases pheromones into the air to comfort stressed kitties.

There's an ultrasound room and a surgery room. I was lucky enough to see Dr. Flieg at work performing a surgery on a dog in order to remove a small growth. It looked exciting.

Then there is the post-surgery room where dogs, cats, and sometimes rabbits and mice go to wake up after surgery. One of the vet assistants was rubbing a dog to wake it up after its operation. I watched as the dog slowly gained consciousness. 

A long narrow lab adjacent to the surgery area is stocked with common pharmaceutical needs, microscopes, vials and sterile instruments.

When we walk back out the door, Gruhlke points out Muffin, a resident cat that wears a blue "e-collar" around his neck to prevent him from scratching due to a skin allergy. 

Muffin, whose full name is McMuffin, is one of four resident cats at Orchard Road Animal Hospital. Next, I meet Peanut Butter, the resident dog that has a suite in the luxury boarding area—half a dozen barred rooms with tiled floors and tropical names, like Tahiti.

Beyond the luxury area is a standard boarding area with a spot for dogs and a separate place for cats and small mammals.

Gruhlke points out that everything is tailored to the needs of pets, which she calls "clients." They offer a one-story cat-boarding kennel with three sections for arthritic cats, three-story kennels with a basement for agile cats and slanted metal floors on dog kennels. 

The animal hospital also provides two separate outdoor exercise yards for dogs: one for boarded dogs and one for the hospital dogs. 

There is also an isolation room for sick pets. 

Orchard Road Animal Hospital employs four veterinarians and a handful of vet technicians and assistants. Everyone is busily working during my tour and it's neat to see what goes on beyond the exam rooms.

I thank Gruhlke, and she responds that tours of the hospital are encouraged; she's happy to give them to anyone who's interested.

Orchard Road Animal Hospital is located at 1175 Orchard Rd. in Montgomery. Call them at 630-844-0100 for more information or to set up a tour.