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First Impressions
Dave and Catharine Speights had been looking for a place to start a new veterinary hospital for quite some time when they stumbled upon the 100 year old farmhouse on Timberline by accident. At first glance, it was not much to look at. On second and third glance, it was still not much!! The grounds were a tangle of weeds and broken trees, there were shells of old farm buildings and concrete structures, and the old barn looked like it would fall over in a stiff wind. What a mess!!
Yet something kept bringing them back to it again and again. When they finally arranged with a realtor to get inside the house, they were horrified! The house had been a rental property, and was littered with beer bottles, cigarette butts and the remains of many nights of pizza. The "décor" was from the early 70's…avocado green appliances, brownish-gold shag carpet, orange walls rolled with flower stencils and wagon wheel chandeliers. "We are out of our minds!" they thought. "But look at the potential!"
The Saga Begins
So, in March of 1992, they took a deep breath, sold their house, moved into the old farmhouse with their then 2-year-old daughter, and began the marathon clean-up effort. As they hauled dozens of loads of beer bottles and old farm trash to the dump, friends and family pitched in and silently said to themselves, "These guys are CRAZY!" Beer saturated carpet was hauled away, electricity was updated, eight layers of soggy linoleum and astro-turf were scraped from the kitchen floors, and a fresh layer of white paint was liberally applied.
Slowly but surely, the place began to shine, and the newly exposed original oak floors and sloping roofed rooms took on an old-fashioned charm. When the house and grounds were finally in reasonable order, the drawn out process of city zoning was tackled. After many months of planning, meetings and compromises, the development was finally approved, and Countryside Animal Hospital officially opened its doors for business in August 1992.
The First Hospital … Family Style
The first "hospital" was housed in the 12X12 parlor of the farmhouse. It was reception, exam room, surgery, boarding and laboratory all in one. The little one-room clinic boasted three cages, a surgery light made of PVC pipe and tract lights, and a hanging blanket to divide the clinic from the Speights' dining room! The first month, they had six whole clients…and they were all relatives!! By the end of the first couple of months, though, business had gradually boomed to almost six clients per WEEK. They were truly on their way!
During this initial building period, the Speights family also lived in the farmhouse to save money and be able to more closely supervise the growing practice. Dr. Speights would commonly wander downstairs in her pajamas to check on patients in the middle of the night, and the boarders were allowed in the living room to watch TV with the family. At Christmas time, the extended family would be invited to dinner, but then would not be allowed to eat until they had helped walk dogs or do evening treatments.
The Speights were on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and clients would often "drop-by" at all hours of the day or night. It was exhausting, but fulfilling, and all of these experiences helped to grow the practice enough to demand a bigger space.
Outgrowing the Space
Dana Lockwood, a local architect, worked closely with Dave and Catharine to design a wonderful hospital that would provide top-quality medical care while still retaining the charm and warmth or the original farmhouse. They broke ground for the new addition in June 1993. It was often difficult to conduct business while backhoes and graders thundered past the windows, and there were days when there was no water or electricity. The workmen became like family, and any thoughts of a private life were quickly forgotten. But, in the end it was worth it, and in October 1993 the brand new hospital addition was launched with a spectacular Open House.
This new hospital was luxurious compared to the one-room they were all used to, and had all the modern conveniences (like water and electricity!) In 1995, the hospital was honored with a Hospital Design Award from Veterinary Economics magazine. The sacrifices made to get to that point were mostly forgotten. As the neighborhoods around the clinic grew, so did the business, and soon they were adding more employees and services.
Expansion … Again!
Incredibly…in 1998, they once again found they had outgrown the space of the hospital, and the second (and hopefully final!) expansion began. This new hospital boasted three exam rooms, a separate consult room, complete surgical facilities, additional boarding for both dogs and cats, improved X-ray and laboratory facilities and MUCH MORE ROOM. Finally, they could work without bumping into each other all of the time!!
Looking back, who would of predicted that the dilapidated old farmhouse would be reborn as a busy veterinary clinic? The farmhouse is a wonderful piece of Fort Collins history, and it has been fun to preserve the charm and hospitality of a bygone era. As the business grows, we hope we will always remember the simpler times and the commitment to hard work and client service that brought us where we are today. We also hope to continue the tradition of providing compassionate, personalized care in a home-like atmosphere … because, after all, the farmhouse has been a home for most of it's life!