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Mountain Mobile Vet hosts grand opening

Dr. Sheila Fitzpatrick, left, and Dr. Liz Foster show off the newly renovated Mountain Mobile Veterinary and Animal Hospital Center facility located in downtown Eagle. The practice is hosting a grand opening on Saturday for its new offices, which will include 24-hour on-call emergency services.
Pam Boyd/pboyd@eaglevalleyenterprise.com |

If you go...

What: Mountain Mobile Veterinary and Animal Hospital Center Grand Opening

When: Saturday, Aug. 27

Time: 12 to 4 p.m.

Where: 341 Broadway

Details: Tour the practice’s new facility, meet the staff and take advantage of free pet examinations and low cost vaccinations

EAGLE — Although they tout their willingness to hit the road in their business name, this weekend the folks at Mountain Mobile Veterinary and Animal Hospital Center are celebrating big changes at their bricks and mortar location in downtown Eagle.

Dr. Sheila Fitzpatrick is marking her 24th year in business as Mountain Mobile Veterinary, but during the past year, the practice has seen a couple of big changes. Dr. Liz Foster joined the practice in 2015 and in 2016, the downtown office that serves as home base for Mountain Mobile Veterinary has undergone a large renovation. The practice added 500 square feet to its existing building and local pet owners and prospective pet parents are welcome to check out the new digs during a grand opening celebration on Saturday.

With the additional space, Dr. Fitzpatrick noted the practice can bring in specialists and will offer urgent care services on Saturdays. Additionally, Mountain Mobile Veterinary is now offering 24-hour on-call emergency care at its renovated office.



“And we still do house calls for anything and everything,” said Dr. Fitzpatrick.

New doctor on board

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While the building renovation is the most evident example of Mountain Mobile Veterinary’s growth, the addition of Dr. Foster to the practice last year marked a milestone. Dr. Foster is a native of Pennsylvania who earned her veterinary degree at Colorado State University.

Dr. Foster primarily treats cats and dogs, with the occasional guinea pig or exotic pet thrown into the mix. While her days are primarily spent with common pets, Dr. Foster stressed there is no such thing as a common day.

“Anything that you can do to hurt yourself, your dog can do to hurt itself,” said Dr. Foster. “And they can’t tell you what’s wrong.”

Being an effective vet ideally means getting an animal to trust you, she noted. If that’s too much of a stretch, she tries for tolerance.

“You want to approach animals with respect and you don’t want to approach them with fear because they feed off that,” she said.

Dr. Foster believes a treat combined with a quiet voice and the assistance of a good veterinary technician can do wonders with a frightened animal. She also encourages owners to drop by the office for a quick treat when they are walking a dog down Broadway. That way, the animal can form some happy impressions of the vets’ office.

Dr. Foster is also willing and ready to offer human advice when it comes to pet considerations. In fact, she would like to do more of that especially when a prospective owner is thinking about a new pet.

“Before people get a border collie or a great Dane or a super active Lab, they can just call and ask about it,” said Dr. Foster. “We are not off limits to people. We love to talk to people and I would really rather have them talk to me than to just look stuff up on Google. We are happy to do that. Too many times we see the unfortunate situation when things have gone wrong.”

As for her own household, Dr. Foster has two children, ages 2 and 5 years, an 11-year-old Catahoula and a 3-year-old mutt. Filling out the ranks of the Foster household are three cats.

Asked what she likes best about being a veterinarian, Dr. Foster said she enjoys working with an animal over the course of many years.

“I get to see an animal for its entire lifetime. I feel very lucky to do that and it’s one of the best parts of my job.”

Mountain Mobile Veterinary and Animal Hospital Center is located at 341 Broadway in downtown Eagle. The practice’s 24-hour emergency number is 970-328-7085.


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