Independent, local, uncompromising.
River Vets opened its doors as something of a quiet rebellion — a return to the way veterinary practice used to feel. No corporate templates, no production-line consults, no rotating roster of locums. Just a small team who know your pet, working in a building purpose-built for modern medicine.
Founder Alex Hirst spent years in the industry watching the personal side of veterinary care get squeezed by scale. He set out to prove that an independent practice could offer everything a referral hospital does — keyhole surgery, advanced orthopaedics, in-house diagnostics, 24-hour inpatient care — without losing the warmth of a village vet.
What's grown from that is something we're quietly proud of: a practice with one of the highest review averages in the region, a waiting list of new patients, and a team of vets, nurses and care assistants who genuinely love what they do.
