to this articleA new veterinary urgent care practice opened in Blandon earlier this year as a passion project of three veterinarians who sought to offer something different in emergency pet care.
Founders Drs. Gina Watzka, Casey Dignan, and Victoria Orlando met at a local corporate-owned hospital, where they worked together as emergency veterinarians.
Their belief is that providing access to timely, compassionate veterinary care can mean the difference between life and death for pets.
Seeing a gap in urgent care in the region, the three launched Firefly Veterinary Urgent Care in Blandon, with a shared vision to bridge the divide between busy general practitioners and overburdened emergency hospitals.
“We see Firefly as a reaction to working in the corporate ER setting for so long,” said Dignan. “It can be easy to get burned out.”
Firefly provided a step down from 24/7 emergency care, while providing convenient urgent care with extended hours. The practice is open Thursday through Monday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Opening Firefly was a challenge for the trio. All of them were currently working jobs as emergency veterinarians at other locations. All were young mothers, and one was on deployment to Kuwait at the time the practice was opening.
“It was a challenge trying to get things going while I was deployed. It certainly was not ideal timing, but it just goes to show what an excellent team we have,” said Orlando, who serves in the army reserves.
However, they saw developing Firefly as a chance to practice veterinary medicine the way they wanted.
The trio’s first-hand experience in emergency care made them acutely aware of the region’s deficiencies with the cost of emergency vet services being one of them.
They said sometimes the difference between whether a family must put a pet to sleep comes down to what a practice is willing and equipped to do.
For example, Watzka said at one point they had a stray cat come in.
“We wouldn’t have been able to do that in a corporate setting. Now it’s like our office cat,” she said.
The veterinarians provide surgery and emergency care through the practice’s expanded financing options.
The partners said they carefully avoid competing with primary veterinarians but instead concentrate on overflow support and weekend care. Instead, they point out that their practice exists to fill a gap in pet care.
In the future, the partners plan to further service expansion, including moving to a full seven-day schedule from its current Thursday-Monday offerings, hiring additional staff, adding follow-up care options, and participating in more community outreach.
Firefly is also planning to fill a critical gap by treating small mammals—rabbits, ferrets, guinea pigs, and other “pocket pets.”
“I would really love to see Firefly become known as a place where we can provide options for care,” said Orlando. “It is one of our main goals to continue trying to come up with solutions to challenging situations and constantly looking for new ways to serve the community.”
