It has been a little more than 12 months since Karen Rogers closed the Cohuna Vet Clinic following the tragic death of her husband Paul.
However, there is great news for Cohuna and surrounding districts with the practice reopening just last week on January 6 with Dr Carly Brownlow and Dr Adrian Coghill joining forces to reestablish the clinic.
For Dr Carly Brownlow, it is a lifelong dream fulfilled, to run her own practice and she was keen to take it on before it closed in 2023 but knew she was unable to manage the demand of the busy practice on her own.
In August Dr Brownlow and Dr Coghill became aware of each other’s desire to run a practice and move to the Cohuna area.
Both have worked in the area previously and loved the area, Dr Coghill at the practice a few years ago for Karen and Paul.
Dr Brownlow said that they were excited to bring the practice back.
“We want it to be a mixed practice that does a bit of everything,” she said.
“Being a quiet time for farm work we are probably not out on the farms as much as we like at the moment.
“Adrian will be primarily focused on horse work, but we both like to do pretty much everything including dogs, cats, sheep and cows.
“I love working with dairy cows and doing surgery.”
No two days are the same for busy country vets and they are already searching for a third vet to work in the practice.
The surgery also has five part time veterinary nurses and a receptionist with two of the staff having worked in the practice before it closed.
“This has been great for clients returning to have a level of familiarity and continuity and so far, the response has been really positive,” Dr Brownlow added.
Dr Coghill comes to the area with more than 20 years’ experience from all over the country.
Although only open for a little over a week the two vets have been working since August last year to bring the surgery back.
They are investing in new and up to date equipment including a new x-ray machine, dental machines, anaesthesia machines and a new cattle ultrasound machine to monitor bovine pregnancies.
Dr Coghill said that they love what they do and are keen to provide an affordable and compassionate service.
“We saw the need in northern Victoria for some high quality veterinary services so that is what we are here to provide.”
This article appeared in The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, 16 January 2025.