Glendale, Wis. – Fourteen- year-old Murphy hisses and growls as Dr. Barb Rossi tries to draw blood from her leg to find out if the cat’s kidney failure has progressed.
Rossi has put a muzzle on her and owner Peggy Vanco is holding her on a bed in her Glendale home.
“It’s just much more convenient for me and I think the animals react better to have her come rather than going to a vet’s office,” Vanco said.
Rossi is part of a growing number of veterinarians who make house calls because of the low overhead costs and the freedom that comes with it.
“For older people, for people with disabilities, for animals that hate to go in, it’s really nice and it helps me to see animals in their own environment,” Rossi said.
Shannon Stanek, president of the 30-year-old American Association of House Calls and Mobile Veterinarians, said the profession is experiencing a revival: Membership has doubled to about 300 members over the past 10 years.
Stanek, 36, has visited homes for about nine years within about 20 miles of her home in Pottstown, Pa.
