I attended the BlogPaws conference last week and met many great pet brand representatives and pet related service organizations. One organization that especially caught my attention was Helping Hands.
Helping Hands is a veterinary practice based in Richmond, VA that provides affordable pet surgical and dental services. Dr. Lori Pasternak, founder of Helping Hands, saw a need for affordable pet surgery to prevent pets from being euthanized because their owners could not afford to pay for the procedure needed.
Working with her husband Jake and a small staff, Pasternak has created a practice focused solely on outpatient pet surgery and dental care. All procedures are priced under $1000 (a list of procedures and associated pricing is available at Affordablepetsurgery.com) Helping Hands does not provide post-op care, but detailed instructions are provided at the time your pet is discharged after his procedure.
For those outside the Richmond area, Helping Hands has negotiated a special rate at a nearby pet-friendly motel. This allows you to spend time with your pet before and after surgery and hopefully give you the opportunity to explore the Richmond area.
Helping Hands does not provide diagnostic or pet wellness services. When scheduling an appointment, staff members contact the pet guardian to discuss the procedure requested and set the appointment time. Clients are required to provide records from their pet’s veterinarian to be faxed to Helping Hands prior to arrival to allow for review time.
When I stopped by Helping Hand’s booth this past week at BlogPaws, I talked briefly with Dr. Pasternak’s husband Jake, and hung out with their “Director of PR”, Chilly.
Chilly joined the Helping Hands team in July 2011. He came to Helping Hands through B.A.R.K. as a rescue in need of veterinary care. At Halloween, Chilly became rainbow colored so he could be cotton candy for Halloween. His transformation led him to become an ambassador for Helping Hands since people have become so enamored with him. Chilly loves the extra attention his new colors have brought to him and is enjoying making new friends everywhere he goes.
If you’d like to learn more about Helping Hands and the services they provide, go to affordablepetsurgery.com.
Written by Karen
