Summerhills vet practice is top dog!

A veterinary practice in Nenagh has won a prestigious national award for the level of service it provides to its clients.
Summerhill Veterinary Clinic has scooped the Animal Health All Star Award for Veterinary Practice of the Year 2019.
The award, for practices that employ greater than ten people, was presented to Eamon O' Connell, who purchased the practice four years ago with business partner, Aidan Doyle.
The award was presented to the Nenagh practice by the legendary Galway hurler Joe Cooney at a gala function in the Clayton Hotel, Galway, where the Nenagh firm was lauded by the top panel of judges for the high standard of services it provide to its clients.　
This is not the first time Summerhill Veterinary Clinic has been recognised in the premiere awards for veterinary practices in Ireland. The Nenagh practice was previously nominated for a Research Award for its involvement in the trial of an innovative new drug being developed to reduce the use of critical antibiotics in dairy cows.
Aidan Doyle and Eamon O' Connell, classmates from the School of Veterinary Medicine at University College Dublin, are very well-known in the farming community throughout north Tipperary, having practiced from the Summerhill base for the past fourteen years.
Eamon and Aidan, both holders of a Certificate in Dairy Herd Health, purchased the practice in 2016, and since then have substantially grown the services provided by Summerhill Veterinary Clinic.
Summerhill Vets operates a comprehensive large animal service and has developed a state-of-art Small Animal Clinic, fitted out with the most modern equipment, including ultrasound, X-ray and in-house blood machines.
The practice recently started offering a Dog Grooming service operated by trained staff member Rachel Borland, which is proving to be highly popular with dog owners all over Nenagh and north Tipperary.　
Along with Aidan and Eamon, the veterinary team comprises Tommy Riggs Miller, Patricia Kenny, Conor McCarthy and Niamh Hogan – all of whom are very well known by farmers and small pet owners in the locality. The small animals are wonderfully cared for by two other vets on the team, Aine Mullahy and Kirsty McMillan. The administrative staff of Catherine Gleeson and Marie-Therese Ryan are the heartbeat of the practice and keep the practice running as smoothly as possible.
The practice at Summerhill is steeped in tradition, having being established by Jack Powell in the 1940s. Jack, who practised as as vet for 75 years and who died in 2015, aged 101, was Europe's longest-serving vet.
Jack established a great reputation as an excellent vet, and was instantly recognisable on his journeys to farms throughout north Tipperary, travelling around in his favourite model car – a Volkswagen – which he drove for 62 years, always accompanied by a Jack Russell terrier, a Trudy or a Trixy, perched on Jack's shoulder.
Jack was known in racing circles as a skilled equine vet. He had a great memory for pedigree and a special gift for dealing with difficult horses. A foal that he had bought for £400 went on to be a winner at the RDS Horse Show. Named Royal Frolic, he sold him to a British trainer and in 1976 he won in the Cheltenham Gold Cup by five lengths at odds of 14/1.
Jack loved his job and had a genuine vocation for working with animals, attributes that were replicated by two other local vets, Nick Coman and Stan Gubbins, who subsequently joined him in the Summerhill practice, and who both gave sterling service to the community over many years.　
That same tradition of delivering a reliable and professional service is now continued by Eamon O' Connell and Aidan Doyle and their team of vets and staff at Summerhill Veterinary Clinic.　
Thrilled that Summerhill Vets has won such a coveted award as All Star Veterinary Practice of the Year, Eamon and Aidan in a statement to The Guardian stated: "All the staff in Summerhill strive to provide the most professional, up to date and compassionate care we can for our clients and their animals, so it’s wonderful to see that hard work recognised. We hope to continue to grow that service over the coming years - maybe we won't be here as long as Mr Powell, but we can try our best!"