Director of Birmingham’s £10m pet hospital unveils a special reason why her new job is so imporant to her

Birmingham’s biggest pet hospital is set to open its doors to care for up to 10,000 animals a year - 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Blaise Veterinary Referral Hospital is the first of its kind for the city and is named after St Baise - the patron sait of veterinarians, who was known for his kindness and empathy towards animals and his ability to heal them

The groundbreaking pet healthcare unit is opening in Longbridge near the town centre at 1601 Bristol Road South on November 6 and will be led by hospital director Julie Davis, who grew up in the south Birmingham district renowned for its car manufacturing before the factories closed.

She may only be 4ft 11ins high, but Julie, aged 47, has packed a lot into her life. A former journalist who went on to spend two decades in the NHS, she has also had an incredible career in the world of competitive powerlifting, taking home a dozen World, European and British titles.

Julie said: “Seeing this open in Longbridge makes it very special for me. Blaise is on the West Works, and I used to live on the East Works site. So being part of the Longbridge regeneration and having this great hospital for people and their pets means a lot.”

It is the first pet hospital that owners IVC Evidensia have bulit in the UK and the plans are driven by a boom in pet ownership over the last three years. The 36,000 sq. ft pet hospital is set to be a specialist-led, multi-disciplinary unit offering health care for animals and 24/7 emergency care for pets in Birmingham and the surrounding areas. It has created 100 jobs for the local area.

Julie’s determination to succeed is likely to stand her in good stead to ensure the Blaise pet hospital is a huge success in helping animals in need.

During her days as a power lifter she qualified for the World Championships in Serbia in her first attempt and went on to win another seven World and European titles as well as four British titles.

She has lived all over Europe in Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia - where she trained at least four times a week in either her garage gym or a specialist gym a two-hour round trip away. Although her success in this field is tinged with sadness as her mum never got to see her compete.

Julie said: “My mum loved lifting and I lost her just before I started competing, so that first world title was all for her. It’s an emotional moment when you win as getting the medal is all you picture when you train.”

Julie now lives in Stoke Prior with her husband, Steve, and their two rescue dogs, Riley and Lucas, and has quit the sport that made her a world champion to head up the project - which is close to her heart.

Speaking about the change in her life, she said: “Giving up powerlifting after seven years is a huge deal for me, but this new hospital is so exciting. When I go into something I need to give it my all, so something had to go.”

All the pet care facilities at Blaise Referral Hospital, Longbridge

The 36,000 sq. ft pet hospital is set to be a specialist-led, multi-disciplinary unit offering health care for animals and 24/7 emergency care for pets in Birmingham and the surrounding areas.

Pets and their owners will be referred to the hospital by their local daytime vet practice when they need more specialised treatment, such as oncology for pets with cancer or cardiology for heart issues. There will also be an emergency and critical care service offering ICU and out of hours care from the UK’s leading pet emergency service, Vets Now, which is part of the same group.

The hospital will include state-of-the-art equipment, pioneering treatments and specialist-led extended clinical services including a custom-built intensive care unit for emergency and critical care, advanced imaging suite, oncology treatment wards and several modern operating theatres. On the hospital website, they said: “We can now take non-urgent referrals through our online referral form.”

What hospital owners said

Speaking about the developments, Lucie Goodwin, national medicine lead for IVC Evidensia UK, previously said: “Blaise is our first ever purpose-built hospital and naturally we’re all very excited to take another step in the journey towards opening its doors.

“The facilities at Blaise will allow delivery of an excellent specialist service to clients and the location in Longbridge next to the ‘rewilded’ riverbank is peaceful and perfect for both pet owners and staff to spend some time. We are committed to creating a positive workplace culture, making Blaise a great place to work, benefitting employees, patients and clients alike.”