SANDSTONE VET GROUP - Key Persons
Andy grew up in the Lake District helping out on his family's beef and sheep farm before studying at the University of Liverpool and joined Hampton Vets, Malpas in 2012. Andy has a keen interest in bovine fertility but enjoys all aspects of farm vetting especially the emergency work. In his spare time Andy enjoys looking after his 1 year old, his small flock of sheep and two dogs. He also plays golf and hockey when his wife lets him.
Ben has moved to Cheshire after 4 years working in practice in Ireland and is currently studying for a Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice (Cattle). He's enjoying getting to know our farmers here, and looking forward to getting stuck into some dairy work.
Job Titles:
- Dispensary Assistant & Delivery Driver
Ben assists Kate with stock ordering and management, and on top of this can be seen out and about with our van, fulfilling medicines orders on the road.
Clare joined in 2021 us with several years experience in the agricultural industry - she lives in Nantwich and carried out her studies at Reaseheath College where she completed a BSc in Equine Studies. Clare has always enjoyed working with farmers and continues to do so here at Sandstone.
Edward's early interest in agriculture led him to Reading University where he completed a degree in Biological Sciences. A career in veterinary medicine was the next obvious step. Since graduating from Glasgow University's School of Veterinary Medicine, Edward has worked exclusively in Cheshire, driven by the opportunity to work in this dairy-focussed part of the world. Adding to his credentials, Edward completed the Diploma of Bovine Reproduction in 2018. He enjoys working closely with his clients to provide high quality, tailored veterinary input to their farms.
Emyr grew up on a dairy farm in North Wales and graduated from Glasgow University in 2003. After a short period working in a large practice in Carlisle he made the move closer to home and settled to work as a large animal vet in Cheshire and the surrounding areas.
He completed his Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice (CertAVP) in 2018. He enjoys the variety of work associated with dairy vet medicine and has a particular interest in how technology and automation can be used to improve welfare and productivity.
Emyr is married to Vicky and has two young children called Bethan and Logan. He enjoys mountain biking, snowboarding and shooting and is often accompanied by his Huntaway dog, Meg, on his visits.
Gethin became interested in farm animal work whilst spending most of his free time on the family's Beef and Sheep farm in North Wales during school holidays. His first recollection of ever seeing a farm vet was to replace a uterine prolapse and the use of the "wine bottle extension" inside the cow!
Since qualifying from Glasgow in 2004, he has developed an interest in reproduction, and completed his masters in Bovine Reproduction in 2012. He is trained in sheep and cattle advanced breeding techniques and promotes preventative health planning for sheep flocks.
He has an interest in block calving and all year-round dairy systems and is a trained AHDB Mastitis Control Plan and AHDB Healthy Feet initiative deliverer, with the aim of improving cow health and welfare.
Outside of work he is kept busy by his two active children and the occasional swim, bike, run event!
Hannah graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2017. She began her farm vet career in Mid Wales before returning to Cheshire, where she grew up and has links with the farming community. She has a keen interest in youngstock management and infectious diseases and hopes to further her knowledge by completing a certificate in the near future.
Outside of work Hannah can be found helping out on the family beef farm or in the show ring with her Pedigree Herefords.
Jess graduated from university in Leeds and stayed in the city for a decade before returning home to Congleton in 2020. Jess previously worked in the motor industry but thinks the farming world is much more interesting, never a dull moment in the Sandstone office!
Jonny grew up on the South coast before graduating from Glasgow University. He moved halfway home to Cheshire where he has remained ever since. With over a decade focusing on dairy cow health and welfare, he has gained experience working alongside many different dairy farming businesses. In 2014 he spent six months in New Zealand working with block calving farms, followed by a working trip to Mid-West North America with exposure to large housed high-output dairies. He is further qualified as a Diploma in Bovine Reproduction (DBR) holder with interest in all aspects of dairy herd management at both ends of the production spectrum. Jonny is an AHDB Mobility Mentor with a keen interest in lameness at a herd level, and also enjoys working with teams on farm to continue optimising health, welfare and productivity through data driven decision making. More recently, Jonny has gained experience in Dynamic Parlour Testing and will head up this new service at Sandstone Vet Group. Outside of work, Jonny can be found in the Bickerton Hills with his family or when time allows, wakeboarding on the lake, surfing in the sea or walking in the mountains.
Laura graduated from university in Romania in 2012. She has a specialist interest in TB work and now has more than seven years' experience in this field. Laura joined Sandstone Vet Group in August 2020 having previously worked in Cheshire and the surrounding counties for a number of years. When not at work she just loves getting in the kitchen and baking - apple pie is a speciality!
Mark has been a practicing farm vet in Cheshire, Shropshire and surrounding areas since 2012. Prior to retraining as a vet at the University of Liverpool he had a successful career in Research and Development in the pharmaceutical industry.
Preventative medicine and contagious disease control are key areas of interest for Mark. Furthermore, metabolic disease is of particular interest, with Mark having a PhD in this area - lending itself to the investigation and assessment of transition cow success.
Outside of work much of Mark's time is spent with his young family however when time allows he is a keen fly fisherman and clay target shooter.
Mary works alongside Sally to manage the diary and also helps us with pre movement TB tests and processing lab fees. We are sure that Mary needs no introduction as she is a familiar figure on the Cheshire farming scene and a very valuable member of our team.
Owen has been working in Cheshire as a farm vet for 15 years, completing the Diploma in Bovine Reproduction in 2010. He has strong links within the industry and a keen interest in bovine fertility, offering embryo transfer services alongside herd fertility monitoring and consultancy. Owen also has his own herd of Pedigree Aberdeen Angus Cattle, the Morpheus herd, and is involved with the Aberdeen Angus society. At home, Owen is often busy working around his farm, and spending time with his wife and two children.
Sally is technically a vet but it's doubtful you'd want her caesaring your cow! After a number of years in practice and industry, Sally realised that her passion lay with working alongside clinical vet teams to provide high-level client care to farmers. Her jobs since joining Sandstone have been many and varied but her key remit going forwards will be to look at how best we can support our farmers by being at the forefront of the profession, and give the clinical team the tools they need to do this. Sally really enjoys working with and learning from our brilliant farmers and team here at Sandstone. In her spare time, Sally is kept busy by her two children, and a very small smallholding!
We're sure you will all be familiar with Sally from your calls into the office. Sally is responsible for working with Mary to manage the diary and takes the lead in booking in / managing DEFRA TB tests. Sally has a wealth of experience and we are lucky to have her organising our days!
We are lucky to have a team member like Sandra who has many strings to her bow and can support just about anything we need to do in the office! On top of this, Sandra is responsible for reconciling payments and managing accounts
Sarah graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 2015. She's been working as a farm vet in Cheshire, where she grew up, ever since. She has recently completed her certificate in cattle health and production and hopes to use this to further pursue her interests in transition management and infectious disease.