Kootenai Animal Hospital - Post Falls

Partners Bruce King and Kevin Rogers were both veterinarians practicing in Spokane, Wash., before buying a former restaurant in Post Falls in 1998 and remodeling it into Kootenai Animal Hospital.

With help from Idaho Small Business Development Center consultant John Lynn, they developed a business plan that was well received by the bank, enabling them to create a business “pets and people love.” Opening as a mixed animal practice that cared for both large and small animals, they originally employed a full-time assistant and a part-time receptionist.

The goal of the practice was (and is) to offer convenient, full-time, quality, and compassionate medical care for animals. To achieve that goal, King and Rogers became certified by the American Animal Hospital Association. Their practice is one of only10 in Idaho to do so and the only one in North Idaho. The pair also refocused their practice on small animals and as of 2001 had three veterinarians and five full-time employees, to whom they offer medical, dental, and retirement benefits. The practice also employs six part-time staff members.