Kirsten Sauter, the now-retired veterinarian behind My Pet's Vet on State Road, and her husband David sold the building on August 24 for $1.3 million to R.W. Bryant Realty, LLC.
The Tisbury property that held one of the remaining handful of Vineyard veterinary clinics sold last week to an off-Island cable construction company.
Kirsten Sauter, the now-retired veterinarian behind My Pet's Vet on State Road, and her husband David sold the building on August 24 for $1.3 million to R.W. Bryant Realty, LLC. The LLC is associated with the Plymouth-based R.W. Bryant construction company, according to Ms. Sauter.
Ms. Sauter shut her practice down in April after attempting for about eight years to find a new veterinarian to take over, she said. Private practices as well as larger corporate veterinary clinics were not interested in the one-bedroom, one-bathroom ranch property that housed her veterinary office for decades.
“It’s disappointing that I was not able to find a veterinary buyer,” she said in an interview Monday.
Ms. Sauter had previously liquidated all of her veterinary equipment, and had been in talks with R.W. Bryant this summer.
The sale’s closing officially ends any hope of a new clinic opening in the spot. A nationwide shortage of veterinarians, the Island’s high costs and the need to work long on-call shifts have made it hard to attract new veterinarians to the Island.
R.W. Bryant specializes in fiber-optic and coaxial cable systems, according to the company’s website. Ms. Sauter said she did not know exactly what R.W. Bryant planned to use the property for and a call to the company was not immediately returned Monday.
With the number of Vineyard veterinarians growing smaller, some off-Island veterinarians have started to service Vineyard pet owners in recent months to fill the gap. Vista Vets in Falmouth has been taking in Island pets and All Pets Medical Center in Bourne has started seeing animals once a month at the Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard.
Comments
Its a shame that with so many
just a thought edgIts a shame that with so many animal owners there are not enough vetinarians.
It's not a veterinarian's
Robert MVIt's not a veterinarian's fault they can't afford to live on this island.
Our family loves MV!
Ben Bryant 401 State RdOur family loves MV!
We built the fiber network on MV in the 90’s, I was honored to build the fiber to the home (FTTH) project on Chappaquiddick Island in 2015
We are animal lovers and just wanted to express our love to all, this article seems “short sighted”.
The author should respectfully wait on our reply instead of rushing to discredit our firm, intentionally or not, we deserve a little more credit for our decades of commitment to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Islands.
We are here for YOU, we will employ the local community and assist your telecom connections so you can communicate with your loved ones on AND off island.
R. W. Bryant does care and we need everyone to know the truth!
God bless the animals and may our message be that of respect to all the island families that have supported our mission over the past 45 years!
Benjamin Joel Bryant (Vice President)
You will be missed! Thanks
Angela A Cywinski VINEYARD HAVENYou will be missed! Thanks for taking care of the furry friends. Your compassion and tears, during the toughest moment of a pet owner's life; when the time comes for that last moment with your beloved pet. Again, thank you !!!! WISHING YOU ALL BEST!!!
A few summers ago while
Charles Coffey Old Saybrook, CtA few summers ago while vacationing on the island we noticed that our beloved boxer had a swollen eye. My wife and I immediately called every vet on the Vineyard and could not get an appointment. One practice told us that we could bring the dog in but that they could not guarantee the it would be seen because they were only open till noon and that we would be asked to leave at closing.
We were appalled by the lack veterinarian care as well as the lack of compassion. Mr. Genter’s article serves to highlight a problem that exists on the Vineyard when it comes to creating an environment that draws professionals who provide necessary services due the high cost of providing those services.
We had more than once thought of moving to the Vineyard but changed our mind after experiencing the lack of veterinary emergency care.
You won't be missed. Sure it
Jeff VHYou won't be missed. Sure it's sad that you couldn't get your dog prompt medical care. But equating vets overworking to the point of burnout with "lack of compassion" underscores your sense of entitlement and empathy toward fellow human beings. You could have taken your dog off-island but apparently chose not to. I guess your vacation was more important that your professed desire for prompt medical care. Stay in CT. Your attitude is just as offensive to those trying to make a living on the island as the actual financial cost of operating a business. Take a look in the mirror before casting aspersions on others.
This ‘quick to judge’ comment
Oysterous IslanderThis ‘quick to judge’ comment proves this island has limited tolerance. Enough said. Let’s be better than this. Please.
The fact is the owners had
Ben Bryant 401 State RdThe fact is the owners had been trying to sell for 8 years and they had officially closed the operation months prior to RWB embarking on this urgent purchase agreement at a heavy price for a small plot of land / building, the seller informed us no vets were interested in burdening the costs in conjunction with human resource restrictions.
Sorry that this problem persists on MV for animal care and other service providers, one clear big picture / concern is the cost for and limited supply of commercially zoned land on MV to allow smaller businesses to have greater interest in opening and then possessing the opportunity to sustain profitable return.
Off island we can and have purchased 6 times the lot size with a much larger building for a lower price, the cost to operate is a heavy burden for local business - with that being said - maybe the town or federal government could provide grants for other licensed vets to have the support needed to promote additional animal care specific business incentives on island.
Negative comments only worsen the problem, where is the “let’s work together and fix this” discussion?
If the community would simply unite on this matter, change will happen for the better!
“Solutions over problems”
Kirsten Sauter is an island
Nina Garde Kingston, MaKirsten Sauter is an island gem. She cared for my families many dogs and cats over the years with quality professionalism and amazing heartfelt compassion. It is so sad that the Vineyard is suffering this shortage and I know she tried so hard to keep the practice going, this must be so difficult for her. I can not imagine living on island without having a family vet. This is another sad state of affairs which islanders must now deal with. Thank you Kirsten for your years of service and for trying to preserve veterinarian care for the Vineyard’s beloved pets.
Add new comment