In October, North Central Animal Hospital’s Dr. Hillary Frank, pictured here with “Benny,” will join her team in celebrating 30 years of caring for the Valley’s dogs, cats and others assorted critters at their Central Avenue and Dunlap location (submitted photo).
Sugar gliders. Who knew that North Central Phoenix has its very own sugar glider expert? Dr. Hillary Frank calls them “little flying hamsters from Australia,” and when, a few years back, a little sugar glider needed a veterinarian, Dr. Frank stepped up.
“I didn’t know anything about them,” she remembers. “But this little guy needed care, so I started looking for information and found a sugar glider expert in Australia. I called him and we spent 20 minutes getting me up to speed. But convincing him that in Phoenix, Arizona, I had a family who kept a sugar glider in their home took a couple of minutes. He kept saying, ‘In their HOUSE? They keep him in their HOME?’ Apparently, they don’t do that in Australia.”
But in that very expensive phone call, Frank learned from her Australian colleague, and she cared for the little sugar glider and brought him back to health. “That’s probably what launched my interest in avian medicine,” she said. Since that time, Frank has become a certified avian veterinarian, and in addition to treating the more common companion animals like dogs and cats, she treats flying critters from sparrows to raptors.
Dr. Hillary Frank educates her team regularly, keeping them up to date on treatments and trends in the community. Many of her team members have worked with her for most of her years in practice (submitted photo).
The Phoenix native opened North Central Animal Hospital at 20 W. Dunlap Ave. in 1995, and since then, she and her team have been an active part of the community where she grew up.
“My family had a mini-farm at 15th Avenue and Northern, and our veterinarian was Dr. Alan Finlayson. I followed him around when he came to treat our animals, and he encouraged me to go to vet school at Colorado State, then to come back home and work in North Central. I did exactly that,” she said. “When I opened my own practice, in the building we are still in, my team and I dug into the community to help keep animals and their people healthy.”
Frank has continued in Finlayson’s tradition, mentoring students from when they first consider veterinary careers. She takes young veterinarians into her practice and enjoys watching them learn and grow from her experience. She is passionate about community education and service and is an adjunct professor at Midwestern College of Veterinary Medicine in Glendale. She also works closely with students at the University of Arizona College of Veterinary Medicine in Oro Valley.
What is she most passionate about?
“I am passionate about preventative medicine and educating humans that their health is directly tied to the health of our animals. Roundworms, for example, are transmissible between animals and people. Roundworms aren’t just a nuisance; they are a leading cause of blindness in young children. And look at rabies – if our wild or domesticated animals get rabies, people are at risk.”
Frank and her team have long provided low-cost rabies vaccinations and she is committed to continuing that service.
“We used to charge $5, which included an exam. Over the years, the vaccines have gone up in price, so we have had to increase our prices, but we still offer them at a great price. We do it because we want our community to be as healthy as possible.”
North Central Animal Hospital is one of only 12 to 15 percent of practices in the U.S. and Canada to be accredited by the American Animal Hospital Association, and Frank was the first board-certified avian veterinarian in Arizona.
“Accreditation and board-certification are important because they show that we are serious about keeping up the required highest standards of the profession,” she said.
Frank has two daughters, and one of them wrote a “top secret” email to North Central News.
“Mom opened the practice in October 1995 – 30 years ago! I’m so proud of her. She is such a hard worker and is really inspirational to me and even to my friends!” wrote Jessica.
The experienced veterinarian educates her team regularly, keeping them up to date on treatments and trends in the community. Many of her team members have worked with her for most of her years in practice.
“A couple of years ago, I decided to turn management over to a management company, so I could focus more on education and community work. I am really enjoying the time I can spend on new endeavors, like learning more about orthopedics in animals, and sharing my avian medicine knowledge with others.”
As she talks about preventative medicine, Frank reminds a new cat mama to “brush your cat’s teeth every day. Here’s a link to a video that shows you how.”
Oh, Dr. Frank. You were pretty fabulous until you said that. But somehow you inspired me to try it. Maybe.
