Flossmoor Animal Hospital is expanding with an entirely new, adjacent building that will about double the size of the facility. The new area will be exclusively for pet boarding and grooming, have a separate entrance off Kedzie Avenue instead of Governors Highway and include a new waiting room.
Moving boarding and grooming into a larger space in a new building will create more space on the veterinarian side of Flossmoor Animal Hospital. Co-owner Chris Ormsby said the number of exam rooms will increase from four to nine.
“Humans get nervous going to the dentist. Animals get nervous going to the veterinarian,” Ormsby said, explaining one of the benefits of more exam rooms. “The idea is that as a patient walks into a facility to get them into an exam room as soon as we possibly can. So, they’re not out with other animals getting ramped up and getting excited.”
Expanding the space at Flossmoor Animal Hospital also will decrease patients’ anxiety because fewer unfamiliar animals will be in the same waiting area, Ormsby said. Instead, pets being checked in for boarding or grooming will wait and arrive at the new entrance separate from clients who are there to see a veterinarian or veterinarian technician.
While boarding and grooming services aren’t new to Flossmoor Animal Hospital, the updates will be state of the art and up to date with all the latest trends in animal health, Ormsby said.
The new building is still under construction but already includes two outside, fenced-in play yards where the kennel staff lets dogs run around and play with them. The kennels are set to be switched from metal fencing to glass doors, which Ormsby said is better for the animals’ paws.
“Let’s say you’re grooming at some point in the day, you can drop your animal off with us,” Ormsby said, describing one of the benefits of additional kennel and boarding space. “Instead of saying, ‘Hey, you have to be here at 10 a.m.,’ you can come at 8 a.m., drop your animal off and we can groom it whenever.”
The new play yards are available for dog owner who opt in for the “pampering” service when bringing their dogs in for boarding. The ground is covered with Pet Turf, an artificial grass.
“The problem with regular grass is you get sticks and acorns that get stuck in their paws. This won’t have any of that,” Ormsby said. “It’s safe for them.”
Emily Alvaraz, a kennel assistant and pamperer, ran around one of the new play yards with Clarence, another staff member’s dog. Alvaraz used a small stuffed animal to play fetch with Clarence.
“They [animals] always bring a smile to my face. I’m always so happy to come to work,” Alvarez said. “They make my day every day.”
“We enjoy being around the animals. We enjoy giving them a place to be while their owners are out of town or wherever they might be,” said Kyle Lawton, the kennel manager.
Antonia Tienda, project manager at RWE Design Build, said all the construction and renovations should be completed by April 24, 2025, and the new boarding and grooming facility should be finished and fully available by Thanksgiving.
