THE Marcus Swail-founded EquiVET Ireland has joined the Equine Care Group.

The Equine Care Group was founded by veterinarians to create an international network of equine hospitals and ambulatory veterinarians working together as one team.

Speaking to The Irish Field at the Dublin Horse Show this week, Irish team vet Swail said: “EquiVET continues exactly as it was but we're now part of the larger Equine Care Group. We feel like we’re part of a larger European Veterinary practice and that has worked well for us. The group identify colleagues that they think would be a good fit; they don't micromanage the practice, they don't interfere with the business.”

Swail founded the business in 2008 and was soon joined by JP King, followed more recently by Tim O’Hagan and Seamus McSorley. “I've been lucky to have really good people working with me and that that is something that just has built up over a number of years and the practice has been going very well.”

The sale came about after watching the Group from the outside over a period of a couple of years and through speaking to colleagues in the international veterinary world. “I was never that well disposed towards the corporate thing,” Swail said. “But the dynamic of this group was different for two reasons. Number one is the vets control the decision making and direction within the group, so there's a minority venture capital shareholder, and the vets have the controlling share. And the second was that we really liked the energy, the quality of the people and the standard of the work within the group.”

EquiVET is taking the delivery of a new MRI advanced imaging machine next week - it will just be the third in the country - while they are actively looking for a new property to expand the business. “The MRI unit is being delivered and commissioned in the second half of August, and we should have it up and running at the start of September. We've grown steadily and got busier over the last number of years. We've actually outgrown the footprint of the place we're in at the moment so we're actively looking for somewhere to expand into.”

Swail added: “We are pleased to be part of the Equine Care Group and to be contributing to the high standards associated with it. We’re very happy with the move and the plans to continue to grow. I think that'll be accelerated by our synergy with the group.”