Welcome to Redstone!
When you walk in the door at Redstone, we truly hope that you feel welcomed and at home! We purposefully designed our lobby to feel like a “living room” to give us that homey feel. We are hoping that helps to put you at ease, as we know that walking into a veterinary hospital can be a stressful event for both you and your furry family member!
We are a locally owned small business, not a corporate practice and we are very proud of this! Being a small business has its perks such as our ability to re-invest right back into our practice with training for our Doctors and technical staff as well as all of the latest medical technology. Furthermore, we can choose philanthropic pursuits – such as with our partnership with the Humane Society of the South Platte Valley.
Our mission at Redstone is to deliver high-quality medical care for your pet at a fair price. We focus on compassionate care and client education and strive to make the veterinary visit a pleasant experience and empowering experience for your whole family.
Come in and see what our clients are talking about. Your pets are part of your family, and that’s precisely how they will be treated here at Redstone. We are passionate about serving the pets and the people in our community!
A Message from Dr. Downie
As a Colorado native, I graduated from Colorado State University’s veterinary program in 2003. Eager to experience something new, I moved to New York City for an internship and worked at a busy practice. My 6-day work weeks and extra hours were driven by the desire to pay off student loans, but after my daughter was born in 2009, I returned to Colorado, ready to find a healthier work-life balance.
Initially, I considered corporate practices for their benefits but struggled to find one that aligned with my values. The experience I gained working at a 24-hour emergency hospital in New York left me unwilling to compromise on the quality of patient care! Fortunately, I discovered a new opportunity with the Humane Society of the South Platte Valley. This position allowed me to lead the creation of their spay-neuter program and manage shelter cases. While the pay barely covered my student loans, working with shelter animals and serving an underprivileged community reignited my passion for veterinary medicine. However, I missed the client relationships that come with private practice, so I started doing relief work in the Denver area, which included a position at Redstone Animal Hospital for Dr. Jim Hailey.
Redstone was a small, slow clinic then, with outdated facilities converted from an old house into a clinic. Despite its prime location on Santa Fe, it wasn’t thriving. When I discovered the practice was for sale, my entrepreneurial spirit, inherited from my father, kicked in. I decided to purchase Redstone from Dr. Hailey, even though the bank deemed it a “risky venture” due to its sluggish pace.
In the beginning, we were slow, and I had a lot of sleepless nights, but I dreamed big. I envisioned creating a practice where employees took their jobs seriously—but not themselves! I wanted to collaborate with local shelters, ensure a stress-free experience for animals and clients, and provide excellent yet affordable care. We initially operated with just one receptionist and one technician, and our connected kennel, My Pet’s Place, was vital to sustaining us through the early days.
Over the past 14+ years, I am thrilled to report that Redstone has grown into a thriving practice with six veterinarians. In 2013, I renovated our building with the help of an SBA loan, although I wish I had planned for even more space to accommodate our growth! Thanks to the support of our community, we’ve continued to expand, and I can still make that SBA loan payment each month. Now – I can’t believe it but we are planning for our next expansion! Our vision is to turn our first building into “cats only” to reduce the stress for our feline friends. And we are going to re-build our hospital for dogs behind the cat hospital, and have a brand new kennel facility on the very back of our property. That is, if we can survive the Santa Fe construction! At the time I’m writing this in 2024, these plans are currently being reviewed for permits by Douglas County.
I genuinely love being a veterinarian and am grateful to do what I do every day. If you visit Redstone, you’ll meet a team of associates who embody the values I envisioned when starting the practice. I hope you’ll allow us to be a part of your family’s journey by serving as your local veterinarian. Thank you for taking the time to read our story, and I hope to welcome you to Redstone soon!
-Dr. Laura Downie
