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Revolutionizing Veterinary Care

by Lauren Sophia Kreider

When Jennifer Hufnagle and Kristy Bledsoe opened Furdunkin, they set out to revolutionize veterinary care for pets and owners. Located just outside Lancaster City, Furdunkin offers mobile veterinary care, urgent care and a customized wellness approach rooted in prevention. Add cat hammocks, a pet patio serving doggie ice cream and iced coffee, a reforestation in memoriam program that plants a tree for each lost pet and a supportive work environment for their employees, and it’s fair to say that Hufnagle and Bledsoe are well on their way to meeting, and exceeding, their mission.

“We believe mobile is the future of veterinary care,” says Bledsoe. “The world has grown accustomed to having everything at their doorstep with the click of a button. Why should vet care be any different?”

Furdunkin’s mobile veterinary unit travels throughout Lancaster County and is equipped with a full surgical suite for dentistry and surgery. Having access to curbside vet care helps owners navigate demanding schedules and lessens the anxiety pets frequently experience in a car or crowded waiting room.

“Pets do much better when being cared for at home,” explains Bledsoe. She notes that decreased stress often leads to improved test results and pet health outcomes.

Soon after launching their mobile unit in September 2019, Hufnagle and Bledsoe recognized the need to add a physical location to their business. This would allow them to treat more complex health needs without referring to an additional provider. With wait times reaching four to six hours at emergency centers and a growing number of families adopting pets during the pandemic, Furdunkin’s opening of the first pet urgent care center in the county was, as Bledsoe describes, “a win for the entire pet community.”

Furdunkin handles most pet emergencies including foreign body extractions and mass removals in their state-of-the-art facility designed to soothe both pets and their owners. The hospital boasts velvet, pet-friendly couches and cat hammocks in exam rooms and a spa-inspired lounge.

Bledsoe explains, “Urgent care is stressful for all involved so we created a space that can bring some serenity to the entire experience.” While walk-ins are accepted, urgent care clients are encouraged to call in advance to allow staff to better assess the pet’s needs and decrease wait times common at pet emergency centers.

As a veterinary manager for many years, Hufnagle saw firsthand the pet care industry’s profit-over-patient approach to care, the absence of a living wage for support staff and a failure to provide adequate ownership and leadership opportunities for women.

“It was a burn-and-churn model where everyone in the system was rewarded for output versus quality of care,” says Bledsoe, who notes that Furdunkin offers the best benefits in the industry, including flexible family scheduling policies, paid volunteer days, free vet care services for employees’ pets and paid maternity leave.

“We are entirely different from any other veterinary provider out there,” Bledsoe concludes. “I hope people can feel the difference from the moment our truck rolls up to their house or they pull up to our urgent care center. We’ve poured our hearts into every aspect of Furdunkin to create something really special.”

Mobile hours of operation: Mon. through Fri., 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Urgent care hours of operation: Mon. through Fri., 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sat., 8 a.m. to noon. Furdunkin is located at 1090 N. Charlotte St., Ste. 102, in Lancaster. For more information, call 717-844-0997 or visit Furdunkin.com. See ads, pages 36 and 53.

Lauren Sophia Kreider is a frequent contributor to Natural

Awakenings, Lancaster–Berks magazine.

composting made Easy

Turn food waste into ‘black gold’

Just 3 percent of uneaten food in the u.S. is composted, reported the Natural Resources Defense Council in 2012. The remaining food scraps rotting in landfills account for 23 percent of u.S. methane emissions, a greenhouse gas at least 25 times more powerful than carbon monoxide in global warming. with minimal planning and effort, however, food scraps can be recycled through THERE IS Hope & Healing AFTER DIVORCE Schedule your six sessions NOW at Alternative Healing of PA Decluttering Head, Heart & Home After Divorce Six individualized sessions to help you Make the Rest of Your Life the BEST of Your Life!PROOF Diane Levenson Certified Spiritual Life Coach

skórzewiak/AdobeStock.com composting into an organic, highnutrient fertilizer.

Compost is called “black gold” for its high value in gardening, but it’s simply decayed organic material. Consider all the organic materials that fall to the forest floor, break down and return to the earth. This process can be easily recreated at home.

to start composting, get a couple of containers.

n a covered kitchen bucket. beautiful containers abound, but an old pan will work. Countertop positioning makes it easy to toss in kitchen scraps, but it could also be placed under the sink or in the freezer. A review of several options can be found at

TheSpruceEats.com. n a yard bin or pile. Due to critters and pets, a lid is recommended. gardening stores sell compost bins, but they can be made using instructions at homesteading.com. bins in place, start collecting and piling. Organic materials will break down—it’s just a matter of time. The pile should consist of yard waste (grass clippings, plant scraps, small sticks) and kitchen waste (peels, cores, eggshells, tea leaves, coffee grounds, bread). Do not include invasive weeds, meat, bones, dairy products, oils or pet excrement.

The basic recipe is a mix of nitrogen-rich/green materials (food waste, grass clippings, plant trimmings) and carbon-rich/brown materials (dried leaves, sticks, shredded newspaper or cardboard). Shoot for 25 percent green materials.

an unbalanced pile can be amended.

n if it’s wet, moldy or stinky, add more brown materials and stir with a pitchfork to increase oxygen flow and loosen the pile. n A pile that is too dry will take longer to break down. Add kitchen scraps, green grass clippings or sprinkle with water to encourage microbial activity. A balanced pile that is stirred or turned weekly will decay the fastest. Seeing worms and other soil organisms in the pile is a good sign that the process is working.

Finished compost looks like dark, rich soil. Spread it onto the garden in the spring. Scoop some into the holes for new plants. Side dress plants all season.

Compost releases nutrients gradually, improves soil condition and helps retain water. Plants thrive with better root systems. Compost gardeners reap bountiful harvests.

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