A SOUTHAMPTON vet who has cared for thousands of pets in a career spanning more than 30 years is set to retire.

Martin Fogden will retire from Adelaide Veterinary Centre, in Bursledon, where he joined along with his wife Jacquie in 1992.

Martin became a partner in 1994 and has seen Adelaide Vets grow into the 15-strong team it is today.

While Martin and Jacquie – also a veterinary surgeon - are looking forward to retirement, they can be confident the practice will be in safe hands with Scott Hughes stepping up to the position of clinical director.

Scott, a New Zealander by birth, will be a familiar face to Adelaide’s clients as he has been at the practice since 2015.

Martin, who grew a love for working with animals from the James Herriot books and television programmes, said: “A lot has changed over the years. It was quite different in the early 1990s and I remember having to use a mobile phone with a shoulder strap and a huge battery for answering our out-of-hours calls.

“One of the cases I remember the most was treating a dog that was discovered to be the first case of lungworm in this area of the country. The laboratory team got quite excited about that.”

He added: “Both Jacquie and I will miss life with the superb team at Adelaide, we have got to know our clients really well, a lot have been with us for more than one generation.

“The practice, its clients and patients are in very good hands under Scott’s directorship, with a team that will provide the same level of excellent service and care.”

The couple have plans to travel in their retirement, with a trip to Costa Rica at the top of the wish list.

Martin, a keen cyclist, also hopes to cycle from Lands End to John O'Groats to raise money for charity.

Adelaide Vets has five vets, five veterinary nurses and five admin and reception staff.

Scott said: “Martin has been here for 26 years, so his level of knowledge and expertise will be hard to replace and both he and Jacquie will be greatly missed. However, I am more than confident we can provide the same quality and care for clients and their pets.

“We are a real work family at Adelaide and are always looking to the future with several team members developing their skills in areas such as advanced ultrasonography, endoscopy and dermatology, so we can offer a wider veterinary service to our clients.”