Meet the team – Belmont Farm and Equine Vets

Petre Balanescu

Petre was born and raised between the Vineyards Hills in South East Romania. He graduated in 2007 from Bucharest University of Veterinary Medicine. He loves the process of making wine … and the tasting! When he is not testing cattle you will find him on the open roads on one of his motor cycles. Be careful, blink and you will miss him! When he is on farm he is pretty speedy, if the cattle behave.

Laura Langford

Laura joined the practice in 2017 and is a valuable member of the team. She has a level 3 Extended Diploma in Agriculture. You will find her in our Bromyard office supporting the vets and organising all aspects of TB testing. Laura is not to be messed with! She is two time champion of National Tug of War. In her spare time Laura enjoys walking her Springer spaniels Misty and Ruby and socialising and competing with her fellow young farmers.

Alice Mainwaring

Alice grew up in North Herefordshire and joined the Hereford office in September 2016, coming from an Equine AI background. Alice is Team Leader of the support staff, does the marketing for the practice, and most importantly she is Belmont’s in house cake maker! In her spare time she loves baking and walking her cocker spaniel Sven. She has her hands full at home with her toddler Harry and Sven, so she comes to work for a break!

Charlotte Watkins

Charlotte joined the practice in September 2017. She qualified from Nottingham University and joined us after completing an agricultural study tour of New Zealand. She is a farmer’s daughter from the Black Mountains and is very involved with their pedigree Texel flock. Charlotte has a keen interest in dairy medicine; especially fertility and calf health. She also enjoys the variety that veterinary brings and is never happier than when she is kept busy!

Ally Reid

Ally joined Belmont in July 2020, after moving to the UK last year from Australia where she predominantly worked in mixed practice. Ally is originally from a beef cattle property in Southern Australia, but spent alot of time working in Northern Australia on the cattle stations.
In her spare time Ally likes to play AFL football and rugby, and loves to travel.

Andrew Cooke

Andrew, now one of the four Directors at Belmont, joined as an assistant in 2013. He previously worked for nearly seven years in mixed practice in Leicestershire and Rutland. He graduated from Glasgow university in 2006 and has slowly been working his way southwards ever since!

He enjoys all aspects of large animal veterinary work, particularly disease control and fertility work, with cows, bulls and sheep! When he manages to find 5 minutes to take off his wellies and waterproofs Andrew spends his free time with his young family and rescue Pointer ‘Murphy’. He is also a keen cyclist, so you might spot him on his bike exploring the hills and lanes of Herefordshire.

Sybil Legge

Sybil has been with the practice since 2005. She is the manager of the Bromyard office, all would fall apart without her. If you need to know anything you can just ask Sybs, she is the oracle. When Sybil is not at her desk you can find her relaxing at Butterley, red wine or Prosecco in hand enjoying her beautiful gardens. She also enjoys spending time with her Daughter Lisa, son Robert and new puppy, the adorable Betty. She is the glue of the Bromyard office and we would be lost without her.

Sophie Powell

Sophie joined the practice in July 2019, and is mainly based in our Hereford office. She is very involved in producing the Herd Health Plans, as well as keeping an eye on the TB diary and is a qualified SQP. Sophie comes from a farming background and can be regularly found in the lambing shed in springtime. In her spare time Sophie likes to socialise with her friends and travel the world.

Mike Bellamy

Having grown up in Suckley, Mike returned to the local area having graduating from Nottingham Vet School in 2011. After 3 years working in true mixed practice in Ledbury he undertook an internship at Three Counties Equine Hospital, gaining his Certificate in Equine Practice, before taking time to locum in Droitwich, New Zealand and the Shetland Isles. Now settled in Ledbury, with his wife Beth and their Labrador Pepper, he considers himself a practical allrounder, with an enthusiasm for most outdoor pursuits and a work hard play hard attitude.

James Hipperson

Originating from his family’s pig farm in South Norfolk, James headed West and graduated from Bristol School of Veterinary Science in the summer of 2018. Post graduation he spent 16 months in a truely mixed practice in Ledbury before deciding to switch to solely Large animal practice, with the aim of developing further as a large animal vet. James’ main interests lie in all aspects of cattle and small ruminant work and he is considering his options on further specialisms at the moment. Outside of work you will typically find him up the scaffolding or on the roof of his family home that he is currently renovating. He admits it’s a labour of love but as with most projects taking a little longer to complete than expected.

Millie Whitlock

Millie joined the Belmont team in July 2019, you will find her behind our reception desk in the Hereford office. Millie heads up our social media pages and carries out many of our admin tasks. Coming from a farming background and previously working at a local livestock market she knew many clients already. Away from work she spends a lot of time on her family farm. In her spare time Millie enjoys catching up with friends and going to social events.

Diego Sainz Garcia

Diego is a TB Tester from La Rioja, Spain. He graduated from the University of Zaragoza in 2005.

Working in Spain as a Vet in an abattoir and also with large animals close to the small mountain village where he lives,

last year he decided to say goodbye to his life in Spain and to join the Belmont Vets team in January 2019.

He loves to visit the farms because this reminds him of his family farm back home. He also enjoys being able to drive through woodland to work and being outside in the countryside.

He has a passion for all the creative arts, for literature, poetry, design and music. He is also a multi-discipline artist.

Above all, he cherishes the time he spends with his wife and two children.

Harriet Turner

Harriet has been with the practice since 2015. Harriet has her full AMTRA qualification, so has an extensive knowledge of the farming and equine industries. She also has the added bonus of knowing so many of our client base. Harriet is also a ROMS accredited mobility scorer and a qualified Vet Tech. When she is not at work you will find her either competing her horse or on the astro turf playing hockey. She also enjoys working her cocker spaniel Daphne, when she has the time.

Hannah Mitchell

Hannah is a born and bred local with her family owing a sheep and goat farm in the South of Herefordshire. She graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in London in 2016. After she graduated she spent 2.5 years in a mixed practice in Glouscestershire before making the decision to move back to Herefordshire and join Belmont Farm & Equine vets in January 2019.

Hannah is enjoying being able to focus solely on farm and equine work and loves the variety each day brings. Her particular interest is in medicine and preventative healthcare, especially in equines and small ruminants.

Outside of work Hannah can be found helping on the family farm, down the stables or having fun out competing her horse, Piglet. Her family have a keen interest in off road car racing and Hannah can occasionally be found in the navigator’s seat. Her ultimate goal is to, one day be allowed to be in the driving seat!

Rosalynd O'Sullivan

Ros joined the practice in April 2019. She has a Bachelor’s degree in biochemistry, with an emphasis on nutrition and is currently studying for her SQP qualification. Ros has a particular interest in dairy goat herds and their niche place within the farming industry. She also finds the health planning side of the business very interesting and along side Laura produces the health plans. Ros is a very hands on person and is keen to study for her Vet Tech qualification so that she can get out on farm. In her spare time Ros enjoys walking with her three whippets, camping and horse riding. You will find Ros in our Ledbury office most of the time.

Ovidiu Mercia Oltean

Ovi graduated in 2004 in Cluj-Napoca, Transylvania. After graduating he had his own companion animal practice before coming to the UK with his family. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with his son. You can always rely on Ovi being at our socials, especially if we go paint balling. He is fuelled by strong black coffee and Red Bull. One of Ovi’s favourite hobbies is ballet and he is also partial to a bit of Leona Lewis, voice of an angel.

Amelia Stevens

Originally from Derbyshire, Amelia graduated ‘cum laude’ from Szent Istvan University in Budapest in early 2016. After just shy of two years in rural mixed practice on the Welsh borders, Amelia joined Belmont Farm & Equine in January 2018 to focus her efforts on providing care to the areas horses and livestock.

Amelia enjoys all areas of first opinion equine work, enjoying the diversity that this role brings. She is particularly interested in routine healthcare, including dentistry, believing vehemently that prevention of disease – where possible – is better than cure! With an ageing equine population in the UK, Amelia is also passionate about senior health care and ensuring our horses remain comfortable and content in their later years.

Having been dragged up on a dairy farm, Amelia still enjoys donning her wellies and waterproofs for the occasional farm visit!

Amelia has ridden from a young age, although sadly no longer keeps horses of her own. Other hobbies include dressmaking, sketching, and walking her two boisterous dogs in the Brecon Beacons.

Andrea Smith

Andrea joined the Hereford support team in July 2017. Since being with us she has got married and gone from part time to full time. We all fondly know her as Aud. She has a mixed skill set and brings experience from MoleValley farmers and livery yards. She is a skilled seamstress in her spare time.

Krasimir (Kris) Stefanov

Kris graduated veterinary medicine in 2008 in Bulgaria at Trakia University. He joined us here at Belmont in 2016 as a TB Tester. Her enjoys travelling the world and going to the gym. Living in Birmingham has it perks, when it comes to globe trotting. He likes nothing more than a well organised test where safety is key!

Javier Sisamon

Javier (Javi) is a TB testing vet from Bilbao in Northern Spain, he graduated from the University of Zaragoza. After working for several years in Navarra and Cantabria (Northern Spain) with pigs, cattle, sheep and goats, he decided to do something that has always been at the back of my mind and come to the UK. He joined the Belmont Vets team in July 2015. He loves to work in direct contact with farm animals and likes nothing more than the freedom being outdoors. He will be spending some time with our foot trimmer and will be out on farm developing his hoof-skills. Away from work he spends time with his wife Claudia, watching TV series or football, and reading historical novels.

Javi is now our go to foot trimmer, you will see him out and about in our van with his trailer in tow.

Pam Strange

Pam is a well-seasoned Belmonter! She joined the practice in 1977 as a nurse. She has had many roles over time and has now returned to the fold to the reception desk. She will be a very familiar face to all of you and is an integral part of the support team in Hereford.

Caroline Brewer

Caroline (Caz) joined Belmont in 2013 having worked at a local mixed practice. She is involved in all large animal work but particularly enjoys small ruminants, heading up most of the dairy goat and sheep work we do at Belmont. She lives in Ross with her dairy farming husband and is involved on the farm as well as at work, a very busy girl!

Will Allman

Will joined us from the cold wastelands of the North in autumn 2017. He qualified from Edinburgh in 2012 and went straight to a busy mixed practice in Yorkshire. He is a local farmer’s son and has been involved with cattle from a young age and returns to Herefordshire to develop further as a large animal vet. His interests lie in flock and herd health and he loves getting stuck in with all things large animal. When not on farm you will find him at home with his young family or on the Rugby field.

Nick Gibbon

Before joining Belmont Farm and Equine in 2013 Nick worked in West Wales and Cheshire in large animal practice. He enjoys all aspects of large animal work and has particular interests in ruminant systems, helping clients build sustainable businesses through excellent animal health and performance. He completed the Diploma in Bovine Reproduction in 2018 and is a dairyCo mobility mentor. He is also very interested in genetics and delivers Clarifide genomic testing for the practice. Nick joined the business as a Director in 2017 and in his free time he juggles a young baby with as much fly fishing and shooting as possible.

Harry Walby

Originally from a farming background in Gloucestershire, Harry graduated from the Royal Veterinary College back in 2016 and went to work in a farm practice in Worcestershire. Harry joined Belmont in September 2018 with the view to developing and broadening his knowledge on all farm species. His farming background stands him in good stead to cope with the challenges of farm veterinary work. Harry’s areas of interest include surgery and lameness. Outside of work Harry enjoys working his spaniel, shooting and sailing.

Tudor Patcas

Tudor comes from Ordea in Romania. He qualified from the University of Cluj-Npoca in 2009 and went straight into clinical Veterinary practice. He was the sole vet on a dairy farm of 400 cows and then came to work in the UK for Eville and Jones doing meat inspection and abattoir work. He trained as a TB tester through XL Farmcare and joined the team at Belmont in February 2018. He lives in the Forest of Dean and in his spare time enjoys exploring the UK and further afield.

Matt Pugh

Matt is a very experienced farm animal vet, highly motivated by herd and flock health. He likes to work in partnership with clients, aiming to help find them solutions to enable them to make improvements in their farm’s efficiency and production and hence the welfare of the animals under their care. He has an unhealthy interest in all things that ruminate and everything that makes them tick.

Outside of work he has three children and a menagerie of animals to keep him entertained and has been known to attempt to run & bike. He is trying to rekindle his cricket career but the social side is going better than the cricket! Matt has been a Director in the practice since 2004.

Dom Alexander

One of the four Directors; Dominic has been at Belmont Farm & Equine Vets Ltd since 2004. Dom will turn his hand to all aspects of veterinary practice but has a particular interest in donkeys and farm animal and equine ocular disease. Many clients have been very helpful in assisting Dom collecting data for a research project in cattle. The aim is to help improve the knowledge of eye diseases and, hopefully, treatment. Dom is a coffee snob and aims to have coffee machines in both practices in addition to the kettle!

Bill Main

Bill is the most experienced of the Belmont team. He came to Hereford as a new graduate in 1982 and then joined the partnership in 1990 when the practice was still mixed. He has been a driving force in the growth and development of the practice and has seen it go from 4 mixed vets to 15 large animal focused practitioners over his career.

Bill spends most of his time working with cattle, where he excels in fertility and medicine. He can also be found working with equine lameness and dentistry and is more than capable with all the species we deal with. Bill retired as a director in 2015 but is still going strong in clinical practice.

Sharon Powell

Sharon has worked for Belmont since 1997. She joined as office manager and soon became practice manager working for Belmont Veterinary Centre. When the practices spilt she continued to work for both Belmont Vets and Belmont Farm and Equine Vets as practice manager. Her role is very varied with no two days being the same. She likes the variation of working for both businesses and ensures both practices comply with the ever changing legislation set down by the government and the RCVS.

In 2007 she successfully gained her ILM diploma in management and the certificate of veterinary practice managers. In her spare time she likes to travel, socialise with friends and family and spends a lot of time walking her crazy cocker spaniel “Tia”.

Michelle Harris

Michelle joined us as a Receptionist in May 1998 when the practice was mixed. She was promoted to Head Receptionist within a few years of starting and stayed under that heading with many other responsibilities added until the businesses split. She now heads up the Hereford branch as office manager. Along with cooking and socialising she loves a long walk to the pub with her lurcher Ede and a large glass of wine as a reward!

Vets

Matthew Pugh

Dominic Alexander