The year 1923 marked the debut of the Walt Disney Company, Yankee Stadium, the Hollywood Sign—and Knowles Animal Clinic in Miami, Florida.
Fast forward 100 years and that animal hospital, now relocated and called VCA Knowles Central Animal Hospital, is still in business. Over the years, three generations of the Knowles family have helped keep pets in the community healthy and happy. In fact, VCA Knowles Central is one of the oldest single-family-run businesses in South Florida.
All in the (Knowles) Family
The VCA Knowles Central story began in 1923, when Dr. Adam Taylor Knowles, a veterinarian as well as a medical doctor, moved with his wife from Billings, Montana, to Miami. They bought a farm and converted a barn into Knowles Animal Clinic.
Dr. Knowles' two sons also became veterinarians. For a while they owned another animal hospital in Miami together, then one son, Dr. Jack Knowles, built his own clinic in 1963, which is the current location of VCA Knowles Central.
In the early 1970s, Dr. Jack Knowles' daughter, Jane Ann, married Dr. David Wise, who is also a veterinarian. The couple opened another hospital, VCA Knowles Snapper Creek, which since 1974 has been run by Dr. Wise's business partner, Dr. James Block. Keeping it all in the family, Dr. Wise is currently the hospital director at VCA Knowles Central.
One Hospital Touches Hundreds in Veterinary Medicine
Equally as impressive as VCA Knowles Central's longevity is the loyalty of the hospital's team. Several Associates have worked there for decades.
"One of our main goals was always to make it feel like a community," says Jane Ann Knowles Wise, who worked at the hospital for over 30 years before retiring. "We want everyone to feel welcome and want to be there."
According to Tracy Levine, who has worked at both VCA Knowles Central and VCA Knowles Snapper Creek since 1987, that goal has been met. Tracy started as a receptionist and became an office manager, but her real interest was in ultrasound. "They encouraged me to broaden my horizons and to enter that field, which was where I wanted to be. They supported me 100 percent." Today, Tracy is a veterinary ultrasound technician.
Cheryl Carter agrees. She started her career at VCA Knowles Snapper Creek as a technician in 1988, and since 2004 has been the financial officer at VCA Knowles Central. "What I like most about working here is the environment I've been used to for so long," she says. "It's a very family-oriented business."
Dr. David Bialski, the hospital manager at VCA Knowles Central, has worked there for 10 years. "I'm the baby," he jokes. "This is a great place to work, so people don't want to leave. People are here for the right reasons. They really want to do better and make sure the animals are well taken care of."
Employees are encouraged to work their way up, Jane Ann says. "Many of our staff worked as techs for a while, before or during college," she explains.
About 200 of those Associates have become veterinarians, Dr. Wise notes. Both he and Dr. Block agree that this is their legacy. "What I'm proud of the most is having young people come in and showing them all aspects of this profession," Dr. Wise says. "We don't hide anything. The ones that loved it went on and became veterinarians."
"Many veterinarians in the community have had contact with us at some point or another," Dr. Block adds.
Three Generations of Clients
VCA Knowles Central's clients are as loyal as its team members. In fact, the grandchildren of some longtime clients are now entrusting their pets' care to the hospital. "Almost everyone you talk to, either their parents or another family member, has been here either as a regular client or for an emergency," Dr. Wise says.
"Clients would come in and talk about my grandfather, and then clients would talk about my dad, and then clients would talk about my husband," Jane Ann recalls.
VCA Knowles Central has a reputation for providing the very best care. "The saying in Miami is, 'If all else fails, go to Knowles,'" Dr. Wise says. "Many clients have been to two or three other veterinarians before coming to us, and hopefully we solve the problem."
Community members also know they can depend on VCA Knowles Central. It was the first 24-hour emergency animal hospital in Miami and offers support during natural disasters. "One time there was a hurricane, and we were the only animal hospital in three counties that had electricity, because we had a generator," Dr. Wise says.
"We serve the entire community during these disasters," Dr. Bialski adds. "When people have to evacuate and can't bring their pets, we board them here. It's a very special hospital."
Helping the Community
Along with allowing young people to explore the world of veterinary medicine, VCA Knowles Central also helps the community. Like many VCA hospitals, they have partnerships with shelter and rescue organizations.
"We work with many rescue organizations and directly with Miami Animal Services," Dr. Bialski says. "We're also affiliated with the ASPCA."
VCA Knowles Central is one of several VCA hospitals that partner with law enforcement, serving as the veterinary hospital for Miami-Dade Police K-9 officers. "The police dogs we treat are some of the most memorable cases," Dr. Bialski says. "They are injured while protecting our community, which is pretty impactful to me."
Caring for All Animals
In addition to the usual dogs and cats, Dr. Wise has performed surgery on different dolphins with broken lower jaws on two occasions. The first was a dolphin named Jolene at a Miami aquarium. "I had never treated a dolphin before, so I treated it like a Collie, which also has a long lower jaw," Dr. Wise recalls.
The surgery was a success. When Dr. Wise returned to the aquarium a few days later to check on Jolene as she swam in a pool, an employee called the dolphin over. "She came up out of the water and showed us one side of her face, then turned and showed us the other," Dr. Wise says. "She was showing off our handiwork. It was the coolest thing I've ever seen."
And when actress Melanie Griffith finished filming a movie in Miami, she was gifted with two chickens—at the cast's wrap party, among other things. "She couldn't take the chickens home with her because they had to go to the health department, so we kept them at our hospital for six weeks until she could take them," Jane Ann says. "Our clients would hear them clucking and ask if we had birds here. 'Yes, we have chickens,' we'd tell them."
The First in State-of-the-Art Veterinary Care
Besides being the first 24-hour animal emergency hospital in Miami, VCA Knowles Central was the first animal hospital in the area to use advancements like computers and digital x-rays.
"We're always trying to keep it on the cutting edge," Dr. Wise says. "We were here before there were specialists. When I started here 50 years ago, there was only one surgeon in Broward County. So if we didn't do it at Knowles, it didn't get done. We did everything."
When Tracy began working there in 1987, she says veterinary medicine was very different than it is today. "We mostly did vaccines, spays and neuters, and very little lab work," she recalls. Since then, she says diagnostics have become increasingly important. "Back in the 1980s we would fix the problems that came to us, like vomiting or diarrhea. Nowadays, we use diagnostics to figure out the root cause of why a dog might be vomiting or having diarrhea."
Knowles Central and Knowles Snapper Creek joined VCA in 2018, allowing them to offer their clients the same personalized, compassionate care they expect while benefitting from the cutting-edge resources and breadth of services available through VCA's national network.
"VCA has been at the forefront of veterinary medicine for a long time and has brought a lot of advancements in technology," Dr. Block says.
At VCA Knowles Central, "we always try to give and do our best when it comes to the medicine, the people and the animals," Tracy says, "and I've always felt extremely proud of that."
People Keep Coming Back
For 100 years, VCA Knowles Central "has always been there, through thick and thin, good times and bad times," Dr. Wise says.
"It's been an awesome experience," he adds. "What I like best about it is that people from all over keep coming back. They now have careers and families, and we helped them get started. That's what's important."
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