It’s hard to go more than a block in Northern Liberties without crossing paths with a pet owner. Whether they are walking their dog down Liberties Walk en route to the Orianna Dog Park or discussing the latest photo of their cat they posted to Facebook, people in this neighborhood love their cuddly (and sometimes not so cuddly) companions. Dr. Maya Pirok also loves pets—that’s why she became a veterinarian in the first place.

“I was that kid who always brought snakes and all kinds of funny pets home my entire life, but I also came from a background in medicine,” Pirok said. “I put the two together and explored veterinary medicine around 17 when I started volunteering at a veterinary clinic just before college.”

As a volunteer, Pirok discovered that her empathy for animals translated into a career path that she would be passionate about. After receiving her undergraduate degree at UCLA, she moved to Philadelphia to complete veterinary school at the University of Pennsylvania. Now with a family and roots firmly entrenched in Philly Pirok is opening up her own practice in Northern Liberties.

“There is an independence that veterinary medicine brings compared to human medicine or other medical degrees,” she said. “You get to take care of your patients from the very start of their life, do all of their preventative care, all the way down to the emergencies and the end of their care. It’s not something that you often get to do in other kinds of medicine.”

Northern Liberties Veterinary Center (622 N. 2nd Street) opened its doors for the first time last week, welcoming in feline and canine clientele of all breeds and backgrounds. The new facility has three exam rooms, a digital radiology machine, surgery room, dentistry station, a fully-stocked pharmacy and plenty of other amenities that will make both pet owners and patients feel comfortable and at ease during routine checkups and emergencies alike.

“We want to create a genuine, client oriented experience,” Pirok said. “We want to be here to represent our services and our products, educating our clients about any misconceptions they may have had and really just stand by our patients.”

Because Northern Liberties Veterinary Center’s patients (the pets) come in such a variety of shapes and sizes, so do its three exam rooms. The first area is reserved for cats. A smaller area, the room is kept free of dog smells that may rattle a cat during an exam.

“Cats tend to sense dog smells easily, they get really freaked out or startled when they come to the vet because of barking dogs and dog smells. One way that we try to eliminate that is to bring them right into a room that only has cat smells and isn’t surrounded by dogs.”

The cat room also serves as the “comfort room” where euthanasia takes place if necessary and features a separate exit for pet owners who have just put their companion down. The separate exit allows for emotional clients to leave the Center without having to walk through the main reception area where other clients and patients may be waiting.

The other exam rooms are for medium and large dogs respectively. The large dog room is equipped with a motorized lift table that allows for thorough examinations to even the biggest of dogs.

“We get used to going down to the ground and doing our exams to get to know our pets, but sometimes, to give a 100 percent thorough exam and see that little area thats hard to get to on the floor, it’s nice to lift them up,” Pirok said. “Some of those big guys, those 150-pound plus guys, don’t get the benefit of a full exam unless we are able to see them from every corner in every way.”

Pirok has already begun to engage the community—she set up a booth at the 2nd Street Festival, giving a few exams on site— and invites anyone interested in the Center to stop by for a visit and tour.

“I’m excited to practice the quality of medicine that I’ve always wanted to practice and on my own terms,” she said. “I’ve worked a number of jobs as an associate veterinarian and I’ve seen the whole gamut of care—I’ve seen the corporate environments, the private environments and I think I’ve picked up the best from both. Being able to implement that into my own style of practicing in this neighborhood, a laid back, casual and genuine way, that will allow me to click with my clients.”

Northern Liberties Veterinary Center is open Mon., 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM; Tues., 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM; Wed., 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM; Thurs. 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM; Fri., 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM; and Sat., 9:00 AM – 1:00PM. Appointments can be made by calling (215) 923-1838. If there is an an emergency, please call to let the Center know what the problem is before bringing your pet in— the Center will give your pet priority treatment but ask that you call so immediate care can be prepared.