Progression through Teamwork

Blackdown Farm Vets are an independent, farm only practice. We are strongly committed to providing you with a proactive and tailored service fit for the demands of modern farming. We will strive to make your business as profitable and efficient as possible. Our experienced and local team cover East Devon, Somerset and West Dorset.

01404 819150
hello@blackdownfarm.vet

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Latest news

Winter 2025 Newsletter

Welcome to Blackdown Farm Vets Winter 2025 Newsletter! It was great to see so many of you at the Dairy Show last month. We always

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20 November 2025
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“We’ve worked with Blackdown Farm Vets since their inception, and I honestly can’t recommend them enough. As an independent practice, they offer a level of personal care and attention that’s increasingly rare in today’s world. The team bring a great combination of professionalism, compassion, and practical know-how to what they do. We’re proud—and feel genuinely privileged—to have them as part of the Otter Valley Farms team.”
Dan LeightonOtter Valley Farms
“Working closely with Blackdown Farm Vets has reduced our lameness score from 13% down to 6% with further gains expected. Team work really pays off with the expertise of the vets and our professional trimmer along with ourselves being trained in first aid for feet.”
Andrew HurfordDairy farmer
Andrew Hurford
“On Farms where Blackdown Farm Vets and CMC are working together, the interaction between their vets and the farm’s nutritionist is seamless, giving farmers unified, evidence-based guidance. Their commitment to collaboration and measurable on-farm results makes them a truly progressive veterinary practice.”
Matt RanceCrediton Milling Company
Matt Rance
“As a block calving dairy herd, having a vet with direct experience and knowledge of block calving is crucial to us. Our herd health package has been specifically tailored with block calving in mind, so we can target key areas during the year and implement any changes needed to benefit our cows.”
Lorna BurdgeDairy farmer
Lorna Burdge
“Having been with Blackdown Farm Vets since the beginning, we are very impressed with the suckler health package. After having bull fertility issues, they helped us get back on track and get our calving period tightened up.”
Jo JonesSheep and beef suckler farmer
“I have been working with many veterinarians from the Blackdown Farm Vets as a ruminant nutritionist. I like their proactive approach; from setting up farm-specific WhatsApp groups to keep everyone informed to seminars and classroom sessions to improve health and profitability. They are skilled and up to date with the latest technology and on farm practice.”
Ben Willem SmitDirector at FeedCo
“The whole team at Blackdown Farm Vets are amazing. They offer a professional but friendly service and are always available to answer questions and provide advice. Their expertise and prompt response during emergencies have been invaluable.”
Jess & Barry HainesSheep farmer
“The team at Blackdown Farm Vets have been a great support in my progression with our small Aberdeen Angus suckler herd. I would like to think our overall herd health is in a much better shape thanks to our continued partnership. I genuinely feel they have our farm’s best interests behind what they do.”
Bernie LittleBeef suckler farmer
“I have worked closely with Blackdown Farm Vets for a couple of years to improve mobility on farms. They take a brilliant team-based approach, valuing input from everyone involved to improve cow mobility and overall herd health. Nothing is ever too much to ask and there is a real sense of working together with a shared goal. Their professionalism and genuine dedication to animal welfare really stand out.”
Will FarrantWJF Hoof Care
"We integrate our vet Sam into our business as we can see and feel he adds value to all aspects that he contributes to. From pushing us to push ourselves. Advice on driving young stock performance. Assistance with enabling us to better use the technology we have at hand on farm. Driving milk yield through adapting fertility management. Problem solving and boosting overall profits, I wouldn't go anywhere else for this service."
Tim RichDairy farmer
"As an agronomist working with a diverse range of mixed farms, a key area of focus is producing crops that meet the nutritional requirements for the herd or flock. Working with the farm team, nutritionists, and vets on several farms we are able to identify how feed production quality and yield can optimise animal health and performance. This collaborative approach, which is often led by the vets, allows the farm to extract maximum value from our collective skills ensuing the farm runs as efficiently and effectively as it can.
Mark ColeIndependent agronomist
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Who we are

We aim to provide our clients with a high level of dedicated service with the intention of making your farm as profitable as possible. We believe relevant experience, combined with thorough, up to date knowledge is the key to delivering this.

Sam Bowker
Samuel Bowker

MA 2nd Vet MB MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon and Director

Sam graduated from Cambridge University in 2015 and spent 4 years in Cheshire (as well as a 6-month stint in New Zealand) before coming back home to East Devon.

Sam splits his time between practicing as a vet and being involved with the family dairy farm, a 220 autumn block calving unit.

He is passionate about proactive health planning by using data to drive on-farm decision making and has a keen interest in business management having completed an extra business degree at university.

Sam’s particular interests lie in the management of block calving dairy herds, improving lameness in dairy cattle and working collaboratively with the farm team to drive improvements.

Outside of work, Sam enjoys spending time with his young family, playing tennis and being involved with the local church.

Sam is an AHDB Mobility Mentor, ROMS accredited Mobility Scorer, and BCVA BVD and Johnes advisor.

Lottie Birchall
Charlotte Birchall

BVSc MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon and Director

Lottie graduated from Liverpool University in 2014 and went to work at a farm animal practice in Cumbria for several years, gaining a wide variety of experience in dairy, beef and sheep work.  She moved to Devon in 2017 and has worked in the area ever since.

Lottie loves all aspects of farm vetting and is happy to get stuck into any job. She has a real passion for calf health and dairy heifer rearing and runs the Blackdown Farm Vets Youngstock Advisory Service.  She also enjoys working with suckler herds to improve profitability and leads the Blackdown Suckler Herd Health Package.

Outside of work, Lottie is kept busy looking after her son and if time allows, she loves to get out on the water paddleboarding or surfing.

She is a BCVA Johnes, BVD and TBAS advisor, as well as a qualified Mental Health First Aid Champion, and is currently studying for a Diploma in Veterinary leadership and Management.

 

tom-profile
Tom Laycock

BSc BVMS CertAVP (cattle) MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon and Director

Devon born Tom spent a year and two summers milking and working on dairy farms before gaining a degree in Agriculture in 2006. He then studied and qualified as a Vet from Glasgow University in 2011. Tom returned to the west country to work in East Devon and loved it so much he is still here now.

In 2016, Tom travelled to New Zealand working and improving his calving expertise and gaining knowledge in grass based dairy systems during the spring calving season.

Tom’s main areas of interest include cattle fertility, mastitis, youngstock rearing, lameness and beef. Tom has run numerous farmers meetings and farm walks over past years including his highly successful ‘young farmers discussion group’.

Tom likes walking to anywhere with a view.  He also enjoys playing saxophone and clarinet at church.  Tom is married with three children.

He holds a certificate in advanced veterinary practice in cattle (CertAVP(CATTLE) and is a BCVA Johnes and BVD advisor, Mastitis Control Plan deliverer and Milksure trainer.

Lucy Morgan, Veterinary Surgeon at Blackdown Farm Vets
Lucy Morgan

BSc BVet Med Cert AVP (Cattle) MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon and Director

Lucy qualified from the Royal Veterinary College, London in 2002 having also completed an intercalated degree in Animal Agriculture.

Lucy has worked in farm animal and mixed practice in the Southwest of England for most of her career. She spent 9 months working in New Zealand in a dairy cattle and sheep practice. She has worked in Australia and in dairy cattle practice in Cheshire before returning to East Devon in 2010, squeezing time in to complete her Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice in Cattle in 2016.

Lucy loves all aspects of being a farm animal vet from dairy herd fertility and mastitis to surgery, bull and ram fertility testing and investigating and controlling infectious diseases. She also has an interest in small ruminants.

Believing passionately that each farm is different and that the approach to improving animal health should be tailored to the farm rather than one size fits all reflects the fact that after over 20 years in practice, she still loves scanning a cow in calf or a successful lambing!

Lucy spends most of her spare time looking after her three kids and helps out with her parents’ small flock of sheep.

Lucy is a BCVA BVD and Johnes Advisor, a TBAS advisor, a Milksure Trainer and a ROMS accredited mobility scorer.

 

Nicola Hinman, Veterinary Surgeon at Blackdown Farm Vets
Nicola Bird

BVetMed MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon and Director

Born and raised in Axminster, Nikki (Nik) graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in 2016. After qualifying, she worked in mixed practice in Dorset for nearly 3 years before returning home to pursue her passion for farm work.

Nikki loves all features of farm animal medicine but is especially interested in genetics, calf health, preventative medicine, and cattle fertility work. She is trained in bovine embryo transfer and is developing this as a service.

Most of Nikki’s time is taken up with her young family, but in any free time she can find she is found to be gardening, painting, or helping her husband Phil out at home on the dairy farm. She also has her own small herd of pedigree Herefords.

Nikki is a BCVA Johnes and BVD advisor.

William Goulden, Veterinary Surgeon at Blackdown Farm Vets
William Goulden

BVMS DBR MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon and Director

Originally from Northern Ireland, Will qualified from Glasgow University in 2014 and has specialised in farm animal medicine in East Devon ever since.

He completed the Diploma in Bovine Reproduction in 2022 through Liverpool University. Along with fertility management, he has a particular interest in housing and how this can be used to help improve animal health and performance.

He is currently actively involved in farming, keeping his own commercial flock of sheep and rearing beef stirks. This helps to give him a practical insight into the beef and sheep industry and flock management.

Will is a ROMS accredited mobility scorer and a BVCA Johnes and BVD advisor.

Jonah
Jonah Dickie

BVM BVS MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon

After growing up in Sussex, Jonah graduated from the University of Nottingham in 2022. He began his career in a dedicated farm animal practice in Wiltshire, where he spent three years developing his clinical skills and deepening his passion for livestock health and welfare. During this time, Jonah worked closely with a wide range of farms, building strong client relationships and gaining practical experience across all aspects of farm practice.

Jonah’s main area of interest lies in dairy herd health, with a particular enthusiasm for nutrition and data-driven decision-making to help clients improve productivity, efficiency, and animal welfare.

He enjoys working collaboratively with farmers to tailor solutions that work on a practical level while supporting long-term goals.

Outside of work, Jonah is a keen follower of several sports, especially rugby, cricket, and Formula 1. He also enjoys making the most of the outdoors, whether camping or exploring the countryside with his energetic three-year-old Pointer-Collie cross.

Jonah is a BCVA Johnes, BVD and TBAS advisor and is currently pursuing a Certificate of Advanced Veterinary Practice with a focus on cattle and particularly dairy nutrition.

Flora
Flora Anghileri-Jarman

MRCVS
Veterinary Surgeon

Flora graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in July 2025 having spent a great deal of time on student placements with us here at Blackdown.

Flora enjoys all aspects of farm vetting and has a particular interest in cattle fertility, especially within the dairy industry, and is keen to continue developing her knowledge and skills in this area.

Outside of work, Flora has always been passionate about sport, growing up as a competitive gymnast before moving into pole vaulting. These days, she enjoys staying active and spending time outdoors exploring the countryside.

Fiona Jones, Practice and Dispensary Manager at Blackdown Farm Vets
Fo Jones

RAMA (SQP)
Practice Manager and Director

Qualified in 1989 with an HND in Agriculture having also completed three years practical farming experience on Dairy farms in Kent and Gloucestershire, and lambing seasons on a 1500 head flock in Powys Wales.

She then moved from the family home in Devon to Shropshire to work as an agronomist (BASIS) and animal health advisor (SQP) qualifying in 1992. In 2000 she became the Animal Health Product Manager for the Hutchinsons group managing and leading the animal health business within the company.

Returning home in 2014 to be closer to the family in East Devon, she became involved in the veterinary world bringing her years of experience on the merchant side to the advising, ordering, and dispensing of veterinary medicines.

Her passion for animal health and livestock was then truly realised with the foundation of our dedicated farm vets’ team as Practice Manager and Director.

In her spare time she enjoys being outdoors either riding her horse or walking with family and friends.

Paul Neilson BA, FCA
Paul Neilson

BA, FCA
Finance and Director

Paul is a Chartered Accountant who qualified in 1989 with the then Price Waterhouse in Bristol before moving into industry. He has worked at Director level since 1991 in large and small companies across multiple sectors.

He is responsible for Governance and Finance plus anything else needing support to make the business work for our clients’ benefit.

Paul moved to East Devon in 2001 from the Isle of Man with his wife family and dogs to their smallholding, keeping a diverse range of hens and he is also a very keen beekeeper.

Audrey Dicks
Audrey Dicks


Receptionist

Audrey has lived in East Devon all her life. After selling her dairy cows many years ago she continued to run a small flock of sheep. She then went into the administration side of veterinary life and since joining Blackdown she is happy to be back working with the farmers.

She still has a few pet sheep and goats, also lots of poultry and a large garden to keep her busy when not at work.

Her hobbies include gardening and baking, sewing and stitch craft in the winter.

Ky (2)
Kyiesha Erskine


Administrator and Apprentice

Ky moved to Taunton when she was very young, growing up she always wanted to work with animals and began doing so when she was in school with odd jobs like dog walking and pet sitting, as well as volunteering at a local rescue centre. She then went to college to study Animal Care & Management.

Following college, Ky worked as a dog groomer while also spending as much time as possible on her partner’s family farm.  She left the salon and began working at The Donkey Sanctuary, where you work very closely with the vets as well as other animal care professionals, this really sparked an interest in the veterinary side.

Ky is with us at Blackdown studying a Veterinary Technician (Livestock) apprenticeship at Harper Adams University where she covers many different aspects of the job such as mobility scoring, disbudding and foot trimming.

What we do

We want your business and animals to thrive. Our whole team is passionate about providing an excellent, evolving service  for your particular farm, whether it be dairy, beef, sheep, goats, pigs or camelids at the very best price we can offer.

Contact us today

Work with us

We aim to develop health planning so that not only does it satisfy regulations and inspections, but far more importantly, we can use it to empower our clients to make informed decisions which improve health and drive profit.

We are focused on working with other advisors in a team-based approach to deliver proactive health planning. We use consultancy planning visits, health packages , vaccines, monitoring etc. to shift the focus away from emergency visits towards a more planned approach to benefit animal health, welfare and the environment, whilst also improving farm efficiency and profitability.

Work with Blackdown Farm Vets
  • Expertise

Our experienced team will tailor our approach to your business to guarantee that you get as much or as little input as you require. We would be very happy to talk to you about how we might work together and your requirements as a business. Have a chat with one of our vets on 01404 819150, drop us an email or pop in for a cup of tea.

  • High quality medicines advice and ordering

Our practice manager Fo is a qualified RAMA (SQP) advisor and has worked in the agricultural industry for over 30 years. She is on hand to share practical advice and knowledge on medicines, wormers, vaccines and anything else you might require.

We are dedicated to supplying competitively priced quality medications to ensure the health and productivity of your farm.

  • Phone answering you can count on

A member of our team will always be on the other end of the line and we will endeavour to help you as soon as we can. Call us on 01404 819150. We want you to be satisfied that you can always contact a vet when you need one.

  • Up-to-date computer software

We are continually investing in our IT systems to aid us in studying your farms performance to the best of our ability. Using Vet It, Interherd Plus and Uniform Agri helps us analyse the data to help you. We will develop this area as time goes on.

  • Continuing developments in the services we will offer

Blackdown Farm Vets try to provide the best service we can to our clients. We aim to continually improve and further expand what we can offer our client base. We will always be open to hearing fresh ideas and challenges given to us by our valued clients, we will always welcome feedback.

Contact us

Our Axminster Office is in the Blackdown Hills between the A30 and A35 and our Taunton Office is just outside Taunton at Creech Heathfield.

01404 819150
hello@blackdownfarm.vet