Anita Bhanja is the founder and veterinary surgeon of Eternal Paws, a Cheshire practice specialising in home hospice, palliative care and gentle home euthanasia for elderly and terminally ill pets.
The business, which she founded in 2017, has been named a finalist in The Purpose Beyond Profit Award at the 2026 Lloyds British Business Excellence Awards, with the winners announced at Grosvenor House in London on 10 November 2026. A Royal Veterinary College graduate who has worked in Cheshire for 30 years, she runs the practice with a small team serving families around Lymm and Warrington.
She tells Business Matters why her late Labrador, Enny, shaped so much of what she has built.
What do you currently do at Eternal Paws?
As the founder and, for now, the only veterinary surgeon, I do all the clinical veterinary work. I am assisted by my two colleagues: Melanie, our registered veterinary nurse, and Jayne, who is often the first point of contact for clients.
The clinical work encompasses home hospice and palliative care, palliative surgery, laser therapy, and holistic care such as reiki, acupuncture and plant medicine. At the end of the journey, we offer compassionate home euthanasia and private cremations. The non-clinical work is running the business.
What was the inspiration behind your business?
In the early days of my mobile business, the inspiration was being able to work alongside raising my family, and to find a way of doing both well. As the children have grown up, my heart has been won over by the beautiful old souls who have given their whole lives to us as loyal companions and now deserve deeply compassionate care in their twilight days.
My biggest inspiration was my beautiful Enny, a little black Labrador who had been puppy farmed in Hungary. She found herself mistreated, in a foreign land and afraid of everyone. She came to me when the man who was trying to get her moved on said she would not amount to anything. How wrong he was.
She was the most beautiful dog, and with all her health problems and anxiety she taught me to try harder and be better. So much of what I have built, learned and created has been for her or because of her. Even after her loss this year, she continues to be a beacon of love and light for me.
What has Eternal Paws built since you started?
I founded Eternal Paws in 2017, and the practice has grown largely through word of mouth. We reinvest our profits in specialist facilities, including an owner-inclusive theatre suite and a crystal room where families can say goodbye before a private cremation.
This year we were named a finalist in The Purpose Beyond Profit Award at the 2026 Lloyds British Business Excellence Awards, one of almost 200 businesses shortlisted across 20 categories. We are also planning training so that we can share our palliative care expertise more widely.
Who do you admire?
This is a hard question, because I admire different people for different qualities. I admire my parents for their kindness, honesty and integrity, and my friends for the challenges they have faced, keeping going and never giving up in the face of grief and personal struggles.
I also admire so many historical figures who have changed the world through their perseverance and pain, and through their undying belief in humanity.
Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently?
Would it not have been lovely to have started 10 years earlier? Actually, I think everything unfolded just as it was meant to.
I have learned some hard lessons along the way, but learning them means those mistakes will never be repeated. I am just excited for the next chapter, to see how the new aspects of my business and care will develop, and to see how many families I can reach and help.
What defines your way of doing business?
Compassion and empathy, first and foremost. Every family that comes to us is facing one of the hardest times of their lives. Whether through decision making or heartbreaking news, they are losing, or have lost, a soul they love with all their heart.
This can make people act out of character or be harsh, as well as be vulnerable and fall apart. We know that because we have been there. So every family that comes to us comes to a safe space, where they are not judged by their behaviour or reaction but are supported and treated kindly, with respect and compassion. They are given time, which is our most precious gift, and understanding.
What advice would you give to someone starting out?
Believe in yourself and hold the vision. Even when the naysayers are coming up with obstacles, if you really feel your mission in your heart, then go for it.
I love this quote from William Hutchinson Murray, because it sums it all up for me: “Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative and creation, there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too.”
