About Somnus, LLC
Built from inside the work, for the people who do it carefully.
Founded by Stephanie Rideout · 40-year Registered Veterinary Technician.
Somnus, LLC began with one observation, made across thousands of procedures: the equipment available to the people who handle pigs in research, veterinary, and sanctuary settings rarely matched the care those animals deserved.
Stephanie Rideout spent her career as a Registered Veterinary Technician, working hands-on with pigs and exotic animals, providing advanced-level anesthesia service in research and clinical settings. Over forty years she became a specialist in something fascinating to her clinically and important to her ethically — pigs respond to anesthesia unlike any other animal a vet will treat, and the work to keep them calm and safe is a craft of its own. The longer she did it, the more she saw need extending beyond the projects she was assigned to: veterinary staff and researchers at other institutions who needed her expertise and didn't have it on call.
Who we serve
Our customers share one thing in common: the safety and welfare of the patient always comes first.
Research
Animal research facilities and university labs where ethical handling standards are non-negotiable and equipment quality affects outcomes.
Veterinary
Large-animal and swine practices that need handling and procedure equipment built to the same standard as the medicine they practice.
Sanctuary & rescue
Non-profits caring for individual animals where every interaction is a chance to undo the rougher handling these animals have been through.
What guides us
The principles behind every product.
Designed for the animal first.
Equipment that fits the animal's anatomy and behavior — not the other way around — is calmer for the animal and safer for the team.
Built for the work that already happens.
We build for procedures that need to happen anyway, and our job is to make those moments as careful and dignified as they can possibly be.
The work and the welfare are the same job.
Every Somnus product is shaped by forty years of practicing as both a clinical specialist and an advocate for the animal on the table. Those aren't competing roles — they're the same one. Equipment that respects the animal's biology is also equipment that lets the team do their work safely, accurately, and without rough edges.
Working in research, veterinary, or sanctuary care?
We'd like to hear about what you do and the equipment that would make your team's work calmer. Reach out and we'll get back to you.
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