By die dierekliniek begin die ondersoek.

This is because Afrikaans usually puts the finite verb in the second position in a main clause.

The sentence starts with By die dierekliniek, which is a place phrase. Once that comes first, the verb begin must come next:

• By die dierekliniek begin die ondersoek.

If you start with the subject instead, the order changes:

• Die ondersoek begin by die dierekliniek.

Both are correct. The first version gives more emphasis to the location.

Here, by means something like at.

So By die dierekliniek means at the animal clinic.

In Afrikaans, by is often used for location, especially when you mean being at a place rather than physically inside it in a literal sense.

For example:

• by die skool = at the school
• by die dokter = at the doctor’s place
• by die huis = at home / at the house

Yes, but it changes the nuance a little.

• by die dierekliniek = at the animal clinic
• in die dierekliniek = in the animal clinic / inside the animal clinic

So by is broader and more natural if you just mean the event happens there.
in is more specific if you want to stress that it happens physically inside the building.

Afrikaans uses die as the definite article for the.

So:

• die dierekliniek = the animal clinic
• die ondersoek = the examination

Each noun phrase needs its own article, just as in English:

• the animal clinic
• the examination

So it is completely normal to see die more than once in the same sentence.

Yes. Afrikaans often forms compound nouns by writing them as one word.

dierekliniek is made up of:

• diere = animals
• kliniek = clinic

Together, dierekliniek means animal clinic.

This is very common in Afrikaans. English often writes similar expressions as two words, but Afrikaans usually joins them into one.

The first part comes from diere, the plural form meaning animals.

So dierekliniek literally looks like animals-clinic, which in natural English becomes animal clinic.

Afrikaans compounds do not always match English word-for-word in structure, so it is best to learn the full compound as a single vocabulary item.

ondersoek can mean examination, inspection, investigation, or check-up, depending on context.

In the context of a clinic, it usually means something like:

• examination
• check-up

So in this sentence, it most likely refers to a medical or veterinary examination.

Yes, absolutely.

That version is often the more neutral word order:

• Die ondersoek begin by die dierekliniek.

The original sentence:

• By die dierekliniek begin die ondersoek.

puts the location first for emphasis or style. Both are grammatical.

In normal Afrikaans writing, a short phrase placed first in the sentence does not usually need a comma.

So:

• By die dierekliniek begin die ondersoek.

is the standard way to write it.

A comma might appear in special cases for style, emphasis, or readability, but it is not normally required here.

Yes. Afrikaans verbs do not usually change form depending on the subject the way English verbs do.

So you get:

• Ek begin = I begin
• Hy begin = he begins
• Hulle begin = they begin

That makes Afrikaans verb forms simpler than English in this respect.

Afrikaans often uses helpers to show tense.

Past:

• By die dierekliniek het die ondersoek begin.
• Die ondersoek het by die dierekliniek begin.

Future:

• By die dierekliniek sal die ondersoek begin.
• Die ondersoek sal by die dierekliniek begin.

Notice that in these forms, the helping verb also follows the same word-order rules.