Azzore Veterinary Specialists.

Azzore Veterinary Specialists

Owner: Dr. Terry L. Dew

Address: 2711 E. Parkway, Russellville

Phone: [phone]

Hours: Mon.-Thu. 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Fri. 7:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m. for patient releases and emergencies only

Startup: May 1, 2009

Web site: www.azzore.com

Terry L. Dew always liked to work with his hands. After rupturing a spinal disc while bending over to pick up a hammer while on a scaffold, Dew decided he needed a career change.

After obtaining a degree from the University of Wisconsin, completing an internship in Connecticut and doing a residency at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Dew became a board-certified small-animal surgeon.

Dew moved to Arkansas because, he said, of a lack of board-certified surgeons in the state.

Originally, Dew traveled between clinics to perform surgeries before operating strictly at clinics in Little Rock, Springdale and Memphis.

Dew has now opened his own clinic, Azzore Veterinary Specialists, in a renovated 3,700-SF medical center in Russellville. The equipment cost him $200,000.

Dew performs a variety of surgeries on small animals, including brain tumor removal, fracture repairs and disc repairs.

"In Arkansas, my caseload is 90 percent dogs, and we also do cats," Dew said. "We just did a miniature horse that had a cleft palate. I also do work for the zoos in Memphis and Little Rock."

Even though he operates on animals, Dew said that customer service is the most important aspect of Azzore Veterinary Specialists.

"You are working with a patient that can't communicate," he said. "You have to communicate with the 'parents' about the treatment decision. The goal is to have a client that is educated as to what the problem is and what the treatments are."