New veterinary clinic cares for critters

COURTESY DR. KEVIN SCRUGGS

Dr. Kevin Scruggs, co-founder of Art Veterinary, with a canine friend.

Need a vet for your pet?

Ark Veterinary, a Black-owned practice that just opened, serve a wide variety of animals, including small, livestock, and exotic. They perform surgery  for small and large animals, preventative care, maintenance care, routine exams, vaccines, and boarding services.

Last December, the clinic founded by Drs. Sarah Blackwell, Kevin Scruggs, and Derrick Prioleau — all graduates of Tuskegee University Veterinary School – opened in East Charlotte. They have a second location in Sumter, S.C.

“There’s not very many veterinary hospitals, especially in this specific area,” Scruggs said. “The location was picked simply because this was a big city. It was a fast-growing city.”

Because the pandemic caused supply shortages, the practice opened later than expected.

Scruggs was inspired to become a vet after as a child and was told he couldn’t be around animals because of asthma.

“I never thought I'd be able to work around animals or be around animals because I would have breathing attacks,” Scruggs said. “Thankfully, when I grew up, I outgrew the asthma so it stopped affecting me as much and then I could be around animals for long periods of time and not have any issues at all. So, I was like, why not be around them and get paid for it?”

About 2% of veterinarians in the United States are Black, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2017. Most veterinarians of color graduate from Tuskegee University College of Veterinary Medicine, which graduated its first students in 1949.

As a veterinarian, you never know what to expect when you walk in the clinic. One day, it’s a dog or cat for a checkup; the next can be surgery on a horse or pig.
Prioleau recently completed a soft palate surgery on an English bulldog.

“Bulldogs, some Boston [terriers], and French bulldogs have an extension to their soft palate,” Prioleau said. “The roof of your mouth is a hard palate. If you go back even farther, it starts to turn into soft tissue so that part in these dogs will go all the way back and cover up their throat and it makes [it] difficult for them to breathe.”

Prioleau added the strangest animal to come into the office was a capuchin monkey.

“I'm not really a fan of monkeys because a monkey is strong, but that was something,” said Prioleau. “The monkey just needed an exam and a rabies vaccine.”

Although Scruggs loves all animals, he isn’t too fond of caring for tarantulas.

“I’d be a little hesitant,” he said, laughing.

With summer near, Scruggs advises owners to prevent heat-related illness in dogs and cats.

“Decrease the walks … to no more than like 15-20 minutes I’ll say because the concrete on the ground can get really hot and it can burn their paw pads,” he said. “If they’re outside dogs, make sure they have shade. Make sure they always have access to water and if they need to come in, definitely let them in the house or in a carport or wherever, a garage or somewhere cooler.

Heat stroke definitely [has] become a more common issue, and we see a lot of dogs with heat strokes.”

Aaliyah Bowden, who covers health at The Post, is a Report For America corps member. 

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