TulsaPets Magazine July 2021

34 TulsaPets • July/August 2021 Southern Agriculture “A ll things for all animals.” That is the slogan of Southern Agricul- ture, Tulsa’s local family-owned group of feed stores and veterinary clinics—and it’s mostly because of a rescued wallaby named Walter. More than 40 years ago, Dr. Nolan Gross and his wife Ginger lived on five acres of land in the Tulsa area. On that lit- tle farm, the Gross family cared for many animals, including Walter and another rescued wallaby named Olivia. Wallabies are herbivores and eat mostly grasses, but they need high levels of certain vitamins and minerals to stay healthy. Commercial wallaby food was not available back then, so Dr. Gross carefully researched and studied how to keep his wallabies healthy. Because of this, Walter and Olivia lived long, happy lives. In fact, the pair produced a joey named Hobbs, who as a baby was carried around by Gross family members in a pouch made especially for him. Dr. Gross recognized that other people, too, had unusual pets or livestock with specific nutritional needs. In 1981, he decided to meet those needs by opening the first Southern Agriculture store at 3146 South Mingo Rd. He trained team members to help customers with a wide variety of pet and livestock problems. And Walter’s image was on the sign. Since then, Southern Agriculture has expanded to seven locations, including Tulsa, Owasso and Broken Arrow. Each location carries hundreds of products for pets and livestock, with special ordering for hard-to-find items, such as wallaby food. In addition, each location has a veterinary clinic located in the store so beloved pets may receive care. Five veterinarians with over 150 years of experience staff the clinics. Like Dr. Gross, the veterinarians care for a wide variety of their own livestock, including horses, ponies, cattle, goats, chickens, pigs, dogs, cats, fish, birds and reptiles. Some of the veterinarians joke that they need to work at Southern Agriculture just to support their own personal zoo of animals! While on duty, the Southern Agricul- ture veterinarians provide wellness and preventive care by appointment. Spay and neuter appointments for feline patients are available. Walk-in, low-cost vaccina- tion clinics and heartworm testing are offered six days a week at various locations and times. Microchipping is available by appointment or at the walk-in clinics. The staff veterinarians are very knowl- edgeable about the newest products for controlling fleas, ticks and heartworms in dogs and cats. They prescribe products, such as Bravecto and Heartgard Plus, which are kept in stock at all of the stores. They also work closely with pet parents to treat allergies, ear infections and other problems in pets. In addition, the veterinarians frequently refer animals who need advanced care to full-service veterinarians and specialists in the area. For more information, visit southernagriculture.com or follow them on Facebook. Brochures with a full list of services are available at every store. Southern Agriculture veterinarians and store team members strive to provide ex- cellent service for every animal and their people. Happy 40th anniversary, South- ern Agriculture! Walter, Olivia and Hobbs would be proud! TulsaPets Magazine DVM Annual Feature Dr. Melissa Montgomery, Dr. Robin Johnson, Dr. Doug Bowers, Dr. Wendy Sales, Dr. Erin Tygart Small Animal Hospital Digital Radiology Surgery Complete Lab Work Mon-Fri 7:30am - 5:30pm • Sat 8am - Noon • 6333 E. 120th Court, Ste G, Tulsa, OK • 918-584-8535 Dr. Phil McKinney