Small Business of the Year finalist: Critical Care and Veterinary Specialists of Sarasota

It’s almost closing time, and Dr. Anne Chauvet is sitting in front of her computer screen at Critical Care and Veterinary Specialists of Sarasota, monitoring the MRI for a 4-year-old weimaraner that got kicked in the head by a horse. She turns her head for a moment to offer a smile and a nod — the outlook looks good.
Chauvet owns and operates Critical Care and Veterinary Specialists of Sarasota, a medical practice that focuses on treating brain, spinal cord and neuromuscular conditions in animals, but mostly dogs and cats. Chauvet is one of about 150 veterinary neurologists and neurosurgeons in the country.

In the last year, virtually everything in Dr. Anne Chauvet’s life has changed. She has adopted a child, moved her business to a state-of-the-art referral facility — the only intensive care unit of its kind on the Gulf Coast that operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week — and grew it from six to 26 employees.

Critical Care and Veterinary Specialists of Sarasota now offers not just neurology and neurosurgery, but also full intensity care and around-the-clock emergency surgery.

“We have ultrasound, MRI, respirator, continuous monitoring, two fully equipped operating rooms, opthamology and neurosurgery operating microscopes, a full in-house lab, high-tech digital radiology, endoscopy … the list goes on,” Chauvet said. “Come to think of it, it is overwhelming.”

Chauvet has worked in the veterinarian field since 1990, everywhere from university institutions to private practices across the country. Inspired to provide a higher level of specific, fairly priced care, she now prides herself on the homey, mom-and-pop atmosphere of her clinic.

When asked the question of what job she would choose if she could have any job for the day, her response makes it easy to tell that she loves what she does: “Mine.”
 

AT A GLANCE

Address: 4937 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota

Start date: 2002

Number of employees: 26

Advice for other small business owners: “Owing your own business is fun and challenging,” says Dr. Anne Chauvet. “All of the bad stuff gets you to the good stuff, so look for the opportunities in the challenges and troubles.”

Biggest challenge: “Growth remains my greatest challenge. It happens so fast, that it can be hard to keep up with. My learning curve has been monumental. We moved in toa bigger space and quadrupled our number of employees. Change is a driving force we must embrace and platform with.

Best place for a power lunch: “My O.R. … but no food.”

Business hero: “Bill Gates is my hero, because he has known how to use something he loves and make a huge business out of it. He has then proceeded to involve everyone around him in his vision. He has learned to delegate and, most of all, he gives back to this world and particularly to education, which is so needed. His and his wife’s philanthropy has me in awe. Involved, creator, listening to the needs of people, intelligent, savvy, generous — those are indeed the qualities of a hero.”

If you could have any job for the day, what would you do? “Mine.”

Advantage of having your business here: “Great people, great connections.”

How have you gotten creative in this business climate: “(I have applied) my motherhood skills to business.”

Contact Loren Mayo at [email protected].