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Editor’s Note: This feature originally ran in the Jan/Feb 2025 edition of the Valley Living magazine, a publication produced bi-monthly by the Valley Times News. If you would like to pick up a copy of the Valley Living magazine, please visit our office at 4002 20th Ave Suite E in Valley.

Feature by: Jeff Moore

Growing up on a farm in Chapel Hill, Tennessee, Charles Harris found he enjoyed working with animals.

It led him to a career in veterinary medicine that has extended over more than four decades, with 45 of those as owner of the Riverside Veterinary Hospital in Lanett.

Dr. Harris continues to find joy in the challenges and rewards of his work, from complex surgeries to caring for farm animals.

After graduating from Auburn University in 1978, he spent a year working at a clinic in Tennessee. But he wasn’t pleased with the doctor who hired him, so he set out to run his own veterinary hospital.

Harris saw the Lanett practice was for sale, purchasing it just a year after it opened.

At the time, Riverside focused on pets — cats and dogs. But his love of caring for farm animals led him to expand the practice to include large animals too.

“I wanted to develop it more and start doing large animals,” Harris said. “That’s what I did and then little by little we had to add on.”

While he can’t remember the year of that first addition, it wasn’t the last for Riverside. There have been four additions to the veterinary hospital, using up all of the space possible on the property where the office is located, he noted.

This was then followed by a remodel for the reception area in what was formerly a house to make it more accommodating for his clients.

Over the years, the hospital has grown significantly, adding doctors and expanding to meet the evolving needs of the community. Today, Harris works alongside his two daughters (one a doctor, one the office manager) and three other doctors, making a total of five practicing at Riverside. He would like to find another to add to the team to assist with the larger animals that he primarily treats.

Through his career, Harris has seen many changes in the field of veterinary medicine — not all of which he likes.

He enjoys “old school” medicine like he learned at Auburn where a vet offers all types of care and treatment to his patients, animals small and large.

“It’s a frustrating thing to me because with the new school, they are teaching more how to vaccinate dogs, take care of their health through prevention,” Harris explained. “But they don’t do a whole lot of teaching you about difficult surgeries.”

Instead, he said, they are taught to refer the tougher cases to specialty animal hospitals, which can be very expensive.

Harris said many of his clients can’t afford the large bills that can run between $7,000 and $10,000 for a specialist to perform surgery or difficult orthopedic procedure.

“I’m from a time when you were to do all the surgeries and deal with the sickness,  trying to put all these puzzles together,” he explained.

Harris enjoys the challenges his work brings.

“I get bored really easily,” he said. “I’m a fix type of person. Give me a dog with a tumor that they want to take off or something like that.”

He simply enjoys the difficult surgeries after 45 years of practicing medicine.

Harris provided an example of why the new treatment methods are so irritating for him, using the example of a woman who is a student from West Virginia who was in town visiting family.

Her dog ended up with a broken leg while she was in the area. She looked at going to Auburn for its treatment, but found it was far too expensive.

She called Harris to see if he could help the dog.

“I may not be what they say could do it, but I can fix it,” he recalls telling her. And he did repair the dog’s leg for a more reasonable amount.

“I’m glad to do it and I’m not trying to get super super rich,” he said. “I’m just trying to make a living.”

He believes the charges for animal care these days are beyond practicality for animal owners.

Harris said he recently got a call from the Humane Society about a dog that another doctor said needed to have its leg amputated. He asked to take a look at the dog and determined that he could save the leg, so it would have all four.

“The leg is not perfect, but it’s got a usable leg,” Harris said.

In the end, he said this was the right thing for the dog, and it ended up being cheaper than an amputation.

There are many advances in veterinary medicine that he likes because they make a big difference in the care he can provide.

Riverside has the diagnostic equipment onsite to process bloodwork and get quick results so they can treat a condition. Harris said this is so much better than in his early days when he would have to send off bloodwork and then wait 24 hours or longer to get the results.

“It’s nice to have to do a panel and you know within 30 minutes you’ve got the blood work finished,” Harris said, which then allows him to quickly know if the animal has a severe diabetic condition or if its got liver issues.

Additionally, he said the hospital has four ultrasound machines that are a great benefit in providing care.

Because of the affordable and effective treatment offered at Riverside, Harris said they not only serve the Chambers County area, but also have a lot of people who come there from Harris County in Georgia and some who bring their animals there from the Atlanta metro area.

This is one of the most rewarding aspects of his career, Harris said, pointing to the long-term relationships he has built with animal owners.

“I got a lot of really good clients,” he noted.

A GREAT TEAM

Harris said Riverside has such a strong connection with its clients due to the quality and professionalism of his staff members.

His daughter Dr. Kerri Teague is joined by Dr. Shani McCrillis, Dr. Cindy Rogers and Dr. Erin Harris in providing veterinary care. His other daughter Kim Brown, the office manager, ensures the office runs smoothly.

“A lot of their stuff couldn’t happen without that good staff,” Harris said. “I’ve got some really good people working for me and it’s a blessing.”

He said everyone works so well together, including the receptionists, technicians and veterinarians.

“They take a load off of me,” Harris said. “They’re really good.”

While he has no intentions of retiring now, he said his daughters will eventually take over Riverside.

“I’m turning it over to them,” he explained, instead of selling the practice. “I don’t want anything for it money-wise. I just keep it going for their benefits.”

Harris said he plans to keep on going as long as he can.

“I’d like to slow down a little bit if I could get another doctor in for large animals,” he added. “And then I might slow down a little bit.”

GIVING BACK

With the support of its clients and the community, Riverside is able to give back in many ways to the community.

Harris said they work with the Humane Society and a lot of animal rescue organizations by offering discounted spay and neutering services, something many vets won’t do these days because they don’t want to lose money.

“I’m not making anything doing something like that,” he said. “Sometimes I’m doing it below cost, actually losing money.”

He doesn’t like to turn people away when their animals or pets need treatment, even if it sometimes means he only charges what it costs him for the care provided.

His support for the community doesn’t end at the office doors, as he is known to many people as a Mr. Fix-it.

When something needs to be repaired at his church, he is the man they call on.

“I went to the Christian Service Center a couple weeks ago and put in the hot water heater,” Harris noted, adding they couldn’t find anyone else to do it.

His days off are usually busy as he takes on these tasks to help others in the community.

Harris credits his upbringing on a farm for his ability to take on such projects.

“Having grown-up on the farm, you learn these things for yourself and then figure out and do things,” he explained, adding that is how he learned about construction, electrical, plumbing and all that sort of stuff. “It’s a passion of mine just learning to do things,” he said.

Harris credits his parents for encouraging him to learn anything and everything he could.

GOD AND FAMILY

When asked what he is most proud of in his life, Harris pointed to his relationship with God and for his family.

“None of this would be possible without God in my life,” he said. “Sometimes I wonder if I didn’t have God in my life if I could’ve gone a totally different route.”

He said he wants to serve as a witness to other people.

“I feel like I wouldn’t have any of this if it wasn’t for him and his blessings,” he added, noting that he was blessed with parents who helped  mold him in his early years.

First and foremost, he said, he is so proud of his family.

Harris said he is so happy to be working with his daughters at the hospital. His wife is also there with him providing the love and support for the children and the community.

He said he has been married to his wife Peggy for more than 50 years. In addition to his two daughters, he has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

He gives much of the credit for the way he lives life to his parents. Harris said his mother was a school teacher, while his dad was a chemist who also farmed.