The eyes have it as far as Dr. Mary Peter is concerned - she's Countryside's ophthalmology master by happenstance.
Her involvement with the specialty began coincidentally, but it has evolved into a genuine pursuit. Dr. Peter had to learn quickly when she had a few tough eye injury cases her first year at Countryside. She realized she had a unique support system when she began communicating with vets at North Carolina State University about the cases. She calls the school "a phenomenal resource." 
She's also developed professional ties with the University of Georgia ophthalmology specialists; these relationships, along with plenty of her own independent research, have allowed Dr. Peter to increase her knowledge of the specialty considerably. She's learned time is of the essence when handling eye issues in her equine patients.
"Eyes are very difficult and can change very rapidly when you have an injury." Dr. Peter explains. "I enjoy trying to stay ahead of it."
Dr. Peter's varied background in equine medicine also includes a significant amount of time spent studying dentistry and lameness during vet school at Iowa State University. She's also developed a keen interest in internal medicine during her professional career - it's all about "trying to figure out the puzzle," she says.
"You get presented with a sick horse," she explains, and determining a course of treatment depends on "putting those physiological pieces together."
Dr. Peter also enjoys taking her veterinary knowledge on the road; she frequently volunteers with Christian Veterinary Missions (CVM), an organization that gives animal health care providers the opportunity to share their faith while treating patients in communities throughout the world.
Experiences treating animals vary with CVM. At the Navajo Nation vet clinic where Dr. Peter has volunteered in the past, the CVM team fills in for the regular veterinarians and works with the resident techs. In between treating animals and ministering to their owners, the CVM team members are interacting with the reservation techs.
"Can we learn from each other?" is a prevalent question from everyone involved.
The situation has been a little more pared down at the Apache reservation, where the CVM team works out of an American Legion building. She's met veterinary health care providers from all over the United States and even some international missionaries while volunteering for the organization. In fact, a friendship that began on a CVM trip had a great deal to do with Dr. Peter's decision to journey to Georgia from the mid-west. She met former Countryside vet Dr. Billy Myers on a CVM mission trip while she was still in vet school, which led her to come to the Covington, Ga., practice for her fourth-year externship. Dr. Peter knew she wanted to experience the diversity of opportunities available in most university externship programs, but she sought a more personal experience - she found both at Countryside. "I absolutely loved it," she recalls simply. She spent the year interning for Dr. Dan Carter and stayed on as an associate.

What Dr. Peter wants you to know about Countryside

Human clients and animal patients can expect to find a university-like array of available procedures, but there's a much more individualized standard of care than most university animal hospitals can provide.
"Since we have a smaller practice, it's a little bit more personal," Dr. Peter explains. Specialized procedures like scoping, shock wave therapy and ultrasounding are just a few of the clinic's offerings, but they're performed by a staff who wants a long term relationship with each patient.
"We do all that, but it's the private practice feel," Dr. Peter says.
She also emphasizes the veterinarians' commitment to working collegially. She regularly collaborates with her two fellow equine vets to determine the best approach in treating patients.
"We talk to each other all the time," she says. "(owners) are just not getting the perspective of one doctor; they're going to get all three ... I feel like that's a better standard of medicine when you get that care approach."

Outside work: about Dr. Peter

  • Dr. Peter enjoys spending time with her pets when she's not working: she has a Pitbull, "Micah;" a Quarter Horse, "Mac;" and a rescued cat whose initial moniker of "Mama Kitty" has stood the test of time.
  • She enjoys reading and trail riding "Mac" on her days off.
  • She earned her undergraduate degree from Wayne State University in her home state of Nebraska. She attended vet school at Iowa State University.
  • Her parents say she began dreaming of being a veterinarian at the age of four when she acquired her first horse. She later developed an affinity for biology and physiology. "I knew I loved animals - it worked out pretty well," she explains.