History

The South Des Moines Veterinary Center opened in June, 1964 as the South Des Moines Animal Hospital.  The practice was started by Dr. John Matson and was located a few blocks north of the present site.  The first day of business, Dr. Matson only had one patient visit and earned $7.50 for that day and it took him over 3 months to make $100.00.  In 1974, he was able to purchase the land and building at our present site.

In 1990, Dr. Brenda Flaming joined the practice to help grow the clinic.  The practice was again remodeled and enlarged in 1994, which gave us the much needed room for this growth.  In 2001, Dr. Matson officially retired and sold the practice to Dr. Flaming.  It was then that the practice was renamed to South Des Moines Veterinary Center.

Dr. Melissa Beyer joined the practice in May of 2006, and she has been a great addition to our team.  Together, Dr. Flaming and Dr. Beyer care for over 1,500 patients and perform over 300 surgeries per year.

We are proud of our veterinary center, as it is a clean and bright facility, but the most important asset to our practice is our health care team.  They all support and believe in our mission: to care, to heal, to educate, and to prevent disease.