Veterinarians
William Puryear, DVM
Dr. William T. Puryear is a General Practitioner and the owner of Faithful Friends Animal Hospital since 1996.
A native of Model, Colorado, Dr. Puryear says there were two significant influences that helped him decide to become a veterinarian. “Growing up as an only child on a ranch in Southern Colorado, the animals were pretty important to me, especially an old English sheep dog named BJ,” he says. “That dog protected me, encouraged me, played with me and so on, and this loyalty stimulated a desire to help animals. Additionally, one of my science teachers, Mr. Maglia, instilled a love of science in me. I suppose you could say that B.J. helped me want to help animals and Mr. Maglia encouraged the science aspect of doing that. They are the reasons I am a veterinarian today.”
After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps as a jet mechanic, Dr. Puryear attended Colorado State University where he received a Bachelor of Science in Biology. He then entered Colorado State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences where he earned his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine in 1995.
His area of particular professional interest is surgery for which Dr. Puryear has taken a number of continuing education courses in order to expand his knowledge of orthopedic procedures. He has also completed continuing education coursework in ultrasound and otoscopic procedures.
Dr. Puryear and his wife Pamela, our Office Manager, have two children. Amanda is in her mid-twenties and has earned a Bachelor’s degree in elementary education with an emphasis in biology and teaches third grade. Danny is in his late teens and graduated from Colorado Springs Christian School in 2011 and plans to attend college and major in accounting.
At home, Dr. Puryear has a Rough Coated Collie named Maria, an English Bulldog named Lizzie and a cat named Swat. He also volunteers with the El Passo County Sheriff’s Office and the Fountain Police Department to provide care for their police K9s. His interests include Vee Amis Jitsu (he is a fourth degree black belt), motorcycle riding, skiing, scuba diving, working out at the gym, reading, and studying Roman Catholic history and traditions. However, he says spending time with his family makes him the happiest.
Dr. Vall, DVM
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Dr. Patrick R. Vall began practicing at Faithful Friends Animal Hospital as an Associate Veterinarian in the spring of 2011.
When asked what initially inspired him to consider a career as a veterinarian, Dr. Vall says it was the writing of English veterinarian James Herriot. In his books, which loosely fall under the title All Things Great and Small, Herriot describes a number of fictionalized accounts of what it was like to be a practicing veterinarian in the English countryside. Dr. Vall also notes, “I grew up in the suburbs of Cleveland and my dogs played a big part of my life growing up. Walking with them and taking them on hikes in local metropolitan parks was a frequent activity for me.”
For his undergraduate studies, Dr. Vall attended Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Biology in 1988. Later that same year he entered Ohio State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and earned his Doctorate and Veterinary Medicine in 1992.
Dr. Vall’s areas of particular professional interest include dentistry, emergency medicine and internal medicine. He is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Colorado Veterinary Medical Association, American Veterinary Dental Society, and the Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society.
After his many years as a practicing veterinarian Dr. Vall says that he still enjoys being able to alleviate and minimize animal suffering and return a beloved pet to health and their owner as soon as possible.
At home Dr. Vall has a German Shorthair Pointer named Cana as well as two cats named Wren and Denali. His interests include hiking and climbing in the mountains of Colorado. “I have summited 40 of the 56 mountains of Colorado that are above 14,000 feet,” he adds. “I have also summited Mt. Rainier in Washington and recently attempted Pico de Orizaba, which is an 18,000 foot volcano in Mexico.”
Dr. Vall says he also very much enjoys gardening and music, but most of all, spending time relaxing with his wife and four children.