Goodrum Pursuing His Dreams

Dr. Justin Curtis Goodrum leaves Hardeman County to pursue an opportunity and long-standing dream of his.

Goodrum served his last day at Old Hatchie Veterinary Clinic on June second after which he moved to Moore Veterinarian Clinic in Bethel Springs, Tennessee, where he serves as an associate to Dr. Moore and is in the process of obtaining full ownership of the practice.

“My goal has always been not only to become a veterinarian but also to own a veterinarian clinic,” said Goodrum.

Goodrum has been interested in animals for as long as he can remember.

“The first time I thought about being a veterinarian, I was very young, maybe five or six,” said Goodrum. “All of my older siblings talked about becoming vets, which was kind of a young, childhood dream, but I knew that was what I wanted to do.”

Goodrum grew up on a small farm with cows, horses, dogs, cats, and goats; however, when it came to caring for the animals, Goodrum’s father did not consult a veterinarian often.

“My dad did not take his animals to the vet unless they were absolutely dying, and even then sometimes not,” added Goodrum.

On one occasion, the family had a cow with bad mastitis.

“I did all I could do, which was not much for a young teenage boy,” said Goodrum. “It was our milk cow, and I was pretty attached to her, but daddy wouldn’t take her to the vet.”

The cow died, and Goodrum wrestled with the thought that they could have saved her.

“That definitely made me want to figure out what I could have done,” said Goodrum. “I hated not knowing when I knew there was information out there that I could have had, but also, on the flip side, I learned that I’m not God and some things are just not meant to be.”

During high school, Goodrum worked for Dr. Shackelford at Shackelford’s Veterinary Clinic in Bolivar where he started out in the kennels, but it was not long before Dr. Shackelford let Goodrum help in the exam rooms and with surgeries.

“He really taught me a lot, and I would have loved to work with him, but unfortunately, he died while I was still in school,” said Goodrum.

After high school, Goodrum pursued and acquired his associates from Jackson State, after which he acquired his Bachelor in Animal Science at UT Martin, but while working on his Master’s in Bacterial Pathology at UT Knoxville, Goodrum’s wife Lydia became pregnant with their firstborn son Jerrod, and the couple decided to move closer to home and family.

During this time, Goodrum worked for Old Hatchie Veterinary Clinic for almost two years until he was accepted into Vet School at Ross University in St. Kitts where he completed his Doctorate and then completed his clinical year at Auburn University.

Upon graduating from school, Goodrum went to work for Old Hatchie Veterinary Clinic in 2018 where he served as manager until June of this year when he made his transition to Moore Veterinary Clinic.

“I didn’t go looking for it,” said Goodrum. “My brother Matt was actually the reason it all started.”

Matt, a neighbor of Dr. Moore, told Goodrum the clinic was for sale and encouraged him to consider buying.

Goodrum agreed to talk to Dr. Moore, but he said he had no intentions of going over there to buy the clinic.

Goodrum’s visit to the Moore Vet Clinic occurred one day after the property suffered damage from a tornado.

“Their horse barn and their cow barn were demolished, but even then, walking through everything with Dr. Moore, I had a good feeling about it,” said Goodrum.

Goodrum went home and consulted his wife Lydia.

As noted by Goodrum, he believes family is important, and he values making his wife and kids happy above all else.

When Goodrum discovered Lydia was at peace about the possibility of him buying the clinic, they worked through the logistics and a week later decided to move forward in the process of purchasing Moore Veterinary Clinic.

Goodrum said he believes his time at Old Hatchie Veterinary Clinic was valuable, grew him as a veterinarian and taught him how to manage his time well.

“Dr. Goodrum is a great vet, and we wish him the very best,” said Dr. Frank Wilhite.

Even though Goodrum has never held an ownership position of this kind, he said he has big plans, and he trusts God to guide him every step of the way.

“God is in control,” added Goodrum. “I’m just going to enjoy the ride and do the best I can.”

Goodrum’s first objective at Moore Veterinary Clinic is to get to know the community and become as good of friends with them as Dr. Moore is, and then he said he hopes to make some changes to the clinic, including the expansion of the exam rooms and treatment facilities.

“Right now, we’re kind of on each other's toes because there’s not enough room,” said Goodrum.

Goodrum joins two other veterinarians at Moore Veterinary Clinic, Dr. William Bishop and Dr. Richard Steed, in addition to Dr. Moore.

Goodrum said he appreciates the way the veterinarians at Moore Veterinary Clinic value their clients and patients, as that is something Goodrum also strives to do.

“Every veterinarian there really cares about each patient and client in wanting to get the best for each of them,” said Goodrum. “Yes, I have to make a living, but that’s not my goal with these patients.” “I don’t see a dollar sign when I see a patient,” he added.

According to Dr. Moore, Goodrum is the right fit for the clinic and believes he will do well.

“I think he can do really well here,” said Moore. “I noticed that he has a pretty strong work ethic which is not present in everyone that we see, and to be successful takes someone willing to work hard.”

When he is not working as a veterinarian, Goodrum said he enjoys life with his four kids and wife on their small farm where the family raises several animals, including horses, goats, Australian shepherds, chickens, and exotic creatures such as green amazons, rheas, and peacocks.

Goodrum is thankful for the support of his family and excited for this next season of his life as well as for the future of Moore Veterinary Clinic; moreover, he said he looks forward to maintaining the same level of care the clinic has prioritized since its humble beginning in May of 1991.

“Our mission is to consider and value the well-being of all people and animals we see, and we aim to treat everyone with openness, fairness, dignity, and care,” said Goodrum.

“It mainly boils down to treating people right, treating people fair at a decent price, and being available,” added Moore. “If he continues to do that, there’s no limit on what he can do here.”