Hello everyone! My name is Dr. Jose U. Zayas Nunez, but feel free to call me Dr. Zayas or Dr. Z because my full name is a bit long. I’m a veterinarian at the wonderful Highway 92 Animal Hospital. I was born and raised in Puerto Rico (I am fluent in Spanish and English) until the day I embarked on my veterinary school journey. I graduated veterinary school from Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine. After this, life took me out west to my first job located in the state of Utah. Here I was blessed to meet my partner in life Michelle (my wife) and the light of our eyes Mathias (our son). We resided in Utah for three years until we decided that the winter weather wasn’t really agreeing with us. Also, we wanted to be closer to family. That’s why we decided to move to the beautiful state of Georgia.

My wife and son are from Ecuador so we are very passionate about soccer. You will probably catch us at an Atlanta United game or just having a barbecue at home and watching a game. We are also novice gardeners and spend some of our free time with our plants. Our son Mathias loves anything and everything Pokémon and the show Adventure Time right now but I’m sure this will become outdated in a very short time since he is growing and learning so fast.

Our family also includes a very spoiled 6-year-old tortoiseshell cat named Aria. I adopted her when I was studying veterinary medicine in the island of St. Kitts. She helped me a lot by being my study buddy and in a way I owe a lot to her. You will most likely find her napping most of the day unless you go anywhere near her bag of food. The last member to join our pack was Gordy. He is a 9-year-old hairless miniature pinscher that we adopted in Utah. He was actually one of my first patients when I started working. His previous owners had just had a new baby and Gordy was having a hard time adjusting to this new life. They were looking to give him an environment that fitted his needs and we were more than happy to provide that. Gordy is a very sweet boy and is always looking to take naps right by your side. His favorite treats are bananas and every morning he will wait eagerly to be fed one.  

Ever since I was young, I have been very close to animals to the point that I don’t remember a moment where our family didn’t have a pet. Growing up with animals taught me a lot about responsibility, compassion, and how to properly interact with animals.  Also, in Puerto Rico there was a big problem with stray dogs at a time and I remember wanting to help them out any way that I could. That’s why as a teenager I decided to volunteer at a local animal shelter and since that day I knew I wanted to be a veterinarian.      

My goal as a veterinarian is mainly to educate our clients in the care and needs of their pets. Animals are part of our family and we want to make sure they get the best quality of life. My main interests in the veterinary field are Soft Tissue Surgeries (things like spays, neuters, mass removals), Ophthalmology (working up cases relating to the eyes), Endocrinology (branch of medicine that studies hormonal imbalances), Dentistry and much more. I can’t wait to meet you and your beautiful pets!