Dr. Jim FitzSimons has over 20 years experience serving the companion animals of Cumming and the surrounding communities. A graduate of the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine in 1996, Dr. FitzSimons is experienced in emergency medicine as well as general practice. His areas of special interest include senior pet wellness, internal medicine, and oncology (the treatment of cancer). Dr. FitzSimons has spent time serving as a volunteer veterinarian abroad and donates services to The Guide Dog Foundation. 

Dr. FitzSimons and his family live in Forsyth County with their fur babies Maggie, Tidbit, and Elmer.

Dr. Dorton attended Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine and graduated in 2003. Once she graduated she stayed on to assist teaching senior students technical skills and to support a recently acquired criticalist to the intensive care unit.

She and her family relocated to Georgia in 2004 in order for her husband; Bret, to pursue his education and career. Her career in Georgia has included working as a Chief of Staff in a corporate setting as well as in private practice.

Dr. Dorton prides herself on treating her patients as if they are her own and partnering with patient owners to offer the best care possible for their fur babies. Her areas of special interest include Dermatology, Endocrinology and Behavior.

Dr. Dorton and her husband enjoy spending time with their children while they still can. They have two teenage girls: Chaela and Hannah; and an adult son, Austin. They have two Pekingese (Max and Sparky), an English Cocker Spaniel (Sluggo), an American Cocker Spaniel (Diva) and four cats (Ringo, Bean, Nugget and Zero.

Dr. Duval completed his undergraduate and veterinary school at the University of Pennsylvania. Derek and his wife, Julie Duval VMD DACVS, moved to Georgia where Derek did his internship at University of Georgia while Julie completed her residency in surgery. After his internship, Derek stayed on faculty at UGA and ran the Outpatient Medicine service for two years. The Duvals then returned to Philadelphia where Dr. Derek Duval completed his small animal internal medicine residency at Penn. During his residency Derek was responsible for setting up and starting the outpatient endoscopy service at Penn and completed research and publications on immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA). Dr. Duval completed his board certification in small animal internal medicine in 1997 and is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (DACVIM). He has served the ACVIM in a variety or roles including credentialing, test preparation and rating and other volunteer services. Since leaving academia, the Duvals have been practicing high quality specialty medicine and surgery in the Southeast, including most of the last 20 years practicing in Atlanta. Dr. Duval is an accomplished endoscopist (both rigid and flexible endoscopy), ultrasonographer and diagnostician and enjoys all aspects of internal medicine and endoscopy. Dr. Duval has a special interest in interventional endoscopy and radiology, and has helped pioneer procedures such as tracheal and urethral stenting and balloon dilation treatment for esophageal strictures. Dr. Duval has lectured extensively locally and nationally on a variety of topics in internal medicine. The Duvals live in Atlanta with their dogs Bella (Shippereke) and Maisie (Sheltie) and a variety of frogs, lizards and turtles. They have two children who grew up in Atlanta and now are at UGA graduate school and GaTech engineering. When not practicing internal medicine, Derek is an avid homebrewer and martial artist and enjoys sharing music and outdoor activities with Julie and their kids.

Dr. Duval is one of our Moves Partners. Learn more about them at vetmoves.com.

After growing up in Kentucky and Texas, Dr. Duval received a bachelor of science degree from Duke University, then graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine and stayed on for a year to complete a rotating internship. She was happy to be able to come back to the south for her surgery residency at the University of Georgia and then accepted a position as a clinical surgery instructor at the University of Pennsylvania, where Dr. Duval was involved with the training of students, interns and residents.

After trying out two private referral practice jobs in Columbia, SC and St. Louis, MO, she and her husband moved to Atlanta in 2000 where they were two of the original specialists at one of the largest veterinary specialty practices in the southeast. Over 18 years of practice in Atlanta, Dr. Duval was able to gradually adjust her caseload to focus on soft tissue surgery. She also was very active in organizing and participating in the continuing education program at that practice. While enjoying all aspects of soft tissue and oncologic surgery, Dr. Duval has special interest in perineal urethrostomy, portosystemic shunts and reconstructive surgery.

Dr. Julie Duval has been married to internist Derek Duval since 1990, and they have two children who are studying at colleges in Georgia. She loves reading, watching college football and basketball (especially the Duke Blue Devils), hiking, travel and photography. She and her husband have two dogs, sheltie Maisie and schipperke Bellatrix, as well as some pets with no fur.

Dr. Julie Duval is one of our Moves Partners. Learn more about them at vetmoves.com.