Compound growth

If you like your antibiotics flavored with tuna, chicken or beef, John Dobbs is your pharmacist.

Specially prepared prescriptions for pets is big business for Pharmicare in Fort Myers. “We filled 60 prescriptions yesterday and 20 of them were for pets,” says Dobbs, the pharmacy's owner, at a recent interview.

Dobbs and his business partners opened Pharmicare one year ago and they've carved out some niches, such as specialty pet medications, which is now 20% of total sales. It's a lucrative business: Pet owners pay cash for pet prescriptions that can run from $30 to $100 each.