Page 57 - Eclipse - Autumn/Winter 2022
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CLASSNOTES



        ‘Autobiology of a Vet’ by John Sauvage



                                                            During his time     and TB is also discussed. The tale of
                                                            as a partner, John   his experience of meeting children with
                                                            became involved in   the drug-induced injury of thalidomide is
                                                            the business aspects   both life-affirming and tear-jerking.
                                                            of the practice but   His time in East Africa, including his
                                                            at the same time    experiences in Uganda under Idi Amin’s
                                                            taught local farmers   dictatorship, is chilling but still funny and
                                                            and gained higher   uplifting. The tales of his experiences in
                                                            qualifications with   general and specialist veterinary practice,
                                                            the Open University   with memorable farm, horse, dog and cat
                                                            and then in veterinary   cases, are enlightening, educational and
                                                            cardiology, as well   sometimes sad but also often hilarious.
                                                            as seeing clients and   The horrific experiences with foot-and-
                                                            cases full-time.
                                                                                mouth disease will get any animal lover in
                                                            After this, he began   tears and questioning what happened and
                                                            lecturing to other   why? But the option of a ‘vegan utopia’ in
                                                            vets on various     a world without farm animals is dismissed
                                                            topics, such as     as a sad alternative, as demonstrated
                                                            dentistry, practice   when large swathes of the UK were left
                                                            management and, of   without stock after the outbreak.
                                                            course, cardiology.   The adage about his and other doctors’
                                                            These lectures took   and vets’ handwriting being illegible
                                                            place as far afield as   is well told when visiting his father in
                                                            Australia, Portugal,   hospital and leaving him a message on
                                                            the Republic of     his bedside that he should either get
                                                            Ireland and Norway,   the nurse to read the note or take it to
                                                            as well as all around   the pharmacy and see what they gave
                                                            the UK. John        him is discussed.
                                                            volunteered and was
                                                            highly active during   John’s personal life gets off to a bad start
                                                            the foot-and-mouth
        ABOUT JOHN                          outbreak in the spring of 2001.     but has a happy ending. The birth of
                                                                                his children and grandchild highlighted
        After finishing school, John        He had several short spells teaching part-  when the midwife said, “I called for
        went straight on to the RVC  time for veterinary drug companies, again   a paediatrician,” but when one didn’t
                                                                                arrive, she announced to the surgical
        and qualified as a veterinary       while still in practice. He became sole   and anaesthetic team, “I will get a vet
        surgeon in 1973. During his         owner of the Cranbrook practice in 2011   instead.” And so John played a key role
                                            and soon reclaimed its hospital status,
        time there, he went to East         which was lost since just before he joined.   in the birth of his daughter by caesarean.
        Africa with a research team         Finally selling the practice in 2018, John   The background theme to the whole
        and was the primary author          continues to see cardiac cases and carry   book is the leaps forward taken by
                                            out breed heart certification.
                                                                                both veterinary and human medicine
        of one of the resulting                                                 in the last 70 years, especially in
        research papers.                    JOHN’S BOOK                         disease prevention by vaccination. The
                                            Opening with his award of Membership   story is brought up to date with the
        His first veterinary post was as an   of the RCVS, the book relates John’s   coronavirus pandemic and its vaccination
        assistant in a mixed, mainly cattle, practice  personal and family history from his   programme. The stories are always self-
        in Gloucestershire, before moving on   English and Belgian parents and   effacing and amusing where possible,
        within the year to a mixed high-standard   grandparents and their roles in two world   but the big questions in our relationships
        dog and equine practice in Maidstone. In   wars.                        with animals are openly discussed.
        1975 he was a locum and in 1976 joined   John recounts tales from his RVC studies
        the Cranbrook practice in Kent, becoming   and goes on to discuss various major   Read more and purchase the book here:
        a partner in 1980.                                                      www.johnsauvageautobiology.com/
                                            debates which occurred during his   the-book
                                            career, including vaccinations and the
                                            anti-vaccine lobby. The role of badgers




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