Capturing many a veterinary legacy

This fall I had the opportunity to speak with an impressive member of the veterinary community--Dr. Don Smith--and I'm very excited to share with you one of his many projects. Don, large animal surgeon, dean emeritus of Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, author, and veterinary history enthusiast, is the creator of a fascinating collection of interviews of veterinarians who attended vet school during some of the most challenging times of modern US history, most notably the Great Depression. These interviews, both in written form and available as audio files, are available on Cornell's website. The collection is called Enduring Legacy. Here's what Don had to say about how this project came to be, his interview process, and what he's learned from talking to some amazing veterinarians.

Despite modest ambitions of wanting to be a dairy practitioner, Don wound up a large animal surgeon. Then, after following the winding road of professionalism, Don eventually held a deanship at Cornell from 1997 to 2007. After this, Don found himself at a crossroads.

"I was too young to retire but didn't want to continue with administration," he says. "I didn't know what to do so I packed my dog into a Jeep and I went to Alaska along the back roads. I used that time to decide what I didn't want to do as well as to some extent what I did want to do."

Beau, Don's Cocker Spaniel who accompanied him to Alaska and back.

Don had been introduced to the concept of helping record the history of individuals who were veterinarians in the early part of the 21st century. The element of time passing--these individuals were not going to be around within the next 20 years--was palpable and when Don returned from his trip in Alaska, "I decided to meet and record these life stories of as many veterinarians who were educated in the 1930s as possible," he says. "So, I traveled around the country and interviewed them. I did Cornell graduates first, and then I was encouraged to interview younger people who had graduated in the 1940s, and then interview some from other schools as well."

Dr. Andre Moul Ross, the only female member of the Cornell veterinary class of 1943.

Don has conducted hundreds of interviews, not just for the Enduring Legacy project, but also for other books and blogs. I was curious to learn about Don's interview technique and perhaps gain a few hints for myself.

Primarily, Don states an axiom that should be remembered by anyone who ever conducts any interview, for whatever reason (this can even apply to vets getting a decent case history on a patient!): "When you interview somebody, you're hearing a bias. You're hearing the way they remember, or more specifically, how they want their history to be remembered on their behalf. They will tell you things they want you to know and in the process, perhaps, they don't tell you certain things or there are certain errors. Therefore, you have to get at the facts. In order to interview someone, you have to do research."

"When you interview somebody, you're hearing a bias."

Don describes his process of triangulating a story: hearing something during an interview then corroborating those statements with interviews from other sources and facts collected elsewhere. Another concept Don used to make his Enduring Legacy interviews stand out as unique collections of veterinary history is who he talked to. "Most people, when they want to know about the history of veterinary medicine, they go to the faculty and ask them what it was like to be a faculty member," he says. "I didn't want to do that. I wanted to find out about the real people in the real world under real circumstances. I wanted to explore their history."

As far as interview techniques, Don cuts to the chase: "Don't ask the obvious questions." Don likens a good interview to allowing the interviewee to demonstrate leadership. "You have to create instability and let leadership come through. People are great leaders but they too often will not find leadership unless they are put in an unstable situation and they have to demonstrate how to move society forward. So I try to use that same context within my interview style."

"Don't ask the obvious questions. Create instability and let leadership come through."

I asked Don what his most memorable interviews were during his time putting together Enduring Legacy. Without hesitation, Don stated that the class of 1939 at Cornell was probably the most extraordinary class to have gone through veterinary college anywhere. "The reasons for this were because of the diversity in the class and the challenges of the Depression," he says. "The challenges of that era were just extraordinary but it allowed the students to become friends, not just colleagues, with people who were very different."

Don describes this class as one containing "three women, a Chinese man, a Canadian who didn't know how old he was, an African American from Memphis, some Catholics who were discriminated against back then, and some Jewish people."

The relationships and bonds formed in this vet school class have left a huge impression on Don. "A Jewish man from Brooklyn and a Catholic man from southern New York became the very best of friends," he says. "Never once during these interviews did I ever hear anyone say anything negative about anyone."

Take some time to explore the interviews captured over at Enduring Legacy--the audio files are so rich with memory and emotion you'll easily find yourself rooting for those who, at immense odds, fulfilled their professional ambitions.

Aren't they neat, the people that you meet?

Previously on this blog I've discussed my introverted-ness and how that influences my work as a writer and veterinarian. I'll be honest: when writing, I used to develop anxiety whenever a magazine article assignment required interviews. Always wanting to conduct interviews via email so I didn't have to actually talk to anyone, I began to realize that really the best soundbites came from a live interview (over the phone in most of my cases). Getting a feel for the person, a live interview gives the conversation a certain dynamic that emailed questions simply can't create. A live interview can also take you places you wouldn't have expected and add more detail or intrigue to the article itself. There are several decent websites on conducting interviews, like here and here.

What I'm about to tell you is strictly off the record...

Beyond getting a good story, however, there's also the people factor. The simple fact is: I've met some really cool people through interviews.

Most of the interviews I've been conducting lately are for articles on pets or livestock (go figure). Many interviews are with other veterinarians, like equine surgeons or feline specialists, answering questions like: what's the first thing you recommend when a horse owner suspects colic? Or: what are the most common diseases seen in older cats?

Once in a while, I do get to write less vet med-themed pieces. For the October 2013 issue of Dog Fancy magazine, I wrote a piece on how dog owners are involving their animals in social media. This allowed me to talk to several creative dog owners about how and why they blog, Tweet, and Facebook about their pets. One interviewee really stood out in my mind for her creativity: Jessica Rhae Williams. Creator of the blog youdidwhatwithyourwiener, Jessica hikes the wilds of Washington state with her two Dachshunds Chester and Gretel to get fit, break stereotypes, and fight pet obesity. Also president of the Adventurewiener Club of Seattle, Jessica's sense of humor and her message left a mark in my memory for sure.

Just a wiener on an adventure.

More recently, another interviewee has left an even bigger impression on me, and for more than the interview-based information. About a month ago, I was writing an online feature for the magazine Modern Farmer about Rocky Mountain Oysters (fried bull testicles). Needing some first-hand knowledge on how to cook these bad boys, I spoke to a woman in Virginia City, Nevada named Brandi Lee. Brandi is a multi-time winner at the Virginia City Rocky Mountain Oyster Fry and has been competing for over 20 years. As if these facts weren't enough to reserve Brandi a permanent place in Anna's Memory Hall of Fame, at the very end of our phone interview, after chatting about our dogs, Brandi said to me, "You know what else I used to do? I used to race ostriches."

What?

At first I thought I heard "raise ostriches." Thinking that was a little unusual but then again I know folks in Maryland with emus, the conversation continued into the mundane. However, a phrase about jockeys soon popped into the dialogue and I put one and one together: RACE not RAISE ostriches. This changed the game entirely.

Brandi allowed that she also used to race water buffalo and camels. "When I do something, I get right in the middle of it," she said. I could imagine.

Fast forward one month and the Modern Farmer article was published online. I sent Brandi a link and was delighted to hear that she loved it. A few back and forth email exchanges later and this week what showed up in my mailbox, but an original copy of the June 1974 issue of National Geographic magazine. On page 747 is a full color photo of a woman racing an ostrich (see below). It is the one and only Brandi Lee.

Go, Brandi, go!

To boot, the photo had also been autographed for a nice personalized touch. I now officially have an ostrich-racing, bull testicle-eating 21st century pen pal who I would never have met if it weren't for that interview. Now instead of feeling anxious to conduct an interview, I'm looking forward to my next phone call. Who knows who I'll meet next.