Many things influence our first career choices. Very often it is our parents’ desires for us more than our own. For me, that led to a career in medicine as a nurse and receiving a BSN from the State University of New York in Buffalo 1972. Yet, having grown up in a family that loved animals (we had the usual cats and dogs growing up in a suburban neighborhood, but also managed to care for a pig, a goat and anything else any of us managed to drag home), I found myself desiring a change in my focus from people to animals.
I received my DVM from the University of California Davis in 1985 and spent many years treating animals in a typical allopathic way. This included owning my own animal hospital in San Francisco for a couple of years. However, while I enjoyed the work, I soon found myself searching for another way of treating and interacting with animals. I wanted to do more than just eliminate symptoms, I wanted to alleviate suffering. As a result, I decided to challenge my veterinary knowledge by pursuing another system of medicine-homeopathy. In 1992, I took my first (and certainly not my last) course with Dr. Richard Pitcairn. Dr. Pitcairn is the “guru” of veterinary homeopathy and has trained most of the homeopathic vets in this country. Not only did I learn about this beautiful, powerful and gentle system of medicine from him, he was also my first teacher (and friend) who taught me how to “take off the blinders and think”. I learned about animal nutrition and behavior in ways that I did not learn in my conventional medical training. In 1993 I started my own practice titled Veterinary Homeopathy and became certified as a Veterinary Homeopath in 1994.
As I continued working in veterinary medicine, I found myself wanting new areas to grow my mind. I decided to take a ‘step outside the box’ to learn more about helping to create an economy and a world based on sustainability. As a result, I received my green MBA in one of the first graduating classes at the Presidio School of Management in 2006. The MBA helped me to articulate a focus on providing balanced consideration of people, planet and profit in our pursuits. In the field of medicine, this meant pursuing a commitment to all aspects of health – spiritual, mental, emotional and physical.
In 2006, life’s experiences brought me to what I hope is my final home – Mendocino. This community embraced me during a time of change and gave me a home. After living here for a number of years, I realized I wanted to give back to the community by offering services previously unmet: a house call practice. I started On The Road Veterinary Care in 2013. I offer herbal and traditional veterinary services in the serene setting of your own home, where animals and their people can be more comfortable.
May I continue to work for the peace of our planet and all things that inhabit it.
Barbara