Milliron Monday: Apricot Spice 11 30 2020

Photo from The Athens News, Athens, Ohio

August 24, 1998

Used with permission

Abbott "Pete" Smith, D.V.M.

June 16, 1938 - February 22, 2010

Welcome to Milliron Monday where every Monday we celebrate the legacy of Pete Smith, D.V.M., and  Milliron: Abbott “Pete” Smith, D.V.M. The Biography (Monday Creek Publishing 2017). A graduate of Colorado State University and a well-known veterinarian in southeast Ohio, Dr. Smith continues to motivate and inspire. 

A notable person in southeastern Ohio, Dr. Smith was often the subject of the local media, including newspaper articles. Many of his clients were horse people - from show horses to the trail horse down the road. 

The caption to the above photo..."Veterinarian Pete Smith cleans the teeth of Apricot Spice, a horse belonging to Beverly Wright of Spencer, West Virginia. Smith is the focus of one of the articles in The Athens NEWS' annual Progress edition..."

The article, Amesville vet has high-tech facility, low-tech manner, August 24, 1998, was written by Chris Vance. As a horse owner and writer, I am always interested in the behind-the-scenes of photos. The photo above shows Dr. Smith floating the teeth of Apricot Spice, a Tennessee Walking Horse mare with good breeding. You know the kind - big heart, ultra smart, but likes to be serendipitous. 

I connected with Beverly Wright, the owner of Apricot Spice. We talked last week about horses, horse shows, veterinarians, and life with horses. "I still have the mare," Beverly said. "She's 28 this year, doing well for her age. Spice comes and goes out of the barn as she likes, grazing when she feels like it. I feed her hay all year around - that seems to keep her feet issues at bay, especially when she doesn't feel like getting out of the barn." 

Beverly continues, "I remember the day of the photo at Milliron Clinic. I raised this mare. She's a pretty sorrel mare with a flaxen mane and tail. Her mother, Lady, was a black TWH with a forehead star, just like her sire, Sun's Delight, a 1963 World Grand Champion. They all are from the famous Midnight Sun, another World Grand Champion and icon in the TWH world. I showed TWH's for years. When I wasn't showing, I was the event announcer. I enjoyed showing horses. My neighbor at the time was Rusty Moore. He showed one of my TWH mares. Now he is Dean at The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine.  

"I purchased Lady, Spice's mother, from a TWH horse breeder in Cambridge, Ohio. She was one of the last foals out of Sun's Delight. When Lady was older, she became ill. I took Lady to Dr. Smith. My veterinarian in West Virginia recommended Dr. Smith because he was well-known for vetting horses. My vet said, 'There's a great equine vet in Ohio. You need to take your horses over there.' So we did. 

"The journey from my stables to Milliron Clinic was a long one, but worth it. Dr. Smith was one-of-a-kind; smart, wise, witty, and his staff was the best. They always made me feel right at home. Dr. Smith taught me important things to know about horse health. We would talk about vet school and we always thought, since he was in Ohio, that he graduated from The Ohio State University. Dr. Smith made sure we knew he graduated from Colorado State University. That was important to him. He enjoyed talking about his days in Colorado.

"When we took Lady to Dr. Smith, he said to leave her at the clinic overnight so he could give her a thorough examination. When we came back the next day, he said her heart was giving out and she did not have long to live, so he euthanized her and she is buried in the Milliron Clinic cemetery. 

"I sold Spice when she was 5 yrs old to a horseman in the next county. He showed her in Plantation Pleasure Walking. I stayed in contact with the man because I always follow the horses I raise. When Spice was of age, he had her bred in Kentucky. We went to see the new foal and the horseman said he was going to sell Spice. I told him I wanted to buy her back, and I did. When I brought her back home, she remembered me and my place. Spice had a vaginal discharge that wasn't going away, so I took her to Dr. Smith. He said the discharge was from giving birth and Spice needed cleaned up. So he flushed her out and she was fine after that. 

"When you take on a horse, they are your responsibility. My veterinarian is 50 miles away. He comes to my barn once a year to give Spice a complete exam and her vaccines. But we sure do miss Dr. Smith. I took my dog to him, too. He really helped her and she lived longer because of him. Dr. Smith was a great guy - polite and willing to share."

 

Have a great week ahead.

Connect with Gina

Amazon Author Page

Milliron: The Biography

www.gmcknight.com

www.mondaycreekpublishing.com

Through captivating, powerful, and emotional anecdotes, we celebrate the life of Dr. Abbott P. Smith. His biography takes the reader from smiles to laughter to empathy and tears. Dr. Smith gave us compelling lessons learned from animals; the role animals play in the human condition, the joy of loving an animal, and the awe of their spirituality. A tender and profound look into the life of a skilled veterinarian.

Milliron Monday: Thankful 11 23 2020

 

Photo Courtesy The Athens Messenger November 21, 2004

Abbott "Pete" Smith, D.V.M.

June 16, 1938 - February 22, 2010

Welcome to Milliron Monday where every Monday we celebrate the legacy of Pete Smith, D.V.M., and  Milliron: Abbott “Pete” Smith, D.V.M. The Biography (Monday Creek Publishing 2017). A graduate of Colorado State University and a well-known veterinarian in southeast Ohio, Dr. Smith continues to motivate and inspire. 

It's Thanksgiving week! We have so much to be thankful for! Today I am sharing an article written by Kim Guffey of The Athens Messenger, November 21, 2004, about Dr. Smith, Milliron Clinic, and friend Carol Lambert. Enjoy!

Much to be thankful for: Groups pull together to save dog's life 

    Cats may have nine lives, but at least one dog from Nelsonville has a second chance at his first.

    It was a cold and rainy night when the Milliron Clinic received a call from a man who had hit a dog with his car in the Nelsonville area, recalled Dana Gardner, a veterinary assistant. Unable to find the dog's owner, the man took the wounded animal to the Milliron Clinic on Route 550 in Athens and paid for initial x-rays and an examination. The puppy suffered two crushed hips and internal bleeding.

    As Veterans Day parades marched on the next day, workers a the clinic tried to get in touch with the dog shelter in hopes the owner had called looking for the dog, who wore a collar, but no identification tags.

    "Everything was closed," Gardner said. "There was nothing we could do for the dog without the owner."

    Legally, the clinic can dispose of an animal that comes to the office without an owner. "But no one wants to have to do that," she said.

    Final efforts on November 12, found that the owner had contacted the dog shelter looking for the puppy. The shelter put Gardner in touch with the owner.

    "She said it had gotten loose and was being chased by another dog when it got hit," Gardner said.

    However, the owner was unable to pay for the animal's surgery or commit to its recovery and signed legal ownership of the animal over to the clinic - with the knowledge that the dog may very well have been euthanized.

    But the four-legged won over the hearts of the workers at the clinic.

    "His little tail just never stops wagging," Gardner said.

    Though they all hated the thought of putting the dog down, Gardner said the cost of the surgery and care would be steep and no one was sure what would happen.

    "One girl here heard the dog was going to be euthanized, and she said, 'Oh my gosh! I'll put in money!' And then another girl said she would give some. Even a man passing through gave money to save him," Gardner recalled.

    With the pot growing, Dr. Pete Smith said he would perform the surgery at a reduced price. With time working against them, the clinic called Carol Lambert of Avalon Animal Rescue to see if the group would be interested in putting up the remainder of the money needed to save the dog.

    "I went to see the dog, and after meeting him, I said, 'Absolutely!'" Lambert said.

    Lambert said Avalon chipped in a minimum of $200 to save the dog that she name Brendle, Bren for short, in honor of its color pattern.

    "We've all just fallen in love with Bren. He's such a pleasant little fellow," she said.

    Avalon was the recipient of proceeds from this year's Power 105 Chili Bowl Cook-off, and so in a way each person who bought chili at the event had a hand in helping Bren, she said.

    "We have hundreds of people involved in this project if you think about it," Lambert said.

    Smith performed the surgery early last week and Gardner said Bren has been working on getting better.

    "He's not out of the woods yet. He's still being worked on," she said adding that the dog has had a pleasant disposition despite the surgery and various blood transfusions.

    Once Bren recovers enough to be moved from the clinic, he will enter into the next phase of his new life - recovery through the dog program at Hocking Correctional Facility in Nelsonville.

    Avalon Animal Rescue partnered with the prison a few years ago in a program that allows select inmates to be responsible for the training and care for an animal for a short period of time, explained program facilitator Anne Richardson.

    "We usually focus mostly on obedience, like how to walk on a leash and housebreaking, but I think this little fellow will be here mostly for some R and R," said Richardson, who is also a secretary at the prison.

    Once he arrives, Bren will have to be cared for very carefully because he is unable to walk.

    "It's going to be so neat to see him progress from where we have to carry him in on towels to when he, hopefully, is able to walk out on four legs to an adoptive family," she said.

    Richardson expects that Bren will stay a couple of months at the prison, living and sleeping near the bed of the prisoner who will be assigned primary handler.

    "The guys are very excited to get the dog. It gives them something to be proud of, something to be responsible for," she said.

    Once Bren has recovered and is properly trained, he will be available for adoption through Avalon. After months of caring for him, Richardson said the inmates may have a little trouble saying goodbye to the pooch.

    "They take great pride in the dogs, and they get very attached," she said. "But they know that for every one that we let go, we're going to get to rescue another dog."

    The facility currently has two dogs in the program, and expects to get two more next week, including Bren. In the coming weeks, Lambert said a total of six puppies will be taken to the prison for obedience training.

    "It's such a great program," she said. "It gives the men such a sense of pride and responsibility."

    Pleased to see so many people coming together to save the life of one animal, Gardner said she hopes some lessons are taken from Bren's experience.

    "It proves that there are still good Samaritans out there, but it also shows how important it is to have identification on your dog and to not let it run loose," she said.

    Lambert said she is happy that her organization was able to chip in to help Bren, and those interested in joining or adopting through Avalon Animal Rescue. 

     

In memory of Carol Lambert.

Happy Thanksgiving! Have a great week ahead!

Connect with Gina

Amazon Author Page

Milliron: The Biography

www.gmcknight.com

www.mondaycreekpublishing.com

Through captivating, powerful, and emotional anecdotes, we celebrate the life of Dr. Abbott P. Smith. His biography takes the reader from smiles to laughter to empathy and tears. Dr. Smith gave us compelling lessons learned from animals; the role animals play in the human condition, the joy of loving an animal, and the awe of their spirituality. A tender and profound look into the life of a skilled veterinarian.

A Day Trip to Youngstown, Ohio by Matthew Caracciolo

 

Butler Institute of Art, Youngstown, Ohio
Photo by Matthew Caracciolo, Author & Travel Writer

A Day Trip to Youngstown, Ohio

by Matthew Caracciolo

Nestled halfway between Cleveland and Pittsburgh, Youngstown, Ohio is often overlooked as a small, industrial city and rust belt sob story. While there’s no denying the city’s struggles after the decline of the steel industry, Youngstown and the general Mahoning County area maintains the strong bones of an older, established city: fine museums, beautiful parks, longstanding restaurants. If you’re passing through in need of an excuse to escape the highway or an Ohioan looking for a new adventure, Youngstown delivers on all fronts in terms of a day trip: inexpensive, nearby, and worthy of exploration. Better yet—some of the best things to do in Youngstown are free.

Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor

The Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor, affiliated with the Ohio History Connection, is a good place to get your bearings on what Youngstown is and used to be. Focusing on the steel industry that brought Youngstown to prominence, the museum explores the industry’s ascent, its part in shaping the city, the waves of immigrants that arrived for jobs, and the eventual decline. Exhibits interpret life as a steel worker, the process of making steel, and domestic and cultural life in Youngstown during the city’s height. There’s a small admission fee, and you don’t need more than an hour or two here.

Youngstown Historical Center
Photo by Matthew Caracciolo

Butler Institute of American Art

While museums in the early 20^th century were busy collecting European art, local steel industrialist Joseph G. Butler Jr. sought after art from his fellow Americans, an idea not exactly in vogue at the time. His collection became the Butler Institute of American Art, the first museum dedicated exclusively to American art. Just about any American artist of note—Winslow Homer, John Singer Sargent, Norman Rockwell, Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock, etc.—is represented in the collection within the immaculate Renaissance Revival-style building. The galleries are laid out chronologically, beginning with the landscapes prevalent in early 19^th century paintings and ending with contemporary art. Portraits of American Indians, special exhibitions, and folk art round out this most unusual and surprising of Ohio’s major art museums. Best of all, admission is free. This is truly one of Ohio’s best hidden gems.

Fellows Riverside Gardens

Another free attraction, Fellows Riverside Gardens is a small but stunning botanical garden within the woodsy Mill Creek Park corridor. Gazebos, rose gardens, fountains, and perennials mix and match in this landscaped paradise, which also has a café and a gift shop in the visitor center. Parking is easy and most of the paths are handicapped accessible, though some do wander into the woods for more natural displays. Also within Mill Creek Park a few miles away is Lanterman’s Mill, a working 19^th century mill with a store inside. The building sits on a picturesque spot popular for autumn color pictures.

Fellows Riverside Gardens
Photo by Matthew Caracciolo

Italian food

Youngstown has been home to a significant Italian community since the early 20^th century. At one point, the city was known as a Mafia hotspot, with rival families from Cleveland and Pittsburgh stretching their muscles over this unclaimed territory. Though this reputation has somewhat diminished over the decades, a more savory aspect of the city’s rich Italian heritage lingers on: loads of Italian restaurants. Some are century-old neighborhood haunts. Others are more recent. All represent some of the best Italian food in Ohio. Near the Butler Institute of American Art is Cassese’s MVR, a lively family lunch and dinner spot with typical Italian entrees and bocce courts. Or, for a more a la carte experience, check out Jimmy’s Italian Specialties, an Italian market with a deli counter, bakery, and rows of imported goods. Sandwiches are large and cheap, or you can build your own pasta or salad. There is a dining room and patio to enjoy your choices, or you can always head to a nearby park.

All told, a day trip to Youngstown is an easy, affordable option that is often overlooked even by fellow Ohioans. What have you found in Youngstown that’s worth a stop?

Matthew Caracciolo is a freelance writer and author of The Waygook Book: A Foreigner’s Guide to South Korea from Monday Creek Publishing. He also maintains his own travel blog, Travel is Fatal, on his website. To find out more about The Waygook Book or Travel is Fatal, please visit matthewcaracciolo.com.

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Diamond Dust: Poems From the Black Sea 5-Volume Photo Book Series by Anca Ioviță

 

Diamond Dust: Poems From the Black Sea

5-Volume Photo Book Series

by Anca Ioviță

 

The Black Sea doesn’t ship the most colorful or ornate seashells on its beaches, yet restrained in spines and threatening colors, such smooth seashells in muted colors form the pillars of this collection of designs. New life was blown into such pieces as they became the vases, the leaves, the flowers and the buds of the offbeat marine Ikebana compositions you are about to see.

Sometimes met with anxiety and other times met with nostalgia, impermanence is the main yarn spun throughout these visual poems where I talk about the effort poured into creating quality art that ends up forgotten and into raising minds shining like diamonds who nevertheless crumble into dust. I also talk about serendipitous artifacts of nature that nevertheless last far longer than expected. Carbon life forms that switch places on the wheel of life and death as well as carbon that turns into diamonds. Apparently timeless diamonds that reenter the cycle of carbon once turned to smoke and ashes.

Throughout all these yarns, aquatic words form the skeleton of this volume: from blue open space to subtle waves, snow flowers, lyric seascapes and swimming letters, water permeates these pages even if the books you are about to hold are dry.

Many poems are colored by my medical background as I talk about the art of making art out of disease and spinning suffering into something not necessarily worthwhile, but at least bearable. The scientific branch of medicine helps sustain life during emergencies, but the beauty of art makes those added moments of life worth living for. Inspiring art will not relieve an asthma attack, but it may make searching for hard-to-find medical help worthwhile.

Available in Hardcover here!

About the Author

Anca Ioviță is the author of the “Diamond Dust (Poems From the Black Sea)” 5-volume photo book series, as well as three other books on gerontology. Going from arts to humanities to engineering to medicine, this polymath still reads career guides during adulthood, not so much to find the perfect career – which is different at each life stage anyway – but just to get inspired on new things to try and create.

Connect with Anca…

 

https://www.blurb.com/user/ancaiovita

 

http://minimalistdesigner.com/diamond-dust-poems-from-the-black-sea/

 

(Artwork, photography and text copyright © 2020, Anca Ioviță, all rights reserved.)

Milliron Monday: Keeping critters healthy 11 16 2020

Abbott "Pete" Smith, D.V.M.

June 16, 1938 - February 22, 2010

Welcome to Milliron Monday where every Monday we celebrate the legacy of Pete Smith, D.V.M., and  Milliron: Abbott “Pete” Smith, D.V.M. The Biography (Monday Creek Publishing 2017). A graduate of Colorado State University and a well-known veterinarian in southeast Ohio, Dr. Smith continues to motivate and inspire. 

Dr. Smith cared for many different animals during his veterinary career, but he was best known for his expert care of horses. Milbert Brown of The Athens News (October 11, 1979) wrote the following story about Dr. Smith...

Keeping critters healthy

     The same warm intensity that is exhibited in his smile is transmitted to his hands as he operates on valuable horses. The smooth flow of his knife coupled with his unique way of establishing a rapport with animals has earned Dr. Abbott P. Smith considerable notoriety from animals and farmers in Athens County.

     Often referred to as 'Pete' Smith is by trade a veterinarian, but is noted as the areas horse specialist.

    "I really don't have any favorite animals, but I'm most known for horses," said the 41-year-old doctor.

    Because of Smith's expertise in southeastern Ohio and West Virginia as a horse surgeon he has equipped his Milliron Clinic on Rt. 550 with special equipment for treating large animals. A nine-foot by six-foot operation table holds the horses after they have been doped up from an oversized anesthetic machine.

    Three days a week Smith sees 60 or more dogs and cats, usually for check-ups and minor treatments. The other days of the week find Smith on the road stopping four to five times in Athens, Meigs and other neighboring counties, checking on a hog that's sick, a cow that's having trouble giving birth or a horse with ligament trouble.

    Traveling with Smith on all his road trips is his sheep dog, Ruff.

    Saturdays are usually set aside for minor calls, if necessary or Pete may be found spending time working on his farm.

    "Usually I never stop working. Being a veterinarian people appreciate what you do for their animals and I enjoy the smooth flow of a good team working together," grinned Pete.

    Smith's clinic team consists of six staff members, two who are trained as registered animal technicians.

    Besides caring and treating the animals, Smith's staff tends to the lab records.

    Pete's expertise with horses took him to Brazil three years ago, his farthest journey to care for horses. He was the on-call veterinarian for the "Wonderful World of Horses Show" - the second largest horse show in the world.

    Luck has not always been as good for the Augusta, Maine native. In 1962, he began his first year of practice in Lamar, Colorado. There was no rain in Lamar that year, so many of Pete's patients died. He dawdled in riding horses in the rodeo, but wasn't pleased with himself.

    "I was probably the most unsuccessful cowboy in the history of rodeo," he said referring to his cowboy and bronco busting days for the Diamond Cattle Company in Colorado.

    In 1963, he packed up and moved to his farm near Amesville. Pete's days of hard riding have settled down and he spends his weekends riding around his 1,300 acres of land with his family.

    When time permits he takes a light job in the country.

    Pete doesn't bronco bust horses nowadays, he just treats busted horses.

 

Have a great week ahead.

Connect with Gina

Amazon Author Page

Milliron: The Biography

www.gmcknight.com

www.mondaycreekpublishing.com

Through captivating, powerful, and emotional anecdotes, we celebrate the life of Dr. Abbott P. Smith. His biography takes the reader from smiles to laughter to empathy and tears. Dr. Smith gave us compelling lessons learned from animals; the role animals play in the human condition, the joy of loving an animal, and the awe of their spirituality. A tender and profound look into the life of a skilled veterinarian.

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Milliron Monday: Routine Pet Care 11 9 2020

 Abbott "Pete" Smith, D.V.M.

June 16, 1938 - February 22, 2010

Welcome to Milliron Monday where every Monday we celebrate the legacy of Pete Smith, D.V.M., and  Milliron: Abbott “Pete” Smith, D.V.M. The Biography (Monday Creek Publishing 2017). A graduate of Colorado State University and a well-known veterinarian in southeast Ohio, Dr. Smith continues to motivate and inspire. 

Taking care of our pets is an intentional process. Vaccines and well-check visits should never be postponed. Even with COVID19, we care enough for our pets to walk them to the vet's office door, hand our pet over to the vet tech, and know our pet is receiving optimum care as we wait outside. 

The Athens Messenger (Athens, Ohio) published the following article, quoting Dr. Smith about routine vet checks. The article was published on December 6, 2009. Dr. Smith, when asked if a bad economy resulted in a decline in routine vet visits, responded, "Our clients seem to be attached to their pets and are continuing with routine pet care even with the bad economy."

As Sara Brumfield, journalist, writes, "... veterinarians are warning pet owners that scrimping on routine checkups and immunizations for their furry friends could wind up costing more in the long run."

 

Have a great week ahead.

Connect with Gina

Amazon Author Page

Milliron: The Biography

www.gmcknight.com

www.mondaycreekpublishing.com

Through captivating, powerful, and emotional anecdotes, we celebrate the life of Dr. Abbott P. Smith. His biography takes the reader from smiles to laughter to empathy and tears. Dr. Smith gave us compelling lessons learned from animals; the role animals play in the human condition, the joy of loving an animal, and the awe of their spirituality. A tender and profound look into the life of a skilled veterinarian.