NORWICH – Dr. Robert O’Keefe is retiring and closing down his veterinary practice after 45 years of caring for local pets and livestock.
Dr. O’Keefe has operated or co-owned half a dozen practices in that time, but it’s his office and adjacent home on Rt. 23 in Norwich that most people will recognize. In fact, he has actually operated out of that location twice, first from 1980-90 with John Mason, and then on his own from 2000 until this week.
“This job keeps you very busy,” said O’Keefe with a smile. “If you’re a single practitioner you might have to be out at one, two or three o’clock in the morning when someone has discovered a disaster in the barn ... after 45 years I decided, well, that’s about enough.”
O’Keefe was born in Flushing, but moved to Norwich as a young child when his father was hired by Norwich Pharmacal as Chief of Process Development. He graduated from the New York State College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell in 1967.
When asked what inspired him to become a veterinarian, he replied: “For one thing, I was taught high school biology by a vet, E.J. Frink ... and as a young adult I lived three houses down from the Jones who were vets, and every Easter or Christmas vacation, I would wander down the street to observe them in action or go with them on calls.”
The doctor said he prides himself on the range of animals he cares for. From household pets to farm animals to exotic pets, O’Keefe will treat anything with wings, fur and/or four legs.
“The reason I do it is I like the variety, having a greater exposure to different species,” he said. “That way I don’t get burned out on cow rectals or horse vaccinations ... I do everything: eye problems, obstetrics, infectious diseases.”
Although O’Keefe has enjoyed his experience in Chenango County, he lamented how much has changed since he first began.
“Milk prices have been declining, farms that stood when I came here in 1970 are just forgotten, heaps of barnboards,” he said. “I’ve loved being able to drive around and see the natural beauty of Chenango County and getting to spend time during the day to stop at ponds and streams and just appreciate it.”
O’Keefe’s last day will be Thursday, at which point he said he would spend the summer at his home on Chenango Lake with his wife, Martha, and enjoy some long overdue fishing.
In the not so distant future, the O’Keefes will move to a retirement community in Redmond, Wash., which will also move them closer to their youngest son in Seattle.
“I was brought up here, but to leave here where you feel your roots are? It’s going to be a tough shift,” he said. “People are wishing me well, but some seem almost mad because I fill a specific niche and universally there’s a shortage.”
When asked what, if any advice he would give to young vets seeking to fill his role in the community, he replied: “Just be willing to put in a lot of time and have a tolerant spouse who understands the long hours!”