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Dr. Ed Smith opened Smith Veterinary Hospital January 1, 1946. He bought the practice from Doctor Truman Means, and it was located on the outskirts of town on Pen Road. (Now the corner of St Francis and Cerrillos Road) At the time, Santa Fe had a population of about 11,000 and there were only 15 licensed veterinarians in the State. Dr. Ed Smith did both large and small animals and covered a large area including Taos, Las Vegas, Estancia, and Chama. Every Thursday he would travel to Taos, many times bringing back animals to treat and then taking them back up the following Thursday. Ed had longtime assistant Sabiano Maes to help him, care for the patients, and watch the hospital. |
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Dr. Smith was also a member of the state board of veterinary examiners for ten years. During this time, he helped establish the numbered license system and he received #11 as his license number in New Mexico. Dr. Smith had famous clients such as Georgia O'Keefe, but his most famous patient was Smokey Bear. He was brought to Dr. Smith from Capitan, NM in May 1950, with burns on his feet and abdomen from a forest fire. He also worked on Goldie who was to be Smokey's mate in Washington DC. |
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Dr. Smith & Smokey Bear |
| In the early 1950's, Dr. Ed Smith was issued a federal pass to go into Los Alamos National Laboratories to work with the monkeys at the lab. He found that they were having dietary problems, and called Purina, who helped formulate a monkey chow. Around this time he also worked on 42 Elk from Jackson Hole, Wyoming. They had contracted shipping fever from a cattle trailer that had not been properly cleaned. He treated them with sulpha on milo brought up from Las Cruces, as there were no antibiotics such as penicillin available yet.
Dr. Tom Smith, Ed's eldest son, graduated from Colorado State University and joined the practice in 1964. He did mixed animal practice for one year, then went to small animal only. He later served on the executive board of the State Veterinary Association for three years. The second hospital building was built northeast of the old building in 1965. When St Francis Drive was put through, the kennels had to be moved. Dr. Ed Smith worked as the state vet at Santa Fe Downs for eight years after it opened. He retired in 1978 Dr. Tom Smith had the practice growing and moved it to its third and current location on Alta Vista and Luisa in 1987. |
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Dr. Kathy Dobesh, Dr. Tom Smith's daughter and her husband, Dr. Mike Dobesh, joined the practice in 1990. Dr. Tom Smith retired in 1995, and Kathy and Mike are currently running the practice. 3 Generations of Quality Family Veterinary Medicine |