A memoir, historical record, and educational guide all in one. Dr. Doug’s Animal Answers captures his journey to becoming a veterinarian and his many experiences with his animal patients, the ones who could not speak - and their special owners - while working a mixed animal practice in Southern Maine. Dr. Hutchins also includes an intriguing history of veterinary medicine from its infancy to present day, as well as a special section on Lyme Disease for animal owners to become better acquainted with its diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. 

A fascinating and informative read, Dr. Doug’s Animal Answers explores a profession that is widely used but not completely understood. 

About the Author:

After obtaining his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Maine he went on to graduate from the New York State College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University in 1970. 

After a year working in Long Island, New York, Dr. Hutchins purchased a mixed animal practice in Springvale, Maine. Four years later he moved his practice, The Down Maine Veterinary Clinic to Sanford, Maine in a new 5,000 square foot facility. This practice expanded to four veterinarians and was later sold as Dr. Hutchins began his own consulting and equine practice specializing in lameness and reproduction. 

Dr. Hutchins has served as president of the Maine Veterinary Medical Association, a director of the Maine Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association, as well as its vice-president. He has also served as an advisor to the Kennebunk Animal Shelter and York County Community College’s animal technician program. Dr. Hutchins has won many awards including the Maine Veterinary Medical Association's Annual Service award while spending time working with the Maine State Police and the York County Sheriff’s canines. Currently, he resides at his horse farm, Cricket Hill, in Lyman, Maine, with his wife, Shirley. Together they have three daughters, seven grandchildren, boxer dogs and two cats. Dr. Hutchins continues to be active in the owning, breeding, and racing of Standardbred trotters. 

Review:

‘The Best Part Of Everyday Was My Patients, The Ones That Could Not Speak’
Maine author Dr. Douglass B. Hutchins earned his advanced degree in Animal Science
and his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Cornell University and has served as
president of the Maine Veterinary Medical Association. In this very fine memoir Dr. Doug
shares his incentives to enter veterinary medicine from his childhood dream to his
progress through his schooling to his establishing his practice in Maine where he
practiced his craft for over forty years.
One of the many aspects of this entertaining and informative book that makes it such an
invaluable read is the author’s conversational manner of relating not only his personal
history, but also his experiences with animal patients and their owners. Memorable
moments abound, as in his sharing the Horse Lady, families of beloved dogs, the
importance of keeping ‘people meds’ away from animals, and other stories of his
experiences with ill animals (and porcupines and heartworms!) and their people
families. The Human-Animal Bond expressed in these stories is not only sensitive in
caring but also illuminating in Dr. Doug’s diagnostic acumen and other fine attributes as
a veterinarian. He even shares the aspects of holidays on animal care – and illness
prevention.
Of particular interest is the author’s section on Interesting Cases in which he relates his
differential diagnostic techniques, treatment plans, and successful outcomes coupled
with his interaction with both animal patients and their families. After an enlightening
discussion of Lyme Disease, Dr Doug closes with a very solid, informed, and fascinating
history of the practice of veterinary medicine from the 18 th century to the present.
‘Veterinary medicine has a storied history and now had become much more than just a
doctor caring for the health and welfare of animals…By understanding this important
interrelationship of human and animal health, veterinary medicine gained increased
respect and stature.’ Hats off to a very fine doctor and his sensitive insights for animal
care! - Grady Harp, MD, Amazon Top 100 Hall of Fame Reviewer, 5 Stars