VN June 2021

Vetnews | June 2021 25 24-Hour, Toll-Free Helpline: 0800 21 21 21 I first met Peter at school in Grahamstown 70 years ago and we have kept contact since then. Peter was athletic and an all-round sportsman and his stature and personality commanded respect. On the rugby field it was most reassuring to know that Peter was on your side in the scrum, when ageing opposition forwards became tired and belligerent, here his presence exerted a calming influence. In later professional life he practised successfully in Queenstown, covering a large area of the Eastern Cape hinterland. He was a dedicated and active member of the Rural Practitioners Group and of the E Cape and Karoo branch of the SAVA. He was a fine example of a rural practitioner, hardworking and a man of great integrity, dedicated to clients and patients. As a colleague I and many others valued his opinion, as a friend he will be sadly missed. Our sympathy to Paddy and the family. v Brian Rippon Peter graduated in 1963 and started his practice in Queenstown in 1964, the first private practice in an area that stretched over 200km in all directions. He was one of just a handful of rural private practices in the Eastern Cape at the time. He built up a very successful practice through dogged hard work and his values of integrity and always putting the client’s interests first. I was privileged to have him as my mentor, role-model and partner and he taught me not just the technicalities of the job, but more importantly, how to be a vet! His concern for the community was borne out by the amount of pro bono and “at cost” veterinary work performed for the less-privileged pet owners in Queenstown and surrounds, long before it was fashionable to do so. Peter served as chairman of the local SPCA and president of the Border Agricultural Society for many years. The BAS annual show was one of the more successful agricultural shows in the country at the time. He was a talented sportsman, played a mean game of rugby I gather, good cricketer and tennis player and later a keen bowler. After leaving practice, Peter served a stint as state vet in Queenstown, before moving down to the Cape where he served as race course veterinarian and performed animal welfare work at a clinic in the poorer Cape suburbs. He was a devoted husband to his wife Paddy and four children Louise, Dianne, Brian andWendy. Peter was certainly a giant in the veterinary community and a person who will be sadly missed by all. v Alan Fisher Eulogy – Peter Harte (25/11/37 – 23/5/2021)