Read more about the Western College of Veterinary Medicine's colourful 60-year history.
As the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) celebrates its 60th year in 2025, the regional veterinary college looks ahead to meet the changing needs of its provincial partners and stakeholders across Western Canada and the North.
By September 1965, the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) had its first class of veterinary students, its first faculty members and its first dean — but it was still waiting for its own permanent building at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).
The University of Saskatchewan (USask) officially became home to a college of veterinary medicine in August 1963 — but the university's close links with animal health and veterinary science began much earlier in its 108-year history.
When the Western College of Veterinary Medicine's first class of 33 students met for the first time in September 1965, it was the fulfilment of a dream that was decades in the making.
One year after the Western College of Veterinary Medicine's new building officially opened in 1969, veterinary students were eager to open the college's doors to the public and share information about their new profession.
While the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) is widely recognized for its role in educating veterinary students, the college has also played a part in ensuring that Western Canada's practicing veterinarians continue to enhance their training throughout their careers.
As the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) prepared to open its doors in 1965, Dean Larry Smith and his admissions committee pored over 93 applications and chose the WCVM's first class of 33 students.
When the University of Saskatchewan's (USask) Board of Governors began searching for the first dean of Western Canada's veterinary college in 1963, their list of criteria was long.
As Western Canada's new veterinary college came to life in the mid-1960s, a critical consideration was ensuring that future veterinary students had exposure to hands-on clinical experience with a diverse range of animals and cases.
A decade ago, Erin Wasson was completing a Master of Social Work degree program at the University of Regina (U of R) when two of her mentors approached her with the idea of establishing a veterinary social work program at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM).
What was it like to be a veterinary student in the 1960s compared to students today at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM)?
Growing up in North Battleford, Dr. Charlotte Williams (DVM) always had animals.
A chance conversation with Dr. Hugh Townsend outside the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) led Dr. Joe Bracamonte to focus his career on equine health.
When Hugh Townsend showed up to work his shift at Vetavision one chilly day in November 1970, the second-year veterinary student had no way of knowing that his life was about to change forever.
Dr. Marion (Meg) Smart wanted to be a veterinarian from the time she was nine years old, but it wasn't a popular career for girls in the 1960s.
Dr. Robert Hugh Dunlop, a well-known veterinary leader and one of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine's (WCVM) first faculty members, died at the age of 85 on Dec. 18, 2014.
