Re: RC: Dr. John Thomas

[Bette Lamore <woa@stormnet.com>]

Dear Jerry
Thanks for posting about John. Your tribute towards him is really
touching and I'm forwarding it onto Chris in case she doesn't check into
ridecamp. I met John when he started breeding to our stallion years ago
and I am proud to call John and Chris friends. You're right, he was a
very great man and a wonderful vet. The world has lost a little bit of
Light with his loss; however, I am sure he is watching over Chris and
the rest of his family-- and that certainly includes his horses/dogs and
fellow riders family as well. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he
didn't "drop in" on endurance races from time to time.
Bette
Bette Lamore
Whispering Oaks Arabians, Home of 16.2hh TLA Halynov
(yes, REALLY!)
http://www.arabiansporthorse.com

hikryrdg wrote:
> 
> Back in the late 70's I meet Dr. John through a mutual friend Mike Kegley.  We
> were at that time just learning about our trails, trail riding and distance
> riding.
> When Dr. John started his practice way back when, there were just two DVM's
> specializing in horse work at that time. Today in Indiana there are over 100
> horse vets.  A couple of weeks ago Dr. John and I were discussing the changes
> in veterinary practice from then till now.
> That lead to a rather spirited debate between Dr. John and myself regarding
> which vet school turned out better vets. Ohio State or Purdue. Of course we
> never, after many such debates, changed each others mind, but it was
> fun discussing the merits of each school. The one thing we could always agree
> on was that the corn feed Hoosier girls always seemed just a bit healthier
> than
> those that came out of Cleveland.
> But all kidding aside, Dr. John did care deeply about the horses he treated.
> He loved our sport.  He loved to trail ride. any time, any place.
> Dr. John introduced competitive trail riding to most of us here in
> Indiana.  At
> a pre ride exam when he was finished with a horse he would turn to a rider and
> always have a kind comment to make about the riders horse.  He would
> comment on
> the horses trot, its eye, the way it was put together.  Anything that caught
> his eye that pleased him, he would tell the rider.  I liked to just hang out
> and listen to him and his comments. He had a way with a rider that made the
> rider feel at ease.  Riders trusted his judgement.  Dr. John was fair, honest
> and kind. Over all these years you couldn't find a rider that would find fault
> with John.  Oh, from time to time you would hear some of the competitive
> riders
> complain that he made a ride to fast.  And John would just tell them that
> their horses were so good that the only way he could really tell the very best
> form the rest was to add just a little more stress to the ride.  He did and it
> worked.
> Over the years Dr. John hosted seminars giving the newbies a chance to
> understand completive trail riding before they went  out on the trail. Not too
> long ago he hosted such an event. A real success.  I rememberer him saying "If
> you are looking for horse to do distance riding, find one that has a jingle to
> his trot".  That stuck with me.  When I go to rides now and I watch the pre
> ride vet ins, I look for the horse with a jingle to his trot. You might see
> one
> out of 20 that has that movement.  Dr. John had an eye for a good horse.
> Two and one half years ago, he was told that he had six months to live.  In
> the
> past 30 months he did two trail rides in Europe, vetted rides here in Indiana,
> and continued on with his vet practice.  Dr. John was as active as one
> could be
> considering he was battling cancer at the same time.  Dr. John vetted a ride 9
> days ago!  His spirit and energy beat back the cancer for a long time.  Dr.
> John passed away this morning in his sleep.
> I've had three heros in my life.  General Douglas McArthur, Senator Bob Taft
> and Woody Hayes.  Today, I've added a fourth hero.  Dr. John Thomas.  The next
> time I'm out doing a 100 and the going gets tough I'll just turn my thought to
> Dr. John.  A man that never, never quit.  A man who gave it his all and then
> some.  We lost a true hero today.
> 
> Jerry Fruth
> 
> Here is a picture of Dr. John Thomas
> You can choose to open it or not
> 
> MVC-006S.jpg
> 
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