"Hey, aren't you that guy on Animal Planet?"
The woman made the inquiry in line at the grocery store.
Before he could respond, she retorted, "No, you aren't that guy; he's better looking."
The incident made Dr. Bob Taylor laugh. He's still that guy on Animal Planet's hit reality show "Emergency Vets" that now
boasts of 125 million viewers worldwide.
In an exclusive interview with DVM Newsmagazine, Taylor, diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons and chief
of staff at Alameda East Veterinary Hospital in Denver, a 24-doctor practice, talked about his experiences in veterinary medicine
and work in television and with the media.
Dr. Robert Taylor
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"We have always felt that veterinary medicine needs to be transparent," Taylor explains. And the show offered a vehicle to
share what modern veterinary medicine is all about with the general public. The public responded.
Emergency Vets, with Alameda East veterinarians Drs. Kevin Fitzgerald, Holly Knor and Jason Soukup, is the second-ranked show
in Animal Planet's line-up behind "The Crocodile Hunter with Steve Irwin".
"We treat this as an opportunity to represent the veterinary profession and help people understand what veterinarians do."
Even Taylor admits he was surprised at the success of the program, which is a combination of science, human interest and curiosity.
"When you pull coins out of an Iguana's stomach, nobody has seen that before. When you are dealing with someone making an
end-of-life decision about his or her dog, it is not something that many people have witnessed."
The story lines make the show move, and it's the brainchild of television producer Karen Wiser.
Dr. Robert Taylor of Animal Planet's Emergency Vets says his goals for doing the television cable program are to "represent
the veterinary profession and help people understand what veterinarians do."
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Seven years ago, the small cable network Animal Planet, owned by Discovery, was interested in launching a reality-based ER.
In working with Denver-based film production company Rocket Pictures, Alameda East was approached because of its reputation
in the region as providing a long-time presence in the emergency medicine arena.
Though Taylor initially rejected the idea, a second query "captured our imagination." His initial interest in the program
was to promote veterinary medicine. And while there is a financial arrangement involved, he sincerely hopes the goal is to
showcase the sophistication of veterinary medicine and the professional standards embraced by veterinarians.
When a dog arrives at a veterinary hospital, "14 people touch that dog from the time he arrives at our hospital until he leaves,"
Taylor says. "Most consumers of veterinary services don't understand that. So, creating a transparency involved in the care
of their animals would go a long way to helping people understand the complexity of veterinary medicine."
Take the message out
The philosophy applies to veterinary medicine in general.
When a dog arrives at Alameda East Veterinary Hospital, about 14 people touch it from the time it arrives until the time
it leaves, Dr. Robert Taylor says.
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"I think we in the veterinary profession can become greater advocates of educating people and by helping them understand."
Taylor says it is happening already.
When he was president of the Colorado Veterinary Medical Association, he asked members to list organizations and public service
entities they were active in — from Boy Scouts to high schools to day camps. He came up with an impressive list of more than
300 different organizations and public-service entities.
Physical rehabilitation is a medical passion for Dr. Bob Taylor. So much so, Alameda East recently expanded with a 12,000-square-foot
addition.
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"It made me feel so good about our profession, and I am sure in every state and every veterinarian there are a lot of us that
do that. Probably not very many people know that."
Taylor, who is quick to call himself a workaholic, also says that he is living his life with a sense of fulfillment.
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