Obituaries

J Geoffrey Lane | 26 January 1946 - 30 July 2025 Geoff Lane was born into a Herefordshire farming family in January 1946. An uncle, Arbuthnott Lane, was one of the pioneers of human surgery, working shortly after the introduction of asepsis, and was instrumental in developing the “no touch” technique, for the surgeon to keep their fingers out of the surgical field. After school at Dean Close, Geoff chose Veterinary Surgery and went the Royal Veterinary College in London, qualifying i

Leanda Livesey BVM&S, BSc (Hons), Cert VA, Cert EIM, Dip. ACVIM, MRCVS (Born June 1967, Graduated Edinburgh University 1991, Died January 2025) Leanda was born in Brigham, West Cumbria in June 1967, a much-loved daughter to Albert and Patricia Livesey and sister to Albert. Leanda had a wonderful childhood in Brigham. She shared a passion for animals, especially horses, with her father, and a love of music, literature, and the arts with her beloved mother. After a stellar career at school, sh

EVA Executive Officer Jeffrey Wilkinson has provided the below statement following the passing of Dr Jane Axon. It is with great sadness that I inform the Membership, that our dearly loved friend and colleague, Dr Jane Axon (EVA President 2008,) passed away last Friday evening. Jane, a Life Member of EVA, Fellow of the AVA, Member of the College, Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, Registered Specialist in Equine Medicine, and Gilruth Prize Winner, was a true legen

Joseph Robert, always known as Robert at home and in the practice, or as Bob to his many friends. His Father was a farmer at Ecton, about midway between Northampton and Wellingborough, but both his Grandfather and Great Grandfather were Veterinary Surgeons practicing in Wellingborough. Small wonder then that all he ever wanted to be was a Vet. He was educated at Wellingborough School and the University of Bristol Veterinary School from where he qualified in the summer of 1959. Started his work

Joint founder of the National Equine Forum (NEF), Prof R. H. Graham Suggett OBE sadly passed away on Tuesday 7th November 2023, following a long illness. Graham founded the National Equine Forum, together with the late Prof Sir Colin Spedding OBE and the late Mr Arthur George MBE. The three met in 1991 at the Royal Show to talk about how to assist the horse and pony industry, and the following year discussions were held to identify ways in which it could ‘speak with one voice’. Sub

Svend, as he was known to his friends, was born in Aarhus in 1953 and studied veterinary medicine at the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University in Copenhagen. As a young lad he was an enthusiastic horseman, but unusually for a Dane was passionately interested in English flat racing. At university he came under the spell of Professor Micki Hesselholt, a large animal surgeon of high calibre. Micki remained a close friend and mentor for the rest of his life. After graduation and working in De

Peter Daniel Rossdale OBE, MA, PhD, Drmedvet (hc Bern), DVMS (hc Edinburgh), DVSc (hc Sydney), FACVSc, DESM, FRCVS A dedicated equine clinician and scientist, who published widely and had varied interests. He founded a remarkably successful practice, became recognised as the ‘Father of Equine Perinatology’ and was one of the first to embrace veterinary evidence-based medicine. Peter was born in London on 8th September 1927, the 4th child of George and Kate Rossdale. Dr George Rossdal

Hugh Emlyn Davies M.B.E., B.V.Sc., M.R.C.V.S. 13th July 1936 –8th Oct 2021. His former business partners Richard Stephenson & Stuart Holland write:- Hugh was born into a veterinary family and followed the tradition when he enrolled with the Bristol Veterinary School in 1955. He graduated on 6th July 1960 and after a brief spell in mixed practice in Dorset was invited to join the Lichfield practice of Prof Alasdair Steele Bodger in 1962. He rapidly proved his skills as an equine vet and

Following the passing of Andi Elizabeth Ewen, BEVA Past President and friend John Owen has written the following obituary. Throughout our forty- four years of living in the small Wiltshire village of Biddestone Andi Ewen has been the most important element of the village’s life and its many activities. Whenever something needed to be done in the village Andi either did it herself or because of her amazing range of friends, knew someone somewhere who could and would help. It was therefore n