~By BCHA Board President, Clare Tone
Authors Note: At the Annual Fun Show on Oct 22nd, 2023, the Recognition Award was presented to Dr. Fitch’s daughter, Lindsay Fitch.
Before he was Dr. Fitch, Mark grew up on a cattle ranch outside of Gillette, WY where his passion for horses budded through participation in 4-H and rodeo throughout his childhood. While attending the University of Wyoming, Mark continued to rodeo, while earning a degree in veterinary sciences. He went on to graduate in 1976 from Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and completed an internship at Littleton Large Animal Hospital in 1977. Dr. Fitch established his practice, Quality Equine Services in Boulder County that same year and practiced equine veterinary medicine for 46 years in the Boulder County region. The practice he established 46 years ago continues to thrive to this day. Sadly, our community lost an equine friend and hero on Nov 9th 2022.
In addition to dentistry and expertise in lameness, Dr. Fitch’s standout skill and passion was in behavioral counseling. He was passionate about presenting–to fellow equine professionals and horse owners alike–on horse behavior and handling. He filled his spare time with training horses, team roping and, especially, spending time with his daughter, Lyndsay.
So here’s a little known fact which speaks volumes about his character: in 1969 Dr. Fitch was featured in Sports Illustrated magazine, ‘faces in the crowd’ column. He was starting as a freshman at the University of Wyoming, coming off of an impressive high school athletic career including all-state in football and basketball; He was recognized as Wyoming’s best all-round high school cowboy and a state record breaker in the pole vault and triple jump. And these athletic accomplishments were merely on top of being valedictorian of his high school class.
In 2017 Dr. Fitch was awarded the USEF/Equus Foundation Humanitarian Award in large part due to his volunteer work with Colorado Therapeutic Riding Center where he was on the Advisory Board for nearly three decades.
In granting this award, it was noted that Dr. Fitch helped literally thousands of volunteers, staff and riders learn to respect, appreciate, and build relationships with horses. It was noted: “Dr. Fitch is a progressive equine practitioner whose practice exudes a remarkably special sensitivity toward both the client and the patient. There is no practitioner in the area more revered and respected by his human clients or more accepted by and effective with his equine patients.”
There are many reasons BCHA board members were unanimous in posthumously selecting Dr. Fitch for our 2023 Appreciation Award, but in particular his dedication to CTRC and his unique perspective and interest in equine behavior stand out. One of his best, most profound pieces of advice: “Sometimes you just need to let a horse be a horse.”
Friends, colleagues and family frequently make note of Dr. Fitch’s commitment to include and inspire others in the areas he was most passionate about:
-He was deliberate about including as many ride- along/volunteers as possible over the years to encourage and support interest in equine veterinary medicine.
– he held many small, private training sessions with individual groups in the local area
-He taught behavior seminars at the CSU veterinary school with a focus on horse-handling to support positive & effective veterinary treatments
-He spoke nationally to the American Association of Equine Practitioners on this subject, not to mention numerous state organizations.
Ideally this award would have been made in person to Dr. Fitch and we are sad he’s not with us today. Often with the loss of someone whose made a big impact, in their absence is the invitation for the rest of us to do the best we can. To reach a little farther. To live, as Mark did, with passion and commitment to the things most important to us.
Sources:
https://madbarn.com/directory/mark-r-fitch-dvm/
https://vault.si.com/vault/1969/09/08/faces-in-the-crowd
Dr. Downey at Quality Equine Veterinary Services (email correspondence)