We lost our dear friend, Dr. Holly Cheever in early 2025. In addition to her private practice Voorheesville, NY, The Village Animal Clinic, which served companion animals and wildlife, Dr. Cheever presented programs to elementary through college level students on environmental and animal welfare issues. She also was a regular lecturer at veterinary schools, providing mentoring in the practice of veterinary medicine with an emphasis on animal welfare. She served as a consultant for local, state, and national animal protection organizations, and assisted law officers in animal abuse cases, both by lecturing to them on how to implement the State’s anticruelty laws effectively, and by serving as an expert witness for the prosecution. She also worked for many municipalities and states to eliminate the cruelty involved in urban carriage horse tourist rides.
For her work in helping to prevent animal cruelty, Dr. Cheever won awards from the New York State Troopers, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and the Humane Society of the United States. She was named Veterinarian of the Year by the New York State Humane Association in 1991, and was Good Housekeeping’s veterinary columnist from 1997 to 2001.
Dr. Cheever was a founding member of the Leadership Council of the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association (now Humane Veterinaty Medical Alliance, affiliated with the Humane World for Animals – formerly HSUS) and was vice president of the New York State Humane Association. She served on the advisory board for the New England Antivivisection Society after retiring from their Board of Directors.
Dr. Cheever was educated at Harvard University, graduating summa cum laude, and was ranked #1 on graduation from the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University. She resided on a small farm sanctuary in upstate New York with her husband where she raised four children and a host of barnyard friends.
