Australian Veterinary History Record

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AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY HISTORY RECORD

February 2014 – NUMBER 67

The Australian Veterinary History Record is published by the Australian Veterinary History Group in the months of March, July and November.

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also the Australian Veterinary History Record when you log onto http://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/handle/2123/222

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Committee Members: Dr Paul Canfield Dr Helen Fairnie Dr Keith Hughes Dr Patricia Mcwhirter Dr Dick Roe Dr Tony Davidson

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All comments and opinions expressed in the Australian Veterinary History Record are those comments and opinions of the individual writers and not of the Editor, nor do they represent any official policy of the Australian Veterinary History Group or its Committee..

CONTENTS Page

Notice of Meeting: Australian Veterinary History SIG AGM, 26 May 2014 1 Scientific Program: AVA Annual Conference, Perth, 26 May 2014 2 Historical articles 3 History and observations of Brunette Downs NT J Armstrong 3 Australia’s bid for the 1983 World Veterinary Congress E Malcolm ?

Australian Veterinary History Society A Special Interest Group of the Australian Veterinary Association Ltd Notice is hereby given that the 23st Annual Meeting will be held in Perth on 26 May 2014 at 5.45 pm at the AVA AGM and Conference, Perth Convention Centre. AGENDA 1. Present: 2. Apologies: 3. Minutes of 22th AGM of AVHS These minutes were published in the Australian Veterinary History Record No 65, July 2013. 4. Business arising from the Minutes 5. Report of the President: Prof. Mary Barton AO 6. Report on Membership & Financial Report of the Honorary Secretary/Treasurer: Dr J Brady 7. Report of the Honorary Librarian: Dr AT Hart 8. Report of the Honorary AVA Archivist: Dr F Doughty 9. Report of the Honorary Editor of the Australian Veterinary History Record: Dr AJ Turner 10. Election of Office Bearers: [current appointments in brackets] President: [Mary Barton] Secretary/Treasurer: [Jeff Brady] Librarian: [Tom Hart] Editor: [Andrew Turner] Committee: [Paul Canfield, Keith Hughes, Helen Fairnie, Dick Roe, Patricia MacWhirter, Tony Davidson] 11. General Business 11.1 Long History of Veterinary Science 11.2 Women in Veterinary Science 12. Location of next meeting of AVHS [The next AVA Conference is in May 2015]

An Annual Dinner will be held at at 7.00 pm. Please indicate intention to attend the dinner on the AVA Annual Conference 2013 Registration Form; pay on the night. Nominations for any of the Officer positions should be made in writing to the Secretary with the names of the members proposing and seconding the nomination and an affirmation that the nominee will stand for election and accept the position nominated for. Members with any items of business for the Annual Meeting should send that information to either the President or the Secretary at least one week before the meeting.

Scientific Program: History stream Monday 27 May 2013 1.30-2.20 pm Resistance Issues in Australia: what’s super bugging the humans? Prof John Turnidge 2.30-3.20 pm Uncovering the past: discovering the history of two notable women veterinarians. Dr Helen Fairnie 4.00-4.50 pm Harold William Bennetts: a remarkable pioneer veterinary pathologist. Prof Mal Nairn 5.00-5.45 pm JL Burns & EA Weston Two pioneering veterinary surgeons in Western Australia. Prof Bill Clark . 5.45 AVHS Annual General Meeting. 7.30 pm Annual Dinner 2

HISTORICAL ARTICLES This article was the basis of a presentation to the Annual and Scientific Meeting of the AVH SIG in Towsville on Monday 20 May 2013. A History and Observations of Brunette Downs Station, Northern Territory. John Armstrong [email protected] The Property Brunette Downs Station is located on the Barkly Tableland in the north eastern part of the Northern Territory (NT) some 600 km northwest of Mt Isa and 200 km northeast of Tennant Creek. It currently comprises an area of 12,000 km2 [4,730 miles2]. The Station is located on black soil plains that support the Mitchell and Flinders grasses that are productive following the annual summer rainfalls. The flat plains are interspersed with whitewood ridges and lakes. The lakes, draining an area of 20,000 mile2 of Brunette and neighboring properties, cover approximately 20% of the property in wet years. Bluebush swamps, along the rivers and lakes, add balance to the landscape that is otherwise treeless.

Figure 1. Vast treeless plain of Brunette Downs

Figure 2. Bluebush occurring along the rivers and swamps

Settlement In 1861-2, William Landsborough was sent by the Victorian and Queensland (Qld) governments in search of the Burke and Wills expedition. The party discovered the area and named it the Barkly Tableland, after Sir Henry Barkly, Governor of Victoria. After his return to Melbourne with Burke and Wills’s horses and other mementoes, Landsborough published the memoirs of his journeys. This sparked interest in the Barkly Tableland and Sutherland drove 7000 sheep from Burketown to Rocklands in 1862. Also in 1862, Ranken and Lorne took 4000 sheep from Hughenden to Avon Downs. Both ventures failed demonstrating that it was not sheep country! This lesson was not easily learnt until much later but it must be borne in mind that sheep had the advantage of producing a non-perishable product able to withstand transport to market with potentially greater profitability than cattle.

In 1877, Nathaniel Buchanan and a small party crossed the Barkly Tableland from Camooweal in Qld to Powell Creek in NT traversing Brunette Downs to the north of the lakes. Buchanan telegraphed the South Australian Government from Powell Creek, on the transcontinental telegraph, to secure leases just released only to find he had been beaten to the leases by city speculators.

Tenure The NT was initially under the jurisdiction of the South Australian Government. In 1876-7, the SA Government offered 400 mile2 blocks with the condition that they were to be stocked within a time limit. Speculators took multiple blocks mostly sight unseen and, when seen, many were surrendered. Those interested in settlement preferred the Qld lease system for land tenure compared with the SA Government offering outright ownership. The SA administration was not subject to persuasion on lease arrangements and by regulation offered outright sale to prospective settlers. It was believed that leasehold tenure would discourage development of the properties.

Ownership In 1878, Kilgour and Woodhouse were the first to purchase the land around Brunette Downs and in 1881 sold the purchase to Walter Douglas for £4000 ($8,000), who then sold it to McDonald, Smith and MacAnsh for £10,000 in 1883. Cattle were introduced to the Brunette Downs in 1884 and 1885. The White Brothers purchased the property in the name of the Gulf Cattle Company in 1903 and started the process of establishing sub-artesian bores across the property. Brunette Downs was put up to auction in 1918 valued at £45 000 but no bid was received. In 1926, AJ Cotton took an option for subdivision of the station for sheep whereby an entity would be floated on the stock market. The option was not exercised. A copy of the prospectus is shown in Figure 3. Of colorful characters associated with the property, Harry Redford, an accused but acquitted cattle duffer, managed Brunette Downs from 1884 to circa 1888 and then established Corella Station, now part of Brunette, where he drowned in 1891. In 1958, King Ranch Australia purchased the lease of Brunette Downs for £1 million in the middle of a severe drought and set about establishing further improvements to the property. In 1978, the Australian Agricultural Company purchased the property for $3.5 million.

Figure 3. The 1926 prospectus for the sale of shares in Brunette Downs

The Seasons at Brunette Downs Good records of rainfall have been kept for over a Century. The average annual rainfall from 1893 to 1970 has been 369 mm. From 1971 to 2012, average rainfall was 528 mm, from 1893- 2012, 455mm. Being in Northern Australia, the distribution is monsoonal with wet summers and dry winters. Droughts have occurred frequently. There was no escape for stock, until road transport was developed post World War 2 (WW2). Road transport offered some options for rapidly moving cattle facing drought conditions.

Table 1. Average monthly rainfall (mm) Brunette Downs 1893-1967 200 100 0 Jul Jan Jun Oct Apr Sep Feb Dec Aug Nov Mar May

Cattle Shorthorns were the dominant cattle breed in the district until the 1950s and the Brunette Downs herd was well regarded. However, Bos taurus cattle were not well adapted to the environment and the local endemic diseases and consequently, productivity was poor. For improved productivity, Bos indicus blood was required at 40-60%. King Ranch established a Santa Gertrudis Stud at Brunette Downs. However, with only 37.5% Bos indicus blood, pure breed cattle were at the lower limit needed to achieve the best benefit of increased productivity. First cross cattle had only 18% Bos indicus genotype and their calves at 9% had little impact!!

Productivity The early station records are not sufficiently accurate to measure the customary indicators. The records consist of branding and sale numbers and were generally the only true counts made of stock. Mortalities were estimated which resulted in total numbers being estimates. The ratio of female brandings and female sales to total numbers can be a useful guide to branding and mortality rates if used in conjunction with herd models. This exercise demonstrated that productivity was very low in the period considered to 1958 as shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Measures of productivity of various years 1967-2012 compared to 1914-1967 Productivity Branding % Mortality% Sales Ratio Very High 95 2 93 High 85 3 82 Average 75 4 71 Low 65 5 60 1914-1967 <50 16 10

Infrastructure Subterranean bores were a top priority infrastructure development for property improvement and their number indicates the pace of property development. As mentioned earlier, the first bore was sunk at Brunette Downs in 1903. The bores were equipped with pumps discharging to turkey nest dams protected by a fenced enclosure supplying troughs. A wire cattle yard with Bronco panel allowed cattle handling in situ. The artificial supply of water restricted the cattle from roaming and allowed closer management. Fencing and yards were added as essential and as funds allowed. The priority for fencing was first afforded for establishing holding paddocks to contain sale cattle. The fencing of paddocks for management of the herd was a limited priority before WW2. King Ranch built internal fences for containing the Santa Gertrudis stud cattle and improving herd management. In 1967, the boundary was fully fenced and the subsequent subdivision within 6 created 20 major and 15 minor paddocks. The homestead, built in 1924, is said to be the oldest building on the Barkly Tableland still in use. The remainder of the complex has been added to since.

Figure 4. An aerial photograph of the Brunette Downs homestead complex

Transport The movement of cattle is fundamental to the management of herd dynamics particularly in protecting the best breeding stock in drought periods. Cattle were walked to market to the rail head at Dajarra [Spur line from Mt Isa] western Qld or by foot as far as Brisbane and Victoria before the establishment of road and rail transport. Inwards freight was carried by bullock wagons initially from Townsville, then from the rail head at Djarra. Motorised freight transport was introduced just pre-WW2 but it was first used only for very valuable stock and equipment. The movement of cattle by road transport was not adopted widely until circa 1960. Prior to WW2, the Commonwealth and the Queensland State Governments considered expanding the rail network to open up new country. In 1878-79, Ernest Favenc investigated a rail link from Brisbane to Darwin for the Qld government. By 1954, the rail network in Queensland was well established and in far Nth Qld it became much as it is today. In 1954, CR Lambert, Secretary of the Federal Department of Transport at a Northern Development School, advocated extension of that network across the Barkly Tableland to Newcastle Waters and the Victoria River District. The link was never built. It would have saved a lot of cattle in the face of drought conditions!!

Figure 5. Maintenance of roads required 2 graders full-time

Mortality Ratios were not necessary to establish that mortality was a major problem. As will be discussed later, it was necessary to burn carcases and, being a treeless plain, diesel was used for burning carcases. Diesel costs were the second major expense after wages; much of the diesel used was used to burn carcases. The 1957/8 book shortfall of cattle was 32,000. Bob Kleberg, Manager, observed that there was plenty of dry grass inaccessible to cattle and this led to intensive bore development. The female sales ratio is the ratio of female sales to total female numbers. Ratings are from the model. Table 3 details the mortality figures for Brunette Downs figures in years of high mortality are from the stock book. Table 3. Years of particularly high mortality. Year Book Shortfall Rainfall mm 1919 13 500 703 very wet 1935 13 400 261 very dry 1946 12 300 421 very dry 1949 12 250 277 very dry 1951 14 700 249 very dry 1953 14 262 668* very wet 1957 32 000 212 very dry * Years of high rainfall could also be a cause of high mortality. Disease Brunette Downs from the arrival of cattle was a hot bed of bovine disease and it had a very significant economic impact. Infectious diseases were endemic in many cases having the capability to spread uninterrupted for years because of a lack of infrastructure. The Brunette herd in the 1960’s presented a unique opportunity to observe the natural progression of diseases. Some observations on the cattle diseases endemic to Brunette Downs follow. Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia (CBPP) first occurred in Victoria in 1858. By 1864, CBPP had reached Nth Qld and in 1890 it was at Austral Downs on the Barkly Tableland. CBPP was introduced to Brunette with the subsequent introduction of cattle. Disrupted movements and quarantine restrictions were the cause of most of the economic impact from this disease. It is believed that eradication was achieved on Brunette Downs circa 1966 with the last clinical case being observed in 1965. Australia was declared free of CBPP in 1972, eradication being achieved with vaccination and test and slaughter campaigns. Boophilus and Babesia were introduced with cattle imported from Asia to an early settlement at Point Essington. At settlement abandonment in 1872, the cattle were left free to roam. By 1890, ticks and the disease were seen in introduced cattle at Macarthur River. By 1895 the tick and protozoan parasites were at Townsville having spread along stock routes. Brunette had sporadic intrusions of ticks and outbreaks of redwater in wet seasons soon after the tick and protozoans became established in cattle herds at Macarthur River. Severe tick infestations and redwater mortalities followed periodic intrusions. The claim that Santa Gertrudis were not susceptible to high levels of tick infestation and redwater was demonstrated not to be the case at Brunette. Tuberculosis. Bovine tuberculosis was widespread from the arrival of cattle in Nth Qld. King Ranch initiated eradication by a test and slaughter program in 1967 before the commencement of the National Eradication Campaign. The prevalence of infection was 17% across the herd. The infection was evenly spread geographically across the property and prevalence rates increased by 5% with each year of age. There was a gender difference in prevalence rates with cows 35% and 8 bulls 26%+. Meat works condemnations were economically significant as there was no compensation for NT derived cattle condemned in other States. The respiratory route of infection was determined to be the principal means of transmission. The efficiency of the intradermal caudal fold skin test was observed to vary with age. The option of repeat testing of the whole unsegregated herd was not deemed practical. Management assumed only one test would be required. The increasing prevalence with age and the reduced efficiency of the test in older cattle indicated that a longer term strategy focusing on segregating and testing heifers would be more successful. Subsequent experience confirmed this view. Tables 4, 5, 6, and 7 give a picture of how tuberculosis had gained a hold in the Brunette Downs cattle herd.

Table 4. Abattoir TB condemnations in cattle from Brunette Downs 1964-68 Year No. Killed No Condemnations Per cent 1964 3215 313 9.7 1965 5500 275 5.0 1966 13 982 730 5.3 1967 10 068 615 6.1 1968 9353 428 4.6

Table 5. Tuberculosis reactors by age and gender Age (yrs) Steers Females Bulls 1 4.5 3.1 2 8.3 6.3 3-5 8.2 26 >5 34.6

Table 6. False negative TB Test of aged slaughter cows Test Result No Tested No Lesions Per cent Positive 100 76 76 Suspicious 12 6 50 Negative 152 2 1.2

Table 7. Infection in tuberculosis cattle. Site Number Per cent Head 174 46 Thorax 196 52 Abdomen 0 0 Other 8 2 Total 378 100

Bovine brucellosis was subject to eradication at the same time as tuberculosis as part of the national bovine brucellosis and tuberculosis eradication campaigns. Initially, the prevalence of serologically positive cows was 20%. The method of spread was not ascertained but flies having contact with infected afterbirth were suspected as the principal means of transmission. Adult vaccination with Strain 19 was used to a limited extent on Brunette Downs in 1969. Rocklands, a near neighboring property also heavily infected, vaccinated replacement heifers for 6 years with 45/20 vaccine before commencing eradication in the 1980s. There was no evidence of residual infection found when vaccination was ceased. Brucellosis had a fairly tenuous hold in the environment, compared with bovine tuberculosis, and this made eradication “easy”.

Figure 5. Facilities for tuberculosis and brucellosis testing

Botulism and Pegleg. The whole Barkly Tableland provided a phosphorus and protein deficient diet for cattle. This led to carcases being cannibalised around watering points and this established a vicious cycle for ingesting botulinum toxin. This necessitated carcase disposal and this led to their disposal being a large user of diesel. Depraved appetite was also expressed by milk stealing from milking cows and this affected calf survival. Medication of the water with phosphorus supplements was not successful in alleviating the phosphorus deficiency. Botulism was controlled by vaccination and the supply of dry licks eliminated pegleg [osteomalacia].

Figure 6. Readying cattle carcases for burning.

Figure 7. Milk stealing could be from grown cattle or by other calves

Vibriosis and Trichomoniasis. Both diseases were endemic in the breeding and production herds. Free range management rendered them second order diseases. Intensification of management and the use of a vaccine controlled vibriosis. Trichomoniasis proved an over blown threat and was an example of cure becoming worse than the disease. Quarantine for these diseases was very costly and this discouraged investigation for the diseases in herds. Leptospirosis is ubiquitous in native fauna reservoirs on Brunette Downs Station. L. hardjo was one serovar identified in cattle and reservoir species. Loss of production could not be demonstrated by vaccine response. It was concluded that natural exposure induced immunity in heifers before they became vulnerable to abortion that would have been the major cause of production loss. Clinical disease was not observed. It came to be assessed as not a priority issue to be dealt with. The Dingo/ Kelpie picture. Wild dogs did cause calf losses particularly in younger cattle inexperienced in protecting their calf. Dingoes occurred in pack numbers and up to 20% of calves had scars indicating bites in vulnerable areas. Control was by shooting and trapping. Baiting had not been adopted at the time and professional shooters were paid a bounty and they could destroy hundreds at one time. Calf losses were high for a number of reasons so a reliable estimate of mortalities from this cause could not be made. Figure 8. The perpetrator and the victim of a dingo attack

People of the Northern Territory Some of the people who had a major impact on cattle husbandry and disease in the author’s time at Brunette Downs were Lionel Rose, Sam Hordern and Bob Kleberg who were real residents of the NT. The impetus for post war development of the northern cattle industry, particularly in the NT, was the serendipitous association of these three men and Brunette Downs. Colonel Lionel Rose, a prominent veterinarian of his era with a distinguished soldier’s record in both WW1 and WW2, was appointed by the Commonwealth Government to develop a veterinary service in the Northern Territory known as the Animal Industry Branch (AIB). He energetically set about the establishment of a network of stock inspectors and veterinarians supported by a pathology laboratory in Alice Springs. He also was responsible for the provision of infrastructure to enable the movement of cattle along the main stock routes. Water points and yards were built at strategic locations during his early tenure. The personnel of the AIB reflected the energy and savvy of Lionel Rose and conscientiously set about defining the significant veterinary problems and advising industry about diagnosis, priority and control. Sam Hordern of the well-known Sydney retailing family served with Lionel Rose in North Africa and New Guinea and followed his mentor to the NT first buying Eva Downs and soon after he was instrumental in King Ranch Texas purchasing Brunette Downs. He was the first head of King Ranch Australia and took a very direct interest in Brunette Downs. There was evidence in the Brunette Downs office of his many hours examining past records and projecting future progress. Bob Kleberg, principal of King Ranch, had as a young man been responsible for the development and management of the famous Texas holdings of King Ranch and the cattle herds run there, the Santa Gertrudis. It was immediately evident to anyone who knew Brunette Downs and was privileged to observe the achievements of Bob Kleberg at King Ranch that he would have quickly recognized the opportunities at Brunette. He had the unique experience and the resources to enthusiastically seize the opportunity. He famously observed at the time of purchase in 1958 when in the midst of a horrendous drought that there was plenty of feed in close proximity but insufficient watering points for cattle to graze it.

Colourful Brunette Downs Eccentrics Brunette Downs has had it’s share of colorful eccentrics escaping the pressures of urban life. Some of these people included: Jack Durnley, a nephew of Qld Premier Ned Hanlon, was a camp cook. Very quick witted but a hopeless alcoholic who could only survive if distanced from the grog. He had a very smart modern mobile kitchen which he kept spotless. Politician Ian Sinclair visiting the property complimented Jack on his “good spot here”. Jack’s quick response was he would “rather be in Parliament”. “Courageous” Jackson so named from his days riding motor bikes in the “wall of death” at country shows was a grader driver. Also an alcoholic he would sneak off to the pub when out near a boundary. In summer, his car over heated and stalled in a creek on one such expedition. Jack started to walk and was found perished with his blue healer some days later just a few kilometers from the car. The car started on the first flick of the switch. Mark Newman, a master saddler, could not live within a smell of grog and plied his trade at Brunette Downs for many years. His Brunette Poley saddle was renowned and sought after. Aborigines. The local tribe was based at the homestead where many of the women had domestic jobs. The older ones watered the garden by hand. The men were capable stockmen and the station was very reliant on their labour in the stock camp. As a group they were a very reliable source of

12 station labour. Individually, their service was subject to occasional interruptions to attend to domestic matters. Rupert Herd was an early cadet of the Animal Industry Branch working as a field veterinarian under Lionel Rose. He returned to Victoria after making his mark in the early investigation of cattle diseases on the Barkly Tableland. His report on calf mortality attracted favourable comment from high places. He also brought with him many colourful stories and a bullet lodged in the fork of his aorta. The bullet was the result of an accidental discharge in the stockmens’ quarters at Brunette which struck him between his shoulders as he discussed the next day’s program with the head stockman. He described his concern as his lungs filled with blood and he began to lose focus and his relief when the pretty girl in the magazine on the floor regained definition.

Infrastructure improvement and productivity across the period in context Table 8 demonstrates the way that infrastructure, the introduction of Bos indicus genotype and the control of diseases have increased the productivity of the cattle herd on Brunette Downs Station.

Table 8. Progress with infrastructure development and productivity 1920 to 2012. Measure 1920 1970 2012 Area 14 170 km2 12 302 km2 12 212 km2 Cattle No. 24 500 53 000 110 000 Bores 13 120 209 Paddocks Unk1 35 72 Yards Unk 7 16 Diseases CBPP, TB, BB etc TB, BB etc CBPP, TB, BB free Annual Sales 8334 13 000 35 000 1 Unknown Brunette Rainfall The annual rainfall recorded in two periods between 1893 and 1970 has shown a significant increase in two periods between 1970 and 2012 from 369 mm to 440 mm. This is food for thought for the climate change skeptics. Table 9. Average annual rainfall of four periods at Brunette Downs

600 1893-1939 400 1940-1970 200 1971-1987

0 1988-2012 Rain mm

Conclusions The fate of the settlers of Brunette Downs followed a pattern set for all Australian pastoral areas as they moved north in the late 19th Century. This paper gives a modern glimpse of the hardship endured by the people who settled the area. The wonder is not that they were slow to develop the potential of the land, but it has shown the courage and commitment of their perseverance.

Australia’s bid for the 1983 World Veterinary Congress: Russia, a couple of kangaroos and two large toy koalas1

Emma Malcolm, Communication and Marketing Manager, AVA.

2013 marked the 30th anniversary of Australia hosting the 22nd World Veterinary Congress (WVC). But, how did we get there? The organisers remember the issues faced in securing the Congress for Australia.

Contributors to this article: Dr Ian (“Sandy”) Pearson, Dr Ian Fairnie, Prof Mal Nairn and Dr Mike Bond.

When in Thessaloniki Several months prior to the 1975 WVC in Thessaloniki, Greece, when the World Veterinary Association (WVA) Bureau wrote to the AVA asking it to put Australia’s name forward to host the 1979 WVC, because no one else had offered.

Ian Pearson recalls the AVA being reluctant at first due to the magnitude of the resources that would be required for such a large, international conference. Or perhaps, the reluctance came because the honour of the occasion was diminished by the fact that Australia was asked because no one else had put their hand up! In the end, the AVA decided to accept the Bureau’s request and offer to host the 1979 Congress.

However, when the Australian delegates arrived in Greece in 1975 (where the decision and announcement of the next city to host would be made), they were asked to rescind their offer because Russia had put their hat in the ring. It was evidently deemed politic that Russia host rather than Australia. The Australian delegates disagreed and decided some healthy competition with the Russians was in order.

“The AVA members in Greece decided it would be a good idea to throw a lunch for the WVA Permanent Committee at which we would show a video about Australia to help to persuade them that it would be the best choice,” Ian Pearson said.

“The problem was that the Australian Ambassador in Athens was on holidays so couldn’t host the event.

“The Consul in Thessaloniki couldn’t provide any funding but did provide ‘official’ invitations, which while helpful, still left us without a venue or food. So the Australian and New Zealand veterinarians all chipped in to fund the lunch.

“Russia retaliated by inviting voters for drinks, and countered AVA’s statement that there had never been a WVC in the Southern Hemisphere, by the fact that there had never been a WVC in a Slavonic-language country,” he said. “They won the vote but we didn’t feel too upset because we were against both Russia and the WVA Executive,” he said.

After Russia won the vote the Australian delegate gave the Russian a bear hug and announced that Australia would host the following congress in eight years’ time (1983). History tells that this confidence was well placed.

The Moscow WVC – Australia goes all out A huge effort was put into the bid to host the 1983 WVC at the Moscow Congress in 1979. According to Ian Pearson, the Western Australian Division had put in by far the most effort to convince the AVA Board that the Congress should be hosted in Perth, which made the choice of city easy. The official pack that was presented to the WVA Bureau included:

• letters from the Prime Minister, Leader of the federal opposition, the Premier of Western Australia and the Lord Mayor of Perth, • information on venues and accommodation, and • information on Perth, and Australia more broadly.

To view the pack visit: http://www.ava.com.au/13146.

Then there were the kangaroos. Ian Fairnie accompanied two Western Grey kangaroos (the most cold tolerant) on board a live export plane and spoke about his engagement with Soviet Customs’ officers, firstly for having been steered away from the kangaroos he was charged with providing veterinary care to, and then at the effort they underwent to inspect each of the 8,500 Australian tourism brochures he’d bought into the country.

AVA President, Dr Len Fulton, gave a dissertation on macropods and presented the kangaroos to Moscow Zoo as a gift from the Perth Zoo. Ian Pearson called this idea “a stroke of genius” and recalls the Russian chief veterinarian, Dr Tretyakov saying, “If I could speak kangaroo, I would say: “Welcome to Moscow. I hope that you will enjoy living with us here”. The kangaroo stopped eating, stood up and stretched its right arm towards Dr Tretyakov. It almost broke him up with delight. 4

Credit for ‘the stroke of genius idea’ lies with Mike Bond who remembers the event fondly, “the kangaroos generated a huge amount of publicity in both Australia and Russia – the television audience watching the ceremony [pictured] was in the millions,” he proudly recalled.

The Russians were very supportive of the Australian bid and arranged a prime position for the Australian display. Australia was up against some stiff competition with Ian Fairnie recalling that Brazil’s bid to host the 1983 conference was particularly strong and those doing the bidding for Rio De Janeiro were very serious and intended to win.

Kangaroos in Moscow (L to R) Attendant; Dr AD Tretyakov, Director, Main Veterinary Dept, USSR Ministry of Agriculture; HE Murray Bourchier, Australian Ambassador to USSR; LN Kuznetsov, Deputy Minister for Agriculture USSR and President of Congress; Dr Len Fulton, AVA President.

Kangaroos in Moscow (L to R) Interpreter, Dr Tretyakov; kangaroo;

The Australian display was something to behold. It included large photographs, native flowers, just about every tourism brochure Australia produced at the time, and two large toy koalas.

“At the closing ceremony in the great hall of the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, where it was announced that Australia had won the right to host the 1983 Congress, one of these toy koalas sat on the edge of the stage, wearing an AVA tie!” Ian Pearson said.

The large toy, koala returned from Moscow, now has pride of place in the AVA’s board room, complete with AVA tie and Russia WVC badge.

The bid was no doubt a huge team effort. However, during my research for this story, I stumbled on an AVA President’s column from 1979 where AVA President, Len Fulton, lauded one person in particular: “Ian Pearson has been a proponent for a Congress for many years and it is due to his continued activity and stimulus that the matter was not forgotten, but promoted.” 1

World Veterinary Congress Organising Committee Left to right standing: Gordon Robertson, Jeremy Allen, David Franklin, Ian Fairnie (Chairman), Ian Pearson, Erhard Aalbers (WVA Administrative Director), Brian Gabbedy.

Left to right sitting: Kay Smits (represented the Auxiliary to the AVA), Helen Jones (AVA President and Deputy Chair), Mike Bond (Secretary), Vic Smith, Ted Thacker (Congress Coordinator). Absent: Professors Mal Nairn and Ian Beveridge (past President of WVA), Bill Gee (Australia’s representative to the OIE) and Keith Ethell.

Coming to the land down under For veterinarians Pearson, Fairnie, Bond and Nairn it seems that the actual congress passed by in the blink of an eye with each being so heavily tied to the actual organisation of the event that they attended few, if any of the lectures. But each agreed on the main achievements.

• The opening ceremony Ian Pearson was in charge of organising the dignitary required to open the Congress and was very relieved when the Australian Governor-General at the time, Sir Ninian Stephen, agreed to do so. Ian Fairnie recalled the opening ceremony initially looking quite low key, “The President of the WVA, Professor R Vuillaume, the President of Congress, Professor Doug Blood, and the Governor-General spoke to the assembled crowd of veterinarians from a small stage with a large black curtain behind them”, he said.

“Once the conference was declared open, a brass fanfare sounded, and the curtain flung open to reveal the dazzling trade show, with waiters waiting to serve food and drinks– it was quite something”! Ian Fairnie continued.

• The translation services Mal Nairn spoke about the logistical challenge involved in bringing together translators in each of the main lecture theatres at the conference. There were English, French, German, Spanish, Russian and for the first time – Japanese translators for every session.

“Each speaker was required to provide a written version of their presentation which was distributed to all the interpreters so that they could practice and prepare,” he recalled.

“The problem was, that some of the speakers went so far from the notes they provided, when they were up on stage, that the translators often had to say ‘sorry, the speaker’s deviated from the text’ when they couldn’t keep up with the version they had prepared and what the speaker was now saying”, Mal Nairn said.

• The home visits “Home visits were an imaginative and popular innovation for the WVC. Families around the Perth metropolitan area, mostly veterinarians, invited international delegates to join them for dinner one evening, so that they could have an 'authentic Australian experience', Mike Bond said.

“The hosts went to some trouble to devise typical Australian menus, and the dining experience in home settings was warmly appreciated by the guests. Those visitors from large cities were especially intrigued by the spaces in and around Australian homes.

The hosts were offered a modest subsidy to offset the dinner costs - an offer that was generously declined by most or all hosts. 18

Mike also recalls receiving several enquiries from international delegates prior to arriving in Australia asking about day trips from Perth to Sydney and Melbourne!

Some key statistics from the WVC in Perth were 1473 delegates from 71 countries, and 31 language interpreters. The countries with the highest number of delegates were: • 32% Australia • 15% USA • 7% Japan • 6% Germany • 5% UK • 3% France • 2% NZ

The remaining 30% of delegates came from 64 countries3

Asked if it’s time for us to make another bid to host the WVC, Dr Pearson paused and then chuckled, “well, if we could match the effort put into Perth, then it would be a great congress,” he said.

If you attended the WVC in Perth and would like to share your memories of the event, please comment on this article on the AVA website by visiting the following url and adding your comment: http://www.ava.com.au/13146.

1 An extract of this article was included in the December 2013 issue of the Australian Veterinary Journal. Malcolm E. Australia’s bid for the 1983 World Veterinary Congress: Russia, a couple of kangaroos and two large toy Koalas. AVJ 2013 (12): N18-19 2 AVA Newsletter, Number 14, July 25, 1979 3 From ‘The Congress in retrospect’, Australian Veterinary Journal, 11 November 1983 – AVA News, p5 4 Pearson IG. Moscow – and the future. Centaur 1979;41:48.