A Heartfelt Farewell to Dr. Wynn Palmer

It is with sadness that we share Dr. Wynn Palmer will be leaving Animal Care after more than 15 years.

We are incredibly grateful for the care, dedication, and compassion Dr. Palmer has shown to our patients, clients, and community throughout his time with us. Over the years, he has built meaningful relationships with so many families and has been an integral part of the Animal Care team.

As Dr. Palmer prepares to begin the next chapter of his career, he wanted to personally share a message with the clients and families he has had the opportunity to know and care for over the years.

We've included his personal letter below.

Dearest clients and friends,

I have started writing this letter several times, and each time I have struggled to find the right words.

After more than 15 years at Animal Care, it is time for me to close this chapter of my career and begin another.

When I first walked through the doors of Animal Care all those years ago, I was simply trying to become a good veterinarian. I wanted to practice excellent medicine, become a better surgeon, work hard, and take good care of people’s animals.

Somewhere along the way, though, it became much more than that.

You stopped being names on an appointment schedule. You became my friends, and in many cases, you became like family.

I’ve watched your kids grow up. I’ve been invited to weddings, funerals, and baptisms. I’ve gone fly-fishing with some of you and watched sporting events with others. You’ve brought me Christmas cards and baby gifts. We’ve laughed together in exam rooms, and we’ve sat on the floor and cried together when there wasn’t anything left that medicine could fix.

And through all of it, you trusted me with your animals.

I’ve met puppies and kittens who eventually became gray-faced old friends. I’ve celebrated with you when treatments worked and grieved with you when they didn’t.

Animal Care was never just a job to me. It became a calling—to do the best I could for this community, to build real relationships with pet owners, and to provide the best medicine and surgery I knew how to provide.

I wasn’t always perfect. There were days I ran terribly behind, cases I wished I could have done differently, and times I could have been more patient. But this community was always remarkably kind and forgiving. You continued to trust me, request me, and welcome me into your lives.

About 10 years ago, I began going into people’s homes to help their pets pass away. At first, it was primarily for my Animal Care clients. I saw it as one last thing I could do for families I had cared for over the years.

Instead of asking an old or sick pet to make one final trip to the clinic, I could come to them. They could lie on their favorite bed, under their favorite tree, or in the arms of the people they loved.

There was something incredibly meaningful about that to me.

Word spread, and the need continued to grow until I finally had to admit that I simply couldn’t do everything.

My kids are growing up far too quickly. Our lives are filled with hockey, rodeo, school, practices, and all those ordinary little moments that I know won’t be ordinary forever. I want to be there for more of them.

So I have made the difficult decision to leave Animal Care and devote this next chapter of my career to in-home euthanasia and hospice care.

I write that with tears in my eyes. I am going to miss seeing your familiar faces. I’m going to miss the stories, the jokes, the hugs, and the relationships that somehow developed while we were supposed to be talking about dogs and cats.

I’m going to miss being your veterinarian.

I don’t know exactly where every future chapter will lead, but I know this is where I need to be right now. I want to help our pets pass with dignity and peace, surrounded by the people they love, in the comfort of their own homes.

Animal Care remains in very capable hands. I am proud of the veterinarians and staff there and of what we have built together. They will take good care of you.

And so, more than anything else, I simply want to say thank you.

Thank you for trusting me. Thank you for requesting me. Thank you for being patient with me. Thank you for the Christmas cards, the baby gifts, the kind reviews, the hugs, the laughs, and even the tears.

Thank you for allowing me into your lives and trusting me with animals who were members of your families.

I thought all those years ago that I was simply starting a job at a veterinary clinic.

I had no idea how much the people I met there would become part of my story.

With love and gratitude,

Dr. Wynn Palmer

Please join us in thanking Dr. Palmer for more than 15 years of dedication to Animal Care and the families we serve. We are grateful for everything he has contributed to our hospital and community and wish him all the best as he begins this next chapter.

Thank you,

The Animal Care Team