Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald is best known for his 11 seasons as one of the veterinarians featured on Animal Planet’s popular [[wikipedia:Emergency_Vets |“Emergency Vets”]] and “E-Vet Interns”. He has been staff veterinarian at the VCA Alameda East Veterinary Hospital in Denver for nearly 30 years. He is the author of It Started With a Turtle: One Man’s Life on a Blue & Green Planet (Archway Publishing, 2024).
Since receiving his PhD in comparative endocrinology from the University of Colorado in 1978 and his veterinary degree from Colorado State University in 1983, he has published more than 150 scientific journal articles and 41 veterinary textbook chapters. He has also written columns for American Kennel Club Family Dog Magazine, and Police K9 Magazine.
He has taught his well-attended “Perspectives in Veterinary Medicine” class at the University of Denver to hundreds of students since 1985. In 2006, he was awarded the “Spirit Award” of the Specialists in Private Practice and Hills Dog Food for Specialist of the Year in private practice.
Since 2007, Fitzgerald has assisted in 10 animal expeditions ranging from Antarctica to Mongolia to Manitoba focusing on conservation and endangered species. During college and graduate school, Fitzgerald worked as a bouncer on rock band tours for promoters Barry Fey and [[wikipedia:Bill_Graham_(promoter) |Bill Graham]]. During this time he did security for such diverse acts as Willie Nelson, The Who, Parliament-Funkadelic, and the Rolling Stones.
He is also an accomplished stand-up comedian who performs nationally. His credits include opening for Bob Hope, Jeff Foxworthy, and George Lopez, as well as multiple appearances with Joan Rivers, Kevin Nealon, and Dennis Miller. He believes that none of us laugh enough and that we are all stewards of animal life on this planet.Veterinarian, comedian, and devoted conservationist, Kevin Fitzgerald, has written a moving memoir about a life well-lived. His has been a very full life with an almost Forrest Gump-like quality for “being there at the right time.” Join him as he describes being a child of the 50s, doing security for rock bands, and practicing small animal veterinary medicine in a major American city for over 40 years. Come along as he is featured in one of Animal Planet’s first hit television shows, performs stand-up with many of the biggest names in comedy, and comes of age during one of the most exciting and turbulent times in our history.
Writing chapters for numerous veterinary textbooks, publishing multiple scientific papers, and penning animal columns for various popular magazines has left Fitzgerald a skilled and graceful essayist. He is easy to read. His book is funny but no doubt you also will be moved by the topics covered and the people and animals you will meet. Journey with him to the Arctic and iconic polar bears, to the solitude of Antarctica, and the wilds of Mongolia. Tag along with him to the stages and green rooms of America’s comedy clubs and meet some of our funniest people. Fitzgerald has written a very charming and readable book. His stirring memoir captures the essence of his time, the spirit of his generation, and is an unblinking glimpse at an extraordinary life.