Not Just Puppy Love

January 21, 2025

 

“Every day that I go in, anything can happen,” says veterinarian Ira Stone (’83, ’87). One night in the late ’80s for instance, a man walked into Stone’s clinic with a beagle that had ingested antifreeze, a lethal toxin. The antidote? Booze.

“Nowadays they have a drug for that, but if you give the dog alcohol the body will process it instead of the antifreeze,” Stone explains. Luckily, there was a bar down the street from the clinic. Stone hustled over and procured a bottle of vodka, poured it into an IV bottle at the clinic, and hooked it up to the beagle. “The patient survived but woke up the next morning with a huge hangover.”

Growing up outside of New Haven, Conn., Stone was one of the lucky few who knew exactly what he wanted to do from a very early age. He regularly helped injured animals he found—whether a squirrel hit by a car or ailing members of less appreciated species, like worms or insects. “I’d always try to rehabilitate them,” he says. Occasionally he would bring the animals to the local veterinary clinic. He became such a regular that the clinic took him on as a volunteer when he was in his teens, later gave him a paying job, and finally set him up with an internship at the local veterinary hospital.

He now runs Stone Veterinary Hospital in Watertown, Conn., which he opened in 1995, leading a team of six very busy veterinary doctors. One of his concerns for the veterinary field is the severe shortage of doctors. “The pandemic really exposed the problem, and caused something of an inflection point in veterinary medicine,” says Stone. “Everyone got a pet during lockdown, and we just couldn’t keep up.” There are more veterinary schools opening, Stone reports, but there are still significant barriers. “There’s this romanticized idea that it’s fun and games, and all we do is roll around with puppies all day, but it’s very stressful. You’re dealing with life-or-death situations every day.”

Stone's hospital participates in MSU's Clinic Pet Memorial Program. When a pet passes, Stone Veterinary Hospital makes a donation in memory of the pet to the College of Veterinary Medicine and a card of condolence is sent to the pet owner, notifying them of the donation. It’s both an effort to offer consolation to the pet’s family, while also contributing to the growth of the industry.

While in the veterinary school at MSU, Stone met his future wife, Sandy (Sprague, ’87), who was then studying in the veterinary technician program. “We met over a dog,” Stone recalls.

The dog, named Arrow, was due to be spayed, and Stone was to perform the operation, his first. Sandy was doing the anesthesia—and Arrow was her dog. “It was very nerve-wracking,” says Stone, laughing in retrospect. “I had to impress my new girlfriend and my professor at the same time.” But things worked out—Sandy and Ira have been married since 1990.

"We're proud Spartans, and proud supporters of the veterinary school," says Stone. “The greatest decision I made was go to Michigan State. I found my lifelong partner and made amazing friends. We still go back every year."

Contributing Writer(s): Chris Quirk